ASSISTANT COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER

JOB OPENING

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements development and the achievement of adequate shelter for all. For close to forty years, UN-Habitat has been working in human settlements throughout the world, focusing on building a brighter future for villages, towns, and cities of all sizes. Because of these four decades of extensive experience, from the highest levels of policy to a range of specific technical issues, UN-Habitat has gained a unique and a universally acknowledged expertise in human settlements development at different planning scales.
UN-Habitat’s Urban Planning and Design Branch is currently developing a Regional Profile, covering different planning scales from regional to community level, for Uganda’s West Nile Region. The Regional Profile will also include different thematic and spatial “zoom-ins” (at city and community level), which will be clustered in package 2: Koboko, Arua and Nebbi are 3 key towns under the corridor development plan and crucial for the economic and social development for the region.

UNITED NATIONS HUMAN SETTLEMENTS PROGRAMME (UN-HABITAT)

Terms of Reference

PROJECT TITLE:   Regional Profile for Uganda’s West Nile Region

DUTY STATION:     Aura (or surrounding municipalities)

TITLE:                      Assistant Communications Officer

DURATION:             4.5 Months

START DATE:         15 August 2018

DEADLINE:             31 December 2018

 

Introduction

UN-Habitat, as the UN’s programme on human settlements, is in the best position to provide answers and achievable solutions to the current challenges faced by urban areas and human settlements of all sizes. UN-Habitat is capitalizing on its experience and position to work with partners in order to formulate human settlements for tomorrow. It works to ensure that cities and regions become inclusive and affordable drivers of economic growth and social development.

UN-Habitat is also mandated to respect, promote, and protect human rights in all of its activities. All of UN-Habitat’s interventions are underpinned by values contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that promote the right to an adequate standard of living, of which the right to adequate shelter is a part, to be accessible for all, both women and men, and especially those in groups in situations of vulnerability of individuals from the indigenous communities as well as refugees. 

UN-Habitat’s Urban Planning and Design Branch requires the services of an assistant Communication Consultant, to support in the coordination and communication processes at local level for the “West Nile Regional Profile” Project.

Background

Uganda's urban population will increase from around six million today to over 20 million in 2040, with an urban population average annual growth rate of 4%. Policy makers need to act now to ensure that this rapid urbanization is managed well, so it can contribute to Uganda’s sustainable and inclusive growth. Even though the Ugandan National Urban Policy has recently been approved and is now starting to be implemented, the rapid (and unplanned) urban growth is imposing challenges for the urban areas, hindering social, economic and environmental development in many regions of the country. In addition to the growth of cities by birth rate, cities often go through planned or unplanned spatial expansion to accommodate migrating communities, to which adequate and integrated governance is crucial.

To promote a more integrated territorial development and reduce pressure on the Kampala metropolitan region, Uganda’s national government sees urbanization as the key to development processes and proposes the strengthening of proposing four strategic cities (Gulu, Mbale, Mbarara, and Arua) alongside Kampala (as capital city). The four cities have been identified in the Ugandan 2040 vision and are to be upgraded to “regional cities”. The project will support the integrated territorial development in West Nile Region with Arua as core “city” in a “system of cities” along the Nebbi-Koboko corridor.

Working Modalities

The Ugandan Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, is collaborating with UN-Habitat, for improving the planning capacity of local authorities in Uganda.

Supervision

The Project is implemented under the Urban Planning and Design Branch (UPDB). The Assistant Communications Officer carries out his/her functions under the overall supervision of the Urban Planning and Design Branch (CPEDU and RMPU), UN-Habitat, Nairobi.

Scope of Work

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the project team for the West Nile Regional Profile, the Assistant Communications Officer will perform the following mains tasks:

  • Supports a client-oriented approach, demonstrating a high sense of responsibility, courtesy, tact and the ability to work with people of different national and cultural backgrounds;
  • Takes minutes and files reports for meetings and other knowledge sharing for UN-Habitat;
  • Supports programs and projects to increase the engagement and participation of vulnerable people, including refugees, young people and women, in the project activities;
  • Monitors the changing needs of vulnerable people in the area with emphasis on the identification of gaps;
  • Support data collection in the field as appropriate;
  • Fosters relationships, dialogues, networks, community spirit and capacity building within the community;
  • Liaises with a diverse range of groups to build community cohesion;
  • Performs a range of administrative duties that support community development within the thematic area;
  • Performs other duties as assigned by the administrative staff and project consultants.

Consultant profile

Education and Experience

  • Ugandan Certificate of Secondary Education;
  • Diploma, certificate or Undergraduate Degree in community development, social work or its equivalent.
  • At least three (2) years of working experience with local communities;
  • Excellent interpersonal, presentation and communication skills;
  • Excellent communication skills in English and the local language(s) in the West Nile Region
  • Advanced computer knowledge including drafting of reports and mails for reporting to UN-Habitat HQ;
  • Experience in a community development approach to work creatively and effectively with vulnerable people, young people, agencies and the wider community.
  • Experience in working with, and actively engaging, vulnerable people via a range of strategies.

Language

English and French are the working languages of the UN Secretariat.  For this assignment, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of the local language is an added advantage.

Applications should include:

  • Cover memo (maximum 1 page)
  • CV in the PHP format, accessible through the INSPIRA website (inspira.un.org) Please note, if using INSPIRA for the first time, you need to register in order to activate your account, which will allow you to log in and create a personal History Profile.
  • The PHP should be attached to the application as a PDF file.
  • Summary CV (maximum 2 pages), indicating the following information:
  1. Educational Background (incl. dates)
  2. Professional Experience (assignments, tasks, achievements, duration by years/ months)
  3. Other Experience and Expertise (e.g. Internships/ voluntary work, etc.)
  4. Expertise and preferences regarding location of potential assignments
  5. Expectations regarding remuneration

Please also be advised that since April 15th, 2010, applicants for consultancies must be part of the UN-HABITAT e-Roster in order for their application to be considered. You can reach the e-Roster through the following link: http://e-roster.unhabitat.org

All applications should be submitted to:

UN-HABITAT

P.O. Box 30030, 00100 Nairobi, Kenya

Email:   maryann.kithome@unhabitat.org

Deadline for applications:  07 August 2018