Senior External Communications and Media Specialist

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST (LEARN-IC-SUP-2 - Senior External Communications and Media Specialist)

UKRAINE Ukraine Improving Higher Education for Results Project Loan Agreement No. 9238-UA Lifting Education Access and Resilience in Times of Need in Ukraine Program Grant No.TF0C5794

Assignment Title: Senior External Communications and Media Specialist

No . LEARN-IC-SUP-2

The Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine is implementing projects financed by the World Bank, including: Ukraine Improving Higher Education for Results Project (UIHERP) and Lifting Education Access and Resilience in times of Need in Ukraine Program (LEARN) Program and plans to prepare and implement new operations in cooperation with the World Bank (hereinafter referred to as the Operation(s)).

UIHERP Project Development Objective (PDO) is to improve efficiency, conditions for quality, and transparency in the higher education system of Ukraine. LEARN was developed to address critical challenges and provide essential support to the education sector, aligning with the Ministry of Education and Science’s (MoES) Strategic Action Plan. The objectives of the Operation are to (i) improve teaching and learning conditions; and (ii) strengthen management capacity of the education system.

The objective of this assignment is to provide external communications and media support to the Ministry’s leadership on key education reforms. The Consultant will be contracted through competitive selection in line with the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” September 2025 (“Procurement Regulations”). The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the Procurement Regulations, setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest. MOES now invites qualified interested persons to submit their expression of interest in Ukrainian and English as provided in the Terms of reference. The detailed Terms of Reference and submission modalities for the assignment are attached to this Request for Expression of Interest. The deadline for submission of applications is 14:00 am Kyiv time November 03, 2026.

TERMS OF REFERENCE

for Consulting Services (Individual Consultant)

Senior External Communications and Media Specialist

Contract No. LEARN-IC-SUP-2 Ukraine Improving Higher Education for Results Project World Bank Loan No. 9238-UA

Lifting Education Access and Resilience in Times of Need in Ukraine Program URTF Grant No. TF0C5794

BACKGROUND

The Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine is implementing projects financed by the World Bank, including: Ukraine Improving Higher Education for Results Project (UIHERP) and Lifting Education Access and Resilience in times of Need in Ukraine Program (LEARN) Program and plans to prepare and implement new operations in cooperation with the World Bank (hereinafter referred to as the Operation(s)).

UIHERP Ukraine and the IBRD have signed Loan Agreement No. 9238-UA of US$200 million for the Project "Ukraine: Improving Higher Education for Results" (hereinafter referred to as UIHERP). UIHERP is implemented in Ukraine by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine (MoES) with the support of the World Bank Group. UIHERP implementation period is September 13, 2021-June 30, 2027. UIHERP Project Development Objective (PDO) is to improve efficiency, conditions for quality, and transparency in the higher education system of Ukraine.

UIHERP includes six parts:

Part 1: Sector-Wide Improvements to Governance, Financing, Quality, and Transparency

Part 2: Alliances/Partnerships for Improved Efficiency and Quality

Part 3: Capacity Building and Education Environment Enhancement

Part 4: Project Management, Monitoring & Evaluation

Part 5: Component 5: Support to Academic Scholarships under MoES and Social Scholarships under MOSP for Higher Education Students

Part 6: Contingent Emergency Response (CERC)

UIHERP supports two categories of expenditures: (i) traditional investments in goods, works, and services, for which disbursements are made against eligible expenditures, and (ii) defined performance-based conditions (PBCs), for which disbursements are also made against eligible expenditures conditional on the achievement of the PBCs as defined in the Loan Agreement and UIHERP Operational Manual. More detailed information is given at the link https://projects.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/project-detail/P171050.

LEARN LEARN was designed to address critical issues and provide the necessary support to the education sector in accordance with the Strategic Action Plan of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine until 2027, approved by the Order of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine dated 07.03.2024 No. 276 (hereinafter referred to as the Strategic Plan). The Operation focuses on supporting the priorities “1. Early Childhood and Preschool Education” and “2. Reform of the “New Ukrainian School”” stipulated in the Strategic Plan.

The total LEARN financing amounts to US$737 mln provides a combination of the World Bank financing instruments: Program for Results (PforR) – US$675,9 mln and Investment Project Financing (IPF) – US$61.1 mln.

The Program-for-Results (PforR) is funded by a US$235 mln credit provided by Bank resources, supported by credit enhancement from the Advancing Needed Credit Enhancement for Ukraine (ADVANCE Ukraine) Trust Fund, which is backed by the Government of Japan. This is formalized under the Financing Agreement between Ukraine and the International Development Association for the Program (CREDIT NUMBER 9721-UA). An additional US$150 mln is provided under the Special Program for Ukraine and Moldova Recovery (SPUR) of the International Development Association (IDA) Crisis Facility, as outlined in the Loan Agreement between Ukraine and the International Development Association for the Program (LOAN NUMBER 7626-UA). On July 1, 2025, the Financing Agreement (Additional Financing: Lift