Communications Officer Medicines Patent Pool Geneva

Medicines Patent Pool Position: Communications Officer Location: Geneva, Switzerland The Medicines Patent Pool (“the Pool”) is a voluntary licensing mechanism established in 2010 to improve the health of people living with HIV in low- and middle-income countries. The Pool’s vision is to increase access to appropriate, affordable HIV medicines in developing countries. Its mission is to bring down the prices of HIV medicines and facilitate the development and production of formulations suitable for use in developing countries, such as medicines for children, by providing access to patents needed to make the medicines. The Pool does this by negotiating with patent holders to share their intellectual property with the Pool, and then licensing to generic manufacturers to facilitate the production of low-cost HIV medicines and the development of adapted formulations. The Pool is an independent foundation based in Geneva, Switzerland, established with the support of UNITAID. UNITAID is an innovative financing mechanism whose mission is to contribute to scaling up access to treatment for HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis in low- and middle-income countries. For more information, please see our website, www.medicinespatentpool.org Main Duties/Responsibilities: Responsibilities include: · Draft Pool documents, such as press releases and official statements; · Conduct outreach to journalists; · Monitor press coverage for Medicines Patent Pool; · Maintain the Pool’s website and social media platforms; · Performing other duties as assigned by the Communications Manager or the Executive Director. Knowledge/Qualifications The Communications Officer should have: · Experience working in an international or diplomatic environment; · Experience writing documents for publication; · Familiarity with social media platforms; · Knowledge of HIV or intellectual property is a plus; · Knowledge of HTML, Wordpress and/or Adobe Photoshop is a plus. Personal Qualities · Organised, autonomous and able to work with short timelines; · Collaborative and supportive approach to teamwork; · Sensitivity to different cultures and work styles; · Demonstrable personal commitment to the goals of the Medicines Patent Pool. Education and special training: University degree at minimum. Experience (length and nature): At least three years experience doing communications, media outreach or journalism, preferably in a NGO environment. Use of Languages: Fluency in English is required. Oral and written proficiency in other languages is strongly preferred. Women and candidates from developing countries are encouraged to apply. When applying for the position, please indicate whether you currently have Swiss employment authorisation. Please send a cover letter and C.V. to recruitment@medicinespatentpool.org by 4 July 2012. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted