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.

The Regional Office for the Arab States (ROAS) covers 17 countries in the Arab States region and provides support to UN Women Country Offices in Egypt, Iraq, the State of Palestine, Jordan and the Morocco Multicounty Office (MCO) covering Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria. In addition, UN Women has a programme presence (PP) in Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Libya, Kuwait, and Bahrain. ROAS works with these field offices to support countries to implement their international commitments to achieve gender equality and women’s empowerment.

ROAS operations are guided by the Strategic Note 2018 – 2021, which is itself aligned with the global UN Women Strategic Plan and key international frameworks such as Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals, the Beijing Platform for Action, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and other international norms and standards. The ROAS Strategic Note is also informed by and will contribute to, implementation of the UN Women Africa Strategy.

A significant element of the Strategic Note is an enhanced strategic approach to communications, with the aim of increasing the visibility of ROAS and public awareness of both success stories and the specific gaps and challenges to gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls in the region. Communications methodologies adopted by ROAS are tailored to the regional context and able to attract and support the engagement of diverse stakeholder groups, including youth, civil society, national and regional authorities etc.. ROAS’s communications activities also support effective advocacy and aim to strengthen and expand partnerships with diverse stakeholders in the region and internationally.

Reporting to the Coordination Specialist, the Communications Assistant supports the formulation and implementation of the communications and advocacy strategies to increase the standing and awareness of UN Women with partners, the media and the public. The Communications Assistant will support colleagues in the Regional, Multi-Country Office, Country Offices and Programme Presences (RO/MCO/CO/PP) to ensure effective implementation of communications strategies, media relations and organizational outreach efforts. The Communications Assistant promotes a client-oriented approach in UN Women. Central to this function will be the provision of communications support to the administration of the Bahrain Global ward for the Empowerment of Women, including through the management of the Bahrain Award website, curation of social media posts and drafting and / or editing of communications materials to highlight the aims, outcomes and principles of the Award.

1. Provide administrative support to communications and advocacy outreach activities for the Bahrain Global Award for the Empowerment of Women.

• Provide logistical support to communications and advocacy efforts and campaigns, e.g. by supporting the organisation of roundtable discussions, press conferences, and other publicity events and providing inputs to briefing materials and press releases, as necessary.

2. Provide administrative support to the development of the RO communications and advocacy materials.

• Draft press releases, articles, key messages, and other advocacy materials;
• Review translations, contact with printers and other suppliers to ensure production;
• Maintain library/ database of reference materials and photos;
• Follow guidelines from HQ.

3. Provide support in the management of the RO social media presence and website.

• Gather information for the development of content for the RO website and social media channels;
• Update the website and social media channels, as required;
• Maintain files, databases, and systems relevant to the RO’s digital presence;
• Track and monitor social media and report relevant information to RO staff;
• Research, compile and produce reports on web statistics on a regular basis and electronic surveys;
• Design and create social media content (infographics, videos, GIFs, social media cards etc.).

4. Provide media relations support to the RO.

• Maintain and update database of relevant press in country;
• Respond to requests for information, as delegated;
• Gather and compile inputs for talking points.

5. Facilitate knowledge management and sharing.

• Contribute to the identification of best practices and lessons learned;
• Organize trainings and workshops on communication practices;
• Support regular meetings of regional communications focal points;
• Provide/ exchange information with HQ and RO, MCO, and COs.

6. Other.

• Perform other tasks as assigned by supervisor;
• Provide support on special web/digital/media projects undertaken by the RO.

Key Performance Indicators

• Timely inputs to communication and advocacy materials;
• Timely organization of logistical support to discussions, conferences, briefings, and other events;
• Timely delivery quality administrative support;
• Webpages are well-maintained.

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.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies: http://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-employment-values-and-competencies-definitions-en.pdf.

Functional Competencies

• Ability to create, edit and present information in clear and presentable formats, using appropriate IT functionality;
• Knowledge of social media and communication strategies and methods;
• Good event planning skills;
• Ability to identify relevant events and stories and communicate them to a mass audience;
• Good multimedia skills.

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Public Relations, Journalism, Political Science or a related field is required.

Experience

• At least 4 years of progressively responsible experience in providing support to the formulation and implementation of internal and external communications and advocacy strategies and related plans;
• Experience in the use of computers applications and software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc) as well as web-based management systems;
• Experience in the use of social media and digital communication.

Language

• Fluency in English and Arabic is required;
• Working knowledge of the other UN official working language is an asset.

Application:

• 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. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment. Make sure that you provide a valid email address for future communications.

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.