Background

PATH Ministries International – Ethiopia is a foreign charitable organization implementing programs focused on education, child protection, psychosocial wellbeing, gender and social inclusion, livelihoods, community development, health and hygiene, and support for vulnerable children and families.

PATH Ethiopia works with children, families, schools, community structures, government partners, and other stakeholders to improve the wellbeing, protection, inclusion, and development of vulnerable populations.

To strengthen the quality and effectiveness of its communication, training, awareness-raising, and community education materials, PATH Ethiopia is seeking a qualified and experienced IEC/SBCC Graphic Designer and Illustrator.

The selected consultant will support the development of high-quality Information, Education and Communication (IEC), Social and Behavior Change Communication (SBCC), training, project visibility, and community education materials.

The contracted professional will work closely with PATH Ethiopia technical and program teams to translate technical messages into culturally appropriate, inclusive, child-friendly, and visually engaging materials.

Purpose of the Assignment

This is a three-month contract assignment established to strengthen PATH Ethiopia's visual communication and educational materials through the development of professional illustrations, graphic designs, IEC/SBCC materials, and standardized organizational visual communication products.

During the three-month contract period, the selected professional will support PATH Ethiopia to:

• Promote positive social and behavioral practices.
• Increase awareness of child protection risks and available support services.
• Help children and communities understand complex information through clear visual communication.
• Support training and capacity-building activities.
• Strengthen project and organizational visibility.
• Present technical and project information in a professional and consistent visual format.
• Support audiences with different literacy levels through appropriate illustrations, icons, diagrams, and visual storytelling.
• Ensure communication materials are culturally appropriate, inclusive, child-sensitive, and accessible.

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Scope of Work

The contracted professional will design, illustrate, and develop materials including, but not limited to:

• Child protection IEC and SBCC materials.
• Community awareness materials.
• Training manuals and facilitator guides.
• Child-friendly educational materials.
• Posters, brochures, leaflets, flipcharts, and booklets.
• Referral pathway and safeguarding materials.
• Health and hygiene communication materials.
• Gender and social inclusion materials.
• MHPSS and psychosocial education materials.
• Menstrual health and hygiene materials.
• Parenting and family-strengthening materials.
• Education and school-based communication materials.
• Project graphics and visibility materials.
• Infographics and visual reports.
• Social media graphics.
• Event and training materials.
• Presentation graphics.
• Project reports, fact sheets, and briefs.
• Other illustrations and graphic design products requested by PATH Ethiopia.

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Key Duties and Responsibilities

A. IEC and SBCC Material Development

The contracted professional shall:

• Design and illustrate Information, Education and Communication materials for PATH Ethiopia programs.
• Develop Social and Behavior Change Communication materials for children, parents, caregivers, teachers, community leaders, and other community members.
• Translate technical program messages into simple, understandable, and visually engaging communication materials.
• Develop posters, brochures, leaflets, flipcharts, information cards, job aids, booklets, manuals, handouts, campaign materials, and other IEC products.
• Support the development of communication materials for community awareness campaigns and behavioral change interventions.
• Ensure materials communicate practical behaviors, clear messages, and appropriate calls to action.
• Develop materials suitable for audiences with different literacy levels by using clear illustrations, symbols, icons, and visual storytelling.

B. Child Protection Communication Materials

The contracted professional shall:

• Develop child-friendly illustrations and communication materials addressing child protection concerns.
• Design materials that help children, families, schools, and communities recognize different forms of abuse, neglect, exploitation, violence, and harmful practices.
• Illustrate safe and unsafe situations in an age-appropriate and culturally sensitive manner.
• Develop materials explaining how and where children and community members can safely report protection concerns.
• Design materials explaining referral pathways, safeguarding mechanisms, complaint channels, and available support services.

Materials may address issues such as:

• Physical abuse.
• Emotional abuse.
• Sexual abuse and exploitation.
• Neglect.
• Child marriage.
• Harmful traditional practices.
• School-related violence.
• Bullying.
• Child labor.
• Trafficking and abduction.
• Online and digital safety.
• Gender-based violence.
• Safe reporting and help-seeking behavior.

The consultant must ensure that illustrations involving sensitive child-protection issues are respectful, non-stigmatizing, non-graphic, and consistent with safeguarding principles.

C. Illustration of Training and Educational Materials

The contracted professional shall:

• Create illustrations for training manuals, facilitator guides, participant manuals, workbooks, handouts, and presentations.
• Develop scenario-based illustrations that trainers can use to explain program concepts.
• Create visual case studies, stories, diagrams, process illustrations, and learning aids.
• Develop age-appropriate educational materials for children and adolescents.
• Work with technical staff to ensure illustrations correctly represent the intended learning objectives.

Training materials may cover:

• Child protection.
• Safeguarding.
• Mental health and psychosocial support.
• Psychological First Aid.
• Gender and social inclusion.
• Life skills.
• Education.
• Menstrual health and hygiene.
• Parenting.
• Livelihoods.
• Community development.
• Health and hygiene.
• Other PATH Ethiopia program areas.

D. Graphic Design and Organizational Communication

The contracted professional shall:

• Design professional project and organizational communication materials.
• Develop layouts and graphics for:
• • Project reports.
  • Annual reports.
  • Project summaries.
  • Success stories.
  • Fact sheets.
  • Program briefs.
  • Presentations.
  • Event materials.
  • Certificates.
  • Invitations.
  • Training materials.
  • Visibility materials.
  • Social media graphics.
  • Website content.
• Create infographics that communicate project results, statistics, beneficiary information, and key messages clearly.
• Support the preparation of graphics for project launching events, workshops, campaigns, awareness programs, and stakeholder meetings.
• Ensure all products follow PATH Ethiopia's branding requirements and maintain consistent visual identity.

E. Social and Behavior Change Communication

The contracted professional shall:

• Work with program teams to identify behaviors, attitudes, social norms, and knowledge gaps that communication materials should address.
• Translate SBCC objectives into clear visual messages.
• Develop communication materials that promote positive practices, rather than only providing information.
• Develop audience-specific materials based on age, gender, literacy level, culture, language, and community context.

Materials may support positive practices related to:

• Positive parenting.
• Child safeguarding.
• School attendance.
• Gender equality.
• Inclusion of children with disabilities.
• Hygiene and sanitation.
• Health-seeking behavior.
• Community reporting of child-protection concerns.
• Psychosocial wellbeing.
• Prevention of violence and harmful practices.

F. Community and Cultural Adaptation

The contracted professional shall:

• Ensure illustrations appropriately reflect the communities where PATH Ethiopia works.
• Accurately and respectfully represent local clothing, homes, schools, family structures, community environments, and cultural contexts.
• Ensure representation of women, men, girls, boys, persons with disabilities, and different community groups is inclusive and non-stereotypical.
• Work with program staff and community representatives to test whether illustrations and messages are understandable and culturally appropriate.
• Revise designs based on feedback from staff, beneficiaries, technical specialists, and stakeholders.

G. Language and Localization Support

The contracted professional shall:

• Design materials that can be produced in English, Afan Oromo/Oromiffa, and Amharic.
• Ensure layouts can accommodate translation without losing readability or visual quality.
• Coordinate with translators and program staff to ensure translated text is correctly positioned.
• Prepare multilingual versions of communication materials when required.
• Check visual layouts after translation to ensure text is not cut off, distorted, or incorrectly aligned.

H. Photography, Image, and Visual Asset Management

Where required and authorized, the contracted professional shall:

• Support the selection and preparation of photographs for reports, publications, and communication materials.
• Edit and optimize photographs while maintaining ethical standards.
• Ensure photographs involving children are used only when appropriate consent and safeguarding requirements have been met.
• Maintain organized electronic files of approved illustrations, graphics, photographs, templates, and communication products.
• Provide editable source files and final approved files to PATH Ethiopia.
• Ensure PATH Ethiopia can reuse and adapt approved materials for future organizational and project purposes, in accordance with the agreed contract.

I. Collaboration with PATH Ethiopia Teams

The contracted professional shall:

• Work closely with Education, Child Protection/PGSI, MHPSS, MEAL Unit, Livelihoods, Communications, and other relevant teams.
• Participate in technical discussions before developing materials.
• Seek clarification where technical messages are unclear.
• Produce concepts, drafts, and prototypes for review.
• Incorporate technical feedback into final designs.
• Participate in field visits when required to understand local settings and project activities.
• Support pre-testing and validation of communication materials with intended audiences.
• Revise materials based on pre-test and validation findings.

J. Brand Identity and Visual Communication

The contracted professional shall:

• Develop and standardize PATH Ethiopia’s brand identity and visual communication guidelines.
• Establish consistent standards for the use of the organizational logo, brand colors, fonts, font sizes, spacing, and layout.
• Develop standard templates for PowerPoint presentations, reports, Word documents, certificates, letterheads, brochures, posters, banners, and other organizational materials.
• Ensure charts, tables, icons, illustrations, photographs, and other visual elements follow a consistent organizational style.
• Develop or refine templates for social media graphics and other digital communication materials.
• Ensure all internal and external communication materials maintain a professional, consistent, and recognizable PATH Ethiopia visual identity.
• Provide editable source files and templates that can be easily used by PATH Ethiopia staff for future communication and reporting needs.
• Provide clear guidance to staff on the proper application of the organization’s branding standards across different materials and platforms.

Remote Working and Coordination Requirements

The assignment will primarily be conducted remotely. However, the selected contracted professional must maintain regular, reliable, and structured communication with PATH Ethiopia.

The contracted professional will be required to:

• Participate in scheduled weekly coordination meetings with the responsible PATH Ethiopia team.
• Participate in monthly progress review meetings.
• Provide regular updates on assigned deliverables and agreed timelines.
• Submit work according to agreed deadlines.
• Respond to technical feedback and revision requests within agreed timeframes.
• Maintain reliable access to internet, email, and virtual meeting platforms.
• Participate in additional coordination meetings when necessary for major assignments, urgent revisions, or validation.
• Maintain professional communication with PATH Ethiopia throughout the assignment.

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Field Visit Requirement

Although the assignment is primarily remote, the contracted professional must be willing and able to travel to PATH Ethiopia project implementation areas when required.

Field visits may be required to:

• Understand the local context before developing illustrations.
• Observe project activities.
• Consult with technical staff and community stakeholders.
• Understand local clothing, environments, schools, households, and cultural contexts.
• Pre-test IEC/SBCC materials with intended audiences.
• Collect community and staff feedback.
• Participate in validation workshops or training activities.
• Improve the cultural and technical accuracy of illustrations.

The frequency and duration of field visits will depend on project needs and will be agreed with PATH Ethiopia in advance.

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Quality Assurance Requirements

The contracted professional shall ensure that all materials are:

• Technically accurate.
• Visually clear.
• Appropriate for the intended audience.
• Culturally sensitive.
• Inclusive and non-discriminatory.
• Child-friendly where applicable.
• Consistent with safeguarding principles.
• Consistent with PATH Ethiopia's visual identity.
• Suitable for printing and digital distribution.
• Properly proofread before final production.

The contracted professional shall also ensure that:

• Images are high resolution.
• Print files use appropriate dimensions and margins.
• Fonts are readable.
• Colors and graphics remain clear when printed.
• Final files are properly formatted.
• Editable source files are submitted and properly organized.
• File names and folders are clearly structured for future organizational use.

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Expected Outputs

Depending on project requirements, expected outputs may include:

• Child-protection posters.
• Community awareness posters.
• SBCC flipcharts.
• Illustrated training manuals.
• Child-friendly booklets.
• Referral pathway posters.
• Safeguarding information materials.
• Gender and inclusion materials.
• Health and hygiene materials.
• Menstrual health and hygiene materials.
• School awareness materials.
• Parenting communication materials.
• Illustrated case scenarios.
• Infographics.
• Brochures and leaflets.
• Project fact sheets.
• Annual and project reports.
• Social media graphics.
• Event banners and backdrops.
• Presentation graphics.
• Training certificates.
• Visibility materials.
• Other design and illustration products requested by PATH Ethiopia.

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Minimum Qualifications

Duty Station

• Remote

Employment Type:

• Full-time

Contract Type

• Contract

Duration

• 3-month contract.

Grows Salary

• 65,000 ETB salary is fixed to current USD exchange rate

Education

Applicants should have a degree, diploma, or equivalent professional qualification in one or more of the following:

• Graphic Design.
• Illustration.
• Visual Communication.
• Fine Arts.
• Multimedia Design.
• Communication Design.
• Digital Media.
• Another closely related field.

Strong professional experience and an exceptional portfolio may be considered in place of a specific academic qualification.

Experience

Applicants should have:

• At least 3-5 years of relevant professional experience in graphic design, illustration, visual communication, or related work.
• Demonstrated experience producing original illustrations, not only layout-based design.
• Experience developing IEC, BCC, or SBCC materials.
• Experience working with NGOs, development organizations, humanitarian organizations, schools, government programs, or community-based projects is highly desirable.
• Experience developing communication materials for children and communities.
• Experience illustrating sensitive topics such as child protection, gender, health, safeguarding, or psychosocial wellbeing is an advantage.
• Experience preparing professional materials for printing and digital use.

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Technical Skills

Applicants should demonstrate strong competency in relevant software such as:

• Adobe Illustrator.
• Adobe Photoshop.
• Adobe InDesign.
• CorelDRAW.
• Affinity Designer.
• Procreate.
• Canva.
• Other equivalent professional design applications.

Applicants should also demonstrate:

• Strong digital illustration skills.
• Ability to create original illustrations.
• Strong typography and layout skills.
• Understanding of professional print preparation.
• Ability to prepare vector graphics.
• Ability to develop infographics.
• Ability to prepare editable source files.
• Ability to adapt designs into multiple formats and languages.
• Strong file organization and asset-management skills.

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Required Competencies

The successful applicant should demonstrate:

• Creativity and strong visual storytelling ability.
• Ability to understand technical concepts and communicate them visually.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Ability to work collaboratively with technical teams.
• Ability to receive and incorporate feedback professionally.
• Ability to manage multiple assignments and deadlines.
• Good communication and interpersonal skills.
• Cultural sensitivity.
• Strong understanding of ethical representation of children and vulnerable populations.
• Commitment to safeguarding and confidentiality.
• Ability to work independently in a remote arrangement.
• Reliability in attending scheduled weekly and monthly meetings.
• Willingness to travel to project sites when required.

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Language Requirements

Applicants should have:

• Good working ability in English.
• Strong communication skills in Afan Oromo/Oromiffa, highly desirable due to PATH Ethiopia's field operations.
• Good knowledge of Afan Oromo/Oromiffa, strongly preferred.
• Ability to work with multilingual materials in English, Afan Oromo, and Amharic.

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Safeguarding and Ethical Responsibilities

Because this assignment may involve communication materials related to children and vulnerable populations, the selected consultant must:

• Comply with PATH Ethiopia's Child Protection and Safeguarding policies.
• Maintain confidentiality regarding beneficiary and organizational information.
• Never use identifiable beneficiary photographs, case information, or personal information without appropriate authorization.
• Avoid exploitative, degrading, discriminatory, stigmatizing, or sensationalized representations.
• Ensure communication materials uphold the dignity and safety of children and communities.
• Use beneficiary images only where appropriate consent and authorization have been obtained.
• Immediately report any safeguarding concern identified during the course of the assignment through PATH Ethiopia's established reporting mechanisms.
• Comply with PATH Ethiopia's Code of Conduct and other applicable organizational policies.

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