Communications Assistant

Breaking the cycle of poverty in Lao PDR and graduating from the Least Developed Country (LDC) Status represents the heart of the Government’s development aspirations. UNDP has a key role in assisting the country with a smooth transition to non-LDC status, as well as the complex process to strategically raise needed funds for programs that benefit poor people.

UNDP Lao PDR works toward localisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), implementation of the 9th National Socio-Economic Development Plan 2021-2025 and, more broadly, Lao PDR’s graduation from the Least Developed Country (LDC) status.

UNDP supports to strengthen the Government’s capacity at central and local levels in ensuring the formulation and implementation of their development plan encompassing all key aspects, such as equitable growth, poverty reduction and environmental sustainability, with special attention given to achieving the SDGs.

UNDP offers ground-breaking research on human development in Lao PDR through supporting the preparation of National Human Development Reports which advocate for policies placing people at the centre of the development process towards inclusive and sustainable growth and the achievement of the SDGs as well as LDC graduation.

UNDP Lao PDR Country Office (CO)’s portfolio consists of three strategic development areas – environment, climate change and resilience; governance and rule of law; and inclusive growth, which includes a large support programme to the UXO/mine action sector.

In line with the Ninth National Socio-Economic Plan (NSEDP) and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, UNDP Country Programme Document (CPD) 2022-2026 supports Lao People’s Democratic Republic’ efforts to ensure that by 2026 the population benefits from sustainable and inclusive growth and is increasingly resilient to the risks of climate change, natural disasters and unexploded ordnance while state institutions are more transparent, inclusive and accountable to the people. The programme is anchored in the long-term UNDP partnership with the Government spanning more than three decades. It builds on previous achievements that saw the incorporation of the SDGs into the national planning architecture and aims to support the country as it recovers from the economic and social impacts of COVID-19 and continues its transition from Least Developed Country status, with particular emphasis on supporting inclusive growth and reducing inequality. The programme is aligned with the UNDP Strategic Plan, 2022-2025, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework in Lao PDR.

The communications UN Youth Volunteer will support the Communications Analyst in the implementation of UNDP Lao PDR’s communications and outreach strategy and action plan. Working under the guidance and direct supervision of the Communications Analyst, s/he will collaborate closely with the Country Office Programme, Operations and project teams, as well as UNDP Communications staff in the region and HQ, government officials, international and local media, subject matter experts, donors, and civil society to ensure successful implementation of UNDP’s communication strategy with a view to influence the development agenda, promote public and media outreach and mobilize political and financial support for UNDP Lao PDR.

Under the direct supervision of the Communications Analyst, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:
1) Support in planning and designing of internal and external strategies for communica-tion and outreach
• Participate in the planning and elaboration of communication needs assess-ments for the country office (projects, country programme and country office ini-tiatives)
• Support in editing/drafting CO communication and outreach strategy based on CO strategic priorities and the UNDP External Communication Action Plan.
• Work closely with the Communications Analyst and country office management to ensure communication strategies support achievement of CPD targets.
• Support the inclusion of communications components in programme and pro-jects formulations to integrate advocacy and communication strategies into all aspects of UNDP’s development programmes.
• Facilitate increased coverage and understanding of the UNDP’s work in the country through local and global media stories as guided by the Country Office Partnerships and Communications Action Plan.
• Support and participate in the UN communication group and other relevant technical working group meetings;

2) Support the implementation of the country office publications strategy and plan based on the corporate publications policy.
• Support the identification and the development of storylines for publications and substantive articles that contribute to and generate conversations on key development issues.
• Support the coordination and management of all CO publication activities, in-cluding content management in line with corporate guidelines.
• Assist in close coordination with the procurement team for printing and produc-tion of communication materials and publication.

3) Support UNDP digital communications in country office for wider reach through social media, website, intranet, and CO web-based knowledge management system.
• Support the country office strategy for digital communications, in line with cor-porate requirements.
• Draft and support the elaboration of content for different digital platforms that includes the country office website and social media to ensure consistency of materials.
• Contribute to the monitoring of public engagement on different social media platforms

4) Support UNDP communications and outreach campaigns to engage different stake-holders (i.e., government, donors, media and public) and increase awareness of UNDP’s mandate and goals.
• Assist in the management and promotion of advocacy activities and the dis-semination of corporate advocacy materials to publicize UNDP man-date/mission, flagship initiatives, and key publications to position UNDP as a thought leader and leading development agency in the country.
• Contribute to public information campaigns on issues including UNDP activities and Sustainable Development Goals, to increase the visibility of UNDP’s work, mobilize resources, and influence support from stakeholders in achievement of UNDP goals.

5) Support the country office’s knowledge management and dissemination efforts.
• Support the identification and synthesis of best practices and lessons learned directly linked to programme country goals and activities.
• Contribute to knowledge networks and communities of practice including corpo-rate communications repositories.
• Support the maintenance of UNDP’s Intranet on country office activities for in-ternal knowledge sharing, and the sharing of relevant knowledge products with external stakeholders through the corporate website.
• Support and explore new internal communications mechanisms to ensure ef-fective on-going internal communication of needs and developments.
• Work with the Programme teams to ensure all knowledge products are cap-tured, updated, readily available, as and when necessary.