Communication Specialist, NO-3, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

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Application deadline 11 months ago: Thursday 27 Apr 2023 at 20:55 UTC

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Contract

This is a NO-3 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-3 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 hero

Ethiopia is situated in the Horn of Africa and is the second most populous country on the continent with an estimated population of 115 million. It borders six African countries: Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan, and covers 1,104,300 square kilometers. Approximately 85 percent of the population lives in rural areas. Ethiopia represents a melting pot of ancient cultures with Middle Eastern and African cultures evident in the religious, ethnic, and language composition of its people.

Over the past two years, children and their families across Ethiopia faced multiple and complex emergencies, such as the conflict in the northern Ethiopia and the drought, which resulted in millions of people in need of urgent humanitarian assistance. UNICEF has programmes in Child Protection, WASH, Health, Nutrition, Social Policy, and Education and serves over 15 million children in Ethiopia. Join UNICEF Ethiopia to contribute to improving the lives of children and women.

Watch UNICEF Ethiopia in Action: Creating child-friendly spaces for children in Tigray

How can you make a difference?

Accountable for developing, managing, coordinating, networking, implementing and monitoring an advocacy and communication strategy and associated products and activities on on-going basis with public audiences, with the objective of promoting awareness, understanding, support and respect for children’s and women’s rights, and support for UNICEF's mission, priorities and programmes in Ethiopia.

Key Duties and Tasks:

1. C****ommunication strategy:

  • Develop, maintain and update the country advocacy and communication strategy and associated work plan. Strategy and work plan include: an environmental and stakeholder assessment; objectives; target audiences; messages and media mix; resources; specific actions, activities and products; monitoring and evaluation of impact; success and opportunity for improvement; ongoing refinement of the strategy.
  • UNICEF’s rights- and results-based programming approach is appropriately reflected in the communication strategy, work plan and products.
  • Maintain close collaboration with Regional Communication Advisers and HQ Communication Officers for effective overall coordination.

2. Media relations:

  • Promote a better understanding of, respect and support for children's and women's rights and issues by carrying out media, information and education activities in support of UNICEF-assisted development programmes or humanitarian efforts in the country.
  • Develop, maintain and update media relations contact list/database.
  • Establish, document, review and refine process of communicating with media contacts, including press conferences and events, issuing of media materials etc.
  • Ensure rapid and accurate information dissemination to the media, National Committees, NGOs, the field and other appropriate audiences.
  • Identify, develop, distribute and evaluate variety of media materials in multiple, appropriate formats. Ensure or enhance the quality, appropriateness of country specific communication materials, activities, processes and messages transmitted to the press, partners and public.
  • Collaborate with mass media through activities such as organizing project site visits, facilitating photo coverage and TV footage, and utilizing both web-based and traditional media as appropriate.
  • Monitor and evaluate the use and effectiveness of media materials and share results and findings.
  • Maintain close collaboration with Regional Communication Advisers and HQ Communication Officers for effective overall coordination.

3. Networking and partnerships:

  • Develop, maintain and update partners contact list/database.
  • Help establish, document, review and refine process of working collaboratively with partners, including meetings, joint projects, information sharing etc.
  • Ensure or enhance the quality, consistency and appropriateness of country-specific communication materials, activities, processes and messages shared with partners.
  • Identify opportunities to strengthen the capacity of partners through appropriate advocacy and communication training, access to information, supplies and equipment and through knowledge sharing.
  • Monitor, evaluate and share results and findings with partners.

4. Celebrities and special events:

  • Develop, maintain and update celebrities contact list/database.
  • Help establish, document, review and refine process of working with celebrities, including special events, media opportunities, field trips etc.
  • Participate in global advocacy activities by planning visits of Goodwill Ambassadors, National Committee representatives, Executive Board members etc. including preparing information materials (e.g., press releases, programme summaries, country fact sheets and media kits), and necessary logistic arrangements. Highlight the achievements of the country programme.
  • Maintain close collaboration with Regional Communication Advisers and HQ Communication Officers for effective overall coordination.

5. Global priorities and campaigns:

  • Support the UNICEF global communications objectives and strategies through development of complementary country specific and local community materials and activities. Work plan should anticipate the inclusion of work on global priorities and campaigns.
  • Develop and deploy country office communication capacity to gather/facilitate the content and coverage of relevant country efforts. Use the opportunity to identify/highlight effective programme activities and results.
  • Ensure regular communication and co-ordination with relevant communication focal points in regional offices and headquarters divisions.

6. Resource mobilization support:

  • Mobilize country office communication capacity to support/facilitate the gathering of content and coverage of relevant country efforts. Use the opportunity to identify/highlight effective programme activities and results in support of fund-raising.
  • Mobilize resources for fund-raising support by regular communication and co-ordination with relevant communication focal points in regional offices and headquarters divisions.

7. Management:

  • Develop a work plan for communication activities, monitor compliance and provide support and guidance to ensure objectives are met.
  • Plan and monitor the use of communication budgetary resources. Approve and monitor the overall allocation and disbursement and liquidation of funds. Take appropriate actions to optimize use of funds.
  • Identify, recruit and supervise staff, technical resources and consultants as necessary. Conduct and Implement effective performance planning, monitoring, performance development programme as required.

8. Monitoring and evaluation:

  • Provide technical support to ensure that a set of communication performance indicators is identified and adjusted as necessary, and these communication indicators are incorporated or fed forwarded in the Annual Management Plan, Annual Work Plan, etc.
  • Conduct timely and accurate monitoring and evaluation activities to ensure the communications objectives are met and the strategy is effective.
  • Undertake lessons learned review of successful and unsuccessful communication experiences and share observations/findings with country, regional and HQ communication colleagues so that best practices benefit UNICEF’s communication work.

9. Capacity building and support:

  • Advise UNICEF management, colleagues and staff on media strategy and implications for action and policies proposed.
  • Support communication activities through knowledge management, information exchange and building capacity of the country communications team.
  • Enable appropriate advocacy and communication training, access to information, supplies and equipment, and developing training and orientation material.
  • Assist the Programme Communication Officer in the development of communication tools and/or strategies.

T****o qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

  • Advanced university degree in Communication, Journalism, Public Relations, Social Sciences or a related degree. *A first University Degree 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 5 years of relevant professional experience in communication, print, broadcast, and/or new media.
  • Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergency is considered an asset.
  • Fluency in English is required.
  • Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of:

  • Care
  • Respect
  • Integrity
  • Trust
  • Accountability
  • Sustainability

(CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

  • Builds and maintains partnerships
  • Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
  • Drive to achieve results for impact
  • Innovates and embraces change
  • Manages ambiguity and complexity
  • Thinks and acts strategically
  • Works collaboratively with others.
  • Nurtures, leads and manages people

During the recruitment process, we test candidates following the competency framework. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: competency framework here.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

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 is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. 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:

UNICEF’s active commitment towards diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable qualified female candidates are encouraged to apply.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments are also subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Added 11 months ago - Updated 11 months ago - Source: unicef.org