UN Women Communications and Advocacy Consultant, Tokyo, Japan

Background/Context

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

Japan has a steadfast relationship with the UN, and has strengthened its focus on Gender Equality, serving as an Executive Board member since the establishment of UN Women. Recognizing the importance of the political and financial partnership with Japan, a UN Women Japan Liaison Office (JLO) was established in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo in 2015. UN Women’s presence in Japan provides a strategic entry point and an opportunity to liaise and partner with the key decision makers among the Government of Japan, parliamentarians, the private sector, media, academic institutions and civil society organizations. UN Women also works closely with the UN Women Japan National Committee which supports in national advocacy, public awareness building and resource mobilization. UN Women works in close coordination with other UN entities based in Tokyo to promote the gender equality agenda.  

The UN Women Japan Liaison Office leads on partnerships development, policy engagement, public advocacy and awareness, and resource mobilization with government actors, private sector entities, civil society and foundations, to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment under the overall guidance of UN Women’s Strategic Plan 2026-2029.

Under the overall supervision of the Director of the JLO, and in close coordination with UN Women’s Communications Division in HQ, the Communications and Advocacy Consultant will lead the work of advocacy, outreach and communications, and manage relevant partnerships with the media institutions, with the aim to increase the profile of UN Women in Japan.  The Communications and Advocacy Consultant will support the JLO Director to develop an advocacy & outreach strategy and plan in alignment with UN Women’s Strategic Plan and corporate priorities, such as the thirtieth anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 2024-25 and a sequence of events in lead up to the Anniversary.

As part of JLO’s advocacy initiatives, the Communications and Advocacy Consultant leads the alliance building/ campaigns with the private sector including the Unstereotype Alliance Japan National Chapter, HeForShe and WEPs in close coordination with the relevant units in the HQ and manage related projects, while promoting JLO’s engagement with youth groups. The consultant also manages interns in support of advocacy/ communications related activities.

Description of Responsibilities /Scope of Work

1. Provide strategic guidance on the development and implementation of communication and advocacy/outreach plans

• Design and implement JLO’s strategic work plan for key advocacy and outreach activities that engage diverse stakeholders to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) in alignment with UN Women’s Strategic Plan.

• Propose innovative solutions to enhance the effectiveness of communications strategies and activities through analyzing traditional and digital media and identifying trends and/or issues.

• Coordinate with relevant divisions and colleagues in UN Women in HQs, regions, and countries, to enhance advocacy partnerships with Japan.

• Contribute to the management of communications specific risks through providing technical recommendations and monitoring and performing preparedness actions.

•  Develop and disseminate of relevant advocacy/ communications materials.

2. Establish the strategic communications and manage effective media relations

• Design and implement a comprehensive communications strategy, including the use of the website and social media, to enhance the visibility of UN Women work, taking topic sensitivities and potential risks into consideration, in line with the corporate communication policy.

• Prepare strategic communications products that convey UN Women key messaging to target audiences.

• Produce result-based communications content for visibility, such as donor/ partnership reports, website stories and SNS posts, and disseminate them to key influencers and wider general public.

• Facilitate interviews with UN Women’s senior managers; connect media with UN Women subject matter experts.

• Increase strategic media engagement, inviting media organizations as an active agent to contribute to amplifying GEWE messaging and eliminating harmful stereotypes.

• Manage media relations in Japan; maintain an updated contact list/ database of journalists and media organizations and increase media presence of UN Women through pitching news stories and interview opportunities, organizing roundtable discussions, press conferences, and briefing sessions with press, and producing media briefing notes and talking points for scheduled interviews.

• Manage communications campaigns and events around key international days, such as International Women’s Day, in close collaboration with key stakeholders.

• Collaborate with communications colleagues in UN Women HQ, Country/Regional Offices on the implementation of campaigns and other communications initiatives.

3. Establish partnership building with the advocacy partners including the private sector

• Develop and manage the advocacy work of Unstereotype Alliance (UA) Japan National Chapter by developing a strategy in close coordination with relevant units in UN Women HQ; Manage activities with UA’s Japanese members to scale up the Japan Chapter as well as recruit new members, toward the UA’s goal to eliminate harmful stereotypes from the society.

• Design a strategic work plan for the successful implementation and localization of the HeForShe Initiative in Japan.

• Conduct advocacy activities through Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) and increase WEPs signatories.

• Expand private sector outreaches for private sector partnership opportunities.

• Coordinate with UN Women Japan National Committee, a non-profit entity supporting the work of UN Women, to ensure brand consistency and corporate messaging, and to collaborate on communications and advocacy work where appropriate.

4. Other duties

• The incumbent performs within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

 Key deliverables:

• Advocacy and Communications strategy and work plan developed and implemented.

• Partnership engagement expanded and the visibility of UN Women advocacy initiatives enhanced.

• Workshops and events outlined in a workplan implemented and timely reporting conducted and submitted to a partner.

• Unstereotype Alliance Japan National Chapter members increased, and the awareness of UA’s work raised.

• A Japan strategy for the promotion and localization of the HeForShe Initiatives developed.

• Communications materials to be used for partner engagement, SNS postings, website stories, and other platforms localized, developed and disseminated widely.

• Media engagement and exposure increased.

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is an office-based consultancy.

Competencies