Africa Lead Position: Communications assistant, East and Southern Africa

Location: Nairobi, Kenya (with in-country and periodic international travel)
Period of Performance: August 01 , 2016 – September 30, 2018 (funding dependent)

Background:
The USAID Building Capacity for African Agricultural Transformation (Africa Lead II) Project is a five-year effort to support and advance the agricultural transformation in Africa as proposed by the African Union Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Program (CAADP), while simultaneously contributing to the Feed the Future goals of reduced hunger and poverty, by building the capacity of men and women African leaders, institutions and stakeholders to develop, lead, and manage the structures needed for the transformation process. This project has three components:

• The establishment of institutional/organizational architecture to lead African agriculture transformation at the national and regional levels, operating at the highest level of effectiveness;
• The operationalization of capacity to manage policy change and alignment process; and
• The effective participation and leading when necessary, of Non-State Actors (NSAs) in the CAADP process.

The Opportunity:
Africa Lead seeks a communications assistant to join the regional communications and knowledge management team based in Nairobi, Kenya. Due to the broad nature and complexity of issues and institutions addressed by Africa Lead, the position requires creative and conceptual thinking, organization, and a dedication to detailed planning. The position requires a strong writer and experience working on digital media communications systems in a professional setting.

Qualifications, Background and Experience:
The Communications Assistant will be responsible for coordinating with the regional program team to develop, publish, and disseminate knowledge products using various communications technologies. The position will contribute to the production of communications and knowledge products by: performing issue research and conducting program participant interviews; writing, formatting, and editing communications materials; publishing and distributing content on web platforms and social media, and assisting the communications and knowledge team in various strategic communications projects.

Specific qualifications include:

• 3+ years of work experience in the field of communications and/or agriculture sector advocacy
• Proven ability to develop high quality publications (both print and media), including reports, presentations, and other materials.
• Demonstrated experience in project and/or communications campaign management
• Website management and/or experience with web based content management systems
• Experience in social media writing and campaign management
• Computer literate in Microsoft Office mandatory
• Knowledge of and experience using graphic/editorial design programs (Adobe Creative Suite, MS Office) a plus
• Preferred education: Bachelor’s degree or higher – areas of study preferred for position:  journalism, communications, or related field.  Commensurate work experience will be considered in lieu of degree.
• Demonstrated effective interpersonal skills, creative problem solving, conflict and ethical management skills
• Fluent English language skills required, fluency in Swahili a plus

Duties and Responsibilities:
Core responsibilities coordinating with the regional program team to develop, publish, and disseminate knowledge products using various communications technologies. The position will contribute to the production of communications and knowledge products by: performing issue research and conducting program participant interviews; writing, formatting, and editing communications materials; publishing and distributing content on web platforms and social media, and assisting the communications and knowledge team in various strategic communications projects.

Core responsibilities include :

• Conducting in-depth research and writing for the development of knowledge products,
• Formatting and branding of technical reports and collateral material using Microsoft Office based software; Microsoft Word, Excel, Powerpoint; and Adobe Creative Suite
• Conduct interviews with a journalism style approach in order to develop impact stories
• Draft and finalize impact stories on a regular basis
• Write, produce, and send email newsletters

Additional duties include but are not limited to:

• Assist with the writing, editing, and design of knowledge products including, communications plans, project progress reports, and success stories
• Assist with the tracking of all communications team activities and proposed activities
• Manage regional editorial calendar for knowledge product production and publishing
• Write, edit, and update website content for regional office
• Assist the communications and knowledge team to implement the ALII ESA strategic communications plan
• Assist with stakeholder outreach by planning and writing content for  traditional media, social media, and events
• Help in the research, design, coordination, and development of communications materials such as video, web, print, and various other formats
• Possible East Africa regional travel may be required

Supervision:
This position will report to the East and Southern Africa regional communications and knowledge manager but will collaborate closely with other communications team staff and other regional staff as necessary to ensure the smooth implementation of activities.

PERFORMANCE CRITERIA:
Africa Lead II is a performance-based project, highly dependent on individuals and team core competencies. Each staff member will participate in a semi-annual evaluation and receive feedback. Based on this evaluation, decisions related to promotion or salary increase will be made.

If you believe you qualify for this job, kindly submit a cover letter, your CV, and 3 writing samples to by August 01, 2016.