UN Resident Coordinator Office, Internship

Background

The UN Resident Coordinator provides leadership to the UN Country Team (UNCT) in the implementation of the UN Pacific Strategy. The RC has a team composed of national and international staff, forming the Fiji RC Multi-Country Office (RCO), and is based in Suva, Fiji. The RCO Fiji oversees 10 Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS), namely Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

The United Nations Pacific Strategy 2018-2022 is a five year strategic framework that outlines the collective response of the UN system to the development priorities in 14 Pacific Island Countries and Territories and supports the governments and peoples in the Pacific to advance a localized response to the global 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This response is tailored to each country’s national priorities, and responds to the Pacific Leaders’ call to the United Nations system to “align its work programmes and operations to support internationally agreed outcomes, including the Small Islands Developing States, Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in the Pacific region” (2015 GA res. 69/318).

Supporting the implementation of the United Nations Pacific Strategy the RCO fulfils ten core coordination functions, namely strategic analysis and planning; oversight of the UN country programming cycle; representation of and support of UN Secretariat and UN agencies (incl. non-resident agencies); support to national coordination systems and processes; development and management of shared operational support services; crisis management preparedness and response; external communication and advocacy; human rights and development; joint resource mobilisation and fund management; and general UNCT oversight and coordination. Each area plays an important role in achieving supporting the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals for the region.

The UN Resident Coordination Office in Suva (UNRCO) is seeking a total of ten (10) UN75 interns – one (1) for each of the countries encompassed by this multi-country office. Working under the guidance of the Country Coordination Specialist in-country and the Associate UN75 Outreach Officer, the intern will support the ongoing workplan and goals of the UNRCO for UN75.

Interested applicants will need to indicate which Pacific Island Country they are applying to e.g. Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the guidance & supervision of the Associate UN75 Outreach Officer and/or relevant Country Coordination Specialist, and in close collaboration with other colleagues in the UNRCO, the intern will assist in any of the following tasks:

Support the collection and documentation of the voices of youth, women and people living with disabilities in small island developing states to document the impact of climate change.
Acts as a contact point, within their respective countries, for convening youth and supporting them as drivers of UN75.
Support UN75 outreach activities in-country, especially amongst the three target groups – Women & Girls, Persons with Disabilities and Youth.
Support the gathering of in-country stories, related to the UN75 mandate: the future we want
Supports the creation and maintenance of a photo bank.

Competencies

Core competencies:

Communication
Innovation
Leadership
People Management

Functional & Technical Competencies:

Demonstrates strong writing skills, particularly the ability to present persuasive, coherent and well-founded arguments.
Demonstrates drive to achieve results in timely manner and to seek and find solutions to any problems encountered.
Demonstrates ability to communicate clearly and persuasively.
Ability to convert complex and abstract ideas into simple visual concepts.
Strong organizational skills and ability to multi-task
Demonstrates an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff.

Required Skills and Experience

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.

Work Experience & Desired Skillset:

Experience in communications and social media outreach;
Experience in online content development is desirable;
Prior experience with the multilateral system is desirable;
Must be able to work in a multicultural environment and be aware of political sensitivities;
Familiarity with social media platforms and graphic design and photo editing software applications;
Self-starter; organized; able to multitask, balance multiple responsibilities, and work to deadline.