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 Strategic Planning Unit (SPU) within the Strategy, Planning, Resources and Effectiveness Division (SPRED) focuses on assisting UN Women and partners to achieve higher quality development results through an integrated approach that links strategic planning and Results-Based Management (RBM) with more effective and new ways of working. The SPU is the custodian of RBM as well as field and HQ level strategic planning and results-based reporting in UN Women. The SPU provides quality assurance on strategic planning and results reporting exercises at the corporate and field levels. It takes a collaborative approach to strategic planning and programmatic learning, creating space for innovation and enabling UN Women and its partners to be more effective, knowledge and data-driven, and driving higher quality UN Women programming. It is also charged with engagement on all planning inter-agency initiatives. SPU is also the leading unit as business owner for UN Women results management systems to support strategic planning and results-based monitoring and reporting processes as well as data aggregation and analysis to communicate on results with stakeholders.

Under the supervision of the Programme Specialist - Strategic Planning, the intern will support the development of RBM resource material. The intern will also support the building and sharing of knowledge on RBM including through supporting the development of digital content for the intranet.

Duties and Responsibilities

  • Assist in maintaining, updating and monitoring the SPU’s RBM-related intranet pages;
  • Assist with researching/identification of stories, writing and editing internal articles and other digital content that facilitate cross-regional knowledge sharing on RBM, liaising with different field and HQ colleagues;
  • Assist with the production of RBM material to support SPU’s capacity building and knowledge sharing efforts, including graphics, internal videos and other visual aids as needed;
  • Assist in the coordination of internal RBM events, such as webinars and brownbag lunches;
  • Assist planning, monitoring, or reporting communication material as needed, including the Strategic Note brochures.
  • Other related duties and general administrative assignments as required.

Learning objectives for the internship in this area:

  • The selected intern will be provided with hands-on learning opportunities to work in the area of RBM, capacity building, and knowledge management;
  • The selected intern will gain exposure to the UN Women organization and have the opportunity to contribute to the development of the internal communications function;
  • The intern will be provided with networking opportunities and participate in workshops/ seminars for broader learning purposes.

Competencies

Core Values:

  • Respect for Diversity
  • Integrity
  • Professionalism

Core Competencies:

  • Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
  • Accountability
  • Creative Problem Solving
  • Effective Communication
  • Inclusive Collaboration
  • Stakeholder Engagement
  • Leading by Example

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Functional Competencies:

Include Functional Competencies specific to this position here:

  • Strong analytical skills
  • Excellent writing, editing and communication skills: able to communicate clearly and concisely and to translate complex topics into simple language for a general audience;
  • Approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
  • Excellent interpersonal and teamwork skills: able to listen and collaborate with a wide range of colleagues; able to work independently, be proactive and take initiative; 
  • Strong organizational skills and ability to multi-task
  • Excellent IT skills (experience of web content management systems is an asset);
  • Graphic design and video editing skills are an asset;
  • Familiarity with gender issues and the UN system is an asset.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

  • University studies in one of the following disciplines: communications, knowledge management, journalism, design, behavior change, social sciences, public relations or other relevant subjects is required.
  • Demonstrated experience in writing and editing;
  • Experience in internal communications would be a distinct advantage.
  • Experience and skill in one or more of the following areas would be an advantage: editing, graphic design, creating learning material, or behavior change campaigns.
  • Meet one of the following:
  1. Be enrolled in a postgraduate degree programme (such as a master’s programme, or higher);
  2. Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree programme (such as bachelor’s degree or equivalent);
  3. Be enrolled in a mandatory national service programme of which the internship may form a part;
  4. Have recently graduated with a university degree (as defined in (a) and (b) above) and, if selected, must start the internship within two-years of graduation.

Language:

  • Excellent communication skills (written and oral) in English are required;
  • Working knowledge of another UN language is an advantage.

Renumeration:

Interns who are not in receipt of financial support from other sources such as universities or other institutions will receive a stipend from UN Women to partially subsidize their basic living costs for the duration of the internship.

Application Information:

  • All applicants must submit a completed and signed P.11 form with their application.
  • Due to the high volume of applications received, UN Women can ONLY contact successful candidates.
  • The successful candidate will be required to provide proof of enrollment in a valid health insurance plan at the duty station of the internship, proof of school enrollment or degree, a scanned copy of their passport/national ID and a copy of a valid visa (as applicable).