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Job Title:    Communications Specialist

Organisation: The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

Project Name: HarvestPlus

Duty Station:  Kampala, Uganda

About US:

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) seeks sustainable solutions for ending hunger and poverty. Founded in 1975, IFPRI is a member of the CGIAR Consortium, a global research partnership for a food secure future. The mandate of IFPRI is to identify and analyze alternative national and international strategies and policies for meeting world food needs in ways that conserve the natural resource base, with emphasis on low income and on the poorer groups in the countries.

About Project:

HarvestPlus is a global program that improves nutrition and public health, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, through the development and promotion of staple food crops that are rich in vitamins and minerals. These crops are currently available in 30 countries and benefit over 60 million people. HarvestPlus is based at the International Food Policy Research Institute, which is part of the global CGIAR network. The HarvestPlus staff totals more than 120 people in 14 countries.

Job Summary:  HarvestPlus seeks a gifted communications professional with strong storytelling and editorial skills to produce compelling written content in various formats to engage our global audiences. S/he will help HarvestPlus technical and country staff bring their research and project impacts to life through the coordination and compilation of stories and provision of editorial guidance and review. S/he will provide support for events led or attended by senior HarvestPlus staff. Reporting to the Head of Communications, the ideal candidate will be a self-starter who thrives in a global, mission-driven organization where staff are encouraged to be proactive and flexible.  This is a one-year appointment and is renewable contingent upon continued satisfactory performance and program funding and is based in Kampala, Uganda. Interested applicants must be authorized to work in Uganda.

The Communications team at HarvestPlus focuses on reaching and engaging audiences globally and supporting resource mobilization. Our priority audiences include funders, research communities, policymakers and influencers, private companies in the food value chain, media, and our numerous partner organizations.

Drawing on the global work of HarvestPlus, our country programs, and our many partners and stakeholders, the Communications Specialist will identify and develop topics for written content on a regular basis under the supervision of the Head of Communications. S/he will also help identify visual and/or multimedia elements that can complement the written material, and work with communications design and social media staff to integrate these elements. S/he may also work with other HarvestPlus vendors to oversee the design and production of final communications products.

Through regular collaboration with a global “functional team” of HarvestPlus communications staff and program managers, the Communications Specialist will also provide editorial and events support to our technical and project staff in the Washington, DC and country offices to develop compelling stories and coordinate communications needs for major events, such as collateral development and social media engagement.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

• Establish short- and long-term editorial schedules for content creation through regular meetings/calls with headquarters (Washington, DC) and country staff.
• Contribute to an editorial calendar (for example, in AirTable or another online tool) that is accessible to the Communications team and used during weekly team meetings for planning purposes.
• Compose clear, professional copy in styles that will be crafted for different types of audiences. Content types may include (among others): web stories, longer features, digital/multimedia features, op-eds, marketing collateral, technical documents, and other written material.
• Provide editorial guidance to researchers, scientists, and other communications staff at HarvestPlus, and provide editing support as needed.
• Manage the ongoing update and maintenance of key HarvestPlus marketing materials, including the annual report, PowerPoint slide deck, fact sheets and web collateral.
• Utilize web, social media, reader feedback, and other data to inform content strategy decisions.

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Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

• The applicant must hold a Bachelor’s degree in Communications, International Development, Nutrition or a related field, plus five years of relevant professional experience or a Master’s degree plus three years of relevant professional experience.
• Demonstrated storytelling skills—the ability to mine good stories from ongoing work.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate research and/or other technical information in a concise and engaging fashion.
• Demonstrated ability to work on deadline in a fast-paced environment.
• Awareness of content trends, notably in digital formats, that can engage audiences.
• Excellent copyediting skills.
• Solid project management skills, and the ability to prioritize and manage multiple competing priorities.
• Strong interpersonal and collaboration skills; proven ability to be flexible in a team-oriented environment with diverse groups of people.
• Conversant in social networking tools.
• Creative and a professional level of attention to detail.
• Ability and willingness to work flexible hours (to accommodate global time zones) and travel internationally, as needed (approximately 2 trips per year).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working in a globally-oriented organization, ideally in a related field (nutrition, health, agriculture) and interacting with global/multinational colleagues.
• Experience working abroad.
• Proficient in a language other than English (particularly French, Spanish, and/or a South Asian language).
• Working knowledge of content management systems, particularly Drupal.
• Some familiarity with Adobe CC (particularly InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator) and desktop publishing tools.
• Familiarity with online tools for project tracking (such as Airtable).

How to Apply:

All candidates should apply online at the link below

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