Communications and Media Consultant

Purpose of consultancy:

Under the supervision of the Head of Agency, the Communications and Media consultant will assist UNFPA Philippines Country Office with the overall development, management and execution of its external and internal strategic communications, advocacy and media outreach efforts.

Scope of work:

Under the supervision of the Representative, and in close collaboration with the program team and APRO Communication team, the Communications and Media consultant will provide strategic inputs and support the UNFPA-PH CO to:

1. Update and implement the UNFPA Philippines Communications Strategy,
2. Promote the work and mandates of UNFPA Philippines among government and non-governmental partners, international community, international/regional/local media, utilizing traditional media such as TV, radio and newspaper as well as social media,
3. Ensure internal communications vis-a-vis UNFPA HQs, Regional Offices and other Country Offices as well as within the Philippines Country Office in accordance with the corporate Communications Strategy, In liaison with the HQs’ and Asia-Pacific Regional Office’ Communications Advisors.
4. Represent UNFPA in the UN Country Team Communications Group in the Philippines and contribute to provide UNFPA inputs to the joint UN efforts and share all strategic information in the context of the UNFPA Country Programme.

Main Tasks and Responsibilities:

The Communications and Media consultant will be responsible for:

1. Implementation of the UNFPA – PH communication strategy

• Promote of visibility of UNFPA achievements by Working closely with the UNFPA Program Team and relevant partners to identify best practices, successful stories and achievements of UNFPA PH projects, through the production of high quality communication materials documenting results and ensuring donor visibility as required  
• Proactively write and share human stories with general public, government and civil society partners and stakeholders, donors, national/local media, UNFPA HQs and Asia-Pacific Regional Office
• Prepare regular media advisories, press releases, advocacy materials/package, briefs, PowerPoint presentations, fact sheets etc. on UNFPA work and issues related to UNFPA mandates and ensure their wide distribution to media networks and other relevant partners
• Prepare talking points and speeches as required for the Representative and Officer-in-Charge.
• Support and organize outreach and advocacy initiatives such as press conferences, briefing sessions, interviews, launches, in close coordination with relevant staff
• Manage norms for publishing, design, liaison with printers and other suppliers to oversee production and supervision of publications dissemination
• Support to Organize and facilitate field visits for strategic partners on UNFPA’s projects
• Update the photo database on UNFPA PH supported efforts in the Philippines and ensure the use of these photos for public information and advocacy products

2. Social Media (Instagram, Twitter and Facebook)

• Supports the program team in the preparation of contents, update the contents and upload the new contents in the pages;
• Take necessary measures for the pages to be updates, attractive, relevant and active both from technical and administrative point of view;
• Review on daily basis, the contents of the UNFPA social media pages and Keeps up the pages with the new trends
• Continuously monitors site analytics to see what types of content followers respond to the most and adjusts the strategy accordingly and Provide regular reports by sharing the analytics of the CO's media pages and provides comments to increase the number of followers

3. Website

• Update the website based on the parameters prescribed by the country office focal point in coordination with the UNFPA HQ;
• Take necessary measures for the pages to be updates, attractive, relevant and active both from technical and administrative point of view;
• Improve accessibility to the information of the web-page;

4. Media Scanning

• Contribute to the environmental scanning through the daily media scanning. And keep the representative informed about any development related to UNFPA mandate

5. Facilitation of knowledge building and sharing

• Organize and facilitate training sessions to improve and increase media/communications skills and capacity of UNFPA Philippines staff
• Lead internal communications and learning, by preparing a Country Office newsletter
• Actively participate and contribute to the UN Philippines Country Team Communications Group
• Liaise with Communications Adviser at regional office and Communications Branch at HQs as required ensuring timely information flow between country office and HQs/Regional Office

6. Perform any other duties as requested by the Representative and Head of Programme.

Duration and working schedule: 

Three months from 1^st June 2021 to 31 August 2021 with possibility of extension till end of 2021, depending on the performance and funds availability

Delivery dates and how work will be delivered: 

Monthly accomplishment report to be submitted detailing: a) Target Deliverables; b) Deliverables Achieved; and c) other Comments/Remarks

Expected travel: 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing quarantine, the Communications and Media consultant will follow the UNFPA working arrangement and will submit the deliverables to UNFPA Philippines CO virtually if necessary until further direction from the Head of Agency

Job requirements:

• Master’s degree in Communications, Journalism, Marketing, Public Relations, Social Sciences, International Relations or an equivalent degree that is directly relevant to UNFPA's mandate such as Public Health, Gender Studies, Demography etc. with two (2) years of professional experience at the national or international level with a good track record in journalism, editing, communications, external relations etc. for an international organization, foundation, NGO/CSO, private company, government office, etc
• Required years of work experience (as stipulated above) in the area of communication and external relations, such as print and broadcast media, interactive digital media and external relations at the national or international level.
• Ability to research and analyze trends, opportunities and challenges to strategic communications on the organization’s interested areas, and synthesize information
• Initiative, passion and commitment to UNFPA’s mission and professional values
• Knowledge of current developments in the fields of Sexual and Reproductive Health, Gender Equality, Youth Empowerment, and Population and Development; passion about UN/UNFPA agenda and mandated areas of work
• Field/community based experience is an asset
• Willingness to travel to remote parts of the country to collect stories and photographic/ video contents
• Ability to express clearly and concisely ideas and concepts in written and oral form.
• Good at packaging messages suitable for social media and web platforms for organizational promotion
• Proven interpersonal skills; Proven ability for relating, networking, persuading and influencing
• Proven ability to represent the organization in external relations with e.g. high ranking representatives from government, donors, private sector, foundation, etc
• Full proficiency for MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint as well as knowledge about graphic designing software such as Photoshop and others
• Prior experience with development assistance would be desirable
• Ability to work in an international and multicultural environment

Core Competencies:

Functional Competencies:

Languages: Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, both orally and in writing, including fluency in English and national language (Tagalog) is preferable.

Other Desirable Skills: Initiative, sound judgment, strong interest in development work, especially the mission of the United Nations Population Fund and dedication to the principles of the United Nations.