ASSOCIATE PROGRAMME SPECIALIST

Under the overall authority of the Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information (ADG/CI) and the direct supervision of the Chief of Executive Office (CI/EO), the incumbent is responsible for providing professional and technical support, research and analysis for the programme management, as well as coordination of the Communication and Information Sector (CI).  As member of the Executive Office, the incumbent will assist the Chief in performing the following tasks\:

• Contribute to the preparation of the Medium-Term Strategy (C/4), the biennial Programmes and Budgets (C/5) and the corresponding work plans; assist in the coordination, monitoring and reporting on the implementation of CI’s programme activities.
• Collect and analyse data/contributions and prepare and consolidate briefings; provide support to Chief, CI/EO, and ADG/CI in establishing and maintaining relations with other Sectors, Central services, and partnerships with Member States, civil society and the private sector; produce correspondence, briefings and speeches; manage inputs to the UNESCO annual report and to the UN wide exercises and reports.
• Facilitate information and knowledge management across the Field Offices and Headquarters; assist in building and maintaining tools for that purpose and enhancing the culture of information sharing.
• Contribute to the formulation of the sector’s decentralization strategy and its implementation; assist in liaising with the Sector’s divisions and other Headquarters units to ensure timely programme, financial and administrative support to Field Offices.
• Assist in the coordination of the Sectors research, outreach and internal capacity building activities; liaise with Sector's Divisions and Field units to identify research needs; contribute to the preparation of sector-wide publications, and meetings' documents for ADG/CI and Chief, CI/EO.

Education

• Advanced university degree (Masters or equivalent degree) in the field of communication and information, political sciences, international relations or related areas. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience

• Minimum 2 years of professional experience in the field of communication and/or information, of which preferably 1 year acquired in an international environment.

Skills/Competencies

• Excellent oral and written communication skills, with proven ability to edit and draft clearly and concisely.
• Strong analytical skills.
• Capacity to ensure accuracy of documents and reports through research, reference sources and consultations, paying close attention to detail.
• Strong organizational and coordination skills.
• Excellent inter-personal skills, including the ability to interact with a wide range of stakeholders and to work effectively and respectfully in a multicultural environment.
• Strong sense of ethics, integrity, diplomacy, tact and discretion.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively under pressure, to manage heavy workload and to meet tight deadlines, with the ability to apply flexibility in adjusting work schedules and priorities.
• Excellent IT skills (MS Office).

Languages

• Excellent knowledge of English or French and good knowledge of the other language.

Work Experience

• Proven experience in writing original texts (contribution to reports, articles) in English or French, practice of editing.
• Experience in implementing and managing programmes/projects in the areas of communication and information.
• Development of SharePoint and websites.

Skills/Competencies

• Knowledge of UNESCO’s programmes and approved priorities.
• Familiarity with the work and general functioning of UNESCO or international organizations in the UN System.

Languages

• Working knowledge of another official UNESCO language (Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish).