Jobs - 53255- Public Information Officer

Public Information Officer - (Open to Kenyan Nationals Only)

Location :

Nairobi, KENYA

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

23-Feb-2015

Application Deadline :

29-Jan-15 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

National Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

2 months with possible extension

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

2 months with possible extension

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

Organizational Context

The situation in Somalia remains fragile with continued political instability, climatic variability, and lack of basic social services. OCHA’s role is to coordinate effective and principled inter-agency humanitarian response and ensure that relief assistance reaches the people who need it in a timely manner. In line with OCHA’s global mission, OCHA Somalia continues to:

Advocate for access to basic services, especially water, sanitation, education and health for vulnerable communities, including the collection, analysis and dissemination of information to humanitarian partners, and negotiation of access;
Support the government efforts and humanitarian organizations in relocation of internally displaced and return;
Coordinate the implementation of humanitarian response in Somalia with UN agencies and programmes, national and international NGOs and local authorities/communities as appropriate, with focus on strengthening the cluster approach;
Enhance a protective environment that respects the human rights of all, including IDPs, returnees and minority clans.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objectives of the assignment:

The role of the Humanitarian Reporter is to support the management focusing on researching, writing and producing written materials and multi-media products on countries in the Central and East Africa region, with special attention to maintaining the quality and relevance of UNOCHA’s humanitarian coverage.

Scope of work:

The Humanitarian Reporter will report to the Head of the Public Information Unit and Key activities will include:

Research, report and write text and produce text stories and assemble content for OCHA Somalia while maintaining professional humanitarian reporting standards of accuracy, impartiality and fair dealing and adhering to OCHA’s Publication information policies;
Prepare features and materials for OCHA’s events and on issues affecting humanitarian matters in Somalia. Manage and process information supplied by field officers and undertake the research needed to write reports as assigned by the Head of Public Information Unit;
Closely liaise with the offices of the Humanitarian Coordinator, OCHA coordination Unit, other UN agencies, NGOs, International organizations and other relevant entities including donors and media, to enhance information gathering and dissemination;
Assist in the analysis of information/data collected and recommendations to OCHA Headquarters for responses from the international community;
Assist in the support to OCHA Somalia management in briefing donors and other partners as required on the situation in Somalia.

The Head of the Public Information Unit to monitor the work / performance.

Final product/Deliverables:

Research and consolidate inputs to weekly reports;
Prepare and update fact sheets and key fact and figures on Somalia documents;
Production of web stories for the global and Somalia websites;
Maintain and update contact lists;
Proactively obtain new information products from other UN agencies;
Formulate messages for OCHA social media inputs.

Review/approval time:

The Public Information Officer will submit reviews and certify payment monthly.

Competencies

Functional Competencies:

Advanced knowledge on the use of information management to improve the delivery of humanitarian assistance;
Ability to analyze and articulate the information management requirements of complex situations requiring a coordinated UN response;
Demonstrated problem-solving skills and ability to use sound judgement to ensure the effective and timely completion of complex tasks;
Ability to work under extreme pressure in a highly stressful environment;
Very good knowledge of institutional mandates, policies and guidelines pertaining to humanitarian affairs;
Strong writing and oral communication skills including the ability to convey complex concepts and recommendations to staff at senior levels in a clear and concise style;
Ability to work to tight deadlines and handle multiple concurrent projects/activities.

Core Competencies:

Organizational awareness;
Client orientation;
Job knowledge.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualifications:

Minimum Bachelor’s degree or equivalent with 4 years experience in journalism; or
Related field or Master’s degree with 2 years of experience in a related field.

Years of experience:

Minimum 2 years of progressively responsible experience with a Master’s degree; or
4 years of experience with a Bachelor’s degree in journalism, public information or in a related field;
Additional experience in the humanitarian sector is an advantage.

Language requirements:

Fluency in English (both oral and written) is required.

Terms of Service:

This is a non-staff contract under the Individual Contractor (IC) modality of hiring of the UNDP. Individuals engaged under an IC serve in their individual capacity and not as representative of a government institutions, corporate body or other authority external to UNDP. The incumbent shall not be considered as staff of UNDP, the UN common system or the government and are therefore not entitled to any diplomatic privileges or any other special status or conditions.

Submission of application:

Interested and qualified candidates are requested to submit electronic application. The closing date for receipt of applications is 29 January, 2015.

Applicants are required to fill and sign a P11 Form and submit it together with Curriculum Vitae on the online application.

The P11 Form can be obtained from the link below:

http://sas.undp.org/Documents/P11_Personal_history_form.doc.

Please group all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document.

UNDP will only be able to respond to those applications in which there is further interest.