Communication Officer (Youth Engagement), NOB, Islamabad, Pakistan

Contract

This is a NO-2 contract. This kind of contract is known as National Professional Officers. It is normally only for nationals. It's a staff contract. More about NO-2 contracts.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, ! a future

UNICEF supports the Government of Pakistan to accelerate progress for children, work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and help children realize their rights under the Convention on the Rights of Children. This will be made through, among other things, strong partnerships with provincial authorities, teachers and health professionals, frontline workers and social mobilisers, communities and families, and of course the children and adolescents themselves.

In particular, UNICEF will work so that:

• Every child survives and thrives -- being in good health, immunized, protected from polio and accessing nutritious food.
• Every child learns.
• Every child is protected from violence and exploitation and registered at birth.
• Every child lives in a safe and clean environment, with access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation.

To learn more about UNICEF work in Pakistan, please visit the country website www.unicef.org/pakistan and videos on YouTube and Vimeo

How can you make a difference?

The Advocacy & Communication section requires the expertise of a Communication Officer to boost Adolescent and Youth Engagement in Pakistan, and make sure that adolescent girls and boys from the most vulnerable communities, and those with special abilities, are fully included. This role will help strengthen the capacity of the Advocacy & Communication section, working with the Education and Child Protection sections, to develop, implement and monitor effective and engaging advocacy campaigns involving adolescents and young people. Under the leadership of the Chief of Advocacy & Communication, the role will be responsible for supporting the development and implementation of adolescent & youth advocacy campaign strategies; supporting partnerships, including with the private sector; developing and disseminating campaign content; monitoring and reporting on campaign results; and advising on ways to grow UNICEF’s advocacy and adolescent / youth engagement.

Furthermore, the role will be responsible for the growth and engagement of UNICEF-supported youth platforms in Pakistan, increasing collaborations with UNICEF field offices and fellow UN agencies, providing creative engagement opportunities for adolescent girls and boys, developing and managing Adolescent & Youth challenges, and reaching new audiences through partnerships. The role is expected to increase UNICEF’s capacity to engage adolescents and young people as advocates and champions for children’s rights through flagship campaigns and UNICEF-supported platforms. This in turn, is expected to lead to more innovative, effective and engaging campaigns with increased and robust participation of young people, ultimately helping to achieve key advocacy objectives for the organization. Furthermore, this is likely to create a positive brand image among adolescents and young people and lay the groundwork for sustained supporter engagement.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

As part of the UNICEF Pakistan Advocacy & Communication Section, under the guidance of the Chief of Advocacy & Communication, working closely with the Communication Specialist, the Communication Officer (Digital Media) and the Education and Child Protection sections, the Communication Officer (Youth Engagement) will:

1. Support adolescent/youth advocacy and campaign strategy development, implementation and monitoring on critical issues affecting their lives of adolescent girls and boys.

• The development of campaign concepts and strategy documents related to adolescents and youth including on critical issues affecting their lives such as adolescent girl empowerment, child online protection, child marriage and violence against girls and boys is supported, in close coordination with the in-office working group on Adolescence and its sub-working group on Adolescent & Youth Engagement
• Key messages, Q&As and advocacy briefs and developed and kept up to date
• Help develop campaign budgets, implementation and tracking tools
• Campaign activations and events related to adolescence and youth engagement are planned, organized, budgeted, and implemented, and their impact is monitored in cooperation with communication, programme and monitoring colleagues
• UNICEF’s overall adolescent and youth advocacy, and campaigning is enhanced through analysis and participating in strategic discussions regarding UNICEF’s engagement of adolescents and young people in advocacy and campaigning; identifying capacity gaps in the organization on youth advocacy and campaigning; and supporting the development of and participate in capacity building activities.

2. Help coordinate the production of advocacy and communication materials, and events related to adolescents and young people and key campaigns, e.g., videos, publications, social media products, etc.

• The actions and voices of adolescents and youth into UNICEF’s are mainstreamed into communication and advocacy, including through UNICEF-supported events, youth-focused platforms and youth challenges
• Adolescents and youth are engaged as advocates and campaigners for children’s rights particularly on critical issues affecting their lives such as adolescent girl empowerment, child online protection, child marriage and violence against girls and boys through UNICEF’s flagship campaigns and initiatives; adolescent girls and boys from the most vulnerable communities and adolescents with special abilities are included.
• In-person and online events related to adolescence and youth are planned, developed, facilitated, implemented and monitored.
• Content production briefs are developed; feature and news stories, blogs, videos and web content is produced together with suitable external vendors and disseminated in cooperation with other communication colleagues.
• Youth engagement and communication colleagues at the regional and global offices, colleagues in field offices and in fellow UN agencies, donors and other partners, are kept informed and involved on content production as relevant.
• The organization of in-person and online events related to adolescence and youth is planned and executed in a timely way and followed up to support the country office communications and advocacy strategy and regional and global campaigns and priorities, in coordination with partners (Government, donors, private sector organizations, development agencies, media, etc.)

3. Support partnerships with key stakeholders whose support is essential to the achievement of adolescent & youth engagement objectives.

• The Country Office’s contact list of key influencers, individuals, groups, public and private sector organizations and for a (including Federal and provincial Governments, UN, private sector companies and bilateral counterparts) whose support is essential to/can support adolescent and youth engagement activities is developed and maintained.
• Celebrities (sport, music, movies, television…) and digital influencers are engaged, and their support secured for advocacy related to advocacy for adolescence and youth and their participation in online and in-person events and campaign, in view of reaching out a wider audience
• Support is provided to partnership management and communication around adolescent and youth engagement, preparing partnership materials and briefs as needed, including partnerships with the private sector.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or above) in one of the following fields is required: Communication, Journalism, Marketing, International Development or any related field, including Marketing and Advertisement, Media Sciences etc.
• *A first University Degree (Bachelor's) in a relevant field combined with 2 additional years of professional experience may be accepted in lieu of an Advanced University Degree.
• A minimum of two (2) years of professional progressive work experience in mass media and/or digital communication, journalism or development communications, desirably with an experience in international development organizations, especially UNICEF or the United Nations, with a focus on producing, curating and monitoring creative multimedia media communication content; and managing on-ground activities such as advocacy events, online and / or on-ground campaigns.
• Advanced research, analysis and synthesis skills.
• Ability to translate complex technical concepts into clear, accessible and engaging language, free of technical or typographic errors, appropriate for a general, non-technical audience.
• Computer knowledge, skills and practical experience, including internet navigation, the MSOffice Suite, telecommunications and various office applications.
• Exceptional interpersonal communication, advocacy and negotiation skills.
• Absolute fluency in written and spoken English and knowledge and understanding of Urdu is required with a focus on creative communication, especially writing stories and producing written support content in English e.g., scripts for visual productions etc.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS).

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (1), Works Collaboratively with others (1), Builds and Maintains Partnerships (1), Innovates and Embraces Change (1), Thinks and Acts Strategically (1), Drive to achieve impactful results (1), Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)

Computer knowledge, skills and practical experience, including internet navigation, the MSOffice Suite, telecommunications and various office applications.

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

Life at UNICEF

Working at UNICEF is highly rewarding. With attractive remuneration package encompassing competitive pay and benefits, a culture that helps staff thrive and diverse opportunities for personal and professional development, we aim to help you maintain a fulfilling life both at and outside the office.

We make sure you and your loved ones receive the resources and care that you need to thrive. Our contracts, benefits and wellbeing policies and initiatives ensure that you are well equipped to effectively deliver for children such as;

• Tax exemption, family allowances, hardship benefits, 10 UN holidays and annual leave allowance, maternity, paternity, adoption leave, medical and dental insurance, pension etc.
• Career support, staff wellbeing programme, breastfeeding policy, flexible work arrangements, childcare room, family support, policies & initiatives, security etc.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

Remarks:

• Verified educational certificates/ HEC Attested Degrees are a pre-requisite for employment at UNICEF. During the recruitment process candidates will be required to present HEC attested degrees/certificates.
• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.
• UNICEF’s active commitment towards diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female candidates will be prioritized.