National Communication Specialist

FAO seeks gender, geographical and linguistic diversity in its staff and international consultants in order to best serve FAO Members in all regions.

• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented Members and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO's values
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination　　
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality
• FAO staff are subject to the authority of the Director-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the Organization.

Organizational Setting

The main aim of the FAO country offices, which are headed by an FAO Representative, is to assist Governments to develop policies, programmes and projects to achieve food security and to reduce hunger and malnutrition, to help develop the agricultural, fisheries and forestry sectors, and to use their environmental and natural resources in a sustainable manner.

Reporting Lines

National Communication Specialist will operate under the overall guidance and supervision of the FAO Representative in Tajikistan, direct supervision of FAO Communication Specialist, overall technical guidance REU Communication Officer, and in accordance with prevailing FAO Corporate Communications policies and practices.

Technical Focus

The National Communication Specialist will be responsible for all communication activities of the FAO Tajikistan office at the national level. The incumbent ensures effective communication in his or her field of competence that can help the Organization achieve its priorities as well as enables cost-effectiveness in use of communication-related resources across the Organization.

Tasks and responsibilities

General task:

National Communication Specialist will provide support to the FAO Representation in Tajikistan to improve visibility of projects’ activities and promote FAO related to agriculture and food work, disseminate information about projects’ developments among stakeholders, and as follows:

Specific tasks

In close collaboration with OCC branches and focal points, the incumbent will:

• Assist in drafting, editing, clearing, and disseminating news releases, human interest stories and other content to national and local news media,
• Organize and lead the development of the FETAJ Communication Strategy and plan (updated every year),
• Maintain and regularly update FAO-Tajikistan media contacts list,
• Contribute to the development of information campaigns, materials and other communication activities of other communication assistant hired by FAO Tajikistan;
• Organize project site visits for journalists and other public information events and press conferences, upon request,
• Assist in conducting media monitoring of the coverage of project activities, as outlined by the Senior Communication Officer for Europe and Central Asia,
• Create and maintain an up-to-date database for communication materials (including publications, press releases, photographs, audio-visual materials, web resources, etc.),
• In close liaison with project management and technical units, assist in conducting visibility events, as outlined in the Communication Strategy,
• Disseminate research findings, ensure exchanges and sharing of experience, lessons learned, best practices between government officials, programme staff, and other partners,
• Follow-up on the development and production of promotional materials (cap, pen, folder, etc.), obtaining technical clearance on the content and ensure that they meet organizational and donor standards, including in terms of quality, consistency and relevance,
• Ensure dissemination of promotional materials to local communities, government officials, other partners and the media,
• Maintain and regularly update the FAO Tajikistan webpage,
• Initiate and support the development of visual materials (infographics, brochures, banners, posters) on the projects’ impacts
• Follow-up on the development and production of promotional materials (cap, pen, folders, etc.), obtain technical clearance on the content and ensure that it meets FAO and donors’ requirements and standards in terms of quality, consistency and relevance,
• Develop local language versions of corporate communication materials (news releases, op-eds, brochures, etc.) under the supervision of the Communication specialist,
• Assist in conducting of visibility events, as outlined in the Communication Strategy in close liaison with project management and technical units,
• Disseminate research findings, ensure exchanges and sharing of experience, lessons learned, best practices between government officials, programme staff, and other partners,
• Ensure dissemination of promotional materials to local communities, government officials, other partners,
• Provide inputs related to media to all major technical documents and reports to ensure they are well written, clearly communicate the messages and comply with organizational and donor visibility requirements,
• Serve as youth and environmental focal points for FAO Tajikistan; take upon other tasks related to FAO Tajikistan operations, related to her professional field and/or areas of interest, as the request of FAOR Tajikistan;
• Other related duties, as needed.

Liaison with the Office of Communication (OCC) will be maintained, either directly or through an agreed focal point/coordinator, to ensure compliance with OCC standards, appropriate review and clearance processes. All communication materials will follow FAO clearance processes and comply with FAO standards, including:

• FAOSTYLE (English: https://www.fao.org/3/cb8081en/cb8081en.pdf; French: https://www.fao.org/3/AC339FR/ac339fr.pdf; Spanish: https://www.fao.org/3/ac339s/ac339s.pdf; Arabic: https://www.fao.org/3/ac339a/ac339a.pdf; Chinese: https://www.fao.org/3/ac339c/ac339c.pdf);
• FAO terminology http://www.fao.org/faoterm;
• FAO Names Of Countries https://www.fao.org/nocs/en;
• Story guidelines http://intranet.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/occ/Quick_Guides/UPDATED-Digital-Storytelling-Guide-EN-FINAL.pdf;
• Story template http://intranet.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/occ/Quick_Guides/FAO-Stories-Template-UPDATED.pdf;
• UN map standards (available to staff);
• FAO Brand and policy book (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 Communication, Journalism, Public Relations, Social /behavioural Sciences or any other related field;
• At least three years of experience in media relations or another relevant field (media organizations, journalism or publishing, TV, communication;
• Working knowledge of English, Russian and Tajik
• National or resident of Tajikistan

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

• Excellent communication abilities (oral and written)
• Solid editing and researching skills
• Proven experience with examples of articles published and news video-content developed
• Familiarity with Typo3 or other similar Content Management System software with the proven ability to learn and to use
• Experience in working for or with international development organizations or United Nations agencies

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency.