External Relations, Strategic Communications and Advocacy Expert

UNFPA is the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency. Our mission is to deliver a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person's potential is fulfilled.

UNFPA’s goal is to achieve universal access to sexual and reproductive health, realize
reproductive rights, and reduce maternal mortality to accelerate progress on the ICPD
agenda, to improve the lives of adolescents and youth, and women, enabled by population
dynamics, human rights, and gender equality.

In 2018, UNFPA launched efforts to achieve three transformative results, ambitions that promise to change the world for every man, woman and young person:

1.) Ending unmet need for family planning
2.) Ending preventable maternal death
3.) Ending gender-based violence and harmful practises

UNFPA recognizes that innovation is a key accelerator to achieve these results. UNFPA will harness innovation to meet tomorrow’s challenges and boost its impact, especially in addressing furthest behind populations, and leverage opportunities, social capital, funding and technology by (a) strengthening the corporate innovation architecture and capabilities, (b) scaling up innovations that have proven to be effective and impactful, (c) forming new partnerships and connecting with relevant innovation ecosystems, (d) strengthening and leveraging financing for innovation, and (e) expanding communities and culture for innovation.

The External Relations, Strategic Communications, and Advocacy Expert will be based in UNFPA’s Country Office in Angola. The incumbent will develop and implement External communications/visibility and advocacy strategies that effectively communicate the priorities and impacts of the Country Programme Document (CPD) 2024-2028 for Angola. This new CPD contributes to achieving universal access to Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) and accelerating the achievement of the three transformative results of UNFPA: (a) ending unmet need for family planning; (b) ending preventable maternal deaths; and (c) ending gender-based violence and harmful practices; with key attention to ending sexual transmission to HIV. Among the three transformative results, the programme will focus on reducing the unmet need for family planning, particularly among adolescents and young girls, which has the potential to positively affect the other transformative results. This role involves close collaboration with internal teams (programmes and operations), media outlets, donors, and other stakeholders to ensure coherent and compelling narratives on UNFPA-Angola’s work, priorities, and impacts to diverse audiences for strengthened partnerships and increased visibility/branding.

Under the direct supervision of the Representative and with a close coordination with the Assistant Representative, this position substantively contributes to the work of the external communications and relations, visibility, and advocacy as a key crosscutting strategy for ongoing implementation of the UNFPA’s Country Programme Document (CPD) 2024-2028 in Angola. The position will lead a team of Communications, Partnerships and Resource mobilization, and provide technical support to the Country Office to build a stronger visibility/branding through strategic communication and reinforce existing/ new partnerships with diverse audiences- the national and local governments, the media, donors and bilateral / multilateral cooperations, International Financing Institutes (IFI), civil society, UN agencies and communities, especially youth, adolescents, and the furthest behind populations. The incumbent will lead and supervise a small communications, partnerships and resource mobilization team, and directly responsible for the following key tasks:

• Develop and implement comprehensive External communications and visibility strategies to effectively communicate UNFPA's work, priorities, and impacts (within the CPD 2024-2028) to diverse audiences.
• Enhance the credibility, visibility/branding and thought leadership of UNFPA through strategic media engagement, digital communications, knowledge management/ evidence-based advocacy, external communications with donors and partners, and humanitarian communications.
• Cultivate and strengthen effective relationships with media representatives, stakeholders, donors, and key partners to promote and support UNFPA's mission and initiatives.
• Lead the work of planning, producing, and disseminating high-quality communication materials that convey compelling narratives about UNFPA’s impact and achievements, using innovative and user-friendly methods, such as storytelling and audiovisuals with youth engagement.
• Monitor media landscapes and use insights to inform and adjust communication strategies for maximum effectiveness.
• Provide technical support to the UNFPA team in identifying, planning, implementing, and monitoring key priorities for UNFPA’s advocacy actions, connecting with the strategic communication, knowledge management, and partnerships.
• Support the coordination and alignment of the CO’s External Communications, Visibility, and Advocacy strategies with broader organizational communication goals and objectives.
• Ensure the coordination and collaboration with other UN agencies in strategic communications in support to the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2024-2028.

Detailed tasks and responsibilities:

Strategic Media Engagement
• Develop and implement a strategic media plan to enhance UNFPA’s credibility and thought leadership.
• Consolidate and strengthen strategic partnerships and networks with media.
• Identify key media opportunities and create an annual media calendar.
• Monitor global and regional media landscapes to inform media strategies.
• Develop creative and innovative ways to market and pitch UNFPA.

Content Development and Dissemination
• Produce user-friendly materials on key thematic areas for dissemination to the media, key stakeholders, donors, the private sector, and other audience groups.
• Maintain and update the website and media platforms regularly with input from program staff.
• Draft press releases, feature stories, briefing notes, news reports, talking points, opinion pieces, and other information material on UNFPA and its work.
• Write and edit stories to ensure quality and conformity to UNFPA’s information standards and United Nations editorial and professional journalistic style, accuracy, and objectivity, as well as political/cultural balance.

Media Relations and Networking
• Cultivate and maintain effective working relationships with representatives of all types of media, including national, regional traditional and digital media, news networks, services, and agencies.
• Map and develop relationships with national (main), regional or international traditional and digital media, advertising agencies, and other private sector partners (including freelance writers, photographers, videographers, journalists, and influencers) to explore opportunities for in-kind support to visibility campaigns and resource mobilization.
• Organize press conferences, media briefings, and interviews with UNFPA spokespeople.
• Monitor information and services provided to traditional and digital media representatives to ensure their cooperation in promoting an accurate image of the organization and its programs among policymakers and the public.
• Strengthen the internal capacity for media engagements, including developing a practical guideline, providing media training, and developing key messages and talking points.
• Coordinate with regional office and other country offices to support localized media efforts and share good practices and lessons learned.
• Provide guidance to the communications team to effectively monitor and assess the effectiveness of media strategies- both traditional and digital- in promoting UNFPA’s voice and adjust as necessary.
• Mobilize for paid and donated space and airtime in the media for placements of press statements through building partnerships, op-eds or essays/ key messages from Country Representative, Executive Director‘s statements in the local media, radio and TV programmes, talk-shows, news items and interviews with the Country Representative or designated Senior Programme Staff.

External and Public Relations, and advocacy
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders, including government officials, NGOs, and community leaders.
• Plan and execute public relations actions to enhance the organization’s image, visibility, and outreach.
• Ensure representation of UNFPA at public events, conferences, and forums to promote its mission and initiatives.
• Based on the constant analysis of the country context, identify and implement/ monitor risk mitigation actions related to advocacy and communications (in support to the CPD), and provide guidelines and advise on this matter.
• Assist in coordinating the production of advocacy and communications materials- including booklets, brochures, and other publications, audiovisuals, infographics, etc, ensuring quality of content and design. This includes providing technical support to develop high-quality stories, messages, articles, tweets and photographs to relevant social media platforms.
• Help the office develop crisis communication plans and manage media relations effectively.

Donor Communications
• Create compelling communication materials tailored for donors to highlight the impact of their contributions.
• Develop and maintain regular communication with donors to keep them informed about UNFPA’s work and achievements.
• Supervise the Partnerships and RM officer, in collaboration with the programme team, in developing and implementing strategies for donor engagement, visibility, and enhanced partnerships.

Collaboration and Coordination
• Collaborate and coordinate with program team to identify and develop compelling stories that highlight UNFPA's impact.
• Provide guidance and capacity development supports to country office communications staff on media relations, content creation, and digital communications.
• As a member of the UN-wide communication group, contribute to planning, implementation and reporting of communication actions in support to the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF).
• Supervise a communication and partnership team (including social media and design associates, and Partnerships/ RM analyst), and closely collaborate with the Knowledge management associate in undertaking these tasks.

Other Duties
• Plan and oversee editorial production, reviewing publications and written content for the organization’s public information adherence to objectives and standards.
• Use media monitoring tools to assess the effectiveness of media strategies and adjust as necessary. Track and analyze media coverage of UNFPA and related issues. Prepare regular reports on media activities, coverage, and impact.
• Carry out any other duties assigned by the supervisor, related to the functional areas.