Communication and Liaison Officer

Contract

This is a No grade contract. More about No grade contracts.

Purpose of the position:

The WHO Health Emergencies Programme (WHE) supports the Ministry of Health & Population (MoHP), Government of Nepal (GoN) to direct and co-ordinate and rapid provision of life-saving emergency health interventions at scale in the aftermath of multi-hazard emergencies and disasters and subsequently assists in the rapid recovery of the health system in collaboration with national and international partners. Thereupon it provides technical support to the MoHP and partners to enhance health sector emergency risk management through prevention risk reduction or mitigation; preparedness and response readiness to build a health system that is resilient to multi-hazard disasters including public health emergencies.

Within this framework, Communication and Liaison Officer will support Health Coordination and Communication and Documentation Pillar of the Incident Management System (IMS) in the area of Strategic Partnerships, Inter-ministerial Co-ordination, Liaison and Communication.

Summary of Assigned Duties:

Under the overall supervision of WHO Representative and Team Leader – WHO Health Emergencies Programme and direct guidance of Senior Consultant – Advocacy, Strategic Partnerships and Leadership Communication; in close coordination with the relevant Technical Officers and National Professional Officers of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme of the WHO Country Office for Nepal, and with the relevant Ministry of Health & Population (MoHP) counterpart; while strictly adhering to the WHO standards, the incumbent will perform the below functions:

Communication & Risk Communication Community Engagement

• Support for implementation of the MoHP communication strategy for internal and external communication including, but not limited to providing strategic advice, development of communication products and communication related training and capacity building activities.
• Support for integration of Emergency Risk Communication into COVID-19 response system.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of a communications strategy and plan for the effective engagement of line ministries with the MoHP on COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Activities. Enhance the awareness, understanding, and knowledge of key stakeholders in the government, private sector, civil society, etc. at the local, Provincial and Federal on COVID-19, engage effectively with stakeholders, change behavior and perceptions where necessary, and help achieve overall objectives of IMS of WHO CO.
• Ensure or enhance the quality, consistency and appropriateness of country-specific communication materials, activities, processes and messages shared with partners.
• Identify the target audiences (e.g.: Line Ministries, Stakeholders, Pillar leads, Laypersons) to set the communication objectives for the same target audiences and tailoring activities.
• Specify appropriate communication channels, dissemination methods and media to effectively communicate key messages to specific stakeholders.
• Develop key messages on COVID-19 and relevant topics for reproduction in presentations, speeches by the Ministry of Health and Population and adapt them for line ministries.
• Develop indicators to monitor and evaluate communications tools and activities to measure the impact of the communication strategies in place.

Strategic Partnerships:

• Support WHO Country Office and Ministry of Health and Population to build trust and engage with other line ministries, stakeholders and public.
• Identify opportunities to strengthen the capacity of partners through appropriate advocacy and communication training, access to information, supplies and equipment and through knowledge sharing.
• Identify bottlenecks in the communication channel and information flow with possible strategies to combat the same especially with the rapid evolution of governance structures in GoN’s COVID19 response. These would include but not be limited to CCMC, MoFA, MoFAGA, NDRMA, Ministry of Youth and Sport, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, NTV, Radio Nepal etc.

Liaison:

• Support in liaising with relevant Government Offices to resolve issues and problems that may arise during programme implementation.

• Support WCO Administration to resolve issues related to visa obtaining, visa extensions and other government clearances for WHO international staff, consultants and other visiting staff including visa clearance and visa extension for WHO staff dependents.

• Support WCO in any liaison related matters especially with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during high-level visits and high-level meetings and Ministry of Finance for task clearance
• Perform other related duties as assigned by the Team Leader – WHE Programme and WHO Representative or undertake any other tasks/duties as assigned by supervisor(s).

WHO Competencies:

• Teamwork
• Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences
• Communication
• Ensuring the effective use of resources
• Producing results

Functional Knowledge and Skills:

• Excellent advocacy and inter-personal skills, tact and diplomacy.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities with excellent organizational and independent working skills.
• Ability to work as a team player in a cross-functional setting and challenging environment.
• High level of integrity and commitment to professional responsibilities.
• Technical expertise; Overall attitude at work are also required mandatory competencies.

Qualification****:

Education:

Essential****:

University degree in journalism/mass communications/political science/literature. from an accredited/recognized academic institution.

Desirable****:

Postgraduate degree (Master’s) in journalism/mass communications.

Experience:

Essential:

At least two years of experience in communications and/or journalism, preferable in health-related field. Proven experience in media handling and in writing articles/social media posts/web stories or other documents, as evidenced by published materials.

Desirable:

Experience of working with partners, especially with Government Departments. Experience in covering issues of public health, particularly disease outbreaks/emergency, etc. Knowledge of the workings of social media and website design.

Other Skills (eg IT):

Good knowledge of computer applications and software including MS Office applications. Ability to coordinate with the government, manage projects, build partnerships with multiple partners in the context of health emergencies.

Use of Language Skills: Expert knowledge of English and Nepali.

REMUNERATION:

Monthly Salary: (Net of tax) NPR 196,102.00 at single rate (taxable as per Nepal Government laws and appointment will be through Special Services Agreement (SSA) extendable subject to satisfactory performances and continuing need for the function.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test and the interview may be used to screen applicants.
• Any extension of contract would be subject to programmatic requirements, performance of the incumbent and availability of funds.
• WHO only considers higher educational qualification obtained from accredited institution. The list can be accessed through this link: http://www.whed.net/
• Any misrepresentative of facts would disqualify the candidate.

• No telephone enquiries or paper applications please.

  WHO is committed to workforce diversity.

Application from qualified female candidates particularly from disadvantaged and socially excluded groups are -strongly encouraged.

WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.