The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) makes public and private finance work for the poor in the world’s 47 least developed countries. With its capital mandate and instruments, UNCDF offers “last mile” finance models that unlock public and private resources, especially at the domestic level, to reduce poverty and support local economic development.

UNCDF’s financing models work through three channels: inclusive digital economies, connecting individuals, households, and small businesses with financial eco-systems that catalyze participation in the local economy, and provide tools to climb out of poverty and manage financial lives; local development finance, that capacitates localities through fiscal decentralization, innovative municipal finance, and structured project finance to drive local economic expansion and sustainable development; and investment finance, that provides catalytic financial structuring, de-risking, and capital deployment to drive SDG impact and domestic resource mobilization. By strengthening how finance works for poor people at the household, small enterprise, and local infrastructure levels, UNCDF contributes to Sustainable Development Goal-SDG 1 on eradicating poverty and SDG 17 on the means of implementation. By identifying those market segments where innovative financing models can have transformational impact in helping to reach the last mile and address exclusion and inequalities of access, UNCDF contributes to a broad diversity of SDGs.

About Digital @UNCDF

The UNCDF strategy ‘Leaving no one behind in the digital era’ is based on over a decade of experience in digital financial inclusion in Africa, Asia and the Pacific. UNCDF leverages digital finance in support of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to achieve the vision of promoting digital economies that leave no one behind. The goal of UNCDF is to empower millions of people by 2024 to use services daily that leverage innovation and technology and contribute to the SDGs. To achieve this vision UNCDF uses a market development approach and continuously seeks to address underlying market dysfunctions that exclude people living in the last mile.

UNCDF is looking for qualified interns to support its different activities related to the following functional areas in its Regional Hub/Country office located in Thailand, Myanmar, Nepal, Bangladesh, Fiji and Samoa:

• Innovation Fund
• Data Analytics
• Partnership and Programme Expansion
• Monitoring & Evaluation and Operation
• Communications and Knowledge Management

The internship manager is committed to providing the Intern with the training, guidance and support necessary to complete the below duties and responsibilities effectively and within the internship period. This will include, but not be limited to, scheduled meetings (weekly) to assess output progress, systems training (if required) and completion of required university reports for the purpose of meeting any necessary Degree requirements.

Under the supervision of the UNCDF staff, the key results expected from Digital Hub for Asia interns are listed below;

Innovation Fund

• Support for conducting background study on digital transformation of the financial sector needs
• Support developing concept notes on digital transformation of financial sector players
• Support project partners to create risk registers and implement risk management practices
• Analyzing challenge fund project outputs and impacts to create project impact dashboards
• Support challenge fund management
• Other tasks as requested

Data Analytics

• Data Analytics that includes working with team on bigdata engagement, analyzing trends, assist the team with documenting the same
• Conduct deep-dive thematic research on key issues related to Digital Asia and Pacific activities
• Support in data curation and analytics and experimenting with new data techniques
• Support systematic case study analyses
• Other tasks as requested

Partnership and Programme Expansion

• Undertake review of various intervention plans and leads including engaging background research and stakeholder discussions to further develop these interventions into specific concepts, intervention themes or proposals that the project should implement in target countries.
• Support UNCDF staff to carry out donor mapping exercise and develop resource mobilization strategies for ASEAN and SAARC countries.
• Other tasks as requested.

Monitoring & Evaluation and Operation

• Review, update, develop and streamline the activity tracker for UNCDF SHIFT activities. This includes updating verification documents and links as well as updating the tracker with new activities and documents
• Research regional and industry trends in financial inclusion and identify benchmarks that can be used by the SHIFT M&E team
• Support KPI data aggregation in Power BI (overall dashboard design)
• Support project’s day-to-day operation activities
• Develop operation tracking tools
• Supporting the organization and coordination of workshops, conferences and inter-organization meetings
• Provide assistance in procurement efforts and logistical needs
• Other tasks as requested

Communications and Knowledge Management

• Communication support that includes social media engagement, through UNCDF community of practice platform and engaging with the members on the topic related to digital economy
• Engage on developing infographics, production of video blogs, pictures repository, etc. 
• Support in preparation and dissemination of reports and all other communications materials to concerned stakeholders
• Support to organize various online/offline meetings/events when and as required
• Other tasks as requested

Work Arrangements:

• Internships may be in any of the following duty stations: Thailand, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Nepal, Fiji, Samoa and other markets across Asia and the Pacific.
• These research internships may be for both full-time or part-time placements, depending on the organization needs and changing pace of UNCDF work. Selected interns may be asked to work on either full-time or a part-time basis (at least 16 hours per week/ 2 days a week minimum). This will be communicated as a part of the internship offer to successful candidates.
• UNCDF team members are currently located in most of the countries across Asia, especially the ones mentioned above. Selected interns are expected to work closely with an assigned team-member of UNCDF, based in one of the specified locations listed above.
• Interns are expected to use their own computer/ laptop, as they may not have full-time access to office computer/ laptops.
• Contribution made by research interns to any organizational publications will be acknowledged and/or recognized if the publication rules allow for authorship to be mentioned.
• Only longlisted candidates will be invited for a technical written test (via email) and the top scoring candidates shall be invited for a phone/Skype interview.

UNCDF/UNDP Core competencies

• Communication
• Delivery
• Innovation
• Leadership
• People Management

Functional Competencies

• Demonstrable skills in research, analytical thinking, and communication
• Excellent writing and editing skills in English
• Proven ability to manage diverse and complex tasks, with tight deadlines
• Able to take initiative and work independently, with minimum supervision
• Strong organizational, communication and interpersonal skills with ability to work under pressure within an international setting
• Interest in the UN system and general knowledge of development issues is a plus

Guiding Principles

• Demonstrates consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UNCDF in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct
• Demonstrates an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff
• Demonstrates an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity
• Demonstrates an intellectual curiosity and deep desire to learn
• Demonstrates a consistent commitment to pro-actively helping fellow members of the PPC Unit and UNCDF more broadly in their day-to-day activities to the reasonable extent possible

Additional assignment-specific qualifications

• Solid understanding of international relations and development.

Education

Candidate must be enrolled in a degree programme in Social Sciences, International Relations, Economic Development, Economics, Finance, Journalism, Political Science, Communications, Graphic Design, Marketing, Business administration or other related fields.
 

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

(a) Be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher)

(b) Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum Bachelor’s level or equivalent)

(c) 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

Work Experience & Desired Skillset

• Demonstrated experience, part or full-time, paid or volunteer, in economics, policy related work, finance, inclusive finance or related fields
• Demonstrated research and analytical capacity
• Excellent computer, mobile apps, and digital tools operating capabilities
• Must be able to work in a multicultural environment and be aware of political sensitivities

In addition to the above experience and skillset, applicants who apply for Communications and Knowledge Management must also have:

• Familiarity with social media platforms and graphic design and photo editing software applications (Adobe Illustrator, InDesign and Photoshop)
• Knowledge on designing for print and digital media is highly desirable
• Proficiency in using new technologies, web-based platforms and social media networks; familiarity with the Adobe Creative Suite and other design platforms is a plus
• Proficiency or prior experience in PowerPoint and/or Keynote would be preferable
• Self-starter; organized; able to multitask, balance multiple responsibilities, and work to deadline

Data Analytics must also have:

• Experience in STATA, R-Studio, Tableau, Nvivo, Power-BI, Python, GIS Mapping, software’s, or other similar data analytic tools.

Languages:

• Fluency in English required. Fluency in French is considered highly desirable.
• Knowledge of other UN languages will be considered a plus.

Internships Conditions:

• UNCDF Internship programme is governed by the UNDP Internship Policy framework and rules.
• The maximum internship duration is 6 months.
• Interns are partially financially remunerated by UNCDF. The costs associated with the assignment will be partially supported by UNCDF and the rest to 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/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 (i.e. Bangkok, Thailand).
• Under the new revised UNDP Internship Policy, UNCDF will provide a modest monthly internship stipend to its interns, in accordance with the provisions of the UNDP Internship Policy. All expenses connected with the internship will be borne by the intern or her/his sponsoring entity/institution.
• Selected Interns must be able to share proof of education enrolment and/ or graduation, medical/health and life/accident insurance, valid for the location in which the internship will be carried out and be able to provide insurance documentary proof at the time of their selection.
• It is expected that due to CoVID-19 restrictions in place, the most- immediate internship assignments will be home-based till the situation in respective duty station improves.
• The purpose of the Internship Programme is not to lead to further employment with UNCDF but to complement an intern’s studies and learning growth. 
• There is no expectation of employment at the end of these internships. 

Application Process:

• In your application, please state in one paragraph why you would like to be considered for the internship and your primary motivation to apply for this role;
• Please note that you will need to answer the mandatory questions on timeframe and availability (under Additional Questions section), which is a part of the internship application process, in addition to your cover letter.
• Please submit your Resume/CV and an application using the UNCDF Internship Application form: http://www.uncdf.org/download/file/127/2509/internshipdoc
• Applications should include the application form and latest resume.  Applicants are welcome to submit any additional work samples or portfolios in one single file, preferably PDF.
• Please note that the UNDP jobsite system allows only one uploading of application document, so please make sure that you merge all your documents (CV/ Resume, Cover Letter etc. into a single file before uploading).
• Interested candidates can apply at any time indicating the timeframe of their availability in the internship form. However, only those candidates selected for interviews / further assessment by hiring managers will be contacted.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

General Call for 2020-2021 Internship Applications: This is a general call for internships for December 2020  and throughout 2021. We accept applications from interested and qualified applicants, on an ongoing basis for this Digital Hub for Asia internship opportunities at Bangkok office.

Interested Candidates can apply at any time indicating the timeframe of their availability in the internship form. However, only those candidates selected for interviews/further assessment by hiring managers will be contacted on ongoing basis as per organizational need.