Advocacy Specialist

Job no: 595991
Contract type:
Temporary Appointment
Duty Station:
Rome
Level: P-4
Location:
Italy
Categories:
Partnerships

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, the right to a Future

UNICEF is the agency of the United Nations mandated to advocate for the protection of children’s rights, to help meet their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full potential. Guided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, UNICEF strives to establish children’s rights as international standards of behaviour towards children.

The National Committees for UNICEF operate in 32 high income countries as independent civil society organizations that work in partnership with UNICEF to advance children's rights and support UNICEF's mission. Their functions include advocating for increased action by governments and other decision makers to respect, protect and fulfil children’s rights nationally and globally.

The National Committee Relations Section (NCR), within UNICEF’s Private Fundraising and Partnerships (PFP) division, is responsible for managing UNICEF’s strategic partnership with the National Committees. Within the NCR section, the Child Rights Advocacy Unit serves as the primary entry point for support to National Committees in their child rights advocacy activities both domestically and globally. The Unit works in close collaboration with all other relevant divisions and offices to ensure that UNICEF delivers on its commitment to provide access to relevant research, evidence, and information in support of National Committee child rights advocacy strategies as mutually agreed in the Joint Strategic Plans (JSPs).

For the purposes of this position, "Foundational advocacy" comprises the work of National Committees around Child Rights Education (CRE) and Child and Youth Participation.

CRE refers to “teaching and learning about the provisions and principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the ‘child rights approach’– in order to empower both adults and children to take action to advocate for and apply these at the family, school, community, national and global levels.” ‘Child Participation’ refers to the direct involvement in advocacy or decision-making of children under the age of 18, in line with the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).

‘Youth engagement’ refers to young adults aged 18 years and above. CYP refers broadly to both.

Platform initiatives are strategic interventions that demonstrate the value of a child rights approach and provide a "platform" for foundational advocacy, including CRE and child participation. The platform initiatives covered by this assignment are:

• Child-Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI)
• Child Rights Schools Initiative (CRSI)
• Baby-Friendly Hospitals Imitative (BFHI)

Under the overall guidance and direction of the Chief of Child Rights Advocacy, the…