Communications Officer

The Cities Alliance (CA) is the global partnership supporting cities to deliver sustainable development. To manage its activities, the Cities Alliance operates a multi-donor fund with UNOPS as host and trustee. The Cities Alliance is therefore governed by the values, rules and procedures of the United Nations and located therein. Supported by a Secretariat in Brussels, Belgium, it is a unique partnership with a diverse membership including – global organizations of local authorities, national governments, international non-governmental organizations, foundations, knowledge networks and multilateral organizations – which have come together to strengthen both impacts and coherence in urban development. Cities Alliance is a global leader, with a strong track record in grant making, that supports strategic city planning, slum upgrading strategies and national policies designed to make cities more inclusive and sustainable. Members promote longer-term and integrated work programs, while actively promoting gender equality throughout all activities. As per its Charter, the main objective of the Cities Alliance is to reduce urban poverty and promote the role of cities in sustainable development.

In collaboration with USAID, Cities Alliance is supporting municipalities and communities in Haiti to increase municipal service delivery and promote long-term and sustained locally-driven economic and social development.

Under the umbrella of the Increasing Municipal Revenues to Improve Services (IMRIS) programme, Cities Alliance will facilitate the promotion of local solutions for public marketplace improvement and solid waste management in line with the strategy of reducing, recycling and reusing. IMRIS is adopting an adaptive approach based on gathering knowledge, testing, learning and improving. The programme is also creating platforms for multi-stakeholder dialogue and enhancing the capacities of municipal governments and local knowledge institutions.

A Cities Alliance has established its office in Cap-Haiïien.

Cities Alliance seeks to recruit a Communications Officer to work with the CA Secretariat and its Haiti office. The Communications Officer will be responsible for the effective communication of project activities and promote dissemination of its results, achievements and outcomes. S/he will work under the supervision of the Local Coordinator, an Urban Development Specialist and the Cities Alliance Communications Specialist to ensure alignment to Cities Alliance Communications tools, approaches and systems.

The role will support the efficient and effective management of communication activities. S/he will play a lead role in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of communication activities, while ensuring full compliance with the donor’s visibility requirements and guidelines with the objective to raise awareness of target audiences about activities, results and impact of the project.

Activities/responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Ensure wide publicity of the project in all areas of significance in line with approved budgets and work plans;

• Manage communication channels for CA work in Haiti including media and any stakeholders;

• Ensure branding and marking are correctly applied by CA and its partners according to donor’s requirements and CA guidelines;

• Support in the development and subsequent management of the webpage for the country with events (upcoming and completed), activities, major related partnerships, etc.;

• Create and manage social media platforms for CA operations in Haiti;

• Develop and update the Communications Strategy for CA work in Haiti, including a communications plan detailing the communications activities that are to be implemented;

• Develop and roll-out communications products such as social media posts, articles, press releases, brochures, etc.;

• Coordinate communications on CA operations in Haiti with counterparts in partner implementing organizations including with regard to capacity building to have project information well disseminated for advocacy to different stakeholders;

• Maintain effective information flows between the project management team, implementing partners, Cities Alliance, government officials and other stakeholders;

• Support the development of partnerships with relevant stakeholders to roll-out the communications plan;

• Take charge of the period publication of reports, audio and visual outputs of the operations in Haiti; and

• Undertake any other functions related to the successful implementation of the project as may be requested by Cities Alliance.

• Master's Degree in Communications, Journalism, Public Relations, Social Sciences, International Affairs, or related discipline.

• A bachelor’s degree in any of the above areas with a combination of two additional years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of the master’s degree.

• Minimum of 2 years experience in developing and managing communications and/or advocacy plans, or related experience is required.

• Previous experience in local development projects is required.

• Experience handling social media communication in an institution is required.

• Experience in communications functions in USAID-funded projects is desirable.

• Fluency in English and French (Written and orally) is mandatory.

• A good knowledge of written and spoken Haitian Creole is an advantage.

[Instructions: Please delete this paragraph and insert relevant information below:

1. Contract type: Local Individual Contractor Agreement (LICA)
2. Contract level: LICA 9 / ICS-9
3. Contract duration: Ongoing ICA contract , subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.

• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.

• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures,  languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 

• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.

• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process.  If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

Terms and Conditions 

• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.

• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.