Creative & Media Jobs in Pretoria, South Africa (Now Hiring) — 9 open

Communications and External Relations Associate

Job #:	req38018
Organization:	World Bank
Sector:	Communications
Grade:	GE
Term Duration:	4 years 0 months
Recruitment Type:	Local Recruitment
Location:	Pretoria,South Africa
Required Language(s):	English
Preferred Language(s):	Portugese
Closing Date:	8/21/2026 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC

Description

Do you want to build a career that is truly worthwhile? Working at the World Bank Group provides a unique opportunity for you to help our clients solve their greatest development challenges. The World Bank Group is one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries; a unique global partnership of five institutions dedicated to ending extreme poverty, increasing shared prosperity and promoting sustainable development. With 189 member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide, we work with public and private sector partners, investing in groundbreaking projects and using data, research, and technology to develop solutions to the most urgent global challenges. For more information, visit www.worldbank.org.

Communications and External Relations (CER) 

The mission of Communications and External Relations (CER) is to help deliver financial and political support for the World Bank Group, strengthen the Bank Group’s role as a global thought leader in development by enhancing and safeguarding its reputation, and supporting operational teams to achieve country outcomes. CER manages corporate communications and global engagement with key stakeholders, including media, civil society, foundations, private sector, donor countries, and international organizations, as well as employee engagement. CER also manages strategic communications for the World Bank Group’s Regions and technical units and leads the management of reputation risk.  

Regional Stakeholder Engagement in CER 

The Regional Stakeholder Engagement team manages strategic communications across the seven regions of the World Bank Group, driving engagement across regions and country offices to align local efforts with our global strategy. 

The work aims to build support and understanding for World Bank Group (WBG) priorities across a range of stakeholders; enhance and protect the reputation of the WBG as a leading development organization; support operational effectiveness and social accountability by sharing development progress, knowledge, and results. 

Recognizing that economic and social contexts evolve rapidly, and that communications technologies have revolutionized the ways that information travels, we are building a team of dynamic and innovative professionals prepared to use innovative engagement strategies, traditional and digital tools, including social media and artificial intelligence to shape the debate on development priorities and tradeoffs. 

Communications and External Relations Officer, Regional Priorities & Stakeholder Engagement 

The Communications and External Relations Associate is a member of the Regional Stakeholder Engagement team and supports the implementation of stakeholder engagement, communications, advocacy, and reputational risk management activities across the region. 
 
The position contributes to advancing the World Bank Group's regional stakeholder engagement agenda through delivery across CER's four business lines: Stakeholder Engagement, Strategic Business Marketing, Advocacy & Campaigns, and Risk & Issue Management. The role requires strong digital communications skills, sound editorial judgment, creativity, attention to detail, analytical ability, and the capacity to develop engaging social media content, manage digital platforms, and support advocacy and stakeholder engagement through effective digital communications. 
 
Working closely with regional and country management, operational teams, and colleagues across IBRD, IDA, IFC, and MIGA, the Communications and External Relations Associate helps advance a coordinated One World Bank Group approach to External Relations. 
 
The role has primary responsibility for managing the region's social media presence, supporting advocacy campaigns through digital communications, managing web publishing, monitoring online conversations and sentiment, and using digital insights to strengthen stakeholder engagement, communications around priority reforms, and regional advocacy efforts. 
 
Key Responsibilities 
 
1. Stakeholder Engagement 
• Support stakeholder engagement activities through social media and digital communications that broaden awareness of regional priorities and encourage audience engagement. 
• Monitor online conversations, audience engagement, and digital sentiment to identify stakeholder concerns, emerging issues, and opportunities that inform stakeholder engagement and communications strategies. 
• Use social media analytics and audience insights to strengthen stakeholder engagement and improve the effectiveness of regional communications. 
• Support digital engagement around virtual events, consultations, flagship initiatives, and regional campaigns. 
• Contribute to knowledge sharing across the regional stakeholder engagement network through digital platforms. 
 
 2. Strategic Business Marketing 
• Publish and maintain regional web content, ensuring information is timely, accurate, accessible, and aligned with World Bank Group standards. 
• Develop digital content highlighting flagship operations, regional priorities, client stories, knowledge products, and development results. 
• Support implementation of editorial calendars across social media and web platforms. 
• Apply editorial standards to ensure consistency, quality, accessibility, and brand alignment across digital communications. 
• Monitor website performance and digital analytics and recommend opportunities to strengthen audience engagement and content performance. 
 
3. Advocacy & Campaigns 
• Manage the region's social media channels and develop engaging content that supports advocacy campaigns, regional priorities, and executive engagement. 
• Develop and implement social media content calendars aligned with regional priorities, flagship initiatives, and corporate campaigns. 
• Create compelling platform-specific content, including graphics, short-form videos, multimedia assets, and social media copy that translates complex development topics into engaging content for diverse audiences. 
• Adapt speeches, blogs, feature stories, press releases, newsletters, and campaign materials for social media and digital audiences. 
• Coordinate social media support for flagship regional initiatives, executive travel, major announcements, campaigns, and regional events. 
• Monitor campaign performance and optimize content using social media analytics, audience insights, and platform performance metrics. 
• Identify opportunities to amplify flagship initiatives, executive positioning, and thought leadership through digital communications. 
• Stay abreast of emerging social media trends, platforms, and best practices, recommending innovative approaches that expand audience reach and engagement. 
 
4. Risk & Issue Management 
• Monitor social media conversations, digital platforms, and online communities to identify emerging issues, stakeholder sentiment, reputational risks, and opportunities related to regional priorities and reform initiatives. 
• Analyze online sentiment and digital narratives to provide timely insights that support communications around policy reforms, implementation challenges, and priority regional initiatives. 
• Prepare regular social media listening reports and digital insights summaries highlighting emerging narratives, influential voices, stakeholder concerns, and opportunities for proactive engagement. 
• Support communications around priority reforms by providing timely digital insights that help shape messaging, stakeholder engagement, and advocacy approaches. 
• Support rapid digital communications during major announcements, reform milestones, emerging issues, or high-profile events by coordinating timely publication of approved content and monitoring audience response. 
• Coordinate with regional, country, and corporate communications colleagues to ensure digital listening informs advocacy campaigns, stakeholder engagement, and issue management across the region.

Selection Criteria

• We require a relevant mix of education and experience: Bachelor's degree in communications, journalism, public relations, marketing, digital communications, international relations, or another relevant field. 
• At least 2 years of relevant professional experience in digital communications, social media management, journalism, public affairs, communications, or stakeholder engagement.  
• Demonstrated experience developing and managing social media content and campaigns across multiple platforms, with the ability to tailor content for different audiences and channels. 
• Experience managing website content using content management systems and applying editorial standards to ensure high-quality digital communications. 
• Experience monitoring social media, media, and online conversations to identify trends, stakeholder sentiment, emerging issues, and reputational risks. 
• Demonstrated experience using digital analytics and social listening tools—such as Talkwalker, Meltwater, Brandwatch, Sprinklr, Hootsuite, Sprout Social, Google Analytics, or similar platforms—to monitor performance, analyze audience engagement, and generate actionable insights. 
• Demonstrated political awareness and ability to diplomatically handle sensitive situations with target audiences and to otherwise cultivate effective, productive client relationships and partnerships. Experience working with senior executives including experience of managing reputational risks and issues, messaging, stakeholder engagement, and media engagement; and ability to think strategically and rapidly analyze diverse information from varied sources. 
• Strong writing, editing, and storytelling skills, with the ability to translate complex development topics into clear, compelling digital content. 
• Experience producing or coordinating multimedia content, including graphics, photography, short-form video, or other digital assets, is desirable. 
• Familiarity with social media analytics, SEO principles, accessibility standards, and digital publishing best practices. 
• Demonstrated ability to synthesize data and digital insights into concise reports and recommendations that support communications, stakeholder engagement, advocacy, and issue management. 
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment while meeting tight deadlines. 
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work collaboratively across multidisciplinary, multicultural, and geographically dispersed teams. 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English. Knowledge of French or Portuguese is desirable. 
• A collaborative, service-oriented approach, with the ability to build strong working relationships, contribute positively to team objectives, share knowledge, and work effectively across multidisciplinary and multicultural teams.  

WBG Culture Attributes:

1. Sense of urgency: Anticipate and quickly respond to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
2. Thoughtful risk-taking: Challenge the status quo and push boundaries to achieve greater impact.
3. Empowerment and accountability: Empower yourself and others to act and hold each other accountable for results.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

The World Bank Group offers comprehensive benefits, including a retirement plan; medical, life and disability insurance; and paid leave, including parental leave, as well as reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity and inclusive employer with a dedicated and committed workforce, and do not discriminate based on gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.

Learn more about working at the World Bank and IFC including our values and inspiring stories.