Communication for Development Specialist (Behavior Change Communication), P-3, TA of 364 days, Beijing China

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, a Champion 

China has experienced unprecedented rates of economic growth with impressive advances in poverty reduction and human development in the past decades, however, the remarkable progress in reducing maternal and child mortality in recent years presents new challenges. UNICEF’s 2021-2025 Country Programme in child health and development will prioritize reducing preventable deaths, strengthening services for early childhood development, and addressing emerging public health threats that children face in China. These challenges/areas include:

1. Poor and inequitable quality of care around the time of birth
2. Child death, disability, and injuries due to accidents
3. Infant and young child nutrition
4. Detection of Early childhood developmental delays and
5. Reducing child and adolescent overweight
6. Adolescent health, mental health in particular
7. Climate change and environmental health, including air pollution

Communication for Development (C4D) or Social and Behaviour Change will be key strategy in our efforts to tackle these challenges.  Starting with an evidence-based process, efforts to create positive social and behaviour change will use a mix of communication tools, channels and approaches to facilitate dialogue, participation and engagement with children, families, communities, networks. Key C4D actions include:

1. Changing social norms that have implications for health (e.g., newborn care, healthy lifestyles in children and adolescents including dietary behaviors), as well as, developing compelling and contextually appropriate messaging to promote prevention and care-seeking behaviours;
2. Providing systematic support for community engagement by building platforms for amplifying the voices of community leaders, civil society organizations (CSOs) and adolescents.

Design and implementation of demand-generation approaches, including the development of tools and resources that educate local citizens about their right to basic information, healthy food, quality health care services, and address the social and structural barriers that prevent access to and uptake of services. Where possible, UNICEF will enhance and expand the use of digital and mobile technologies, online and face-to-face C4D platforms, including community dialogue, and participatory planning and monitoring, for social and behaviour change on a wide scale.

To learn more about what we do, please visit: http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMzU5ODg1NDcxMg==.html

How can you make a difference?

The Communications for Development Specialist reports to the Chief of Child Health and Development Section for general guidance and supervision and has a dual reporting line to the Chief of Communication. The Specialist provides technical and operational support in the development of a systematic, planned and evidence-based strategy and process for C4D as an integral part of program development, planning and implementation to promote measurable behavioral and social change/mobilization through communication, engagement, empowerment and participation of partners, stakeholders, communities and civil society organizations to achieve sustainable programme results on child health and development in the country.

Support to strategy design and development of C4D interventions

• Provide technical support to local governments for the development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the C4D activities. Projects include promoting healthy dietary in children and adolescents in Chengdu and Shunyi, and advocating for family friendly workplace in Shenzhen;
• Design and plan C4D strategies, including formulation, production and testing materials and/or to organize C4D events and activities to ensure engagement and participation of key audiences for the office advocacy campaigns, in consultation and collaboration with internal and external partners. Campaign subjects include: 1) early childhood development; 2) adolescent mental health, and 3) prevention of childhood obesity.
• Provide quality assurance on behavior change related content, information, and materials, prepared for the following key events: release and dissemination of IYCF counselling package, Breastfeeding Week, campaign for promoting healthy diet and lifestyle at the University Game (International Sports Competition) in Chengdu, World Mental Health Day event, Road Safety campaign, Environmental health week event, World Toilet Day and Global Handwashing Day.
• Participate in country program planning and reviews to participate in discussions on the underlying and contextual issues to be addressed (e.g. policies, gender/children inequality, cultural/social behavior, etc.) to ensure the successful and sustainable delivery of program results and provide technical recommendations on approaches, strategies and plans of action for C4D to promote behavioral and social change.
• Collaborate/consult with a wide range of partners and stakeholders to ensure synergy, integration, coherence, and harmonization of C4D activities and messages across partners on child health and development.

Implementation of C4D activities

Collaborate with, advise and/or consult internal partners and external partners to

• Provide technical inputs and quality control in the development, testing, production, distribution and dissemination of appropriate information, education and communication materials on child health and development.
• Collaborate with Government and other partners to harmonize, link and/or coordinate messaging and use of multiple media and communication platforms to enhance maximum audience reach and impact.
• Support the communication team in identifying, building and maintaining partnerships through networking and proactive collaboration with strategic partners, e.g. academia, social networks, celebrities, journalists, media, all sectors/levels of society and critical audience to reinforce cooperation and/or pursue opportunities for C4D advocacy in child health and development.
• Carry out presentations/advocacy activities with/for a wide range of stakeholders, partners and communities to encourage/promote engagement and dialogue, inclusion, and participation in C4D activities.

Innovation, Knowledge Management and Capacity Building

• Institutionalize/share best practices and knowledge learned with Government and other local partners and stakeholders to build capacity.
• Organize/implement capacity building initiatives to enhance the competencies of stakeholders/partners in C4D planning, implementation and evaluation in support of programs/projects
• Support the communications team in implementing innovative practices, approaches and latest technology on multiple media and social/digital platforms and networks for C4D that are appropriate/available for the CO context and audience.
• Institutionalize/share best practices and knowledge learned/products with global/local partners and stakeholders to build capacity of practitioners and disseminate these products to key audiences including donors and partners.
• New partnerships will be established to support innovative use of behavioral insights, human-centred design approaches and development of strategic cross-cutting, multimedia, and inter-personal C4D platforms that can facilitate new ways of communicating and engaging across the range of programmatic priorities for children, across the life cycle, to support priorities defined at country and community levels. Increased efforts will be made to leverage technology such as Healthy Family App to identify new and more effective interventions for achieving desired social and behavioural change.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Education:

• Master’s Degree in Communications, Anthropology, Sociology, Social Sciences, or related fields obtained at the University.

Experience:

• At least five years of experience in developing C4D policy, plan, documents and executing programme/projects on child rights issues.
• Knowledge of current developments in the fields of Behaviour Change Communication, behavioral economics, motivational psychology, adult learning theory, local media, community organization and participation.
• Proven skills in communication, networking, advocacy and negotiations.
• Ability to organize and implement training, including development of curricula and methodologies.
• Ability to express clearly and concisely ideas and concepts in written and oral form.
• Proficient in English for efficient communication with key government counterparts.
• Track record of providing knowledge services to UN agencies, governments, donors or international partners.
• Previous experience on children related research is an asset.
• Access to a network of social sciences/anthropological/communication researchers and academics is preferred.
• Computer skills, including internet navigation, and various office applications.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA) and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

View our competency framework at

• Learn more about UNICEF competency definitions

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles 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.

Remarks:

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.