ABOUT THE COMPANY:

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the UN Refugee Agency, is mandated to protect and assist men, women and children forced to flee their homes due to violence, conflict or persecution. UNHCR is dedicated to saving lives, protecting rights and building a better future for refugees, forcibly displaced and stateless people. The Agency provides protection, shelter, food, water, medical care and other life-saving assistance to refugees and asylum-seekers around the world. The dream of most refugees is to return home. If and where possible, UNHCR helps refugees make this dream a reality. When refugees cannot go back home, we work to find solutions for them, to rebuild their lives in another country. Since its formation by the United Nations General Assembly in 1950, UNHCR has helped millions of refugees restart their lives and has received the Nobel Peace Prize twice.

JOB SUMMARY

H (no hardship)

Family

Family

GS6

General Service

Reason

Regular > Regular Assignment

No

2024-11-01

August 24, 2024

External Relations Associate

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
The External Relations Associate is normally supervised by the External Relations Officer or another professional staff depending on the staffing structure of the Office. The incumbent receives regular guidance and advice from the supervisor. Advice and operational support may also be received from other senior staff and support units at the Country Office/HQ.
External contacts are generally with a broad range of officials from national and international institutions, media or general public involving the exchange of a wide range of information.

All UNHCR staff members are accountable to perform their duties as reflected in their job description. They do so within their delegated authorities, in line with the regulatory framework of UNHCR which includes the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions as well as relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, staff members are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, cross-functional and managerial competencies and UNHCR’s core values of professionalism, integrity and respect for diversity.

Duties
– Provide background briefings to local and international media.
– Keep track of evolving issues concerning persons of concern to be able to suggest stories and topics for the media to cover.
– Provide daily briefings on local developments to the Head of Office and ensure that briefing materials from other offices are available.
– Accompany visits of foreign delegations and the media to refugee sites in the region, giving appropriate briefings, commentaries and prepare briefing material for visitors.
– Establish contacts with local organisations to promote general interest and understanding of refugee issues
– Ensure that the office is kept informed of local developments which may have a political or operational impact on the office’s activities.
– May be required to compile information and SitReps received from the Field Offices and/or sections within the Office and consolidate into weekly/monthly/quarterly report.
– Advise the Head of Office of local aspects of external relations policies.
– Liaise with external partners and local organizations on behalf of UNHCR.
– Produce reports and briefings for internal and external partners.

– Support the identification and management of risks and seek to seize opportunities impacting objectives in the area of responsibility. Ensure decision making in risk based in the functional area of work. Raise risks, issues and concerns to a supervisor or to relevant functional colleague(s).
– Perform other related duties as required.

Minimum Qualifications
Education & Professional Work Experience
Years of Experience / Degree Level
For G6 – 3 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 2 years relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Field(s) of Education
Not applicable

Certificates and/or Licenses
Political Sciences Social Sciences International Relations
Journalism Communication
(Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Not specified

Desirable
Completion of UNHCR learning programmes or specific training relevant to functions of the position.

Functional Skills
IT-Web Content Management
CO-Drafting and Documentation
TI-Interpretation
IT-Computer Literacy
(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Language Requirements
For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.
For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language.
For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.

All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination and abuse of power.

As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise.

This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.

Language skills: German, French AND English are essential (German at mother tongue level)

English

,

French

,

German

,

,

Operational context

Occupational Safety and Health Considerations:

To view occupational safety and health considerations for this duty station, please visit this link:

https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel

Nature of Position:

Under the supervision of the head of Office and in close cooperation and coordination with the Senior External Relations Associate, the External Relations Associate will work to enhance awareness of the work of UNHCR and the protection needs of refugees and persons of concern and to promote positive attitudes towards refugees and other persons of concern through work with the media as well as other external relations activities and events, and will support efforts to develop and disseminate messages in line with UNHCR’s global and country objectives in Switzerland and Liechtenstein. The External Relations Associate will also support UNHCR’s fundraising activities and seek to multiply fundraising opportunities. To achieve this, the External Relations Associate will need to build and maintain effective interfaces with different partners including the asylum authorities, cultural institutions, civil society, media as well as a broader network of stakeholders who can contribute to these objectives.

Living and Working Conditions:

Additional Qualifications

Skills

Communication, External Partners, External Relations, Languages, Media Writing, Social Media, Work Relationships

Certifications

Communication – Other, International Relations – Other, Journalism – Other, Political Science – Other, Social Sciences – Other

Working with Persons of Concern: Asylum Seekers, Working with Persons of Concern: Refugees, Working with Persons of Concern: Stateless

Competencies

Analytical thinking, Client & results orientation, Innovation & creativity, Stakeholder management, Teamwork & collaboration

https://icsc.un.org/Home/SalaryScales

Compendium

Additional Information

Eligible candidates may be requested to sit for a test.

This position doesn’t require a functional clearance

How to Apply
Step 1: Please re-read this job description from the beginning to the end.
Step 2: Click the APPLY FOR JOB button at the end of this job advert.
Step 3: After going to parent website, please read instructions carefully and ensure you apply as soon as possible.

Good luck!