Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

UN Women Albania is implementing its Strategic Note (SN) 2022-2026, which aims to ensure that “All Women and girls enjoy and exercise their human rights in a gender equal society and meaningfully contribute to Albania’s sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development and EU integration”. To achieve such a result, the UN Women office in Albania focusses on three outcomes, which mirror verbatim the areas of focus of the United Nations Albania:

1. Increased and more equitable investment in people to remove barriers and create opportunities for those at risk of exclusion.

2. Innovative and integrated policy solutions that accelerate sustainable, productive and inclusive development.

3. Gender-responsive governance that strengthens equality and non-discrimination.

Across its Strategic Note, UN Women implements its triple mandate of normative support, UN Coordination, and operational activities to achieve results for gender equality and women’s empowerment in Albania. UN Women supports the Government of Albania on key normative and human rights reporting processes such as the CEDAW, Universal Periodic Review (UPR), Beijing Platform for Action, Istanbul Convention, and others. It also supports the government to align national policies with international standards. UN Women in Albania chairs the Gender Thematic and Results Group (GTRG), an interagency group representing 12 UN Agencies in the country, which aims to ensure gender mainstreaming across all UN programming.

Communication and advocacy are essential elements of UN Women’s work. To ensure visibility of UN Women’s contribution and publicly advocate for gender equality the office makes use of both traditional and new communication channels. To maximize public visibility around its work, UN Women Albania aims to continuously expand its digital presence aiming to reach more visitors in the country office website and its social media accounts while it continuously cultivates innovative, visually appealing content about programme results illustrating the importance and relevance of UN Women’s work to attract larger audiences. The CO leads and coordinates advocacy and communication efforts on 16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence, International Women’s Day and other global campaigns jointly with the UN system and by involving women’s rights NGOs and the international community.

Reporting to the Albania Country Office Communications Officer, the Communications Associate supports the implementation of the communications and advocacy strategies to increase the standing and awareness of UN Women with partners, the media and the public. The Communications Associate promotes a client-oriented approach in UN Women. The Communications Associate collaborates closely with the Head of Programme other Country Office colleagues to support the communication and visibility of the UN Women Strategic Note 2022-2026 and its contributing partners. The Communications Associate assists communications and outreach activities in line with corporate communications policies and initiatives as well as donors’ requirements and follows innovative approaches and good practices.

Duties and Responsibilities

Provide coordination support in the implementation of a coherent CO communications and advocacy strategy:

• Provide substantive inputs to the implementation of the CO communication strategy;
• Provide support to advocacy efforts and campaigns by organizing roundtable discussions, press conferences, and other publicity events, and preparing briefing materials and press releases;
• Support in-country UN Women/ UN system corporate and local campaigns and special events – and ensuing joint communications activities.

Provide coordination support to the development of CO advocacy materials:

• Support identifying storylines and achievements within the CO for online and printed publications;
• Prepare press releases, articles, key messages, and other advocacy materials;
• Support and contribute to the creation of more complex visual communication products – infographics, videos, social media graphics etc.
• Maintain library/ database of reference materials and photos and digital assets, as necessary;
• Follow guidelines from country/regional office and headquarters as well as donor’s requirements.

Provide substantive support in the management of the CO social media presence and website:

• Identify stories, and draft content for the CO’s website;
• Update the website and social media channels, ensure consistency in branding;
• Create compelling social media text and visual content (social media cards etc.)
• Draft and plan campaigns-related content for Social Media channels – Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
• Track, monitor and analyse social media and web statistics, trends and report relevant information to CO staff;

Provide communications and media support on the implementation of the CO Strategic Note 2022-2026 :

• Draft and plan campaigns-related content for Social Media channels – Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
• Prepare content for social media, including social media cards and infographics about progress and results.
• Conduct field work to document good practices human-interest and success stories for dissemination to various audiences and via digital channels.
• Serve as a focal point on the project’s activities open to the press, as necessary; Respond to request for information and arrange interviews;
• Provide inputs to talking points, as necessary;
• Attend events and provide communications support for specific events and activities as requested by the project managers, supervisors and programme team members.
• Develop and implement a Communications Plan aimed at increasing the awareness about partner support and related achievements among the target audience. Assist the preparation of any campaigns or audio-visual materials related to the partner contribution.

Facilitate knowledge management and sharing:

• Contribute to the identification of best practices and lessons learned;
• Provide/ exchange information with HQ, RO, and other COs as well as Sida office in Tirana.

Other:

• Provide support on special web/digital/media projects undertaken by the Country Office.
• Take photos during activities, campaigns and other key events.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies:

https://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment/application-process#_Values

FUNCTIONAL COMPETENCIES:

• Ability to establish, build and sustain effective relationships with clients
• Ability to create, edit and present information in clear and presentable formats, using appropriate IT functionality
• Excellent event planning skills
• Excellent knowledge of social media and communications strategy and methods
• Ability to identify relevant events and stories and communicate them to a mass audience
• Strong multimedia skills
• Knowledge of gender equality and women’s empowerment

Required Skills and Experience

Education and Certification:	Bachelor’s degree in communications, public relations, Journalism, digital marketing, social sciences, and related fields.
Experience	At least 7 years of progressively responsible experience in providing support to the formulation and implementation of internal and external communications and advocacy strategies and related plans is required. Experience in writing articles, reports, social media content, press releases. Experience in the use of social media, online outreach and digital communications is required. Experience in the usage of video and photo editing and design software (Canva, Adobe Creative Cloud etc) is an advantage.
Languages	Fluency in English and Albanian is required.

How to Submit the Application: To submit your application online, please follow the steps below:

• Download and complete the https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc )
• Merge your UN Women Personal History Form (P11) and Cover Letter into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded.
• Click on the Job Title (job vacancy announcement).
• Click ‘Apply Now’ button, fill in necessary information on the first page, and then click ‘Submit Application;’
• Upload your application/single file as indicated above with the merged documents (underlined above).
• You will receive an automatic response to your email confirming receipt of your application by the system.

Notes:

• UN Women retains the right to contact references directly. Due to the large numbers of applications, we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process.
• The consultancy post is open to local (Albanian) individuals or foreign individuals with valid temporary or permanent residence in Albania.
• The individual consultants should take the mandatory learning security course prior to commencement of assignment– details will follow before the issuance of contract.

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application. UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (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.)