Communications and Reporting Specialist

Contract

This is a NPSA-10 contract. This kind of contract is known as National Personnel Services Agreement. It is normally only for nationals. It usually requires 5 years of experience, depending on education. More about NPSA-10 contracts.

Background

The following documents shall be required from the applicants:

• Personal CV - indicating all part positions held and their main underlying functions, their durations, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the candidate and at least three (3) references.
• Cover letter - indicating why the candidate considers him/herself to be suitable for the position.

The UN Secretary-General established the UN SDG Action Campaign to inspire people and organizations from all backgrounds and every part of the world to take actions to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, while holding decision-makers to account for progress society-wide. The UN SDG Action Campaign is hosted and supported by UNDP and is based in Bonn (Germany) with a lean team that marshals rapid support for new initiatives as opportunities arise and provides partners with on-demand strategic creative services that inspire SDG local action.

The UN SDG Action Campaign is working closely with cities and local governments to showcase how they are actively contributing to implement Agenda 2030, accelerating transformative action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals for all, and everywhere.

SDGs are genuinely interlinked with service provision at local level. To be able to deliver on Agenda 2030, local and regional governments are innovating on the way they plan, design and implement public policy. Within this context, the UN SDG Action Campaign is seeking to recruit a Communications and Reporting Specialist to contribute to the design of contents and communications tools to highlight the role of local and regional governments in implementing Agenda 2030.

Local and regional governments are already responsible for over 65% of the SDG targets, most of them linked to basic service provision from water, sanitation, mobility, climate action, health or education. Cities and territories are playing a big part on the implementation of SDGs, that are becoming a new tool for strategic planning and budgeting in the mid to long-term. The Communications and Reporting Specialist will be supporting the local and regional governments’ exchange on SDG implementation, contributing to generate knowledge and replication of successful experiences to implement Agenda 2030 at local level. Finally, h/she will also support the communication and reporting needs of the Global Mayors Challenge project.

The Communications and Reporting Specialist will support UNDP cities and their partners to generate knowledge through the exchange of experiences, organizing international events and elaborating policy briefs and other communication materials. H/she will also liaise with the different UNDP project staff globally to collect information, monitor and lessons learnt issued from the Global Mayors Challenge project. The Communications and Reporting Specialist will support local and regional governments participants in enabling them to communicate their stories, analyzing project data and providing narratives for targeted public segments: including local population, central governments and the international community.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the Project Manager, UNDP HQ and guidance from the technical team, UNDP Country Office in Sierra Leone in coordination with the Project Supervisor, the Communication and Reporting Specialist will do the following functions:

• Analyse project data and link with SDG targets and Agenda 2030 narrative;
• Promote exchange of experiences amongst participating local governments;
• Elaborate “SDG stories” about how local governments are implementing Agenda 2030;
• Conduct learning exercises, targeting the participating local governments;
• Elaborate policy briefs and easy communicable knowledge materials on the lessons learnt by the project;
• Elaborate reports and identify learning mechanisms together with partners;
• Support project implementation and replication of experiences of local governments within UNDP global work;
• Draft and design content for the project and UNDP social platforms;
• Lead the design and implementation of external communications and outreach interventions of the Global Mayors Challenge;
• Develop advocacy, visibility and promotional material that are necessary for the project;
• Lead the design and development of necessary communications and awareness material/ documentation for wider dissemination and information sharing in coordination with programme beneficiaries and target communities;
• Maintain and regularly update the project repository/archive of all communications material including photos videos and audios;
• Assist the Project Supervisor in the drafting of programme updates, development of advocacy/ awareness raising information and related material;
• Assist Project Manager in designing and implementing baseline surveys, public perception surveys, impact assessments/ tracking surveys including the development of survey report templates, design and layout of reports and related tasks;
• Assist Project Manager in gathering information to prepare the project Metrics Reports;
• Support the project team, including the UNDP Country Office staff in addressing their communications needs in regards to SDG local action; and
• Perform any other relevant tasks as required.

Institutional Arrangement

The Communications and Reporting Specialist will report to the Project Manager, based in UNDP New York, working closely with the technical team in UNDP Country Office in Sierra Leone.

Competencies

Core:

Achieve Results:Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact.Think Innovatively:Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems.Learn Continuously:Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences.Adapt with Agility:Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands.Act with Determination:

Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results.Engage and Partner:Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration.Enable Diversity and Inclusion:Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity.Cross-Functional & Technical Competencies:

Thematic AreaNameDefinitionBusiness ManagementCommunication- Ability to communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. - Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels.

Digital Awareness and Literacy- Ability and inclination to rapidly adopt new technologies, either through skilfully grasping their usage or through understanding their impact and empowering others to use them as needed.

Business DevelopmentKnowledge Generation- Ability to research and turn information into useful knowledge, relevant for contebt, or responsive to a stated need.

CommunicationsCampaign Management- Ability to produce and implement communications and advocacy campaigns which lead to impactful change.

Creative direction and copywriting- Ability to creatively communicate concepts in an engaging and simple way.

Media Relations- Ability to develop media relations across all aspects of media work including relationships with media and preparing media materials such as messages.

Multimedia writing/editing- Ability to create and/or edit written content for multimedia.

Required Skills and Experience

Min. Education Requirements:- Master’s Degree in Communication, Journalism, International development, urban issues or any related field, or - Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, Literature, History, Social and Political Sciences or Urban studies with seven (7) years of relevant work experience, is required.

Min. years of relevant work experience:- A minimum of five (5) years with Master’s Degree or seven (7) years with Bachelor’s Degree of relevant work experience working in communications for public sector and public administrations at all levels is required.

Required skills:- Experience in the usage of computers and web-based management system and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) is required. - Excellent analytical and communication skills (written, verbal, interpersonal and intercultural) is required.

Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies Section:- Proven experience in working with local governments and their associations is an asset. - Experience working on Agenda 2030 or other UN global agendas will be an asset. - Proven professional experience focusing on client management and working with a diverse team will be an asset. - Demonstrated track record in media relations, including building strategic relationship with journalists, is an asset. - Experience in creating engaging and impactful knowledge products which appeal to targeted audiences, is a plus. - Experience in knowledge sharing, management and advocacy is an asset. - Demonstrated experience with campaigning initiatives and building networks is desirable.

Required Languages:- Proficiency in the English language is required. - Working knowledge of Spanish, French or Arabic languages is an asset.