Background

As Zimbabwe’s partner of choice for development knowledge sharing, building and strengthening national capacities, UNDP continues to ensure that the achievement of the global Agenda 2030 and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remains a key item on the national agenda. Although priorities have evolved over the years, UNDP’s commitment to Zimbabwe continues to be to empower lives and build a resilient nation. 

The Country Office Communications and Partnership Unit adopts UNDP’s global communication strategy to a local context and the Country Office development support priorities. Through the production of high-quality communication and visibility materials and innovative use of relevantly targeted communication channels (internal and external), the communications team works collaboratively to 1) position UNDP as a leader in the development arena; 2) promote visibility of UNDP and donors on program outcomes/development results; 3) advocate solutions to development challenges; 4) mobilize support for Sustainable Development Goals in the country, and 5) practice delivery as one UN. 

The Unit also leads and supports the Country Office (CO) in cultivating, building, and nurturing strategic relationships and alliances that are essential for advancing and successfully achieving the mission of UNDP through partnership development, resource mobilization, and communications. These strategic relationships cover a wide range and number of key constituencies and development partners, encompassing developing countries, existing and prospective donor countries/emerging economic powers, sub-national partners, civil society organizations, multilateral and regional institutions, the private sector, foundations, academia and think tanks, the wider UN system, inter-governmental bodies, as well as the media. These efforts demonstrate UNDP Zimbabwe's dedication to advancing its mission through effective communication and strategic partnerships, contributing to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals and fostering a resilient and inclusive development environment. 

Under the leadership, guidance and direct supervision of the Resident Representative (RR), and the day-to- day coordination with the Deputy Resident Representatives (DRR-P/O) and the Programme Units, the Communication and Partnership Specialist will work with the Senior Management to spearhead the Country Office (CO) overall efforts to support Zimbabwe’s Vision 2030, accelerate the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the National Development Strategy (NDS), the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) and UNDP’s Country Programme Document (CPD). 

The Specialist will contribute substantively to UNDP’s strategic engagements with development partners, both bilateral and multilateral to boost UNDP Zimbabwe’s resource mobilization. S/he will undertake strategic donor intelligence and build and sustain strategic partnerships with Development Partners, Private Sector, Civil Society, and within the UN system. The Specialist will also support the development, regular updating and implementation of the CO partnerships and resource mobilization strategy, tools and procedures. 

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Resident Representative, the Communication and Partnership Specialist will lead the team to implement UNDP’s global Communication and Partnership Strategy and develop and implement country office level communication and partnership strategies in coordination with the Team Leaders and Programme/ Project Managers. 

UNDP is in the process of adopting a Portfolio Approach to accommodate changing business needs and leverage linkages across interventions to achieve its strategic goals. Therefore, scope of the work includes coordination across units, functions, teams, and projects in multidisciplinary teams in order to enhance and enable horizontal collaboration.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Communication and Partnership Specialist will perform the following duties:

1.  Develop and implement internal/external communication strategies and outreach for the Country Office

  • Plan and elaborate communication needs assessments for the country office (projects, country programme and corporate change initiatives);
  • Develop and implement communication and outreach strategies, managing media relations, and building partnerships to support the organization's work;
  • Lead communication programme in the country office and work closely with country office senior management to ensure communication strategies support achievement of CPD targets;
  • Develop a yearly communications action plan in line with the overarching strategy;
  • Provide constructive and timely advice on inclusion of communications components in programme and project formulations to integrate capturing results, advocacy, and communication strategies into all aspects of UNDP’s development programmes; 
  • Promote and facilitate increased coverage and understanding of the UNDP’s work in the country or practice area through local and global media stories as guided by the UNDP External Communications Action Plan;
  • Coordinate, as appropriate, with UN agency partners, donors towards communicating joint initiative program formulations and results.

2.    Lead UNDP digital communications in country office for wider reach through social media, web site, intranet, and CO web-based knowledge management system
 

  • Design the country office strategy for digital communications; 
  • Maintain close contact with the global web management team to ensure the design of the country office’s website is in line with corporate requirements – and works towards maximizing global visibility of the CO’s programs and development results;
  • Supervise the content for different digital platforms that includes the country office website and social media to ensure consistency of materials and timely and regularly updating;
  • Participate in UNDP capacity development programmes in the utilization of Quantum platform for effective communication and partnership;  
  • Monitor public engagement on different social media platforms, responding to changes in long-term trends regarding contemporary content and outreach modalities;Lead a transition to greater emphasis on short- and long-form audio/video content that increases global visibility of UNDP’s development work – implementing additional technologies and trainings, as needed.

3.    Lead UNDP campaigns to engage different stakeholders (i.e., government, donors, media and public) and increase awareness of UNDP’s mandate and goals

  • Manage and promote advocacy activities and disseminate corporate advocacy materials to publicize UNDP’s mandate/mission, development results, flagship initiatives, and key publications to position UNDP as a thought leader and leading development agency in the country; 
  • Create, promote, and maintain public information campaigns on issues including UNDP activities and the Sustainable Development Goals to influence support from stakeholders in the achievement of UNDP goals;
  • Formulate and implement communications programmes tailored to specific stakeholders and influencers to support fully informed decision-making and advocacy;
  • Develop and maintain close contacts with government officials, donors, civil society, media houses and private sector – keeping up to date on current developments – as part of the country office communication and partnership strategy;
  • Lead UNDP’s Campaign and Advocacy Agenda in country office’s UN Communications Group to make sure this is part of “One UN” agenda.

4.    Lead the effort of the country office’s knowledge management and communications capacity building

  • Provide substantive and sound contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice including CO communications repositories; 
  • Organize and provide training, consultancy, and advice to UNDP staff on internal and external communications and knowledge management; 
  • Oversee maintenance of UNDP’s Intranet on country office activities for internal knowledge sharing, and the sharing of relevant knowledge products with external stakeholders through the corporate website; 
  • Work to ensure institutional knowledge, including knowledge products, are digitally captured, updated, and readily available for future reference and analysis.

5.    Strategic advocacy and partnership development

  • Support the implementation of the CO partnership and resource mobilization strategy;
  • Provide strategic advice and policy recommendations with a view to strongly position UNDP; 
  • Analyze donor trends in the UNDP funding landscape and advise UNDP CO senior management;
  • Provide effective and efficient support to the Resident Representative and senior management in the mobilization of financial and non-financial resources in all aspects of resource mobilization and partnership development;
  • Support senior management in the mobilization of resources through in-depth analysis of donor-specific trends, partnership dynamics, political and economic developments, aid policies, practices and budget allocations;
  • Based on in-depth knowledge of national environments, identify targeted interventions to mobilize support for UNDP and positively influence countries’ national budgetary and other decision-making processes;
  • Build, nurture and maintain effective partnership with relevant Representation Offices responsible for specific donor countries;
  • Generate effective partnerships-oriented mechanisms and approaches towards advancing achievement of the SDGs.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.
 

Institutional Arrangement 

The Communication and Partnership Specialist will report to the Resident Representative.

Competencies 

CORE

  • Achieve Results: LEVEL 3: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact 
  • Think Innovatively: LEVEL 3: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems 
  • Learn Continuously:  LEVEL 3: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences 
  • Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 3: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands 
  • Act with Determination: LEVEL 3: Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results
  • Engage and Partner:  LEVEL 3: Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration
  • Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 3: Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

Business Direction & Strategy: System Thinking    

  • Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system

Business Management: Portfolio Management      

  • Ability to select, prioritize and control the organization’s programmes and projects, in line with its strategic objectives and capacity; ability to balance the implementation of change initiatives and the maintenance of business-as-usual, while optimizing return on investment

Business Management: Communication    

  • 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.

General (across the functions): Event Planning and Execution     

  • Ability to plan, manage and execute pu8blic and private events to ensure that they support and amplify individual communications and advocacy initiatives, as well as UNDP's overall brand and mandate.

Communications: Advocacy Strategy and Implementation           

  • Ability to create and implement advocacy strategies which lead to impactful change

Communications: Brand & Quality Management  

  • Ability to position a UNDP brand and uphold it to a high level of quality

Communications: Campaign Management             

  • Ability to produce and implement communications and advocacy campaigns which lead to impactful change.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

  • Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in Communication, Journalism, International Relations, Public Administration, Development Communication, or related social science field is required. OR
  • A first level university degree (Bachelor’s degree) in the areas mentioned above with an additional 2 years of relevant experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced degree.

Experience:

  • Minimum of 7 years (with master’s degree) or 9 years (with bachelor’s degree) of progressively responsible experience at the national or international level in communication, journalism, international relations, public administration, development communication, or related social science field.

Required Skills

  • Minimum of 7 years (with master’s degree) with relevant experience at the national or international level in public relations, advocacy, or communications; 
  • Experience in the use of office software packages (e.g., MS Office, Google Suite), creative software packages (e.g., Adobe Creative Suite), social media platforms statistical analysis tools (e.g., SAS, Tableau), advanced knowledge and application of AI, and web-based content management systems such as CQ5;
  • Experience in video production, digital publishing, and graphic design;
  • Experience in drafting and implementing strategic plans in the areas of communications and partnerships.

Desired Skills

  • Previous experience with multilateral or international organizations is an asset;
  • Previous experience in working with UN or NGOs or international organizations is an asset;
  • Experience in working in a demanding environment with the skills of dealing with crisis communications is an asset;
  • Experience on knowledge products and research skills is an asset;
  • Good interpersonal and team building skills/experience; 
  • Proven experience in drafting report, news, stories, policy updates.

Language Requirements

  • Fluency in both spoken and written English language is required. 

Equal opportunity

As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination. 

UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.

Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority

UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles. 

Right to select multiple candidates

UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Scam alert

UNDP does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process. For further information, please see www.undp.org/scam-alert.  #LI-DNI

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