Background

Despite constraints, the global percentage of women in elected office continues to make incremental progress towards parity, whereby neither sex should have less than 40% representation in elected bodies. At the end of 2011, women made up on average 19.5% of the members of the single or lower national parliaments, while upper houses/senates consist of 18.7% women. Electoral systems and temporary special measures (TSMs) in some countries have been critical to driving this measure up. In the Caribbean, despite some progress, and a long history of political engagement, strong education, and dedicated public service, Caribbean women’s levels of participation in the elected and appointed positions (Upper and Lower House combined) is at only 19.46%.  For Jamaica, there are 6 women represented in the upper house and 5 women in the lower house, a total of 13%, lower than the regional average.  

Political Parties, as a primary entry point to participate in political life, are crucial allies in efforts to increase women's full and transformative participation in decision-making processes. With the participation level of women in formal politics at a level far below projected goals from the Beijing Platform, it is these institutions that can catapult advances in gender equality through meaningful reform. Global studies show that in all political contexts, political parties are the single greatest enabler to advancing women’s leadership at the national and local level.

It is therefore essential for the realization of gender equality and women’s full and transformative participation in decision-making processes that political parties both take measures to ensure greater parity between women’s and men’s representation; and ensure that national gender equality concerns and women’s voice are integrated into political party structures and platforms. In recent years, the emergence of a ‘gender gap’ in voting behaviour — that is, women as a group voting differently from men, especially in developed countries — and the increasing importance of this ‘women’s vote’ suggests the emergence of an identifiable female constituency. Political parties are catching up to these voting patterns by shaping political platforms to appeal to women voters and by recruiting more women.

Drawing from the corporate strategy, to date the main support UN Women has provided around women’s leadership in Jamaica has been through support to civil society to advance the understanding of the need for women’s full and transformative leadership. Communications tools for the general public and political actors are needed to highlight the benefits of women’s political participation and representation, as well as gender equality and inclusive governance.

Drawing from the IPU Website, of the 22 countries covered by UN Women MCO-Caribbean, data could only be found for 13 countries. These are: Antigua & Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts-Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago. Of these thirteen, eight were bicameral in structure. For countries with a bicameral structure, there was an average female representation of 16.84% in the House of Representatives/Assembly and 24.77% in the Senate. For those countries which are unicameral, there was an average female representation of 15.14%. Overall (upper and lower house), female representation among the 13 countries listed was 19.46%. Source – IPU website.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the UN Women Representative and the day-today supervision of the UN Women Deputy Representative the Political Participation Intern will support the implementation of the political participation programme by providing communications support and research.  The intern will be expected to:

Deliverables:

• Support the MCO Caribbean in organising and implementing the women’s political participation portfolio.
• Support the development of Policy Briefs on women’s political participation in the Caribbean.
• Support development of content for the MCO Caribbean website (http://caribbean.unwomen.org/en) and Facebook page.
• Support the development of Tool Kits for Political Actors on Temporary Special Measures, the Sustainable Development Goals, CEDAW and Climate Change.

Set Activities per Deliverable:

• Support the development of data sheets.
• Support the Deputy Representative in finalising perception survey results.
• Support Communications Associate in creating online database of women parliamentarians in the region.
• Collect data on women parliamentarians in the region.
• Provide technical and administrative support to the Deputy Representative to finalise toolkit.

Competencies

Core Values / Guiding Principles:

Integrity and Fairness:

• Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.

Professionalism:

• Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work. Conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results.

Cultural sensitivity and valuing diversity:

• Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff. Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Core Competencies:

Work in teams:

• Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.

Communicating and Information Sharing:

• Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication.

Self-management and Emotional Intelligence:

• Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behaviour towards others.

Conflict management:

• Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution.

Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making:

• Demonstrate informed and transparent decision making.

Functional Competencies:

• The ability to communicate simply and effectively with excellent written and editing skills.
• Good understanding of social media platforms and experience in social media outreach.
• Practical knowledge of Microsoft Office business application software.
• Ability to work under pressure.
• Ability to work as part of a team.
• Fluency in English is required; knowledge of any other UN official language is an asset

Required Skills and Experience

Minimum Requirements

The individual intern should meet the following criteria:

Education:

A recent graduate (within one year) or current student enrolled in the final year of a Bachelor’s Degree or in a Master’s Degree programme, or equivalent in Gender and Development, Political Science, International Relations, Development Studies, Public Administration or a related field.

Experience:

• Experience with research and supporting policy briefs.
• Experience working in communications - advocacy, developing communications tools.
• Experience in writing, editing and producing materials for website content and social media networks.

Conditions of Internship:

1. Applicants to the United Nations 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 (b) above) and, if selected, must commence the internship within one year.

1. UN Women internship programme does not provide a salary or remuneration for the internship; 
2. All the expenses connected with the internship will be borne by the intern, sponsoring Government or institution; 
3. UN Women accepts no responsibility for costs arising from accidents and/or illness or death incurred during the internship; 
4. The intern is responsible for obtaining necessary visas and arranging travel to and from the duty station where the internship will be performed; 
5. Interns are not eligible to apply for, or be appointed to, any post in UN Women during the period of the internship or for six months immediately following the expiration date of internship; 
6. The intern must provide proof of enrolment in a health insurance plan, proof of school enrolment (where relevant), a scanned copy of her/his passport, two letters of recommendation, and application. Applications must include:

• A cover letter with the referenced internship programme
• A completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment
• Detailed curriculum vitae including a description of main achievements.

Timeframes and Institutional Arrangements:

The internship will run for 2 consecutive months at a time most convenient to the selected candidate during July – September 2017. The internship is attached to the MCO Caribbean office which is located in Barbados. The intern will be expected to work at least three days a week out of the MCO Caribbean office.

Hardware, software, and communication:

The intern will be furnished with a portable computer (laptop) for the duration of the internship. The intern must be reasonably accessible by email and telephone (preferably mobile).