Statement_of_Work_-_Ethiopia_Mass_Media_Publicity_Campaign_-_July_2019_(1).doc

DRAFT: 7/19/2019 12:10 PM

Statement of Work:

National Mass Media Publicity Campaign in Ethiopia

1. Introduction

Ethiopia is currently undertaking significant political, economic and social reforms through the Government of Ethiopia’s (GOE) “Ethiopia: A New Horizon of Hope” reform agenda. The reforms should serve to strengthen Ethiopia’s democratic institutions to better serve the population and increase the capacity of Ethiopia’s private sector to provide jobs for Ethiopia’s growing population. Undoubtedly, the successful implementation of these reforms will bring about substantial progress on Ethiopia’s path to self-reliance. At the same time, dramatic transitions such as these can be frought by conflict and any perceived lack of progress on reforms has the potential to contribute to further unrest and could possibly threaten Ethiopia’s progress. Already, some actors are attempting to cast doubt on the opening of democratic space and market-oriented economic reforms.

The United States Government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), has been and continues to be Ethiopia’s largest bi-lateral donor. USAID has long provided assistance to support reform efforts in Ethiopia and has mobilized additional resources in order to be able to amplify and sustain the groundbreaking new initiatives. As such, the United States strongly supports the reform agenda and considers its investments and investment in its success.

To highlight these efforts and mobilize public support for reforms, th US Mission seeks to launch a mass media campaign to generate greater public awareness of the U.S. investments that are helping Ethiopians to improve the quality of their lives, to strengthen the decades-long partnership between the United States and Ethiopia, as well as to build and sustain support for Ethiopia’s reform agenda.

To achieve this objective, USAID/Ethiopia is requesting proposals from interested parties to design and execute a creative and successful multimedia publicity campaign nationwide in Ethiopia. The anticipated funding level will not exceed $200,000 during a period of up to a one year from the start of the campaign.

2. Background:

Ethiopia is an important partner for the United States and has a potentially consequential economy of approximately 110 million people. Ethiopia is currently pursuing significant political and economic reforms with a goal of holding its first free and competitive elections in May 2020.

The U.S. has provided development and humanitarian assistance to Ethiopia since the 1950s and has invested approximately $4 billion in assistance during just the last five years alone. This support has helped train hundreds of thousands of health workers and teachers, helped millions of farmers increase their yields, made government institutions more responsive, and helped millions of families to feed their children and bounce back from potentially catastrophic shocks. While early U.S. foreign assistance to Ethiopia included the construction of Alemayu (now Haramaya) University, the Jimma College of Agriculture and the Gondar medical school, more recent U.S. assistance has concentrated on building the capacity of Ethiopian institutions, civil society and the private sector to improve operations and become self-reliant. Although USAID has constructed more than 20 health centers and a new National Blood Bank which it handed over to the Ministry of Health, the vast majority of USAID assistance is currently being spent on supporting the improvement of service providing institutiions, building the economy by bolstering the private sector, building inclusive democracy and providing emergency humanitarian assistance.

In spite of the vast improvements made by Ethiopia in recent years in health and education, in meeting MDgs, growing the private sector and in building overall resilience, many focus on infrastructure projects as proof of the country’s development progress. A significant number of these projects were undertaken by foreign companies and financed with billions of dollars in loans. Many Ethiopians – from common people to GOE officials – ask: “Why doesn’t the U.S. build things for Ethiopia like others do?” Most do not understand that these infrastructure projects are not actually “assistance” but are instead incurring massive amounts of foreign debt for the GOE which future generations of Ethiopians will need to pay off. At the same time, there is little awareness of the breadth and scope of US development and humanitarian investments partially due to the wide range of partners USAID uses to implement its activities.

To better highlight the value of the U.S. socio-economic development model, the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa launched a campaign #USInvestsInEthiopians to reframe the narrative on what meaningful, responsible investment looks like. While the campaign has proved successful on social media platforms, lack of internet access and a challenging media environment mean that many Ethiopians are more likely to see the physical results of a construction project than to know that services and other benefits they receive have come through investments made by the United States.

3. Project Overview

In order to meet the overall campaign objectives, the content and messaging produced for this campaign must evoke strong positive emotions among individual viewers, listeners, social media users, or consumers of other media in Ethiopia and ultimately highlight thematics of people-to-people engagement and understanding. Messaging and visuals should clearly promote the ideals of democratic society and economic prosperity through highlighting positive impacts of U.S. assistance.

To support the U.S. Embassy’s #USInvestsInEthiopians messaging, our multi-platform campaign will target key audiences to amplify the message that the U.S. is the clear partnership choice for Ethiopia. Emphasizing the unparalleled success of the U.S. model, and linking that with the success of U.S. assistance in building Ethiopia’s capacity for lasting prosperity and stability, this year-long campaign will strengthen U.S.-Ethiopian ties by explicitly highlighting how the U.S. is investing in Ethiopian society, institutions and private sector development – sustainable solutions as opposed to the short-term gains and debt-trap that some other countries offer.

Using expertise and experience operating in the Ethiopian context, and incorporating data from a media landscape survey that is currently underway, the successful candidate will design and execute a year-long, unified multimedia messaging campaign to reach as many Ethiopians possible with creative visual, audio and other media content and highlight the accomplishments of the United States Government and the benefits of its myriad investments in the Ethiopian people. This will create awareness among all audience segments of the activities and benefits of #USInvestsInEthiopians policy. The messages may be developed for billboards, digital screens, TV and radio. #USInvestsInEthiopians messaging will also be deployed on US Embassy and USAID Ethiopia social media platforms and incorporated into talking points and press releases.

4. Target Audiences

The mass media campaign will target various audiences in Ethiopia, ranging from high-level government officials and policy experts in Ethiopian civil society, to common Ethiopian people – and garner their support and appreciation for both U.S. foreign assistance to their country and for overall sustainable development and reform efforts. Youth will also be a prominent target audience, particularly in efforts to increase engagement on social media.

The content and messaging involved in this campaign can also be used to target secondary audiences around the world, highlighting to them the importance of U.S. investments in creating more stable, democratic and prosperous partners in Ethiopia, as well as in other countries throughout the world.

Primary Audiences:

· Government of Ethiopia officials, including the Prime Minister, members of his cabinet, and other prominent individuals in national and regional government bodies.

· Influential active members of Ethiopian civil society from academic, political and business backgrounds.

· General urban and semi-urban public in Ethiopia, with a focus on youth (ages 16-35).

· The Ethiopian diaspora who can and should play a positive role in assisting the reform agenda both through their political support as well as through their own financial resources.

· Influencers in Ethiopia who can help to amplify messaging in order to raise awareness and support of #USInvestsInEthiopians and the reform agenda.

Secondary Audiences:

· Government officials in developing countries in Africa around the world, particularly those involved in policy and decision-making regarding development as well as other development stakeholders.

5. Requirements and Deliverables In order to be most effective, the content and messaging produced for this campaign must evoke strong, positive emotions and connect with individual viewers. The specific activities and methodology entailed in the campaign will be determined after an initial consultation between the selected company and key personnel from U.S. Embassy Addis Ababa, including USAID Development Outreach and Communications team, Public Affairs Officer, Information Officer, and others as relevant (henceforth referred to as U.S. Embassy Communications Team).

In order to be effective, most of this campaign will need to be conducted in Amharic and other local languages. Interested companies must demonstrate their capacity to produce culturally appropriate content in local languages.

The initial consultation process will culminate in the design of a strategic workplan that will include detailed timelines for production (e.g., for visual media such as videos, photos, graphic design elements, as well as other media that could include radio spots, billboards, etc.), as well as detailed distribution information, which may include channels, dates and times of television and radio spots, locations for billboard advertisements, or other relevant information.

The U.S. Embassy Communications Team will also provide direction over content production and distribution throughout the course of the project.

Content and Material Production

Following approval of the campaign production plan and timeline, the contractor will be required to design and produce all products needed to meet the objective of the campaign. Content must evoke positive emotion while clearly making the connection of U.S. investments in Ethiopia benefiting the good of the people. Video content must also meet the specifications of Ethiopian broadcast media (PAL, etc.), as well as optimized for repurposing via social media channels or events (4K/high-definition files with H.264 compatibility, or similar). All branding must comply with the parameters established in USAID’s graphics standards manual.

Purchasing and Distribution

The contractor must also arrange, negotiate and purchase space for television spots, radio air time, billboard space, or other methods of communication as determined by contractor and U.S. Embassy Communications Team.

Metrics Following distribution and completion of run for each content piece under the campaign, the contractor will provide metrics on total number of people reached, as well as engagement metrics (where possible) to indicate the involvement of audiences under the various channels of communication used in the campaign.

Timeline The duration of the campaign is expected to be completed within 12 months of the award date. Upon signing the contract, the successful candidate will participate in a kick off meeting with U.S. Embassy Communications Team members to discuss overall work plan and production schedule. Following this consultation, the contractor must submit a finalized work plan within 10 business days, which includes a timeline of any required production, as well as an overview of distribution. The timeline and production schedule is subject to approval from the U.S. Embassy Communications Team.

Deliverables

An itemized list of deliverables will be further specified during the finalization of the successful candidate’s workplan, and will be based upon audience data and reach metrics being gathered, but will likely include a mix of the following:

· Video: Production of 1-3 short (30-60 seconds) television commercials to air on Ethiopian television and social media.

· Print: Design of 5-10 pieces of print collateral (billboard, newspaper inserts, brochure).

· Radio: Production of 1-3 short (30 seconds) radio spots to air on national and regional radio stations across the country.

· Distribution: Purchase of billboard space and air time among selected Ethiopian television and radio channels, with a goal of maximizing reach.

All products produced should carry a common visual or audio identity so as to be easily understood to be part of the same campaign.

6. Application Instructions and Format

Interested offerors are encouraged to apply by submitting the following information to addisprocurement@usaid.gov by August 19, 2019.

1) A proposal of no more than seven (7) pages describing and illustrating how your organization could build recognition and appreciation of the #USInvestsInEthiopia theme and the brand of USAID and U.S. assistance programs in Ethiopia, as well as outlining how the agency will assure the campaign deliverables, timeline and objectives will be met;

2) Creative portfolio including internet links or digital copies of relevant content and previous campaigns developed by the organization must be submitted alongside the proposal;

3) Budget, including a general breakdown of estimated costs for design and production of various media content pieces, purchase of advertising space, and associated labor costs.

7. Evaluation Criteria Candidates’ proposals will be reviewed and evaluated based on the following criteria:

· Technical quality and feasibility of the proposal, which should include a description of the Contractor’s proposed methodology to develop attractive content and deliver a successful campaign within the specified timeline and with a budget of up to $200,000. (40%)

· The organization’s capacity will be a factor in the evaluation of all proposals. Specifically, proposals will be evaluated as to whether the organization itself has experience and capacity in respect of personnel, finance, connections and relationships with media houses in Addis Ababa and other cities in Ethiopia to perform the type of work under this contract and whether the creative content meets the quality levels expected through such a contract. Offerors must demonstrate their capacity to produce culturally appropriate content in local languages. (30%)

· Demonstrated past performance to produce creative and attractive products that engage and appeal to Ethiopian audiences will be a factor in the evaluation of all proposals. Content samples from previous campaigns, as well as proven results as demonstrated by metrics of reach and, where applicable, change in behavior, will be a major determinant in assessing the applicant’s capabilities through review of previous work. (30%) *Shortlisted candidates will be invited to deliver their pitch in person with their proposed teams to the technical evaluation committee. Separate parameters for the pitch presentations will be provided to short-listed offerors.