ASUS Events and Communications Officer

 

6 July 2020

 

 

Terms of Reference

  

 

ORGANIZATIONAL LOCATION:	UN-Habitat
DUTY STATION:	Bangkok, Thailand
FUNCTIONAL TITLE:	Events and Communications Officer – ASEAN Sustainable Urbanisation
DURATION:	12 months
CONTRACT MODALITY:	UNOPS LICA

 

* This vacancy announcement is for Thai nationals only

 

United Nations Core Values: Integrity, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity

 

 

Organizational Context:

 

 The United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-Habitat, is the agency for human settlements and sustainable urbanisation. It is mandated by the United Nations General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all. Leading efforts to advance UN system-wide coherence for sustainable urbanisation, UN-Habitat is playing a key role implementing the Goal 11 of the Sustainable Development Goals adopted in September 2015 as well as the New Urban Agenda (NUA) adopted in Quito, Ecuador in October 2016.

 

Founded in 1967, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, was established with the signing of the ASEAN Declaration, aiming to promote collaboration and cooperation among Member States, as well as, to advance the interests of the region as-a-whole. Today, there are currently 10 Member States: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam, forging ahead together towards the achievement of ASEAN Community Vision 2025.

 

Since 2008, UN-Habitat and the ASEAN Secretariat have engaged in a variety of UN and ASEAN Secretariat engagements. Most notably, UN-Habitat has been developing a new generation of sub-regional programmes which target all or selected ASEAN countries, especially in the area of cities and climate change. Meanwhile, the Bangkok Office of UN-Habitat is increasingly engaged in knowledge programmes with fellow UN agencies, on issues of migration, health, resilience and urban data in support of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda.

 

 

About the Project:

 

 

 

Half of the 600 million people in the ASEAN region already live in urban areas and by 2025 a further 70 million people in ASEAN will be city dwellers. Seeking to address this “mega-trend” of urbanization, the ASEAN Sustainable Urbanisation Strategy (ASUS) was launched at the 22nd ASEAN Coordinating Council (ACC) Meeting in November 2018, as one of the initiatives under the ‘Sustainable Infrastructure’ strategic area of the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity (MPAC) 2025.

 

Nearly one year after its launch, the ASUS and its two accompanying toolkits remains key to raising the standards of living of the citizens of ASEAN countries, enhancing shared prosperity of cities and regions, as well as strengthening climate action and resilience. In this regard, the period between 2020-2021 will be crucial to accelerating the implementation of the ASUS, with a special emphasis on small to medium-sized cities and intermediate cities, which are witnessing most of the growth in the ASEAN region over recent years and which will continue to exhibit significant upward population and economic trends.

 

As such, the accelerated implementation of ASUS will provide ASEAN cities with the opportunity to prioritize actions to achieve sustainable urbanisation, while implementing practical activities customised to their unique city contexts, designed to raise the standards of living of those within ASEAN which lie at the core of the New Urban Agenda and ASEAN Community Vision 2025.

 

 

Towards this end, the ASUS has been disseminated to city networks in ASEAN, with many cities in each of these networks sharing common priorities and concerns. While some technical support is provided through the various city networks in ASEAN, further resources are needed to help cities develop credible action plans and/or financially viable project proposals. As part of this project, an implementation plan integrating several initiatives and intended to accelerate sustainable urbanization during the period of January 2020-June 2021 (Phase 1) could support the achievement of the expected ASUS outcomes by 2025, with a second phase of intensified action at the local level between 2022 to 2025.

 

 In summary, these initiatives and proposed key outputs in Phase 1 includes:

   

1.      Technical advisory support to 8 selected pilot cities within ASEAN established as leaders in ASUS implementation in developing high-quality proposals within the ASUS Framework;

  

2.      Organisation of an ASEAN Sustainable Urbanisation Forum bringing together diverse stakeholders from across ASEAN and supporting the development of improved urban policies;

  

3.      Research and development of a report detailing the “State of Urbanisation in ASEAN”.

 

 

Functional and Reporting Relationships:

 

 

 

 

 

The individual will be based at the UN-Habitat Bangkok Office (HBO) located in Bangkok, Thailand. HBO supports coordination and liaison functions amongst UN agencies based in Bangkok, as well as, enhancing partnerships with regional entities such as ASEAN.  Under overall guidance of the Regional Representative, and with supervision of the Chief, UN-Habitat Bangkok Office supported by the Project Team Leader, the officer will work closely with officials at regional, and headquarter offices of UN-Habitat.

 

 

 

 

Key Responsibilities:

 

 

 

The Events and Communications Officer - ASEAN Sustainable Urbanisation, will be responsible for the management of the advocacy, outreach and communications aspects of the project and, in particular, support the coordination of the ASEAN Sustainable Urbanisation Forum. The tasks include:

 

 

 

Events Management

 

·       Coordinate the delivery of ASEAN Sustainable Urbanisation Forum and any associated events, including the thematic tracks, scheduling and logistics as well as the preparation of the Forum Report and other primary deliverable outcomes of the Forum;

 

·       Support the organisation of meetings and travel required by personnel for consultative meetings and preparation for the ASEAN Sustainable Urbanisation Forum;

 

·       Help to arrange venue bookings, room arrangements and selection of speakers;

 

·       Organisation of Expert Group Meetings with full coordination with ASEAN in developing high-quality technical proposals and the report on the “State of Urbanisation in ASEAN”;

 

·       Maintain records and documents for auditing, tracking of finances and evaluation purposes.

 

 

 

Advocacy, Outreach and Communications

 

·       Develop and implement of the project media and communications plan, including preparations of press releases and necessary project materials as well as expand and manage media relations to position project with in national and international media.

 

·       Support in liaising with and coordinating relevant vendors; Visual Content Designer, Reports Editor and other contractors as required;

 

·       Deliver presentations on project components to ASEAN and other stakeholders upon request;

 

·       Identify and pursue communication opportunities, such as international and national commemorations, conference and seminars, which could serve to further promote the project;

 

 

 

·       Support the development of a website leveraging the existing ASUS micro-site to showcase progress as part of the project in accelerating the implementation of the ASUS;

 

·       Support enhanced engagement with key partners, including government, civil society, private sector, donors, development partners, academia and others to exchange information on possible collaborations and opportunities, such as related events and campaigns.

 

·       Support UN inter-agency communications working groups at country and regional level.

 

·       Liaising with the UN-Habitat External Relations, Communications and Media focal points and campaign managers in UN-Habitat Headquarter and Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific for the dissemination of advocacy and outreach material.

 

All the information gathered, communication, resources and materials along with documents developed will be assets of UN-Habitat until officially handed over to ASEAN Secretariat.

 

 

 

Competencies:

 

 

• Professionalism: Ability to perform a broad range of administrative functions, e.g., budget/work programme, human resources, database management, etc. Ability to apply knowledge of various United Nations administrative, financial and human resources rules and regulations in work situations.  Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.

 

 

 

• Teamwork:  Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

 

 

 

• Planning & Organizing:  Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently.

 

 

 

• Communication:  Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors their language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

 

 

 

Qualifications:

 

 

 

Education

 

An Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in media and communications, marketing, public relations, events coordination, international development or digital strategy, or Bachelor's degree with additional two years relevant and progressive experience in the fields may be accepted in lieu of the post-graduate or Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent).

 

 

 

Experience

 

A minimum of 2 years’ progressive and relevant work experience in international development, urban planning or program management, preferably in the field of human settlements in the region. Work experiences with the UN, and general knowledge of UN rules and regulations are desirable.

 

 

 

Language

 

For this position, fluency in oral and written English is required. Knowledge of another official United Nations language and/or Southeast Asian will be considered an advantage.

 

 

 

Other

 

Experience in substantive human settlements development issues related to urban development especially working in the context of ASEAN Member States will be an added advantage.

 

 

 

 

Contract period, level of engagement and duty station

 

 

 

The contract will be for 12 months starting 27 July 2020 and ending 26 July 2021. The first contract will be issued until 30 September 2020 with extension based on performance review. The post is based in Bangkok, Thailand with at least one mission within the South-East Asia region.

 

 

 

 

 

Remuneration

 

 

 

In compliance with UNOPS and UN-Habitat policy.

 

 

 

Payment Schedule:

 

 

 

The deliverables/reports are to be prepared as per the instalments below. The payment shall be made on satisfactory completion of work and approval of submissions by the Project Team Leader – ASEAN Sustainable Urbanisation project and Chief of UN-Habitat Bangkok Office.

 

Instalments	Deliverables	Payment Amount
1	Report from Expert General Meetings associated with technical proposals (by 30 September 2020)	15%
2	Project media and communications plan including agreed upon visual identity	15%
3	Concept note and draft programme for ASEAN Sustainable Urbanisation Forum, including website leveraging ASUS micro-site	15%
4	Completed Forum session descriptions, draft speaker lists and invitations circulated	20%
5	Final Forum report and event proceedings including media and press coverage	20%
6	Report from Expert General Meeting associated with the Report on the State of Urbanisation in ASEAN	15%
		100%

 

 

 

Note: Deliverables 2 to 6 may be revised as per discussions with ASEAN and partners. Instalments are indicative of the order in which the deliverables are expected to be completed or produced.

 

                                             

 

Applications should include:

 

 

 

·       Cover memo (maximum 1 page)

 

·       CV in the PHP format, accessible through the INSPIRA website (inspira.un.org)

 

 

 

* Please note, if using INSPIRA for the first time, you need to register in order to activate your account, which will allow you to log in and create a personal History Profile.

 

 

 

·       The PHP should be attached to the application as a PDF file.

 

·       Summary CV (maximum 2 pages), indicating the following information:

 

1.      Educational Background (incl. dates)

 

2.      Professional Experience (assignments, tasks, achievements, duration by years/ months)

 

3.      Other Experience and Expertise (e.g. Internships/ voluntary work, etc.)

 

4.      Expertise and preferences regarding location of potential assignments

 

 

 

All applications should be submitted to:

 

 

 

UN-Habitat Bangkok Office  

 

habitatbkk@un.org

 

 

 

Please indicate the Post Title: “ASEAN Event & Communications for ASUS project” in your e-mail subject.

 

Please note that applications received after the closing date stated below, will not be given consideration. Only short-listed candidates whose applications respond to the above criteria will be contacted for an interview. The fee will be determined according to the qualifications, skills and relevant experience of the selected candidate. In line with UN-Habitat policy on gender equity, applications from female candidates will be particularly welcome.

 

 

 

Deadline for applications: 19 July 2020

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                     UN-HABITAT does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process. If you have any questions concerning persons or companies claiming to be recruiting on behalf of these offices and requesting the payment of a fee, please contact: recruitment@unon.org