E T Consultant - External Affairs Officer
Job #: req30913
Organization: World Bank
Sector: Agriculture
Grade: EC2
Term Duration: 1 year 0 months
Recruitment Type: Local Recruitment
Location: Washington, DC,United States
Required Language(s): English
Preferred Language(s): French
Closing Date: 1/10/2025 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC
Description
The GAFSP was created in 2010 in the aftermath of the 2008 food price crisis at the request of the G20 to invest in agriculture worldwide to reduce poverty and improve food and nutrition security in low- income countries. Over the past ten years, GAFSP has successfully pooled donor funds to make lasting improvements in those areas where financing and support are most needed to help alleviate poverty, improve rural livelihoods, and improve food security by raising agricultural productivity, linking farmers to markets, reducing risk and vulnerability, improving non-farm rural livelihoods, and strengthening capacity and institutions including through technical assistance. In the face of the dual climate and food security challenges, GAFSP’s mandate is as relevant today as it was 10 years ago. To date, the Program has received over $2 billion in funding from 12 donors – Australia, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, the Republic of Korea, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The decision-making body of GAFSP is the Steering Committee, which is comprised of an equal number of donor countries and recipient representatives as voting members. In addition, other stakeholders – Supervising Entities (World Bank, IFC, regional development banks, Rome-based UN agencies), and Civil Society Organizations (one from an OECD country and two representing producer organizations in recipient regions) – fully participate in Steering Committee deliberations as non-voting members. GAFSP is implemented as a Financial Intermediary Fund for which the World Bank serves as Trustee. The Steering Committee is currently chaired by Canada.
The World Bank also hosts a Coordination Unit (CU) within the Agriculture and Food Global Practice that provides support to the GAFSP Steering Committee. The CU oversees overall Program operations, manages the Program’s public sector portfolio, and coordinates with IFC, which manages GAFSP’s Private Sector Window. Further details on GAFSP can be found on the website: www.gafspfund.org .
SCOPE OF WORK
Roles And Responsibilities
The External Affairs Officer will report to the GAFSP Program Manager, coordinate activities and deliverables with the GAFSP Deputy Program Manager, and work closely with the Agriculture and Food Communications and Knowledge Management teams. The External Affairs Officer will undertake the following duties and responsibilities:
Communications strategy and planning and Comms/KML management
- Developing and managing complex communications strategy for GAFSP, including strategies, campaigns and messaging, both for an external audience as well as for staff engagement.
- Playing a leading role in managing communications and knowledge support, as needed, to implement these strategies.
- Manage external communications consultants and vendor contracts.
- Craft compelling narrative and messaging for GAFSP and issues relevant to GAFSP; create and implement specific communications plans as appropriate.
- Deploy a range of communications products across channels (earned, owned, shared and paid) for maximum impact
- Ensure branding and visual identity for use in communications products.
- Provide strategic advice and counsel on the content and design of key communications assets and collateral, including those relevant to moments or milestones relevant to GAFSP’s mission (e.g. UN events, COPs).
Event management
- Assisting with preparation for the GAFSP Steering Committee meetings, including agenda preparation, presenting on communications strategy and progress, working with leadership and experts on highly professional slide decks, helping staff to prepare Ignite Talks, and helping ensure all materials prepared are of the highest quality.
- Assisting with the PO Stocktaking Moment and Knowledge Forum – dates and locations currently TBC.
- Assist in the successful delivery of both internal and external events and high-impact moments.
- Lead on regular Field Notes webinar series – to be agreed with Program Manager.
- Advise on Knowledge Management and Learning activities.
Writing and editing; developing comms products
- Producing and editing, as needed, products including feature stories, blogs, press releases, brochures, briefing notes, talking points, and PowerPoint presentations.
Assisting in the successful delivery of both internal and external events and high-impact moments.
- Playing the lead role in sourcing, writing, clearing, and delivering on priority deliverables, especially those concerning impact in-country.
- Manage annual reporting process and draft and edit annual report content.
- Draft / edit press releases, briefs, talking points, blogs, stories from the field
- Write and circulate regular program newsletter
- Write, edit, update and publish high-quality web content, both written and visual, for GAFSP’s website. This includes creating multimedia assets (infographics, charts, maps, etc.) or working with a designer to create these, as needed.
Website and social media management; design and branding
- Managing the development of multimedia projects, such as videos, infographics, podcasts, and digital packages, in coordination with consultants, vendors, and wider AGF colleagues.
- Ensuring consistent branding and visual identity for use in communications products including presentations, reports, knowledge products, and internal newsletters.
- Assist with other communications tasks as required and needed, as determined by the Program Manager.
Selection Criteria
- A Bachelor’s degree in International Development/Communications/Marketing/Digital Media studies or similar, with a minimum of eight years of experience, or the equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Excellent English language skills and proficiency to write and edit complex communications products for purposeful structure, clarity of ideas, and logical, persuasive presentation.
- Ability to manage multiple, complex communications strategies and projects to ensure that each initiative benefits from distinct and professional communications products, produced in a timely manner.
- Knowledge of issues in the Agriculture and Food international development space an advantage
- Experience in designing and implementing integrated communications strategies, aimed at both global, external audiences, and internal WBG audiences.
- Ability to nurture and maintain relationships and communications with critical internal and external constituencies and stakeholders.
- Experience in World Bank and multilateral partnerships, as well as employee and strategic stakeholder engagement would be a plus.
- Previous experience of high-level interactions with donors and/or the private sector is also highly desirable.
- Experience in creating communications content and leadership in communications.
- Ability to think strategically and rapidly analyze diverse information from varied sources.
- Attention to detail and ability and the necessary personal organization skills to take initiative, personal ownership, and accountability to meet deadlines, work under pressure, and achieve agreed-upon results.
- Demonstrated ability to function as a team player within and across teams and oversee project-specific consultants and contractors.
- Help coordinate scheduling, logistics and briefings for communication activities and events (e.g. press conferences, seminars, webinars, online chats, etc.).
- Demonstrated experience with social media, content creation and website management.
- Familiarity using Drupal or similar content management systems, with basic technical knowledge of HTML.
- Knowledge of SEO and analytics tools; knowledge of social media platforms and the ability to engage users.
DELIVERABLES, PAYMENT SCHEDULE, AND ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
As above.
DURATION
The consultant is being hired on an Extended Term Contract with an anticipated start-date in January 2025, or earlier if feasible.
REPORTING
The consultant will lead the GAFSP Communications team, under the overall supervision of the Program Manager and Deputy Program Manager.
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Note: The selected candidate will be offered a one-year appointment, renewable at the discretion of the World Bank Group, and subject to a lifetime maximum ET appointment of three years. If an ET appointment ends before a full year, it is considered as a full year toward the lifetime maximum. Former and current ET staff who have completed all or any portion of their third-year ET appointment are not eligible for future ET appointments.
