Vacancy Announcement: Communication Specialist, NO-C (Fixed Term Appointment) New Delhi, South Asia Region (SAR), Post Number 68411

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 future...

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programmes, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education, and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries.

How can you make a difference?

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children in the world's thereby ensuring a better future for every child, this is the chance to make a difference.

The position reports to and is guided by the Chief of Communication, Advocacy and Partnership (CAP), it works closely with the supervisor, across the units of CAP (media, celebrity, digital and donor communication), with the Office of the Representative and the wider office to:

• Ensure the development of a robust and Integrated advocacy strategy for UNICEF India with clear roles, responsibilities and operational plans and follow through with implementation.
• In close collaboration with programmes, develop and implement individual thematic advocacy strategy in key agreed flagship advocacy priorities for cross-sectoral office-wide efforts. Roll out systematically with clear timebound objective, outcome, and results.
• Provide strategic support to programmes, cross-sectoral teams, the CAP Section and Front Office to optimally utilize advocacy opportunities, with advocacy partners and influencers, involving young people.
• Play a critical role in systematic implementation of evidence-based and innovative advocacy initiatives in key priority areas with toward championing the role that advocacy plays in realizing UNICEF's mandate through the integrated advocacy strategies that accelerate results for children in India.

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 UNICEFIs mission, priorities and programmes in the country office/regional office/media hub, and at a global level and those of the UN Country Team.

The purpose of the Advocacy role is to identify, establish, deepen, and leverage organizational collaboration with key stakeholders and provide an interface for advocacy and communication partnerships focusing on evidence-based advocacy, public engagement, and policy towards supporting programmatic results.

The Specialist identifies critical advocacy partners, promotes, and builds awareness and capacity of partners and actively facilitates effective collaboration for advocacy and communication goals. The key result is to catalyse social and policy change to the benefit of children through dialogue, engagement and strategic partnerships with networks, key influencers, and decisions makers, emphasizing UNICEF's normative, convening, and coordinating roles.

The Specialist is accountable for leading on, driving, and delivering results of India Country Office Strategic Integrated Advocacy efforts. This includes developing evidence-based advocacy strategies for identified country wide key priorities, defining and packaging messages and materials for diverse influencers, target audience and key stakeholders to promote action on the realization of children's rights.

The staff member will lead on key end results at both national and state level.

• Formulate, update, and implement an Integrated Advocacy Strategic Framework for UNICEF India with operational plan, SMART objectives, and outcomes statements for each flagship focus area. Carry forward with timebound implementation and rollout.
• Close collaboration with and support to all programme sections and cross-cutting teams to launch, roll out and implement the advocacy strategy with clear roles and responsibilities across teams. Internal collaboration and bringing all key staff and teams is a fundamental function of the position.
• Support to State offices: Undertake consultative process to identify clear communication and advocacy goals/asks and provide support to state office with evidence, strategy and tools to achieve these goals tailored to state-specific contexts/ typologies, including quiet, discreet advocacies in civic strife and conflict affected states.
• Networking and partnerships: Ensure that the India Country Office has strong advocacy partnership and networks it can rely on to go to scales nationally and at local levels. Work toward ensuring the organization’s access and ability to influence decision making through strong relationships with key partners, including government ministries, political and social influencers, and CSOs, key advocacy stakeholders, personalities, groups. Have individuals, agencies and networks identified and engaged in support of UNICEF's efforts and who actively engage in child rights advocacy and participate in special events and activities. A well maintained and continually updated contact list of individuals, groups, organizations, and fora whose support is essential in achieving the advocacy and communication objectives and thereby results for children. Rapport with critical partners and influencers are an added advantage. Effective working relationships with the UN Country Team and UN communication counterparts are developed, maintained, and enhanced.
• Generating strong evidence base for advocacy and communication: Ensure that the advocacy priorities and strategy are based on strong evidence, data and studies linking those with the potential of integrated advocacy to achieve desired results for children. Designing interventions whereby the India Country Office is able to advocate on the basis of evidence, with credibility with support of a well maintained and continually updated set of strategic, cost-effective, and user-friendly advocacy and engagement, key messages, materials and products that support advocacy strategies and initiatives.
• Monitoring and evaluation: The evidence-based approach is closely linked to instituting a robust monitoring and evaluation of advocacy indicators, with targets and baselines to be established at the start against which the achievement of objectives of the advocacy strategy are regularly evaluated. Part of the streamlining and integrating advocacy strategy is to have clear results and accountability for advocacy and generating reportable results for sharing and analyzing.
• Global advocacy priorities and campaigns: The SA Regional/India Country Office have an effective process in place for Integrating and taking action on UNICEF's global communications priorities, campaigns and partnerships, disseminating these elements in a locally appropriate way.
• Management: Human resources (in the Advocacy team) and financial resources (budget planning, management, and monitoring) are both effectively managed and optimally used.
• Capacity building and support: The Representative, senior management, country management team and all those involved in advocacy implementation are provided with professional expertise, briefs, messages, guidance, and advice on all aspects of advocacy, advocacy partnerships, influencers and notable external relations as required.

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

Key functions, accountabilities and related duties/tasks:

Within the delegated authority and the given organizational set-up, the Incumbent may be accountable for all or assigned areas of the following major duties and end results. Advocacy and Communication strategy development, implementation, and monitoring:

Ensure that the India Country Office has a robust strategic integrated advocacy framework with clear SMART outcomes, monitoring and result indicators, evidence-based strategies, and associated work plan to deliver each outcome within a specific timeframe. This will be an integral to support the country programme objectives and get children's issues into the public domain, strengthen political will in support of UNICEF's mission and objectives, and enhance the organization's credibility and brand.

• Achieving advocacy strategy outcomes/results: The India Country Office has undertaken a process facilitated by CAP Section for delivering on the decided outcomes/results as planned in the integrated advocacy strategy. Advancing the strategy includes ensuring focus, integration and accountability based on close coordination with all programme sections, cross-cutting teams, state offices, regional Communication Advisers and HQ Communication Officers for alignment to achieve maximum advocacy impact.
• Coordinate advocacy planning, initiatives, implementation, and monitoring through the proposed ICO advocacy committee to ensure commonly agreed advocacy goals, initiatives, and plans. Work in close coordination with the Advocacy Committee and across sectors gauge progress of the advocacy strategy rollout to ensure progress and course correction, as required.
• Ensure clear roles and responsibilities are carried out as delineated in the advocacy strategic framework is ensured across teams in planning and implementation of advocacy initiatives.
• Develop, maintain and update timebound specific work plan emanating from the larger strategy, including an assessment of the operating environment; objectives, target audiences, stakeholder mapping, key messages adapted for each specific themes and audiences, estimated resources, specific actions, activities, and products.
• Work with global guidelines, ICO M4R to ensure that advocacy indicators, targets and baselines are established against which the achievement of objectives of the advocacy and communication strategy are regularly evaluated; analysis is undertaken to correct courses, seize opportunities to improve the effectiveness of advocacy strategy, approach, activities and outcomes. And results and reports are prepared and shared on a timely basis.
• Develop concrete engagement and amplification strategies for advocating with influencers/key stakeholders, including parliamentarians, legislators, faith leaders, young people and CSOs.
• Develop and maintain deep knowledge and familiarity with the evolving environment, locate opportunities and prospective partners and relevant stakeholders in order to maintain and expand UNICEF's network of key interlocutors to build stronger relationships between UNICEF and government, other key-decision makers and Civil society networks, including elected representatives, faith-based networks, think-tanks, academic bodies, professional associations as well as opinion leaders. Engagement with youth groups and platforms for participation and to amplify their voices will be a key element to achieve results on equity. This also includes developing concrete strategies for advocating with influencers/key stakeholders, including parliamentarians, legislators, faith leaders, young people and CSOs.
• Work effectively with these key stakeholders and coordinate the development and management of initiatives for high-level outreach with key partners, including through platforms to ensure that child rights are regularly brought up at policy making fora. This also includes developing concrete strategic plans for advocating with influencers/key stakeholders, including parliamentarians, legislators, faith leaders, young people and CSOs.
• Coordinate responses to ministries on questions to parliament and ensures proper monitoring and analysis. Establish, document, consistently review and refine process of working with key stakeholders and Influencers. Initiate and support special events, joint projects, information sharing, media opportunities, field trips and other activities to advance advocacy agenda.
• Lead on identification and pursuit of opportunities for outreach, engagement, policy influence and collaboration, including on how to anticipate and respond to partners' concerns and priorities, while ensuring that UNICEF's interests, perspectives, and knowledge are taken Into account in relevant policy and institutional processes, and ensure that they are fully aware of UNICEF's perspectives, policies, priorities and capabilities.
• Participate in global and regional advocacy activities by planning visits of advocacy partners and stakeholders including National Committee representatives, Executive Board members etc. Prepare Information materials (e.g., programme summaries, fact sheets and key messages), 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.
• Work closely with all state offices to ensure that advocacy outcomes and strategies are adaptable to varied state context, typologies, and issues. Facilitate state adaption and furthering advocacy initiatives and national advocacy goals. Pay close attention to Quiet or Discreet advocacies as part of the larger strategy especially in states affected by civic strife and conflict.
• Ensure alignment, to the extent possible, between national, sub-national, regional and global advocacy priorities for integrated action towards maximum advocacy impact with all key stakeholders.
• Support the UNICEF global communications objectives and strategies through development of complementary country specific and local community materials and activities. Work plans to anticipate, include and align with 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.

To qualify as a champion for every child you will have:

Education: Advanced university degree in international development, public affairs, public policy international relations, political science, Communication, Public Relations, or related field. (Or an undergraduate ( Bachelor) degree with a combined number of seven (7) years of demonstrated professional experience in lieu of above.)

Experience: At least five (5) years of progressively responsible, and relevant professional experience in advocacy strategy development and implementation, high level partnership management, internal organizational communication and mobilization, advocacy focused on working with government ministries/departments, policy makers etc., lobbying, external relations, liaising, public affairs, social or public policy, programme or project management, preferably in an international organization is required.

Language: Fluency in English, especially excellent writing skills, is required. Knowledge of an additional UN Language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Spanish and Russian) is considered an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values: Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA)

UNICEF competencies required for this post are:

• Builds and maintains partnerships (2)
• Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness (2)
• Drive to achieve results for impact (2)
• Innovates and embraces change (2)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (2)
• Thinks and acts strategically (2)
• Works collaboratively with others (2)
• Nurtures, leads, and manages people (1)

Click here to learn more about UNICEF’s values and competencies.

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