Communications Assistant

Job Description

Organisation Overview

Pharo Foundation (“the Foundation”) is a mission-driven, impact-oriented organisation that designs, funds, and operates economic development programmes towards a vibrant, productive, and self-reliant Africa. Over the next decade, our goal is to create maximum impact towards three critical missions:

Education: ensure that all students have an opportunity to access a high-quality and affordable education and become productive citizens in a rapidly changing world.
Water: ensure that people and communities across Africa have access to a safe and affordable source of water.
Productivity: eliminate health, financial, and structural barriers to employment and productivity for working people.

The Foundation also operates Pharo Ventures which is the for-profit arm of its operations with sustainable businesses in Ethiopia and Somaliland geared towards job creation and economic empowerment.

With over 700 employees in Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, and Somaliland, we are a diverse, multicultural, and passionate organisation. We have our headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, and a liaison office in London, UK, which is home to our parent organisation, Pharo Management.

Opportunity

We are seeking a dynamic and detail-oriented Communications Assistant to support our communications effort. The ideal candidate will assist in creating content, contributing to some social media channels, and maintaining effective communication with stakeholders. This role requires strong writing skills, creativity, and the ability to work in a fast-paced environment.

The candidate must be fluent in English and Somali and must be able to produce well written pieces in both languages. Some experience in translation between the two languages would be a plus.

Job Title: Communications Assistant

Reporting to: Creative and Videography Associate

Location: Hargeisa, Somaliland

Contract Type: Fixed Term – One year (Renewable)

Duties and Responsibilities

Assist in creating content for various communication channels including newsletters, press releases, and social media posts. This will include the translation of content between Somali and English.
Support in organising promotional events and campaigns.
Create Pharo Schools social media posts and manage the relevant platforms and pages.
Contribute to the Pharo Foundation global social media content.
Assist in the execution of communication strategies and implementation of social media strategies.
Assist in drafting internal communications such as memos and announcements.
Help in researching, writing and editing content for distribution.
Constantly collect data (photos) and evaluate the status of the company’s public image and come up with new ideas for projects.
Maintain calendars and schedules.
Capture professional photos.
Skills and Qualifications
A bachelor’s degree in communication, media, marketing, or public relations. IT degrees will not qualify.
Previous work experience as a Communications Assistant or a similar role.
Proven proficiency in using various social media platforms.
Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal skills in both English and Somali.
Proficiency in design software (Photoshop, Premiere, and InDesign).
Strong graphic design skills.
Knowledge of media relations and digital media strategies.
Strong organisation skills and detail-orientation.
Basic video and photo editing skills.

Personal Attributes

Detail-oriented, organisational skills and multitasking abilities: Doing multiple projects is common in this job; thus, being organised and attentive to details all the time is essential.
Interpersonal and strong communication skills: The Assistant will be interacting and working with different kinds of people including the departments of the foundation and the stakeholders. This means strong interpersonal skills is necessary.
Teamwork: Having the ability to work with departments, managers, and stakeholders.
Decision-making and problem-solving skills.
Leadership skills.
Tech-savviness.
Proactive attitude.
How to apply
This position is open to both female and male nationals from Somaliland.

Review of applications will begin as soon as they are received, and only complete applications will be reviewed. If an outstanding applicant is identified early in the search process, we reserve the right to appoint before the deadline. For this reason, we encourage interested and suitably qualified candidates to apply at the earliest possible opportunity.

The application deadline is August 18th ,2024

Application Requirements

A detailed CV
Cover letter – In your cover letter, please state where you heard about this position or saw it advertised for example through our website, jobs board, etc.
An essay of 500 words (maximum) that outlines:
“Discuss your experience in creating multimedia content (videos, photos, graphics). Describe a specific project where you were responsible for video coverage, editing, and designing. What tools and software did you use, and what was the impact of the final product?”

4. An updated list of at least (4) referees with their name, title, current email addresses and phone numbers as follows; two supervisors, two peers, two direct reports.