Background

UNDP partners with national governments and people at all levels of society to help build nations that can withstand crises, and drive and sustain the kind of growth that improves the quality of life for everyone. Active in more than 170 countries and territories, UNDP offers a global perspective and local insight to help empower lives and build resilient nations. UNDP helps countries to build and share development solutions in the following four main areas:

  1. Sustainable Development
  2. Democratic Governance and Peacebuilding
  3. Climate and Disaster Resilience

In all its work, UNDP works to ensure the protection of human rights and the empowerment of women, minorities and the poorest and most vulnerable.

The UN Joint Migration and Development Initiative (JMDI) reflects the strong nexus between migration and development. Implemented by UNDP Brussels in collaboration with IOM, ITC-ILO, UNHCR, UNFPA, UN WOMEN and UNITAR, the programme represents a major innovation as a first joint UN project of its kind not only with the European Commission and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, but also in its approach to inter-Agency working.  Since 2013, the programme has been focusing on the local dimension of migration and development and seeks to maximize the potential of migration for local development through the delivery of targeted support to local authorities and non-state actors.

Specifically, the programme will address three areas of intervention:

  • Moving from isolated and individual approaches towards more structured forms of interventions through promising initiatives from local authorities in partnership with civil society organizations in selected countries that are being scaled up to maximize impact on local development. Policy options and definition of road maps for action will be drawn from the experience of the supported initiatives;
  • Reinforcing the capacities of selected local administrations to effectively link migration and development, with a specific focus on facilitating increased coordination within local authorities’ administration in order to maximize their ability to grasp the potential of migration for development;
  • Connecting local authorities globally with each other and with other stakeholders and facilitate partnerships (between local authorities in countries of origin and destination of migration, migrant and refugee associations, the private sector, the social partners etc.) to reinforce local authorities’ potential to become active players in the field of migration and development.

16 locally-led initiatives have been scaled up which have emerged as particularly promising in terms of linking local authorities and the civil society in the field of migration and development in the programme’s eight target countries (Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Morocco, Nepal, the Philippines, Senegal, Tunisia).

The programme also provided tailored capacity building to programme stakeholders to ensure successful delivery of the selected projects through the creation of an overall training course currently being designed as well as through continuous and personalized coaching.

In order to learn from this experience, the JMDI has a strategic Knowledge Management (KM) strategy. KM is the practice of capturing, storing and sharing knowledge so that we can learn lessons from the past and apply them in the future. The JMDI carries this out in conjunction with its project partners in the field and is currently in the process of consolidating all the knowledge gathered into specific knowledge products and publications.

The programme then utilizes the dedicated M4D Net Global Community which is moderated by the JMDI (migration4development.org), social media, its partner agencies and other relevant networks and participates in global dialogues and conferences to communicate on and disseminate the good practices and lessons learnt from the scaled-up projects at regional level and thus work towards initiating policy change at the local, national and international levels.

Duties and Responsibilities

The  selected  intern  will  work  under  the  supervision  of  the  Head  of  the  Programme Management Unit (PMU) and in close coordination with the Knowledge Management Expert.

Under the overall supervision of the Programme Manager, the intern shall perform the following tasks:

  • Assisting in generating knowledge products tailor-made to the needs of local authorities that display good practices, thereby further stimulating both the use of existing knowledge and further interaction between the suppliers and demanders of knowledge on Migration and Development;

  • Assisting in the revision and editing of knowledge products that have been translated into the main working languages of the JMDI (French, English and Spanish);

  • Providing translation assistance when relevant;

  • Assisting in the design and formatting of knowledge products;

  • Assisting in maintaining and updating JMDI in JMDI social media pages and bilingual M4D website;

  • Assisting in the running and expansion of the M4D Net and JMDI’s social media through:

    • the preparation of newsletters, blogs, e-Discussions or any other knowledge products,
    • researching and editing news pieces on M&D and uploading them on respective platforms (Facebook, Twitter, M4D Net…)
    • summarizing traffic on the knowledge networks;
    • researching responses to queries;
    • uploading documents on the knowledge portal www.migration4development.org;
    • Updating and feeding content.

  • Assisting in the outreach and mobilization of existing networks of local authorities, social partners, private sector organizations to actively take part in the JMDI M4D Net;

  • Any other tasks as needed.

Competencies

  • Strong organizational and communication skills;

  • Excellent analytical, design and writing skills;

  • Excellent interpersonal skills;

  • Demonstrated keen interest in the work of the UN/UNDP;

  • Experience in communication and/or translation is an asset;

  • Computer proficiency in standard software applications (MS Office, Excel, Word, Powerpoint, Publisher);

  • Demonstrates integrity and fairness, by modelling the UN/UNDP’s values and ethical standards;

  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Applicants to the UNDP internship programme must at the time of application meet one of the following requirements:

  • Be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher);
  • Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum Bachelor’s level or equivalent);
  • Have graduated with a university degree (as defined in (a) and (b) above) and, if selected, must start the internship within one year of graduation.

Language:

Fluency in Spanish and English required. Knowledge of French is an asset.

 

Notes

Interns’ Expenses/Arrangements:

Please note that interns are not financially remunerated by UNDP. All costs associated with an intern’s participation in the programme must be borne by the nominating institution, related institution or government, which may provide the required financial assistance to its students; or by the intern, who will have to obtain financing for subsistence and make his/her own arrangements for travel (including to and from the office), visas, accommodation, etc.

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.

Application Procedure:

The application should contain:

  • Motivation letter specifying reasons why candidate is seeking the internship and what is expected from the experience;
  • Recent Curriculum Vitae;
  • Official letter from the University confirming enrollment and specifying expected graduation date (for students);
  • Official letter from the University confirming graduation date (for graduates).

NB: Please upload the above in a single file. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Only those candidates who are shortlisted will be contacted for interview.

UNDP accepts no responsibility for costs arising from accidents and/or illness or death incurred during the internship.

Prior to being offered a Letter of Acceptance for Internship, the selected candidate will have to provide the following additional documents:

A Medical Certificate of Good Health from a recognized physician. If the intern is expected to travel outside the country of their residence, other than to Europe and North America, the physician must indicate whether s/he is to travel and has the required inoculations for the country to which they are to travel;

Proof of valid Medical Insurance cover, valid for the duration of the internship programme in Belgium;

For applicants who are not resident in Belgium, the insurance cover must include adequate coverage in the event of an injury or illness during the internship duration which:

  • (a) requires transportation to the home country or country of residence for further treatment;
  • (b) results in death and requires preparation and return of the remains to the home country, or country of residence.

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.