BACKGROUND

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women will lead and coordinate United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It will provide strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

On 12th September 2018, the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS) was signed. This marked the end of the conflict that had plagued South Sudan since December 2013.  The agreement allows for a Pre-Transitional Period and Transitional period during which key tasks are expected to be undertaken. As part of the agreement, the start of the formation of the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity of the Republic of South Sudan constituted by the parties to the conflict at the signing of the Peace Agreement commenced in February 2020. UN Women South Sudan supported women’s participation and influence in the peace processes, supports women’s economic empowerment, pushes for the ending of violence against women and girls and for women’s leadership and political participation.

Reporting to the Head of Office, the Communications Officer is responsible to ensure the timely and quality developing, planning and implementation of the UN Women South Sudan Communications Strategy, and will support advocacy efforts, maintenance of media relations, and organizational outreach efforts, in order to increase the visibility, standing and awareness of UN Women with partners, the media and the public, as well as raise awareness on gender equality and women’s empowerment issues in South Sudan.

The Communications Officer will collaborate closely with other UN Women South Sudan colleagues as well as the UN South Sudan Team, UN Women Headquarters and Regional Office counterparts, to ensure communications strategies, media relations and organizational outreach efforts are aligned with corporate communications policies and initiatives and follow good practices. The Communication Officer applies and promotes the principles of results-based management (RBM), as well as a client-oriented approach consistent with UN Women rules and regulations.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Functions:

1. Plan and design communications and outreach/advocacy strategies and plans:

• Prepare and conduct communications needs assessments for the UN Women South Sudan Office, including for projects, programmes and corporate change initiatives;
• Analyse requirements and synthesize proposals for elaboration of communications strategies; ensuring gender perspective;
• Integrate communications, advocacy and outreach strategies into proposals for project/programmes and other initiatives;
• Develop, coordinate, implement and monitor the implementation of the South Sudan annual communications and advocacy strategies and plans;
• Monitor and analyze print and social media and draft reports, and provide analysis to RO/HQ (when needed);
• Coordinate UN Women/ UN system corporate and local campaigns and special events and ensure UN Women’s active participation and visibility in UNCT Communications Group and ensuing joint communications activities;
• Plan and propose communications strategies for the Women, Peace and Security Working Group (WPSWG).

2. Coordinate and contribute substantively to the development and dissemination of communications, advocacy and knowledge products:

• Develop and produce communications materials, including brochures, publications, briefing materials, press releases, and articles, and manage their dissemination;
• Oversee the quality and compliance of the visual and print products with the UN Women corporate branding, publication, photo, social media and the other guidelines;
• Identify and propose information-sharing opportunities, activities, approaches and platforms and partners;
• Promote and disseminate advocacy materials for launching flagship initiatives, publications, and campaigns;
• Manage the translation/adaption/rewriting of global or regional communications materials, coordinate printing and dissemination of publications and audio-visual materials;
• Follow guidelines from HQ and RO and advise the UN Women South Sudan team on the required guidelines, standards and requirements.

3. Coordinate media relations for UN Women South Sudan :

• Manage relationships with the media; maintain and update a media database;
• Respond to media inquiries and information requests; prepare related correspondence;
• Organize interview opportunities, roundtable discussions, press conferences, and briefing sessions for the media, as required;
• Send Media invitations and press releases as needed;
• Draft talking points for the Country Representative, Regional and HQ visits;
• Consolidate briefing notes for high-level visits.

4. Build and maintain partnerships and maintain relations with donors:

• Identify and develop new communications partnerships and alliances to enhance visibility;
• Liaise with advocacy partners and undertake outreach to civil society organizations, institutions, partners and other groups to ensure that newsworthy information reaches the public and donors.

5. Maintain the UN Women South Sudan online presence:

• Manage the UN Women South Sudan social media accounts in line with corporate social media policy;
• Provide content on UN Women South Sudan activities to be published on the regional UN Women website;
• Upload information to knowledge management system on a regular basis, including news, updates, and resources.

6. Facilitate knowledge building and sharing:

• Identify and synthesize best practices and lessons learned directly linked to UN Women South Sudan goals and activities;
• Organize and conduct training and workshops on communication and advocacy, as appropriate.

Key Performance Indicators:

• Timely monitoring of current events and trends;
• Quality and relevant advocacy materials and content;
• Timely updating of website and social media;
• Timely dissemination of materials as shown by knowledge of UN Women’s activities in Kosovo;
• Regular interactions with mass media, as shown by coverage.

COMPETENCIES

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity;
• Integrity;
• Professionalism.

Core Competencies: 

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Functional Competencies

• Ability to communicate sensitively, effectively and creatively across different constituencies;
• Knowledge of web-based management systems;
• Knowledge of production, graphic design and photography standards;
• Knowledge of social media platforms and experience in social media outreach;
• Knowledge of local media landscape;
• Communication, networking and advocacy skills;
• Ability to be strategic and analytical;
• Knowledge of gender and human rights issues.

REQUIRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

Education & Certification:

• Master’s Degree in media and communications, journalism or related field.
• University Degree (BA) in media and communications, journalism or related field with additional 2 years of relevant experience maybe considered in lieu of a Masters.
• Additional training and certification in communication and related areas is a strong advantage.

Experience:

• At least 3 years of demonstrated work experience in communications and media relations;
• Demonstrated expertise and experience in the field of gender, media and public relations;
• Experience in the use of social media, multi-media and digital platforms;
• Experience required in editing and copywriting skills, including articles, reports, social media content, press releases preferred;
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.);
• Experience in video and photo editing and design software is an asset.
• Previous experience with gender issues is an asset
• Experience in establishing priorities for self and others, to achieve results and meet strict deadlines in an effective manner, maintaining a high-quality standard throughout;
• Good knowledge of project management.

Language Requirements: 

• Fluency in English is required;
• Knowledge of Arabic is an asset.

Application Information:

• Interested applicants can apply online;
• All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment;
• Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment, scan your documents into one single file. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and may not be considered for further assessment.

Qualified women candidates are highly encouraged to apply.

Note:In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment.