Youth Engagement (Adolescent) Officer, NOB FT, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, #130081

UNICEF - Burkina Faso is recruiting a Youth Engagement (Adolescent) Officer - NOB, FT, based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world's leading children's rights organization would like to hear from you.

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for personal and professional development that will help them develop a fulfilling career while delivering on a rewarding mission. We pride ourselves on a culture that helps staff thrive, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, Hope!

In recent years, UNICEF has placed greater emphasis on partnering with adolescents specifically girls and young people (girls and boys) not as beneficiaries but as partners in development. UNICEF's Strategic Plan 2018-2021 recognizes the whole spectrum of young people, including young adults or young people over 18, and includes in its Change Strategies “supporting young people and children as agents of change. Taking its cue from the strategic plan, the Global Communication and Advocacy Strategy 2019−2021 (GCAS) asserts the important role that young people, including adolescents, can play in the successful delivery of UNICEF's mandate, and highlights the need to listen to, co-create and collaborate with them and create meaningful engagement opportunities for them to make a difference. As important drivers of change, children, adolescents, and young people are essential partners and contributors to the development and implementation of UNICEF's Strategic Plan 2022 2025. With an ambitious new Strategic Plan, UNICEF intends to make a deliberate commitment to fully engage children, including adolescents and young people, in creating solutions to accelerate the achievement of the SDGs and driving change forward. The voices of adolescents, especially girls, will be an important element in changing social norms including gender norms. Indeed, studies have demonstrated the high vulnerability of adolescents, particularly adolescent girls. They experience the many challenges that come with being in-between ages.  As tomorrow's adults, a partnership with teenagers will ensure that the achievements of our interventions are maintained.

How can you make a difference? 

This role will assist Burkina Faso UNICEF country office to develop, implement and monitor effective and engaging advocacy campaigns involving adolescent and young people. Under the leadership of the Programme Manager (Gender-Social Behavioral Change-Youth Engagement), P4, the role will support the development and implementation and monitoring of adolescent and youth advocacy campaign strategies, partnerships management, and content creation.

This staff member will support the development of effective, integrated strategies for Adolescent and youth engagement and participation in advocacy and campaigning. They will work collaboratively with colleagues across teams, as well as with external partners, to create meaningful opportunities for Adolescent and young people to take action in support of children’s rights through UNICEF’s programmes and priority initiatives.

Duties include:

1. Adolescent and Youth Engagement and participation strategy development and implementation:

• Assist in the development of Adolescent and youth engagement and participation strategies to achieve SMART outcomes.
• Contribute to the development of strategies for engaging adolescent girls to achieve transformative change in gender norms for their well-being.
• Support the implementation of capacity building and knowledge management efforts. Assist in the development of trainings and workshops; and develop and disseminate case studies and other knowledge management products.

1. Adolescent and Youth Engagement Platform management:

• Support content moderation, community management, content creation and M&E for Adolescent and youth focused digital platforms/communities. Assist in the local coordination and implementation of U-Report considering the country's specific challenges.

1. Youth Advocates:

• Support the implementation of a local Youth Advocates programme: researching potential youth advocates; supporting workplan development and communication; supporting youth advocates in preparation for events/media; documenting learnings and successes.

1. Adolescent and Youth Engagement M&E:

• Support the monitoring and evaluation of Adolescent and youth engagement strategies, and platforms. Assist in the preparation of relevant reports.

1. Project and budget management:

• Support the day-to-day delivery of key projects/ workstreams, developing and tracking project plans to ensure progress and address obstacles and bottlenecks. Support effective budget management, projections and tracking.
• Stakeholder engagement/resource mobilization:
• Research current and potential partners. Assist and maintain a database of formal and informal partnerships and networks whose support is essential to achieving objectives. Support the flow of information to key stakeholders.
• Participation in the preparation of proposals and notes for resource mobilization with donors.

7. Others:

• Undertake other key responsibilities as required.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

• Education: A University degree in Communications, Marketing, Journalism, International Relations, International Development, or another related field or a related field.
• Work Experience: A minimum of two (2) years of relevant professional work experience in advocacy/ campaigning and communications focused on Adolescent and young people is required.
• Language Requirements: Fluency in French and good working knowledge of English are required. Knowledge of a local language is an asset.

Desirables:

• Experience in supporting the development and implementation of Adolescent and youth engagement strategies, with specific, measurable and timebound objectives and performance indicators.
• Demonstrated experience in supporting and/or managing projects to completion, including developing and implementing clear processes.
• Demonstrated experience in designing content for Adolescent and youth audiences and/or community moderation of youth focused platforms.
• Experience in supporting the effective functioning of a team.
• Knowledge of children’s rights, public policy, international development and humanitarian issues.
• Understanding of the specific challenges of adolescents and young people in general and adolescent girls in particular.
• Knowledge of child safeguarding and ethics of working with children and youth.
• Experience working for an advocacy or campaigning organization e.g. national or international NGO, UN or other multilateral organization is an asset.
• Experience in supporting training and facilitation is an asset.
• Experience working in a developing and emergency environment is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact

(4) Innovates and embraces change

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity

(6) Thinks and acts strategically

(7) Works collaboratively with others 

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic background, and persons with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization. To create a more inclusive workplace, UNICEF offers paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. Click here to learn more about flexible work arrangements, well-being, and benefits.

According to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. In its Disability Inclusion Policy and Strategy 2022-2030, UNICEF has committed to increase the number of employees with disabilities by 2030. At UNICEF, we provide reasonable accommodation for work-related support requirements of candidates and employees with disabilities. Also, UNICEF has launched a Global Accessibility Helpdesk to strengthen physical and digital accessibility. If you are an applicant with a disability who needs digital accessibility support in completing the online application, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF’s active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female candidates are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. 

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

Visa residence requirements: i.e.: UNICEF shall not facilitate the issuance of a visa and working authorization for candidates under consideration for positions at the national officer and general service category.]

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.