Org. Setting and Reporting

The mandate of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is to promote inclusive economic, social and environmental development and support regional cooperation and integration in the Asia-Pacific region. ESCAP’s role as a regional development arm of the United Nations Secretariat, is to support its membership, through its analytical, normative and technical cooperation, to respond to the development priorities and changing needs of the Asia-Pacific region.

The internship is located in the Capacity Development and Partnerships Section (CPS) of the Strategy and Programme Management Division (SPMD). The internship is for a duration of 3 months with possibility of extension to a maximum of 6 months, depending on the needs of the section/division.

The internship is UNPAID and full-time.

Interns work five days per week (35 hours) under the supervision of a staff member in the section/division to which they are assigned.

Responsibilities

The intern will work closely with and assist the Capacity Development and Partnerships Section of the Strategy and Programme Management Division. Under the guidance of Professional Staff(s) in the section, his/her main duties will be related to (but not limited to) outreach and communications, preparation of related public information materials, in relation to the below tasks:

Website/knowledge management related
1. Assist in reviewing and updating existing webpages and the internal SPMD Gateway to ensure coherent and user-friendly storing and presentation of information;
2. Draft information highlights and short briefs/articles to maintain up-to-date relevant webpages, and other public information platforms;

Outreach
3. Assist in undertaking outreach and information dissemination-related activities on a range of knowledge products, including good practices on South-South cooperation and technical cooperation, guidelines and processes, providing support for improving presentation, layout and graphic design;
4. Assist in conceptualizing and preparing public information products, such as infographics, flyers, posters including for the Asia-Pacific Directors General Forum for South-South Cooperation and related activities;
5. Support management and updating of other communication and engagement tools developed by the section (for example South-South Cooperation Connector) and develop/propose communications plans;

Research and other tasks
6. Coordinate and work closely with colleagues in the Capacity Development and Partnerships Section, and the Planning and Budget Section, as well as colleagues in all divisions and offices across ESCAP as appropriate, for information/data collection and visualization;
7. Participate in and contribute to other day-to-day operational tasks of the section, as appropriate. This may include for example, servicing requests for information, support for developing presentations, and provide other assistance as needed.

Competencies

The United Nations Core Competencies include:
• Communication: Ability to draft clearly and concisely, good written and oral language skills.
• Teamwork: Good interpersonal skills, ability to work collaboratively with colleagues from different national and cultural backgrounds to achieve organizational goals.
• Client Orientation: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be ‘clients’ and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view.
• Creativity: thinks “outside the box”; takes an interest in new ideas and new ways of doing things; is not bound by current thinking or traditional approaches

Education

To qualify for an internship with the United Nations Internship Programme, applicants to the programme must at the time of application meet one of the following requirements:
a) be enrolled in, or have completed, a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher); or
b) be enrolled in, or have completed, the final academic year of a first university degree programme (minimum bachelor’s level or equivalent).

• Be computer literate in standard software applications;
• Have a demonstrated keen interest in the work of the United Nations and have a personal commitment to the ideals of the Charter; and
• Have a demonstrated ability to successfully interact with individuals of different cultural backgrounds and beliefs, which includes willingness to try and understand and be tolerant of differing opinions and views.
• Solid drafting skills in the English language;
• Knowledge of graphic design tools such as Adobe Creative Studio, Illustrator, Piktochart and Canva;
• Demonstrated ability in data visualization tools such as Microsoft Power BI, Tableau and knowledge in web design considered an advantage.

Work Experience

No working experience is required to apply for the United Nations Internship Programme. Your training, education, advance course work or skills should benefit the United Nations during your internship.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. Fluency in spoken and written English is required for the internship. Knowledge of another official UN language is an advantage. Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish are the official languages of the United Nations Secretariat.

Assessment

Potential candidates will be contacted by a hiring manager directly for further consideration.
The selection procedure may also include written test and an interview.

Special Notice

A completed online application (Motivational Statement and Candidate Profile) is required. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.

The Motivational Statement must include:
• Degree Programme (What are you currently studying or what have you studied)
• Graduation date (When will you graduate or when did you graduate from the programme?)
• List of the IT skills and programmes that you are proficient in
• List of your top three areas of interest
• Explanation about why you are the most suitable candidate for this specific internship
• Explanation of your interest in the United Nations Internship Programme

In your online Candidate Profile, be sure to include all past work experiences, IT skills, and three references.

Please note that due to the large number of applicants, divisions are not in a position to reply to each application and that ONLY short-listed applicants will be contacted for further consideration.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process.

The paramount consideration in the appointment, transfer, or promotion of staff shall be the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. By accepting an offer of appointment, United Nations staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and assignment by him or her to any activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). In this context, all internationally recruited staff members shall be required to move periodically to discharge new functions within or across duty stations under conditions established by the Secretary-General.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.