Digital Communications Officer - Consultancy contract (remotely)

In 2021, the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres will convene a Food Systems Summit as part of the Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. The Summit will serve as a pivotal moment in a decade-long effort to unleash ambitious new actions, innovative solutions, and plans to transform our food systems and leverage these shifts to deliver progress across all of the SDGs. It’s vision, objectives, work streams, and outcomes continued to be refined and advanced in strategic collaboration with member states and other stakeholders. The Secretary-General has appointed a Special Envoy for the Food Systems Summit, Dr. Agnes Kalibata, who will provide leadership, guidance and strategic direction towards the Summit. The Special Envoy will be responsible for cooperation with key leaders, including governments, the RBAs and entire UN system, and other strategic stakeholder groups, to galvanize action and leadership for the Summit. The Special Envoy will also assist with outreach and represent the Secretary-General in many global and regional consultative events related to food systems during 2020 and 2021. A Summit Secretariat will be responsible for supporting the efforts of the Special Envoy and all governance mechanisms of the Summit. The Secretariat headquarters is in Nairobi where the Special Envoy is based, but it also includes satellite offices in Rome and New York to facilitate key connections with the UN, Rome-based agencies, permanent representatives, and other stakeholders.

WFP has been appointed as the administrative agency for the Summit on behalf of the UN system. It is hosting and managing a multi-donor trust fund on behalf of the Summit and in alignment with international best practices for full accountability and transparency to stakeholders. WFP is also supporting all operations of the Secretariat in terms of finance, budget, HR, recruiting, IT and beyond.

In partnership with the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Summit, Dr. Agnes Kalibata, a first wave of recruitment was completed between February and May of 2020. The first wave focused on filling the leadership positions of the Secretariat, including a Deputy, a Chief of Staff, and all initially-envisioned unit leads across the organizational structure. Targeted recruitment was completed between the Special Envoy and RBAs in order to quickly identify and onboard individuals with essential capabilities and networks. The Secretariat and WFP also worked closely across the RBAs to draw on the opportunity for seconded positions from FAO, IFAD, and WFP as agreed between the Special Envoy and RBA Principals in the initiation of the Summit. As of the end of the start of June, 2020, the Secretariat has in place 10 individuals, inclusive of the Special Envoy.

The Secretariat has now prioritized a next wave of roles as the Summit work will quickly begin scaling up following the first meetings of the Advisory Committee and other support structures this month. The Secretariat and RBAs are mobilizing funds to the Trust Fund in parallel to these efforts, and so this next wave of roles would be expected to be brought onboard around September following the summer holidays as more funds are received and available. This Digital Communications Specialist, P3 role based in Nairobi is part of this second wave of recruitments and is an essential position to ensure the success of the Food Systems Summit.

As the Digital Communications Officer, you will

• Implement tactical portions of digital engagement and awareness campaigns for food systems transformation across platforms (social, email, digital ads, video, websites and more) that are grounded in digital best practices.
• Work with the unit lead on the unit’s responsibilities to drive the Summit’s communications and advocacy strategy and day—to-day implementation to raise awareness, engagement, and mobilization around the Summit’s key issues and priorities.
• Write, edit and/or create various types of digital content that is on-brand, optimized for each platform and creative enough to stand out in overcrowded feeds. You should also be able to translate research, data or policy actions into digital and social content that compels target audiences to act and engage.
• Create visual collateral in service of the digital communications goals outlined, including infographics, simple data charts, and official transmissions.
• Work collaboratively with team members, clients and outside vendors, including coordinating closely with partners to amplify Summit messages through their digital channels – blogs, Twitter chats, Facebook live, IG interviews, etc.
• Identify and secure strategic partnerships and resources to advance the Summit’s digital presence through direct and in-kind contributions and support routine engagements with a communications and advocacy working group across the UN System and many external partners.
• Contribute more broadly to the overall work of the Summit Secretariat and link to the other functions of the Knowledge & Policy Unit, Global Engagement Unit, Private Sector Engagement Unit, Champions Network, and Program Management Unit.

The role will report to the Communications Lead in the Secretariat and will be home-based (as main duty station).

• You have a minimum five years’ experience in the Communications field including in campaign management.
• Strong social media and research skills are important for the position, as is attention to detail and flexibility.
• Knowledge and experience of things like Facebook Ads Manager, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Premiere, Mailchimp, SurveyMonkey and basic HTML. Knowledge of Drupal Programmer is a plus. You have managed small teams of staff with related areas of expertise in the delivery of innovative communications projects.
• You have provided support in leading projects and input into function policies.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English. Working knowledge of another official UN language is recommended

The Secretariat seek a younger professional for the role who has good experience and tremendous appetite for maximizing the capability and contributions of digital communications in support of the Summit.

Education:University degree in Journalism, International Relations, Public Relations, Communications or other relevant field.

Language: International Professional: Fluency (level C) in English language. Intermediate knowledge (level B) of a second official UN language: Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, and/or Spanish

WFP offers a competitive compensation package which will be determined by the contract type and selected candidate’s qualifications and experience.

Please visit the following websites for detailed information on working with WFP.

http://www.wfp.org Click on: “Our work” and “Countries” to learn more about WFP’s operations.

Deadline for applications: 11 August 2020 

Ref.: VA No. 123287

Qualified female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.