Background
General Assembly Resolution 2186 (XXI) decided to “bring into operations the United Nations Capital Development Fund as an organ of the General Assembly which shall function as an autonomous organization of the United Nations. The UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) assists developing countries, especially least developing countries, in the development of their economies by supplementing existing sources of capital assistance by means of grants, loans, and guarantees. UNCDFs vision is to help mobilize and catalyze an increase of capital flows for SDG impactful investments to Member States to address the most pressing development challenges facing vulnerable communities in these countries and thereby contribute to sustainable economic growth and equitable prosperity.
UNCDF utilizes its unique capability in the UN system to deploy grants, loans and guarantees to crowd-in finance for the scaling of development impact. UNCDF focuses on where the needs are greatest, a deliberate focus and capability rooted in UNCDF’s unique investment mandate to support the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the realization of the Doha Programme of Action for the least developed countries, 2022–2031.
As per its Strategic Framework, UNCDF works to deploy its functions as a hybrid development organization and development finance institution. UNCDF responds to Member States requests for assistance by providing targeted technical and financial advisory services on investments for development outcomes, designing bespoke financial structuring solutions, undertaking financial derisking of investments, and enhancing investment readiness of SDG aligned projects in partnership with private sector, UNOs, International and Local Finance Institutions, Development Finance Institutions as well as Foundations and Philanthropy, among others. UNCDF works to develop local financial systems, new markets and mobilize and crowd in capital from public and private sources. UNCDF is driven by a partnership mindset which enables it to deploy its different capital capabilities in highly tailored and responsive ways in order to mobilize investments flows from other sources, in particular from the private sector. By structuring transactions which are highly impactful, but also recognize the need for multiplying the impact of its own capital, UNCDF seeks to position itself as a preferred partner for different stakeholders.
Following a recent restructuring, UNCDF’s organizational set up includes an Investment and Implementation Division (IID), Investment and Finance Oversight Division (IFOD), Operations and Oversight Division (OD) and a Directorate of the Executive Office. UNCDF staff and personnel are located in regional hubs based in Dakar (Senegal), Nairobi (Kenya) and Bangkok (Thailand) with sub-regional presence in a number of locations in the Caribbean and Pacific Regions. UNCDF is led by an Executive Secretary based out of New York, USA. Pursuant to General Assembly resolution 2321(XXII, para 1.a), the Administrator of the UNDP performs the function of the Managing Director of UNCDF. UNCDF is overseen by the Executive Board of United Nations Development Fund (UNDP), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and performs the function of the Executive Board of UNCDF.
As part of the Directorate, the Strategic Communications Team supports the Executive Secretary and all Divisions to elevate UNCDF’s corporate positioning both internally and externally, strengthen brand visibility and thought leadership by leading the development, harmonization, and amplification of communication activities and deliverables in line with overall business strategy, priority areas and upcoming Strategic Framework. The Strategic Communication Team collaborates with the External Relations Team to shape strategic engagements for UNCDF’s Executive Leadership Team (Executive Secretary, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Finance Officer, and Chief Operations Officer).
Duties and Responsibilities
a) Ensure strategic communication, brand and quality management
Provide strategic support in the ideation, writing, editing and quality control of UNCDF communications plans and products, with a view to amplify brand awareness that reflects on-the-ground impact, and contributes to strategic business development, partnership building and resource mobilization efforts. Ensure brand coherence and strategic messaging alignment on communication material created by country-based colleagues, conduct quality assurance on communication materials created by colleagues in country and at regional level.b) Lead content curation and amplification
Oversee the production of a range of communications materials, including case studies, data-driven impact stories, thought leadership pieces, blogs, case studies, and press releases. Manage the Strategic Communication Unit’s quarterly editorial calendar, ensuring that content plans align with wider strategic engagement goals and opportunities. Work closely with the Strategic Communications Advisor to ensure robust dissemination plans that support overall outreach, and external and internal engagement with UNCDF content. Maintain effective working relationships with country-based colleagues and regional communications champions, coach and provide communications advice to ensure the production of effective, data-driven and impactful partner-facing communications materials that align with UNCDF key messaging and speak to the organization’s relevance and impact in the development finance space. Oversee the sourcing, drafting and approval of interviews and forward-looking through pieces from leadership across UNCDF for dissemination across corporate newsletters and podcast. Generate visibility for corporate and country activities at high-level events, conferences, partners meetings and leadership missions through the production of high-quality speeches, data-led talking points, and the design and distribution of targeted information materials. Coordinate among colleagues and external agencies and experts the production of communication products..c) Contribute to the formulation of the Annual Report:
Working in close collaboration with the Project Management Support Unit (PMSU) lead the Strategic Communication Unit’s support to the Annual Report, through the drafting and editing of content, as well as the Last Mile Finance Trust Fund (LMF-TF) annual report. Manage storyboard, content creation and approvals for the Illustrated Annual Report, overseeing the drafting and design components, working closely with colleagues from across communications, and in coordination with monitoring and evaluation focal points and programme managers, to ensure that the Report’s stories are robust and well-communicated.d) Facilitate Internal communications and knowledge management:
Develop and implement internal communications efforts that align with UNCDF’s knowledge management strategy, working closely with relevant teams to maximize information dissemination across the organization, leveraging digital tools and trends, as well Communities of Practice and brownbag lunches to maximize knowledge sharing of knowledge around UNCDF’s advocacy, positioning, resource mobilization and partnerships efforts. Lead content production for the intranet’s homepage to provide clarity on UNCDF’s main strategic direction, generate internal buy-in and sense of togetherness Support the various teams in developing and disseminating internal bulletins and multimedia content such as videos from the Executive Secretarye) Build strategic partnerships and support resource mobilization
Support the Strategic Communications Advisor to strengthen existing partnerships and develop new ones, including by researching potential partners; drafting donor briefs and country profiles Support the External Relations Team and cross-functional teams by participating in donor meetings, drafting communication announcement (press release, social media…) and tailored donor packages (impact stories, presentations, one pagers…) and developing and maintaining a database of relevant Communications materials for partner engagement, in collaboration with cross-functional teams. Maintain creative partnerships with external suppliers, bilateral partners, multilateral and non-governmental organizations, International Financial Institutions and private sector companies in an effort to generate opportunities for joint promotion and external communication pieces.f) Support Media relations:
Research, plan and support high-level media engagements for UNCDF leadership, including writing and pitching articles (thought leadership, Opinion Editorials, and interviews) to targeted media outlets, supporting the Communications Advisor and other colleagues as needed in building relationships between UNCDF and the media, including influential individuals and organizations.g) Ensure effective team management
With the support of the Strategic Communications Advisor, provide dotted-line supervisory support to communications colleagues, supporting strategic guidance that ensures a unified presentation of UNCDF, reflecting a clear message around its unique investment mandate and financing capabilities across high-risk, frontier markets. Lead and maintain a network of colleagues in charge of communications activities at country level and lead the coordination of regional communications champions to drive top-down brand coherence, shared understanding of communication priorities, and bottom-up content curation for both internal and external communications purposesCompetencies Core Competencies:
Achieve Results: LEVEL 3
Think Innovatively: LEVEL 3
Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problemsLearn Continuously: LEVEL 3
Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiencesAdapt with Agility: LEVEL 3
Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demandsAct with Determination: LEVEL 3
Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater resultsEngage and Partner: LEVEL 3
Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaborationEnable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 3:
Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivityPeople Management
UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site.
Cross-Functional & Technical competencies
Business Direction & Strategy: System Thinking
Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the systemBusiness Management: Portfolio Management
Ability to select, prioritise and control the organization's programmes and projects in line with its strategic objectives and capacity Ability to balance the implementation of change initiatives with regular activities for optimal return on investment. Knowledge and understanding of key principles of project, programme, and portfolio managementBusiness Management: Communication
Communicate in a clear, concise, and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media, and other appropriate channels.General (across the functions): Event Planning and Execution
Ability to plan, manage and execute public and private events to ensure that they support and amplify individual communications and advocacy initiatives, as well as UNDP's overall brand and mandate.Communications: Advocacy Strategy and Implementation
Ability to create and implement advocacy strategies which lead to impactful changeCommunications: Brand & Quality Management
Ability to position a UNDP brand and uphold it to a high level of qualityCommunications: Campaign Management
Ability to produce and implement communications and advocacy campaigns which lead to impactful change.Required Skills and Experience
Min. Academic Education
Advanced university degree (master's degree or equivalent) in Communication, Journalism, International Relations, Public Administration, or related field is required, or A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas stated above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.Min. years of relevant work experience
Minimum of 7 years (with master’s degree) or 9 years (with bachelor’s degree) of relevant experience at the national or international level in public relations, advocacy, or communications. Experience in the use of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.), graphic design tools like Canva and the Adobe Creative Suite, advanced knowledge of content management systems such as Drupal or Wordpress and Customer Relationship Management tools such as Salesforce.Required skills:
Experience in writing annual reports for global United Nations entities, multilateral organizations or international financial institutions Experience in media relations, drafting press releases and opinion pieces to be positioned in the media, ideally in the financial and/or development sector Strong ability to write and create compelling content for different platforms (social media, websites, newsletters, and reports) Proven strong ability to write press releases, reports, articles, and other communication materials. Experience managing large, decentralized and matrix-based communications operations in fast paced environment Ability to explain complex technical financial jargon into simple languageDesired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section
Knowledge of financial instruments used for development and ability to explain them to a non-expert audience Experience in developing communication strategies, stakeholder engagement, and brand messaging in particular for multilateral development banks, development finance institutions or impact investors Proven ability to manage sensitive or urgent communication issues effectively. Experience in the use of social media. Experience in developing partnerships Experience in resource mobilization Ability to work in a fast-moving environment and manage competing deadlines.Required Language(s):
Fluency in English is required. Working knowledge of another UN language is desired.Equal opportunity
As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination.
UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.
Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority
UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles.
Right to select multiple candidates
UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.
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