Date of last update: 08/08/2021 2021-08-08
WHO began when our Constitution came into force on 7 April 1948 – a date we now celebrate every year as World Health Day. We are now more than 7000 people from more than 150 countries working in 150 country offices, in 6 regional offices and at our headquarters in Geneva.
Our primary role is to direct and coordinate international health within the United Nations system and our main areas of work are health systems; health through the life-course; noncommunicable and communicable diseases; preparedness, surveillance and response; and corporate services.
We support countries as they coordinate the efforts of governments and partners – including bi- and multilaterals, funds and foundations, civil society organizations and the private sector.
Working together, we attain health objectives by supporting national health policies and strategies.
WHO works worldwide to promote health, keep the world safe, and serve the vulnerable.
Our goal is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and well-being.
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OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME
The mission of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme (WHE) is to build the capacity of Member States to manage health emergency risks, when national capacities are overwhelmed, to lead and coordinate the international health response to contain outbreaks and to provide effective relief and recovery to affected populations.
WHE brings together and enhances WHO's operational, technical and normative capacities in outbreaks, emergencies and risk analysis to address all health hazards across the risk management cycle in a predictable, capable, dependable, adaptable and accountable manner. WHE is designed to operate within the broader humanitarian and emergency management architecture in support of people at risk of, or affected by, outbreaks and emergencies, consistent with ways that strengthen local and national capabilities.
The objectives of the programme area, Country Health Emergency Preparedness & IHR (CPI), includes the following: to monitor and evaluate country preparedness for health and humanitarian emergencies, to develop country capacity-building plan for countries with critical capacities and to act as the Secretariat of IHR (2005). The CPI prioritizes support to the most vulnerable and low-capacity countries.
The intersectoral nature of emergency preparedness entails for CPI a large partnership with other international organizations and the consideration of several global frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to health, emergencies and disasters, IHR (2005), the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework, the Performance of Veterinary Services (PVS Pathway), the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, regional strategies such as the Asia Pacific Strategy for Emerging Diseases and Public Health Emergencies (APSED III), the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response, the European Health Policy, and the regional strategies for disaster risk management. CPI coordinates its activities with international and national initiatives such as the Global Health Security Agenda and Universal Health Coverage 2030.
The Preparedness, Readiness and Core Capacity (PCB) is the main hub for technical support to WHO's regional and country offices in their effort to strengthen intersectoral national capacity for the early detection, timely and effective response, to public health emergencies as required under IHR (2005). Working closely with other WHE staff, PCB ensures that needs listed in national action plans are translated into targeted capacity-building in the priority/vulnerable countries.
DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES
Within the framework of delegated authority, the incumbent is assigned all or part of the following responsibilities:
1. Provide support for national capacity development in risk communication in line with the requirements of APSED III and IHR (2005), overseeing the delivery of capacity-building initiatives;
2. Act as risk communication focal point in the WHE Incident Management System during outbreaks and public health emergencies, leading the communication pillar of the Incident Management Support Team, overseeing the development and implementation of risk communication plans as part of response operations, and liaising with the Incident Manager to ensure appropriate risk communication expertise is deployed to the field in a timely manner;
3. Ensure relevant technical guidance documents on risk communications are developed and disseminated to countries;
4. Systematically document, analyse, evaluate and report on progress in risk communication capacity-building, and proactively address gaps and undertake appropriate follow-up actions, such as the development and delivery of relevant training;
5. Using the C4H approach, proactively identify and contribute to the development of communication activities and products in relation to WHO's work with countries on emergency preparedness and response that are accessible, understandable, relevant, credible, timely and actionable for dissemination on the regional website and social media accounts, as well as other relevant platforms;
6. Work with communication counterparts and others as relevant in units of the Regional Office, country offices in the Western Pacific and WHO headquarters to ensure alignment and appropriateness of risk communication strategies;
7. Compile and analyse risk communication experiences and share findings with country, regional and HQ communication colleagues so that best practices benefit WHO's communication network;
8. Initiate and sustain effective professional relationships with key internal stakeholders, participate in building and maintaining information networks as appropriate, within and outside WHE;
9. Participate in the IHR duty officer roster and act as IHR duty officer as required;
10. Upon request, provide technical support, backstopping and gap filling for emergency activities at any level of the Organization or scale of emergency; and
11. Perform other related duties, as requested by supervisor, including provision of support to other areas of work and teams or programme areas, as required.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Education
Essential: Advanced university degree in communication, public relations, media studies, journalism, international relations, public health, health sciences, social sciences or related field from a recognized university.
Desirable: Training in public health, risk communication, health education, health communication, or health promotion.
Experience
Essential: Minimum seven years experience in strategic communication including experience in capacity-building and a history of working at the national and international level, including working on disease outbreaks or emergencies. Proven experience in writing and producing communication material.
Desirable: Health sector experience at country and international levels. Relevant work experience in WHO or other UN agencies.
Skills
-Excellent interpersonal skills and effective negotiation, facilitation and consensus-building skills.
-Excellent organizational skills, with the ability to multitask and produce high-quality results under pressure.
-Excellent presentation skills and familiarity with digital communications media (social, web, etc).
-Ability to 'think outside the box' and make innovative proposals related to risk communication.
-Knowledge or understanding of WHO's mandate and goals in the emergency incident management context.
-Ability to act with tact, discretion and diplomacy.
-Ability to work harmoniously as a member of a team, adapt to diverse cultural and educational backgrounds and maintain a high standard of personal conduct.
-Demonstrated effectiveness in building sustained partnerships and working with others in international settings.
-Ability to produce high-quality written and visual communication materials in English.
WHO Competencies
Use of Language Skills
Essential: Expert knowledge of written and spoken English.
Desirable: Working knowledge of other UN language(s).
REMUNERATION
WHO salaries for staff in the Professional category are calculated in US dollars. The remuneration for the above position comprises an annual base salary starting at USD 74,913 (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance, as applicable), a variable post adjustment, which reflects the cost of living in a particular duty station, and currently amounts to USD 3009 per month for the duty station indicated above. Other benefits include 30 days of annual leave, allowances for dependent family members, home leave, and an education grant for dependent children.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
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Type of contract: Staff (Permanent and Fixed Term)
Macro-area: South / East Asia and Pacific
Level of experience: Senior Professional, more than 5 years
Area of work Definition: Health and Nutrition
Type of organisation: Multilateral Organisations