Public Information Officer, Nairobi

Closing date: Saturday, 13 June 2015

Posting Title: PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER, P4
Job Code Title: PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER
Department/ Office: United Nations Environment Programme
Duty Station: NAIROBI
Posting Period: 14 April 2015-13 June 2015
Job Opening number: 15-PUB-UNEP-39484-R-NAIROBI (X)
United Nations Core Values: Integrity, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity
Organizational Setting and Reporting
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the United Nations system's designated entity for addressing environmental issues at the global and regional level. Its mandate is to coordinate the development of environmental policy consensus by keeping the global environment under review and bringing emerging issues to the attention of governments and the international community for action. UNEP's Division of Communications and Public Information (DCPI) communicates UNEP's core messages to all stakeholders and partners, raising environmental awareness, influencing attitudes, behaviour and decisions related to the local and global environment, and enhancing the profile of UNEP worldwide. This post is located in UNEP at the Nairobi duty station.
Under the direct supervision of the Regional Director for the Regional Office for Africa (ROA) and under the technical supervision of DCPI, the incumbent will carry out the following duties
Responsibilities

• Formulate innovative, creative, effective and measurable ways to present UNEP's scientific and other environmental development and management information to the identified target audiences.
• Oversee the development and dissemination, throughout the region, of evidence-based environmental information, and raise public awareness in the region on critical, as well as emerging, environmental issues:
• Ensuring the customization and 'translation' of scientific and other environmental information from UNEP so it can be understood and assimilated by stakeholders in the region, whose actions affect the state of the environment, taking into account their different needs, priorities and languages.
• Ensuring the strategic dissemination of such environmental information, using regional and national networks and other tools such as events, environmental education and training to increase regional awareness on relevant issues.
• Design regional programmes to increase the capacity of all stakeholders to better access, disseminate and use environmental information for policy and planning processes, including through customized outreach tools and networks.
• Working across divisions and closely with UNEP Subprogramme Coordinators and Regional Coordinators for the UNEP subprogrammes, provide strategic information and advice for, and actively participate in, developing UNEP's outreach and information strategies for the different subprogrammes in the region, including the identification of target audiences and strategies for reaching them.
• Promote deeper collaboration between UNEP and governments, other UN organizations, scientific and academic institutions and major groups and stakeholders in the region. In particular, develop and maintain networks in the region to partner with UNEP on, among other things, the generation, use and dissemination of environmental data and information on public platforms and to increase access to information for different types of stakeholders, particularly in the context of environmental decision-making processes.
• Actively engage the major and specialized media of the region and interest them in reporting on the work of UNEP and its partners. Produce briefs/texts and quotes to be issued in the name of the UNEP Executive Director, the Regional Director and/or other UNEP Directors, as requested.
• As appropriate, and in consultation with the Regional Director, act as spokesperson for UNEP in the region.
• Perform other related duties, as required.

Work Experience

• A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in media relations, formulation and dissemination of public information is required.

United Nations Considerations
Job openings posted on the Careers Portal are taken off at midnight (New York time) on the deadline date.
Applications are automatically pre-screened according to the published evaluation criteria of the job opening on the basis of the information provided by applicants. Applications cannot be amended following submission and incomplete applications shall not be considered. The selected candidate will be subject to a reference checking process to verify the information provided in the application.
Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the At-a-Glance on 'The Application Process' and the Instructional Manual for the Applicants, which can be accessed by clicking on 'Manuals' on the upper right side of the browser on Inspira.
The United Nations shall place no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. (Charter of the United Nations - Chapter 3, article 8). The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.
Candidates will be required to meet the requirements of Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter as well as the requirements of the position. The United Nations is committed to the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity for all its human resources, including but not limited to respect for international human rights and humanitarian law. Candidates may be subject to screening against these standards, including but not limited to whether they have committed, or are alleged to have committed criminal offences and/or violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law.
No Fee
THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS' BANK ACCOUNTS.

More information and application details