UNDP Jobs - 54016- Regional Sustainable Financing HIV and Health Inte

Regional Sustainable Financing HIV and Health Intern, Focus on Editing, Communications, Public Relations

Location :

Istanbul, TURKEY

Type of Contract :

Internship

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

30-Apr-15 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

Intern

Duration of Initial Contract :

3 - 6 months

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

Part-time or full-time (at least 20 hours a week)

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

HIV is spreading faster in Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States than in any other region in the world. According to the latest UNAIDS data, Eastern Europe and Central Asia remains the only region in the world where prevalence continues to climb. There are now an estimated 1.1 million people living with HIV (1). The epidemic continues to target young adults of working age, with over 90 percent of new HIV cases registered in the Russian Federation and Ukraine.

Multi-drug and extensive-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR and XDR TB respectively) also represents a large health issue. According to WHO, there are currently an estimated 81,000 people with MDR and XDR TB in the region and most of them do not receive proper diagnosis and treatment. The elimination of malaria is also on the agenda in the Central Asia sub-region.

Even though many countries in the region have made notable progress in addressing health issues in the context of economic, ecological and social development, significant gaps remain to be filled, particularly in view of achieving the health related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs 4 – Reduce Child Mortality, 5 – Improve Maternal Health and 6 - Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other diseases) and the upcoming Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

While many of the national health systems in the region (Eastern Europe and Central Asia) are still in transition, the financing of national HIV and TB programmes (and malaria programmes in Central Asia) are funded to a large degree by external sources, mainly the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GF). Due to changes in eligibility criteria, a number of countries in the region will no longer have access to these external resources in the near future and need to develop sustainable financing strategies which take also into account the need to scale up service coverage, as well as service quality and efficiency. Together with other UNAIDS co-sponsors and stakeholders, UNDP through its regional HIV, Health and Development Practice provides support to the countries in the region to put in place the best policies, strategies and inclusive processes for the sustainable financing of national HIV, TB and malaria according to needs particularly of the most vulnerable populations.

In this context it is critical to have precise data of current expenditures by national governments and international community on HIV, TB and overall health sector in each country, to make forecasts for short and medium term perspectives, and to analysis these data in the context of available macroeconomic and human development indices and in the context of country specific health financing mechanisms with the aim of scenario development for sustainable financing strategies. This approach includes country case reviews and documentation of sustainable financing initiatives already in progress at various stages and support to countries with the development of investment cases supporting their Global Fund NFM concept note development processes.

While the primary objective for this internship is contribute systematically to the editing of national and sub-regional reports, the intern will also contribute to the editing of fact sheets, policy briefs, blogs or papers for publication.

(1) - World AIDS Day 2014 Report - Factsheet (http://www.unaids.org/en/resources/campaigns/World-AIDS-Day-Report-2014/factsheet).

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the UNDP HHD Programme Specialist and direct guidance of the International consultant on sustainable financing of HIV responses, the editor shall provide high quality editing of texts in English or Russian. The editor shall demonstrate a client-oriented approach and shall ensure effective and efficient provision of services, full confidentiality in all aspects of assignment, management of information flow and follow-up on deadlines and commitments made.

More specifically, the incumbent shall be responsible for ensuring timeliness and qualitative edition of the programme related documents in English through:

Correcting spelling, punctuation, grammar, syntax, and general usage of the language;
Checking for overall clarity and consistency of style, tone and sentence structure;
Reorganizing the text or changing paragraph order to improve overall clarity and flow;
Highlighting inconsistencies in word use, meaning and format;
Checking against layout specifications for typesetting;
Suggesting improvements in layout and overall presentation;
Rewriting to improve the structure and content without changing the original meaning;
Removing wordiness, inappropriate terms or jargon;
Suggesting major revisions or identifying gaps in content or areas of text which need further development;
Ensuring the consistency of formats for footnotes, bibliography, Tables, Figures, Annexes etc.

Deliverables:

The editors are expected to submit the edited text (electronic version) in two formats: one with tracked changes, the second a clear copy.

The materials to be edited will be mainly of programme related content, i.e. HIV epidemic, health and programme financing, macro-economical and socio-demographic contexts.

The editor is expected to perform terminology research (i.e. on UN/UNDP/UN Term websites (http://unterm.un.org) and others) to ensure the accuracy and appropriateness of the edition.

Duration:

At least 20 hours a week for a period of at least 3 months.

Competencies

Good team worker;
Strong organizational skills and the ability to multi-task;
Must be able to work in a multicultural environment and be aware of political sensitivities;
Responsible, responsive, and enthusiastic;
Be willing to work within the framework of UNDP’s internship policies;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Highest standards of integrity, discretion and loyalty.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Currently enrolled in post-graduate/master’s degree course in the relevant field (English language, media and communication, international relations or related areas, marketing, public relations).

Experience:

Experience in editing and proofreading texts in English;
Advanced knowledge and skills of MS Office, including Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint;
Experience in working with health, economic and financial data.

Language:

Native level of English language.

Application procedure:

The application should contain:

Brief Cover Letter (in English) stating interest in and qualifications for the post;
Current and complete CV in English;
Please group all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document.

Candidates who are selected for must submit prior to the interview the following documents:

Official letter from the University confirming enrollment in a graduate-level degree programme;
Letter of endorsement from a faculty member who has worked with the student in the recent past and who is knowledgeable on the student’s performance;
Complete and sign the “Application Form” which is available at http://www.undp.org/internships.

UNDP only accepts interns for a minimum of 6 weeks and a maximum of 6 months.
Interns are not financially remunerated by UNDP. The costs associated with the latter must be borne by the nominating institution, related institution or government, which may provide the required financial assistance to its students; or by the student, who will have to obtain financing for subsistence and make his or her own arrangements for travel, accommodation, etc.
Proof of medical and life/accident insurance valid for the location in which the internship will be carried out. Selected intern must have medical and life insurance.

Subsequent Employment:

The purpose of the Internship Programme is not to lead to further employment with UNDP but to complement an intern’s studies.
Therefore, there should be no expectation of employment at the end of an internship.
It is important to note that interns are responsible to arrange for their own visa and residence documents, and need to plan for these well in advance.