Communications Officer at icipe - International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology

Overall Purpose of the Job

• To support the communication strategy of the project scaling the “Scaling regenerative black soldier fly farming innovations with vegetable push-pull cropping systems for One Health in Rural Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda.”

Specific Duties

Content creation and distribution

• Develop communication materials including press releases, website content, social media posts, for effective communication with target audience.
• Support the field technical team with interactive training tools and videos for farmer training in both English and select local languages of Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda.
• Support field staff in documenting field days and farmer spotlights through video and still photography.

Media relations

• Arrange for fruitful media engagements in Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda in liaison with line project management.

Communication Strategy

• Support project management in development and implementation of communication plans.
• Develop tracking tools for monitoring of effective communication strategies for target audiences and media coverage.
• Coordinate internal project communication and flow of key documents (reports etc) between icipe and partners.
• Supervise communication training assistants in Rwanda and Uganda.

Requirements/Qualifications

• A BSc in a relevant field including mass communication, journalism, development studies, international relations, or other related fields.
• MSc will be an added advantage.
• At least 3 years of practical experience in communication in a research-for-development environment.
• Familiarity with desktop publishing, HTML, photography, videography, and photo editing.
• Excellent written and spoken command of English, and the ability to convey complex ideas in a
• creative, clear, direct, and lively style.
• Good command of Swahili.
• Excellent skills in content development, and editorial skills.
• Strong understanding and experience with digital content and social media analytics.

Other Desirable Attributes

• Make decisions for own job function and requires approval from supervisor.
• Supervise and train communication assistants.
• Responsible for field imprest.
• Engagement with NARES, NGOs, farmers and media.

Reporting

• This position reports to the Head of Communications.