In my 20-year communications career, and in progressively responsible roles, I have established a reputation as a trusted, strategic, engaging, and impactful writer, editor, and proofreader. With a passion for journalism and editorial strategy, I understand how to hunt down angles, tell compelling stories, craft accessible narratives, and convey information in clear and concise ways that inspire, inform, engage, and mobilize internal and external audiences. Working with UNICEF, UNOPS, The Courier Magazine, The State News, and other entities, I successfully delivered compelling, targeted, and widely accessed content, in fast-paced and constantly changing environments, while rapidly analyzing, synthesizing, and adapting information for diverse audiences and channels. Meeting the highest editorial standards and with exceptional attention to detail, I have written, edited, proofread, and managed the editorial process for flagship reports, strategy papers, thematic publications, executive communications, news and feature stories, digital and social media platforms, audiovisual products, presentations, and much more. These results have been achieved through effective collaboration with colleagues, teams, managers, executives, vendors, and other partners. My content has been widely accessed by thousands of stakeholders on diverse platforms including UN websites, Devex, The Guardian, Jeune Afrique, HuffPost, Global Citizen, and NPR, generating thousands of views, reactions, clicks, and downloads.
Articles
UNOPS articles
Post-disaster recovery: Building schools and health centers in Indonesia
“Hundreds of primary schools have been built in Indonesia, increasing the quality of education and the number of primary school students in the country following the 2004 tsunami.” Read more
Renovated schools boost sustainable development in Sri Lanka
“Seven thousand students in Sri Lanka’s Eastern Province are benefiting from newly renovated schools, as part of the Government’s efforts to boost education and reconciliation in the country.” Read more
The Courier magazine articles
I wrote a range of widely accessed articles for the print and web editions of The Courier Magazine, which was published by the European Commission and covered African, Caribbean, Pacific and European Union (ACP-EU) development cooperation. Some examples are highlighted below.
Stories matter: a glimpse into the world of Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie
“Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, acclaimed Nigerian novelist, the young, gifted storyteller wowing readers worldwide, knows all too well about the power of the story. “Endowed with the gifts of ancient storytellers” is how Nigerian literary giant Chinua Achebe describes her – he happens to be Adichie’s hero.” Read more
Harnessing the role of African women in the Diaspora
“The African Diaspora are increasingly recognised as significant development actors, providing remittances, Foreign Direct Investment, technology and knowledge transfers and positive political contributions to their countries of origin. African women in the Diaspora are coming to the fore. But as Stéphanie Mbanzendore, Chairperson of Burundian Women for Peace and Development (BWPD) notes, better targeted policies are needed.” Read more
Africa’s ICT sector: As dynamic as ever
“As the global economic crisis continues to destabilise regional economies, Africa has been the most spared as far as investments in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector go, says Laura Recuero Virto, economist for the Africa and Middle East Desk at the Development Centre of the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The need to implement and tap into the potential of ICTs in Africa is as pressing as ever.” Read more
Chroniclers and interpreters for the ACP
“With rising sea levels, drought and flooding throughout African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, it may seem surprising that the number of people unconcerned about climate change has risen in the last two years from 4 to 9 per cent globally*. The media’s role in raising awareness of this global phenomenon, particularly in developing countries, is therefore more crucial now more than ever.” Read more
Read more of my articles in The Courier and learn more about my work with the magazine
Global Citizen articles
Together with colleagues, I collaborated with Global Citizen to produce and promote powerful and engaging stories advocating for improved sanitation and hygiene around the world. Read the articles
International Social Marketing Association articles
I wrote a range of widely accessed and thought-provoking articles as a volunteer for the International Social Marketing Association. Some examples are highlighted below.
Can social marketing tackle the super wicked problem of climate change?
“There are problems, then there are wicked problems – and then there are super wicked problems. Many researchers and academics will say that climate change falls in the latter category.” Read more
Social media for social marketing: can hashtags, viral content and online networks influence behaviour?
“In the age of hashtags and viral videos, can social media be a powerful tool for social marketing? As a digital communications specialist I’m keen on finding examples and best practices.” Read more
Much ado about sanitation marketing?
“My interest in iSMA has been spurred by my work with the Global Sanitation Fund (GSF), a multi-donor trust fund that invests in behaviour change activities that enable large numbers of people in developing countries to improve their sanitation and adopt good hygiene practices.” Read more
Communications Excellence blog
I manage a blog sharing insights, advice and anecdotes on utilizing effective communications in the professional. world. My blog entries cover a range of themes and range from quick listicles and advice to more in-depth and comprehensive explorations. Read one of my articles for the blog below and visit the blog
The irresistible power of storytelling for organizations
“Don’t mistake storytelling as just another buzzword. Storytelling has been around since, well, the dawn of man, but it has continuously slipped on and off the business/nonprofit radar since marketing became a thing.” Read more
The State News
I worked as a news writer and reporter as part of an award-winning team for The State News, Michigan State University’s flagship newspaper. My articles covered a range activities and initiatives at MSU and the city of East Lansing. Access archived articles
Publications
Global Sanitation Fund Progress Report
I coordinated the writing and editing of the flagship Global Sanitation Fund Progress Report. This included drafting original content such as the foreword, thematic sections and case studies, and editing texts submitted by programme teams using templates and guidance I developed. The 2016 Progress Report is the most downloaded Global Sanitation Fund publication. Read the full 2016 report or read engaging people-centred stories from the report
Annual Statistical Report on UN Procurement – Thematic Supplement
Managed by UNOPS, the Annual Statistical Report on United Nations Procurement (ASR) is the flagship procurement report for the United Nations system. I managed the production of the 2012 and 2013 editions of the ASR and its Thematic Supplement. This included drafting, editing, proofreading and coordinating the development of the content in the Thematic Supplement, working closely with a network of expert contributors. Download the ASR Thematic Supplements (2012 / 2013)
The Courier magazine
The Courier was a magazine published by the European Commission, focusing on African, Caribbean, Pacific and European Union (ACP-EU) development cooperation. The magazine had a circulation of 80,000 copies and was distributed in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese, in over 100 countries. My work involved coordinating editorial processes, writing news and feature stories for the print edition and website as a contributing journalist, and editing and proofreading entire magazine editions and website content. As a result, I helped enhance editorial, production, outreach, and marketing results for the magazine. See examples of my editorial and production work here
Championing editorial standards
Throughout my career and in all of my work, I have championed the highest editorial standards, including thoroughly understanding and applying the specific editorial standards of the organizations I worked with. At UNICEF, I developed specific editorial standards for the Division of People and Culture, aligning with and complementing the broader organizational standards. Moreover, at both UNICEF and UNOPS, I championed editorial standards among colleagues and teams to ensure that content was aligned, impactful, and delivered in one voice. This included facilitating training and capacity building, providing targeted advice, and sharing guidance with stakeholders.
Okechukwu Umelo 