Background:
UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.
UN Women supports Member States in setting and implementing global standards for achieving gender equality and coordinates gender-related work within the United Nations. UN Women's Strategic Plan 2026-2029 focusesย on integrated approaches with three systemic outcomes (Norms, laws, and policies; Accountable institutions and Womenโs agency and access to resources) to address the root causes of inequality and affect broader systems change, across four impact areas: Womenโs leadership and decision-making; Womenโs economic empowerment; Ending violence against women and girls; and Women, peace and security, and humanitarian action.
At the country level, UN Women is an integral member of the UN Country Team, providing leadership on gender coordination interventions, and contributing to the UN Systemwide efforts to support the Government of Liberia to operationalize its national development plan, the ARREST Agenda for Inclusive Development (AAID), which informs the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework. ย UN Women further works in partnership with civil society and other national partners to promote policies, programmes and interventions to advance the rights of women and girls in Liberia.
The new Strategic Note (SN) for UN Women Liberia covers the period 2026-2030 and focuses on advancing gender equality andย womenโs empowerment in Liberiaย by 2030, in line with the SN impactย โWomen and girls in Liberia realize their rights and reach their full potential in a peaceful, democratic, and equitable societyโ with two specific outcomes aligned to the AAID and the UN Cooperation Framework: ย Outcome 1: Human Capital Development) andย Outcome 2: Governance Peace and Security.
Reporting to the Country Representative, the Communications Specialist will collaborate closely with the Headquarters, Regional and Country Officesโ (RO/CO) colleagues to ensure communications strategies, media relations and organizational outreach efforts are aligned with corporate communications policies and initiatives. The Communications Specialist also supports outreach campaigns, resource mobilization and donor relations initiatives. The Communication Specialist mobilizes support in conjunction with intergovernmental processes and supports the activities and special events organized for UN Women.ย
III. Scope of Work
- Lead the development and implementation of communication and outreach/advocacy strategies and plans, with a specific focus on mediaย
- Conduct communication needs assessments for Liberia Country Office, including projects, programmes and corporate change initiatives;ย
- Design, develop, and implement communication and outreach/advocacy strategies, including media strategies; ensure gender perspective;ย
- Integrate communication, advocacy and outreach strategies into proposals for project/programmes and other initiatives;ย
- Monitor and analyze print and social media and prepare reports;ย
- Launch in-country UN Women/UN system corporate and local/regional campaigns and special events;ย and
- Provide advice and guidance to and coordinate with Liberia Country Office in the region.ย
ย ย 2. Lead the development and dissemination of advocacy materials in the Liberia Country Officeย
- Develop and produce communication and advocacy instruments and materials, including briefing materials, press releases, and articles and coordinate its dissemination through effective channels;ย ย
- Identify and launch information opportunities, activities, approaches and platforms and partners;ย
- Provide advice on advocacy materials and coordinate launching flagship initiatives and publications in the region;ย
- Lead the engagement and supervision of video producers and other communication specialists to produce audio/ visual material on UN Womenโs work;ย
- Develop brochures, factsheets, stories from the field to inform media and general public at the regional level;ย and
- Follow policies, procedures and guidelines from and report to HQ.ย
ย ย 3. Manage media relations for the Liberia Country Officeย
- Lead relationship building with press in country; maintain and update database of relevant press;ย
- Respond timely and clearly to media inquiries and to a variety of inquiries and information requests; prepare related correspondence; identify topics, background information, news-related development and coverage of interest;ย
- Organize roundtable discussions, press conferences, and briefing sessions with press;ย
- Facilitate interviews with senior managers; connect media with UN Women subject matter experts;ย and
- Finalize talking points.ย
ย ย 4. Build and maintain partnerships and maintain relations with donorsย
- Identify and develop new communication partnerships and alliances to enhance visibility; manage and nurture existing partnerships;ย ย
- Liaise with advocacy partners and undertake outreach to civil society organizations, governments, and other groups to ensure that newsworthy information reaches the public and donors;ย
- Guide and collaborate closely with communication colleagues in other offices to ensure consistency with corporate policies, messaging and initiatives;ย and
- Submit packages for programme initiatives for donor review.ย
ย ย 5. Oversee the Liberia Country Officeโs web/online presenceย ย
- Oversee and maintain country office websites, including developing design and content;ย
- Coordinate COsโ web-presence in the line with corporate Website Policy;ย and
- Oversee and manage country office social media accounts in line with corporate social media policy.ย
ย ย 6. Facilitate knowledge building and sharingย
- Identify and synthesize best practices and lessons learned from Liberia Country Office directly linked to programme country goals and activities and ensure exchange of information;ย andย
- Provide training and workshops on communication and advocacy as appropriate.ย
ย ย ย 7. The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.
Competencies :
Core Values:
- Integrity;
- Professionalism;
- Respect for Diversity.
Core Competencies:
- Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
- Accountability;
- Creative Problem Solving;
- Effective Communication;
- Inclusive Collaboration;
- Stakeholder Engagement;
- Leading by Example.
Please visitย this linkย for more information on UN Womenโs Values and Competencies Framework:ย
Functional Competencies:
- Ability to communicate sensitively, effectively and creatively across different constituenciesย
- Strong knowledge of managing web-based knowledge management systemsย
- Strong understanding of production, graphic design and photography standardsย
- Strong knowledge of social media platforms and experience in social media outreachย
- Strong oral and written communication and editing skillsย
- Strong communication, networking and advocacy skillsย
- Ability to provide advice and be strategic and analyticalย
- Good knowledge of local country media landscapeย
- Knowledge of gender and human rights issues is desirableย Minimum Qualifications ย Education and Certification:
- Masterโs degree (or equivalent) in communications, public relations, journalism or relevant field is required.
- A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. Experience
- At least 5 years of professional work experience in public relations, communications or advocacy, including in media relations is required.ย
- Experience in the use of social media is required.ย
- Experience in media relations is desirable. Languages
- Fluency in English and French is required.
- Knowledge of another official UN language is desirable (Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish).
Statements :
In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.
Diversity and inclusion:
At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates,ย and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age,ย ability, national origin,ย or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.
If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.
UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere toย UN Womenโsย policiesย and proceduresย andย theย standardsย of conduct expected of UN Women personnelย and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)
Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.
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