Communications and Reporting Officer

Responsible to the Office Country Director and Country Representative, the Communications and Reporting Officer will play an instrumental role in supporting the attainment of South Sudan Operations Centre’s delivery and business targets by taking a leading role in ensuring compliance, monitoring, analyzing and reporting the Operations Centre’s programs and projects results.

The incumbent will be responsible to abide by the security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS. 

The Communications, Compliance and Reporting Officer shall perform, inter alia, the following duties and responsibilities:

Strategic Communications and Reporting

• Provide strategic oversight, advice and direction on all communications activities in line with the SSOC communication strategy and in coordination with UNOPS corporate policies and procedures;
• Act as ‘brand guardian’ by developing, overseeing and having editorial oversight of all public materials, including the website, presentations, proposals and reports;
• Develop communications and media projects relevant to SSOC’s overall business plan;
• Through regular media monitoring, provide socio-political  and economic updates to partners, stakeholders and clients on regular basis;
• Plan and implement a reporting/communications plan for all internal and external communications;
• In conjunction with program and project managers, ensure the timely delivery of progress reports to donors and project partners in compliance with grant and coordination requirements;
• Maintain regular contacts with all project teams to ensure timely and accurate data relating to the progress of works;
• In close consultation with the assigned project manager, provide specific and direct communication support as required;
• Ensure adherence to internal reporting mechanisms;
• Ensure the implementation of the communications and visibility plan including the production of project factsheets and other visibility materials including the timely distribution of press releases when required;
• Coordinate regularly with the UNOPS’ Communications Office in HQ and focal points in the Africa regional office to ensure the timely update of program related information;
• Prepare briefing notes for internal and external audiences on program performance and other issues, as and when required;
• Ensure rapid and information dissemination relating to the organizational policies, guidelines and directives.

 Capacity building and support

• Ensure that the Operations Center Director/Representative  and SSOC  program team are provided with professional expertise and advice on all aspects of external relations communication as required

Report Writing

• Overall responsibility for SSOC reports on activities, including monthly newsletters, substantive monthly and/or quarterly progress reports, and annual reports.

Public Information / Media Relations

• Lead the required media relations to ensure the desired level of positive press coverage in national and international media; analyze and report on the impact of coverage;
• Provide media briefing documents and guidance to UNOPS spokespeople at HQ and other offices globally.
• In consultation with project managers, collaborate with mass media through activities such as organizing project site visits, facilitating media coverage and utilizing both web-based and traditional media as appropriate.

Coordination

• Closely support the Operations Center Director/Representative and SSOC program team

 In dissemination of information related to UN Country Framework in South Sudan.  This includes follow-up support for common UN response plans and integrated frameworks.

• Participate in, and provide professional leadership to organization-wide communication planning by representing SSOC in interagency working groups and task forces to ensure coordination with other UN Agencies;
• Provide guidance and advise on communication with government and non-state actors (donors, embassies, INGO) paying attention to relevant communication protocols.

Knowledge Management

• Implement daily aspects of SSOC’s Communication Strategy;
• Develop (and coordinate) the internal process flows for implementing full and up to date records for all projects in accordance with UNOPS’ knowledge and document management policies and procedures;
• Analyze all aspects of projects performance, identifying good practices, lessons learnt and opportunities for improvement;
• Develop, maintain and update partners and clients contact list/database.

Monitoring and Compliance Analysis:

• Support project managers to ensure compliance with donor  project  agreements and other projects related contracts;
• Support data entry into projects Information Management System (IMS) and other databases;
• Perform any other duties deemed necessary by the OC Director and Country Representative.

• Advanced University Degree in Communications, Monitoring and Evaluation, Project Management, Business Administration, Political/Development Studies, or other relevant discipline is required. 
• A first level university degree combined with two additional years of relevant experience will substitute the requirement for an advanced degree.

• A minimum of 5 years of experience in communications and report writing is required;
• Knowledge of the UN system and familiarity with UNOPS procedures an advantage;
• Experience of working in conflict or post-conflict environments highly desirable;
• Experience working in South Sudan is an asset;
• Skills in report writing, communications and public relations are required.

Contract type: International Individual Contractor

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns.
Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 4,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,000 personnel recruited on behalf of UNOPS partners spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a wide range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced, diverse workforce — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs, and continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that encourage recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.

South Sudan

The UNOPS South Sudan office helps a wide range of local and international partners improve the lives of the South Sudanese people by implementing infrastructure and procurement projects. All UNOPS operations have an increasing emphasis on developing national capacities and considering gender, environmental and community concerns. UNOPS is working in a range of sectors in South Sudan including: transport, education, health, post-conflict stabilization and emergency response.