Consultancy: Occupational health, Safety and Environment requirement collection

June 4, 2023

Terms of Reference

for the Southern governorates – Occupational health, Safety and Environment requirement collection

Under Jordan Water Governance Activity

BACKGROUND

The Water Governance Activity (WGA) program is a multi-year project funded by USAID, which aims to support the Government of Jordan (GoJ) to achieve measurable improvements and greater sustainability of the water sector by providing technical assistance to strengthen the GoJ’s reform, policy development and implementation, and capacity-building efforts. WGA will support the following objectives: support the GoJ to define and resolve water sector strategy and policy issues; improve water entities’ performance by reducing network losses, increasing conveyance efficiencies, and improving utility cost recovery; and specific, cross-cutting objectives related to support to gender, youth, persons with disabilities (PWD), and private sector engagement.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES

Introduction:

The purpose of this Scope of Work for Short-Term Technical Assistance (STTA) is to hire a technical expert who can offer technical support to the WGA program in the southern governorates of Jordan. The objective is to help enhance the occupational safety and health standards in the water sector. The technical expert will be expected to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the current occupational safety and health hazards and standards in the water sector, develop a strategic plan to address the identified gaps, and provide a list of necessary trainings to enhance the capacity of the water sector workers. The technical expert's work is intended to be the first step in supporting the water sector workers to have a safer, healthier, and productive work environment, free from work-related accidents and injuries. The end goal is to improve the overall performance of the water sector in the southern governorates of Jordan, by complying with the relevant international standards such as but not limited to ISO, OSHA, and JSMO.

Task 1: Data collection and baseline report:

The candidate will be responsible for conducting desk reviews, assessments, and interviews to evaluate work injuries and accidents status in water and wastewater operation and maintenance facilities, offices, and headquarters. This report must also examine the current conditions that limit or cause these types of incidents.

The assessment and baseline report must include the following:

• The governmental guidelines on risk assessment practices that are set by the local and international industrial standards and that are included in the Jordanian law.
• Assessment of the current condition regarding Occupational health safety and environmental risk for water and wastewater facilities, staffs, as described in the BOQ table.
• Examine the reasons and factors behind work injuries and accidents and categorize them by following an international or local standard of categorization. Furthermore, the contractor must take into consideration the types of injuries, severity, and the causes of work incidents, as well as disaggregating them by employees' work type, gender, and other relevant attributes.
• Assessment of existing administration policies and practices on risk assessment and health protection.
• Review the existing emergency plans if any.

The candidate is required to conduct both off-field and on-field research to establish a baseline for work injuries and accidents. Off-field research entails studying regulations and standards, exploring health and safety solutions, and analyzing data and documentation procedures. On-field research involves conducting surveys, interviews, and visiting local establishments.

The candidate must visit the following locations and may include additional ones as necessary to ensure a comprehensive and informative report.

Locations in Aqaba Governorate:

Locations in Karak Governorate:

Locations in Ma’an Governorate

Locations in Tafaleh Governorate

This report must be segregated into sections, each section representing a governorate.

Task 2: Development of Risks Mitigation Program:

As an OHSE expert in the water sector, you will use the data and findings from Task 1 to develop a comprehensive OHSE risk mitigation program for water and wastewater facilities, staff, and operations. The program should address a technical component that includes means of risk identification and classification, risk assessment, and mitigation. Additionally, you will review the existing emergency plans and focus on ATEX areas to cover Bio-Gas area/Aqaba WWTP in terms of workspace requirements, PPE, safety requirements during daily work, and safety limitations and precautionary measures during system maintenance activities.

To develop the OHSE risks mitigation program, you must:

1. Identify and classify OHSE risks associated with water and wastewater facilities, staff, and operations.
2. Conduct a risk assessment to evaluate the likelihood and consequences of identified risks.
3. Develop and implement risk mitigation strategies that include controls to eliminate or reduce the likelihood and consequences of identified risks.
4. Review existing emergency plans.

The OHSE risk mitigation program must take the form of guides for specific staff groups, including but not limited to:

1. Water operations and maintenance staff
2. Wastewater operations and maintenance staff
3. wastewater treatment plants staff
4. Water treatment plants staff
5. Water resource and pumping stations operators

Task 3: Development of OHSE requirements report:

The purpose of this report is to outline the activities and training required by the southern governorates. The report will detail the health, safety, and environmental requirements that are applicable to the organization, and provide recommendations for implementing these requirements.

The report must highlight the following:

1. Identify the relevant OHSE requirements (training, tools, and equipment).
2. Assess the organization's compliance with these requirements.
3. Develop recommendations for implementing the OHSE requirements, including strategies for improving compliance and reducing risk.

The candidate will include a list of suggested OHSE training topics based on the assessment findings from Tasks 1 and 2.

The suggested OHSE training topics should include:

1. OHSE policies and procedures
2. Hazard identification and risk assessment
3. Personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements and usage
4. Emergency preparedness and response
5. Chemical safety
6. Electrical safety
7. Machine guarding and equipment safety.
8. Confined space entry and rescue
9. Ergonomics and manual handling
10. Fire safety

The report must be segregated into sections, each targeting a specific trade (Water maintenance staff, Wastewater maintenance staff, workers in wastewater treatment plants, and water resource and pumping stations operators) in each governorate. The training plan must consider the specific needs of each governorate when designing the training plan and topics. It should also include suggested annual indicators or measurements to ensure the impact of the training on the unit/utility level.

• LEVEL OF EFFORT

The total level of effort contemplated for this assignment team is a period of up to 56.0 days broken down into the following:

1. Data collection Aqaba 7 days
2. Data collection Karak 10 days
3. Data collection Ma’an 7 days
4. Data collection Tafeleh 5 days
5. Data analysis and baseline report 10 days
6. Development of Risks Mitigation Program 7 days
7. Development OHSE requirement report 10 days.

DELIVERABLES

* The dates of these deliverables are tentative subject to when comments are received from the counterparts and the amount of work needed to finalize the plans

QUALIFICATIONS

The candidate must possess the following qualifications:

• A bachelor’s degree in occupational health and safety, Industrial Engineering, Environmental Science, Medicine, Nursing, or any related field with additional relevant certification in Occupational Health and Safety or any related field.
• NEBOSH (National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health) certification or an equivalent certification in occupational health and safety.
• At least 5 years of experience in occupational health and safety, particularly in infrastructure and water sectors
• Experience in conducting comprehensive assessments and developing strategic plans to improve occupational health and safety in various sectors.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills
• Strong analysis skills on training assessment Strong communication and interpersonal skills
• Fluency in English and Arabic languages

The candidate should be able to demonstrate experience in developing and implementing occupational health and safety programs, conducting training programs for staff and workers, and creating reports that provide detailed recommendations for improving occupational health and safety practices. He/She should also be familiar with the occupational health and safety challenges specific to the infrastructure and water sectors in Jordan and have experience working with local stakeholders in these sectors.

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