National Communication and Visibility Specialist

Organizational Setting

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) contributes to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development through the FAO Strategic Framework by supporting the transformation into more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems, for better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life, leaving no one behind.

FAO’s commitment to environmental sustainability is integral to our strategic objectives and operations.
The FAO Sierra Leone Country Office is responsible for leading FAO's response to country level priorities for food security, agriculture and rural development through the identification, planning and implementation of FAO's priority activities in the region. It ensures a multidisciplinary approach to programmes, identifies priority areas of action for the Organization in the region, and, in collaboration with Divisions, Sub-regional Offices and Centres at headquarters, develops, promotes and oversees FAO's strategic response to country priorities and the implementation of the Organization's strategies through programmes and projects across the region.
The Country Office supports the formulation and implementation of the Country Programmes and Projects, including Country Programming Frameworks (CPFs), and their contribution to the FAO Strategic Framework and the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) at the country level and work with Subregional office for West Africa on corporate priorities such as the Strategic Framework and on the incorporation of regional priorities into the Organization's Programme of Work and Budget. The Country Office leads, formulates, implements, monitors and reports on the Organization's programmes and budget in the region and draws management attention to problems, deficiencies and risks.

FAO Sierra Leone has developed a project on Palm Oil value chain development for three years that is contributing to the developed action document aligned to the Feed Salone strategy titled Sustainable Food and Agricultural Value Chains Development in Sierra Leone (SFAVCDSL) to be Financed under the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI Global Europe). This action document is linked to relevant Multiannual Indicative Programme for the Republic of Sierra Leone 2021-2027 (MIP). The total funding for the plan is estimated to be Euro 34.7million million out of which Euro 11.2 million will be administered by the FAO for technical assistance to support oil palm value chains and nutrition in the country. This initiative is a joint effort of EU and FAO building on complementarities and synergies of the interventions by the two organizations.

It is suggested that at least 43000 farm families will benefit directly within the selected 4 districts of Port Loko, Bonthe, Pujehun and Kenema. The specific activities to be implemented by FAO will include\: (i) dissemination of good agricultural practices; (ii) adoption of improved farm practices for increased farm productivity; (iii)training in post-harvest management and palm oil processing; (iv) household nutrition improvement; (iii) promotion of on and off-farm employment; (iv) formation of oil palm based cooperatives and (v) capacity development for monitoring and evaluation

Sierra Leone Country Office is looking for a National Communications and Visibility Specialist to support this project. The position is in the FAO Sierra Leone Country Office, West Africa region.

Reporting Lines

Within the functional and administrative supervision of the FAO Representative in Sierra Leone, the incumbent will report directly to the International Senior Agronomist/Team Lead of the project and work closely with the Head of Programme and other technical units in Headquarters, Regional Office and Sub-regional office.

Technical Focus

Support the EU funded project management through directly assisting the BH in increasing visibility and communications on the project activities that contribute to the overall impact of the project in terms of monitoring and reporting responsibilities of the project at local level. This will include developing visibility materials and assisting to disseminate the good products of the project intervention in close collaboration with FAO and EU rules.

Tasks and responsibilities

In close collaboration with Office of Communications (OCC) branches and appropriate Communication focal points, the incumbent will\:

• Work with the FAO communications unit within FAO to develop a communication strategy and plan that outlines the objectives, target audiences, key messages, communication channels, and evaluation methods for the project.
• Work with the technical units within FAO to develop and disseminate communication materials on monthly/quarterly basis based on data collection activities in the field such as brochures, fact sheets, newsletters, graphic designs and press releases to inform stakeholders about the project and its progress as approved by the FAO, and EU.
• Organize and facilitate at least two stakeholder engagement activities such as community meetings, workshops, and consultations to gather feedback and input from stakeholders.
• Coordinate with project partners, including government agencies, NGOs, and community-based organizations, to ensure consistency and coherence in project communication efforts and share feedback with the project steering committee regularly,
• Document lessons learned during project implementation,
• Participate in the meetings/field work to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of communication activities and adjust the communication strategy and plan as needed,
• Work with the project team to organize radio programs and other sensitive media actions in line with the EU, FAO and the government guidelines to get feedback from public and inputs for ongoing project activities
• Attend major trainings, workshops, distributions and ensure adequate photos coverage and where necessary videos to support project reporting
• With support from the regional communication team, regularly update the FAO country office website, Facebook and twitter accounts on the progress of the project,
• Document the start of the project intervention, mid of intervention and end of intervention to better understand the success stories of the EU support to the government,
• Perform any other duties assigned by management.

FAO Standards and guidelines\:

• Liaison with OCC will be maintained, either directly or through an agreed focal point/coordinator, to ensure compliance with OCC standards, aligned messaging, and 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

• University degree in communications, journalism, public relations, or related field
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in developing and implementing communication strategies and activities for environmental or natural resource management projects
• Working knowledge (proficiency - level C) of English
• National of Sierra Leone

FAO Core Competencies

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

Selection Criteria

• Strong writing and editing skills, with experience in developing communication materials such as press releases, newsletters, and fact sheets.
• Experience in organizing and facilitating stakeholder engagement activities such as community meetings and workshops.
• Strong experience in graphic designs to develop posters, banners and other visibility materials,

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION