ENVIRONMENTAL & SOCIAL SPECIALIST

Position: ENVIRONMENTAL & SOCIAL SPECIALIST

Nationality: Eritrea, Djibouti, Ethiopia & East Africa Community

Location: Eritrea

Contract Duration: 15 months

About Us:

Your career is about more than building a resume — it’s a chance to #LeaveYourMark. Guaranteeing quality, ensuring health and safety, mitigating risks and improving performance, as well as environmental protection and social responsibility…this is what Bureau Veritas is about. Join an inclusive, flexible and diverse company where you can thrive while positively contributing to transforming the world in which we live.

Position Summary

The Senior Environmental & Social Specialist will lead environmental and social assessment, compliance, monitoring, stakeholder engagement, and safeguard implementation for utility-scale Solar PV and BESS projects in Eritrea.

The role will ensure compliance throughout design, construction, operation, and decommissioning with national legislation, applicable permits, international environmental and social standards, and multilateral development bank requirements. The Specialist will coordinate with project teams, contractors, regulators, communities, and other stakeholders to manage environmental and social risks and promote sustainable project outcomes.

Key Responsibilities

• Review and update Environmental and Social Impact Assessments, baseline studies, management plans, permits, and approval conditions.
• Develop and implement the Environmental and Social Management Plan, monitoring programme, risk register, mitigation measures, performance indicators, and corrective-action plans.
• Integrate environmental and social requirements into project designs, tender documents, contracts, construction methods, operating procedures, and decommissioning plans.
• Ensure compliance with relevant national legislation, IFC Performance Standards, World Bank Group EHS Guidelines, MDB safeguard requirements, ISO 14001, and applicable sector standards.
• Assess and manage impacts relating to biodiversity, habitats, land use, soil, erosion, water resources, air quality, noise, vibration, waste, hazardous materials, community health, and cultural heritage.
• Develop and oversee waste-minimisation, hazardous-materials, spill-response, wastewater, stormwater, dust-control, erosion-control, land-restoration, and pollution-prevention measures.
• Establish environmental monitoring programmes covering air, water, noise, soil, biodiversity, waste, and other applicable project parameters.
• Conduct site inspections, compliance audits, contractor assessments, and incident investigations, and monitor completion of corrective and preventive actions.
• Manage environmental requirements specific to Solar PV and BESS installations, including battery safety, chemical handling, fire risks, damaged equipment, recycling, and end-of-life disposal.
• Develop and implement stakeholder-engagement plans, community consultation procedures, disclosure arrangements, and grievance-redress mechanisms.
• Maintain constructive relationships with affected communities, government agencies, regulators, utilities, contractors, lenders, and development partners.
• Prepare environmental and social compliance, monitoring, audit, incident, grievance, and performance reports for the Client, regulators, lenders, and MDBs.
• Maintain complete records of permits, consultations, grievances, inspections, monitoring results, non-conformities, incidents, and corrective actions.
• Coordinate with the Project Director, technical specialists, contractors, and local authorities, and provide environmental and social training and capacity building.

Qualifications and Experience

• Master’s degree in Environmental Science, Environmental Engineering, Ecology, Natural Resource Management, Social Science, or a closely related discipline.
• Minimum eight years’ professional experience in environmental and social assessment, safeguards, compliance, or environmental management.
• Demonstrated experience preparing or reviewing ESIAs, ESMPs, environmental monitoring programmes, stakeholder-engagement plans, and compliance reports.
• Experience implementing IFC Performance Standards, World Bank Group EHS Guidelines, or other multilateral development bank safeguard requirements.
• Experience in infrastructure, energy, utilities, Solar PV, BESS, transmission, or other major construction projects.
• Practical experience in contractor monitoring, environmental auditing, grievance management, community consultation, incident investigation, and corrective-action tracking.
• Experience with internationally financed projects, Sub-Saharan Africa, or emerging markets is highly desirable.
• Knowledge of Eritrean environmental legislation, permitting requirements, and institutional arrangements is an advantage.

Technical Competencies

• ESIA, baseline studies, alternatives analysis, cumulative-impact assessment, ESMP development, and environmental and social risk assessment.
• Environmental monitoring, data analysis, compliance auditing, incident investigation, and technical reporting.
• Biodiversity, water, soil, air quality, noise, waste, hazardous materials, pollution prevention, and land-restoration management.
• Stakeholder mapping, community consultation, information disclosure, grievance management, and community relations.
• Construction-phase environmental management and contractor compliance monitoring.
• Solar PV and BESS environmental risks, battery handling, fire and chemical risks, recycling, and end-of-life management.
• Knowledge of national regulations, IFC Performance Standards, World Bank Group EHS Guidelines, MDB safeguards, ISO 14001, and relevant international good practice.
• Proficiency in environmental data analysis, GIS and mapping, document management, reporting, and project-management tools.

Professional Credentials and Attributes

Environmental Impact Assessment certification, ISO 14001 Lead Auditor qualification, Professional Environmental Scientist registration, EHS certification, or MDB safeguards training is highly desirable. ISO 45001, project management, biodiversity, air-quality, or water-quality certification is an advantage.

The successful candidate will demonstrate strong technical judgment, environmental and social responsibility, attention to detail, stakeholder-engagement skills, cultural sensitivity, excellent report writing, professional integrity, effective coordination, and the ability to train and transfer knowledge to local teams.

Language Capabilities

• English: Fluent (essential for international communication and MDB compliance)
• Local Language: Proficiency in local language of project country (valuable for community engagement)

ACCEPTABLE CV Format

CURRICULUM VITAE (CV)

Education: {List college/university or other specialized education, giving names of educational institutions, dates attended, degree(s)/diploma(s) obtained}

Employment record relevant to the assignment:

{Starting with present position, list in reverse order. Please provide dates, name of employing organization, titles of positions held, types of activities performed and location of the assignment, and contact information of previous clients and employing organization(s) who can be contacted for references. Past employment that is not relevant to the assignment does not need to be included.}

Membership in Professional Associations and Publications: ______________________________________________________________________

Language Skills (indicate only languages in which you can work): ______________

Adequacy for the Assignment:

Contact information : (e-mail …………………., phone……………)

                                                                                                                                                                                            {day/month/year}

Name                                                 Signature                                                                                                   Date