UN WOMEN Jobs - 77732- MCO Communications Intern (Open to Fiji Nationals

MCO Communications Intern (Open to Fiji Nationals ONLY)

Advertised on behalf of

UN WOMEN

Location :

Suva, FIJI

Type of Contract :

Internship

Starting Date :

02-Apr-2018

Application Deadline :

26-Mar-18 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

Intern

Duration of Initial Contract :

Minimum of 2, Maximum of 6 Months

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

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

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

The United Nations General Assembly created UN Women: the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women in July 2010, as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates of parts of the UN system working on all aspects of gender equality and empowerment of women (GE/EW). The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment. UN Women supports the achievement of UN System-wide goals on gender equality and the empowerment of women (GE/EW). UN Women has a presence and is programming in six Pacific Island Countries.

UN Women’s vision is a world where societies are free of gender-based discrimination, where women and men have equal opportunities, where the comprehensive development of women and girls is ensured so that they can continue to be active agents of change, where gender equality and women’s empowerment are achieved and where women’s rights are upheld in all efforts to further development, human rights, peace and security.

UN Women’s mandate builds on inter-governmental agreements articulated in the Beijing Platform for Action (PFA), the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Millennium Declaration, and relevant Security Council resolutions. Central to UN Women leads coordination of the UN system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into concrete action at the country level.

UN Women’s first Strategic Plan (2017-2018) will prioritise programming in the areas of :-

Strengthening Women’s leadership and participation in all areas that affect their lives: In national and local level politics and in the key sectors of development including women affected by isolation, poverty, HIV, and disability.
Enabling Women’s access, especially for the poorest women, to economic empowerment and opportunities: Including laws, policies and strategies that enhance women’s access to productive resources – land, property and financial services; decent work and social protection; gender-responsive infrastructure and services that support sustainable livelihoods for women, including new green industries and improved markets; and influence of gender equality advocates on economic policies, programmes and budgets.
Preventing violence against women and expand access to survivor services: This goal encompasses the wide range of forms of violence against women, from domestic and sexual violence to harmful practices and sexual harassment, linked to national priorities and the Secretary General’s UNiTE Campaign.
Increasing women’s leadership in peace and security: This goal encompasses implementation of relevant Security Council resolutions 1325, 1820, 1888 and 1889, and the role of markets as social, economic hubs important in economic recovery of women, families and communities and markets as key venues of peace education and action.
Strengthening the responsiveness of plans & budgets to gender equality at all levels: Policies and laws, combined with systematic capacity and monitoring systems institutionalized to ensure that national and local level budgets, plans and the evidence base for gender equality are adequate to implement visionary legal and policy frameworks, more gender-responsive National Development Strategies.

Unit/ Project Background:

UN Women works with governments and civil society organisations across 14 Pacific Island countries and territories, with a focus on four key programmatic areas: ending violence against women and girls; gender and protection in humanitarian action; women’s economic empowerment (including Markets for Change); and political participation, leadership and human rights. Each of these programmes covers a portfolio of advocacy, research, knowledge building and dissemination, programmes and projects.

UN Women’s Multi-Country Office (MCO) in Fiji, covers 14 Pacific Island countries and territories, with field presences in Kiribati, Samoa (covering Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau), Solomon Islands and Vanuatu and a programme presence in Tonga. UN Women is also represented through the United Nations Joint Presence Offices in Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, Republic of Marshall Islands, Tonga and Tuvalu. Outside of the Fiji MCO, UN Women also has a separate, fully fledged office in Papua New Guinea, with country-specific programming.

The work of the Intern will be based at the UN Women MCO in Fiji, undertaking work linked to a number of global initiatives and knowledge products that UN Women is supporting, to advance women’s political participation. The thematic focus of this assignment will include data collection in the four programmatic areas outlined and administrative support when necessary.

Duties and Responsibilities

The intern will provide communications support and assistance to the MCO Communications Unit and, in addition, also receive capacity development opportunities to further improve communications skills and strategic approaches.

With guidance and overall supervision from Communications & Media Specialist – who directly reports to the UN Women Representative - and working in collaboration with other Programme Teams, the Intern is expected to undertake the following tasks:

Gain experience working in the field of communications and advocacy that directly relates to the rights of women and girls.
Assist with the development and implementation of communications and advocacy activities highlighting the needs and impacts on women and girls in the Pacific.
Assist with UN Women MCO content updates and general maintenance of webpages, intranet, MCO web-based knowledge management system.
Assist to coordinate MCO social media stories and photos sourced from the corporate management team and from the four programmatic teams. Social media is a key part of the MCO Communications Strategy, providing a platform for reaching a larger and more diverse audience.
Assist the Communications Unit, where practicable, with the development of publications, merchandise, advocacy materials and media outreach.
Develop personal communication skills with diverse audiences
Hone personal research skills and awareness of legislation and programs to help promote women’s rights
Observe politics, and particularly the implementation of women rights, in action
Contribute when possible to the Communication Unit’s common work (e.g. assisting in organizing and running activities, events, media activity, etc.)

Learning Objectives

Increase understanding of UN Women’s work and the UN system, particularly the role UN Women plays in the larger UN landscape.
Learn different aspects of women’s political participation and access to justice
Increase knowledge and understanding of issues related to ending violence against women.
Increased knowledge of issues related to women’s economic empowerment
Build and develop professional relationships with UN Women colleagues in other units.
Work as a team member in a multicultural setting.
Develop project management and evaluation skills.
Develop intranet content editor skills using Microsoft SharePoint.

Competencies

Core Values and Guiding Principles:

Integrity:

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.

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:

Ethics and Values:

Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity.

Organizational Awareness:

Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Development and Innovation:

Take charge of self-development and take initiative.

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 behavior towards other.

Conflict Management:

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

Continuous Learning and Knowledge Sharing:

Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge.

Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making:

Demonstrate informed and transparent decision making.

Functional Competencies:

Familiarity with human resources and business administration concepts;
Ability to learn quickly;
Exceptional attention to detail;
Proven ability to manage multiple tasks with varying complexity;
Ability to adapt in a constantly-changing and fast-paced environment;
Excellent written, verbal, & interpersonal communication skills as well as exemplary customer service skills;
Ability to work effectively in a team environment;
Ability to exercise good judgment, use discretion, work with limited supervision;
A self-starter; able to anticipate issues and propose solutions.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

The intern must have studies in Journalism, Communications, International Relations, Social Sciences or other relevant subject at the university level. Master’s degree students preferred.
Or, be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher);
Or, be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum Bachelor's level or equivalent);
Or, have graduated with a university degree and, if selected, must commence the internship within a one-year period of graduation.

Language:

Excellent communication skills (written and oral) in English are required;
Working knowledge of another UN language a distinct advantage

Interns are not financially remunerated by UN Women.

Application Information:

UN Women will only be able to respond to those applications in which there is further interest.
Selected applicants must provide the internship application, two letters of recommendation, proof of health insurance and school enrollment, passport or other documentation indication National resident status (if applicable).