Communication Specialist (Internal Surge – FAO Personnel Only)

CALL FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST - VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT\:

IMPORTANT NOTICE\: Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal device

• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture.
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented Members and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply;
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO's values
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination　　
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality

The scope of this Call for Expressions of Interest is to find qualified affiliate workforce to support L2/L3 countries in the above functional area.

Qualified affiliate workforce will be placed on an Internal Surge Team (IST). IST will enable the deployment of essential personnel to lead and support country-based emergency response on a short-term basis. These surge roles are designed to provide a punctual, time-bound support to country response and help establish longer-term mechanisms and processes.

o Support deployments are considered for affiliate workforce already in service of the Organization, including those on contract break with a new assignment planning to start over in the short term.
o Applications will be screened based on the information provided in your online profile (see “How to Apply”). We strongly recommend that you ensure that the information is accurate and complete including employment record, academic qualifications and language skills.
o Interested employees will be required to discuss upfront with their managers, who are encouraged to release employees to support, and to upload the signed pre-release agreement form at the time of the application.
o Selected candidates will receive a notification of their inclusion in the IST and will be requested to provide a pre-release agreement signed by the direct supervisor. From that moment they might be called for a surge support at any time, and in line with the duration of their contract.
o Selected candidates will be released of their function for a period which may vary according to country offices needs not exceeding three months, after which they return to their normal functions.
o Surge support must be provided in person, candidates in the IST will be required to have the following documentation ready in case of upcoming mission (Valid passport, Laissez-passer, SSAFE training).
o Affiliate workforce deployed will be reporting to the assigned supervisor for the duration of surge and the change in reporting lines will be reflected in GRMS.
o Applications received after the closing date will not be accepted.

Organizational Setting

FAO country offices, headed by an FAO Representative, are assisting governments to develop policies, programmes and projects to achieve food security and to reduce hunger and malnutrition.

The Office of Emergencies and Resilience (OER) is responsible for ensuring FAO’s efforts to support countries and partners in preparing for and effectively responding to food and agricultural threats and crises. This includes coordinating the development and maintenance of corporate tools and standards to enable Decentralized Offices to assist member countries prepare for and respond to emergencies and supporting organizational preparedness, surge capacity and responses to large-scale emergencies. OER also\: ensures humanitarian policy coordination and knowledge; liaison with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee as well as with humanitarian resource partners; co-leadership with World Food Programme of the global Food Security Cluster; supports food and nutrition security assessment and early warning activities related to emergency and humanitarian analysis and responses, and helps develop and lead the Organization’s programme to increase the resilience of agricultural livelihoods to threats and crises.

The Office of Communications (OCC) is responsible for the external and internal communications of the Organization. It aims at making FAO’s communications strategic, coherent, focused and impactful, while ensuring effectiveness and efficiency in communication-related operations. The Regional Office is responsible for leading FAO's response to regional priorities for food security, agriculture and rural development. It ensures a multidisciplinary approach, identifies priority areas of action for the Organization, in collaboration with Offices, Centres and Divisions at FAO headquarters and oversees FAO deliveries in the region. The Regional Office also supports policy dialogues facilitates regional partnerships and supports capacity development and resource mobilization for food security, agriculture and rural development in the region.

Reporting Lines

The Communication Specialist deployed for surge support will report to the FAO Representative. The Communication Specialist will work in close collaboration with the Resource Mobilization and Communications team in the Office of Emergencies and Resilience (OER) as well as the Office of Communications (OCC) and the Regional Communication Officer.

Technical Focus

Media relations, strategic communication

Tasks and responsibilities

• Supports in the planning, development and implementation of a communications plan for the regional/country office.
• Drafts initial public communication content at the onset/escalation of a crisis to ensure proactive FAO positioning, and provides regular updates as warranted through appropriate products and channels tailored to target audiences.
- Content to communicate early on may include\: what is happening on the ground (e.g. impact of crisis/shock on agrifood systems and rural communities); references to FAO’s know-how and value-added; and relevant FAO data, statistics and knowledge.
- Content to communicate as the situation evolves may include information and products that highlight FAO priorities/achievements in support of the Government and affected communities.
- Products can include, but not be limited to\: key messages; media talking points/holding lines; digital/social media assets); photos, videos and testimonies to produce multimedia human-interest stories; opinion pieces; publications (e.g. thematic reports, policy briefs, flagship publications, etc).
- Direct support should be provided to the FAOR as lead FAO spokesperson in the country, including managing media requests and drafting content for the FAOR's social media platform(s).
• Contributes to designing, planning and organizing effective media coverage of activities and events and arrange for media contacts, briefings (including at the biweekly Geneva press briefings and the daily New York noon briefings when appropriate), press conferences, interviews, media reportages to field projects, in collaboration with the regional and liaison communications officers and OCC media team.
• Supports in establishing and maintaining relationships with international and national media, working with national communications staff as appropriate.
• Supports in the organization and coordination of communications aspects of high-level/Ministerial events.
• If warranted, participates in and represents FAO as a member of the UN Country Team (Humanitarian) Communication Coordination Groups.
• Ensure compliance of all communication materials with FAO guidelines, policies and clearance processes, including\:

FAO Standards and guidelines\:

Liaison with the OCC will be maintained, either directly or through an agreed focal point/coordinator, to ensure compliance with
OCC standards, appropriate review and clearance processes
All communication materials will follow FAO clearance processes and comply with FAO standards, including\:
FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31\: https\://www.fao.org/strategic-framework/en
FAO social media policy and guidelines\: https\://www.fao.org/2/socialmedia
Social Media Branding Guidelines\: https\://openknowledge.fao.org/handle/20.500.14283/cb5044en
FAOSTYLE\: https\://openknowledge.fao.org/handle/20.500.14283/cb8081en
FAO terminology http\://www.fao.org/faoterm
FAO Names Of Countries https\://www.fao.org/nocs/en
Story guidelines, Story template, UN map standards, FAO logo policy and related branding guidelines (available to staff).
• Further guidance regarding FAO communications, policies and procedures can be found through the FAO intranet, OCC section

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• Experience in communications, advocacy and/or donor relations/reporting

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions, is desirable;
• Experience in humanitarian contexts is desirable.

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency

HOW TO APPLY

• To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, and language skills
• Candidates are requested to attach a letter of motivation to the online profile
• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application
• Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications
• Incomplete applications will not be considered
• Personal information provided on your application may be shared within FAO and with other companies acting on FAO’s behalf to provide employment support services such as pre-screening of applications, assessment tests, background checks and other related services. You will be asked to provide your consent before submitting your application. You may withdraw consent at any time, by withdrawing your application, in such case FAO will no longer be able to consider your application
• Only applications received through the FAO recruitment portal will be considered
• Your application will be screened based on the information provided in your online profile
• We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date.

If you need help or have queries, please create a one-time registration with FAO’s client support team for further assistance\: https\://fao.service-now.com/csp

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