Vaka Pasifika - Communications Specialist

Mission and objectivesThe UN Development Programme is the lead UN agency fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in more than 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet. In the Pacific, UNDP provides regional and country support to ten countries (Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu) and regional support to five countries (Cook Islands, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, and Tokelau), together with a total population of 2.4 million. UNDP is guided by a Sub-regional Programme Document for the Pacific Island Countries and Territories 2018-2022, which in turn contributes to the achievement of an overarching UN system-wide Pacific Strategy. The Programme is shaped to assist countries to advance the global 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda tailored to each country's priorities, through focus on data, policy prioritization, participatory planning, and budgeting and monitoring - and with accelerated action to meet the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP seeks to target the most vulnerable i.e. people experiencing hardship, the marginalized living in remote rural areas, those who are vulnerable to climate and disaster risks, as well as women and youth excluded from socio-political and economic participation. UNDP adheres to an inclusive, pro-poor and human rights-based approaches that leverage cross-practice, multi-disciplinary expertise of UNDP.

ContextThis assignment is for the Vaka Pasifika project of the UNDP Pacific Office that champions transparent, inclusive and public-finance decision-making across Pacific Island Countries. The Communications UN Volunteer will assist with the project’s communications stream—creating clear, accessible and engaging content. Driven, reliable and focused on measurable results, the volunteer will turn complex budget reforms into plain-language narratives so that citizens, civil-society groups, media and marginalised voices can meaningfully influence how public funds are allocated. Pacific Islands countries (PICs) boast “big ocean” economies, with young and mobile populations and highly resilient and adaptative societies. Past and recent investments have however fallen short of developing diverse economies offering inclusive services and opportunities, resilient to external shocks and the increasing pace of climate change and disasters. At the same time, development in these countries is potentially increasing this vulnerability to climate change and disasters. While the scale of Pacific economies does not allow them to respond to all these challenges alone, public investment and revenues would gain from empowered officials accountable to keep basic service delivery and development priorities in mind while driving fiscal decisions. The “Accountable Public Finances to serve Pacific people – Vaka Pasifika” project (hereafter Vaka Pasifika project) builds on the results of the “Strengthening Public Finance Management and Governance in the Pacific” (PFM) project implemented between 2018 and 2022 thanks to the support of the European Union. The proposed overarching goal of this project is to strengthen the governance mechanisms enabling Pacific countries to deliver public services that are better calibrated to meet specific needs of the people. Its specific focus will be to ensure scarce Pacific resources are better managed and the resource base available for achieving national development goals will be increased. To achieve this goal, PIC economies require stable and reliable institutions implementing the right mix of creativity and rigor informed by ground reality. The Project will contribute to this vision by (a) supporting oversight institutions and decision makers to define and implement their priorities through leadership and institutional capacity strengthening and (b) enhancing responsiveness of service delivery and public finance management by developing institutional mechanisms for engagement and openness and strengthening civil society capacity. The Vaka Pasifika project is implemented through a team based in Suva, Fiji in the UNDP Pacific Office. As part of the Effective Governance unit, the team is responsible for implementation of the project, its various activities and corresponding institutional processes and requirements. The Vaka Pasifika project focuses on the human and networked resources available to public finance stakeholders in the Pacific, one of the core focus of the project is to grow a pool of resources working on tailored public finance and accountability tools for the Pacific.

Task DescriptionUnder the direct supervision of MEL and Communications Manager, the individual will: • Execute the Vaka Pasifika Communications Strategy - turn the annual comms plan into a rolling 3-month content calendar aligned with Pacific and global observances. • Manage and grow digital channels - draft and schedule content for the project website, LinkedIn, Facebook, X/Twitter, and other sites. Track reach and engagement. • Strengthen knowledge-management systems - maintain “Vaka Pasifika Knowledge Hub” for templates, images, stories, and partner research. Apply consistent metadata/tagging so assets remain searchable for donor audits and future products. • Produce multimedia and data-driven storytelling - create infographics, short reels, and slide decks that translate complex PFM concepts into plain-language visuals, spotlighting gender and inclusion metrics. Work with colleagues to convert indicator dashboards into public-friendly snapshots. • Coordinate a quarterly stakeholder newsletter - source stories from CSOs, SAIs, fellows, and government partners; draft, lay out, distribute, and analyse open/click rates. • Assist with event visibility and media relations - prepare branded backdrops, hashtag guides, speaker briefs, and live-tweet/live-blog plans for conferences and workshops. Serve as on-site media focal point—arrange interviews and draft post-event wrap-ups. • Draft and edit written products - produce press releases, blogs, op-eds, speeches, donor visibility notes, and report sections, ensuring alignment with global standards. Maintain a concise style guide that reflects UNDP/EU branding and Pacific terminology. • Generate analytics and reporting - compile a monthly comms dashboard (media mentions, social impressions, knowledge-product downloads). Provide visibility inputs for quarterly donor and board reports and maintain an issues log for reputational risks. • Provide capacity-building support - deliver short trainings for staff and CSO grantees on comms etiquette, Canva/PowerPoint hacks, and inclusive language. Coach team members to use comms templates and KM tools independently. • Ensure risk-informed, inclusive messaging – assist in the vetting of all public outputs for conflict sensitivity, gender responsiveness, disability inclusion, and localisation of Pacific languages. • Assist workshop and logistics delivery - support agenda design, participant materials, note-taking, photography/videography, and packaging of knowledge products. • Assist with the management of the media cohort initiative - maintain the journalist roster, coordinate training/webinar schedules, develop story-pitch briefs, and track media outputs on public-finance accountability. Facilitate ongoing engagement (e.g., online group, mentoring sessions) and integrate cohort stories into project visibility products. • Any other related tasks as required by the Supervisor.

Competencies and values• Accountability • Adaptability and flexibility • Creativity • Judgement and decision-making • Planning and organising • Professionalism • Self-management

Living conditions and remarksAs this is a national UN Volunteer assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing and other living essentials. UN Volunteer entitlements and allowances: The purpose of allowances for UN Volunteers is to enable them to sustain a modest and secure standard of living at the duty station. The allowances are in no way to be understood as a compensation, reward or salary in exchange for the volunteer work. • Monthly Living Allowance: FJD 2247.16 • Entry Lump Sum: USD 400 (approximately FJD 900) • Comprehensive coverage for health, life and malicious acts for the UN Volunteer and health insurance coverage for up to 3 eligible dependents (Cigna). See the Conditions of Service for more details on eligibility criteria. • Leave entitlements (annual leave, sick leave, learning leave, maternity/ paternity leave – details can be found in the Conditions of Service: https://explore.unv.org/cos) • Access to UNV's learning and career development resources • Exit Lump Sum: FJD 187.26 per month served, paid on completion of contract