UNOPS helps its partners in the United Nations system meet the world’s needs for building peace, recovering from disaster, and creating sustainable development. UNOPS is known for its ability to implement complex projects in all types of environments around the globe. In an effort to promote organizational excellence, UNOPS seeks highly qualified individuals for the following position:

Vacancy Details

Vacancy Code
Post Title / Internship
Org Unit / United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR)
Duty Station / Nairobi, Kenya
Duration / 3 Months with possible extension up to 6 months
Closing Date / June 10th, 2009

Background

The United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) is a multi-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder platform to enable societies to increase their resilience to natural, technological and environmental disasters and to reduce associated environmental, human and economic and social losses. A range of United Nations organizations and international partners participate in cooperation with Governments and civil society organizations. In adopting UNISDR, the United Nations General Assembly (Res/54/219) endorsed the establishment of an institutional framework for its implementation consisting of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Disaster Reduction (IATF/DR) and the inter-agency secretariat (ISDR secretariat).
The main functions of the secretariat are policy coordination, advocacy and information management, at the international and regional levels, to ensure synergy between disaster reduction strategies and those in the socio-economic and humanitarian fields.
In January 2005, the World Conference on Disaster Reduction (WCDR, 18-22 January 2005, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan) took place and represents a landmark in worldwide understanding and commitment to implement a disaster risk reduction agenda. This commitment was captured in the Hyogo Declaration and the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015: Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters adopted at the WCDR.
The Hyogo Framework is the essential guide for implementation of the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction in the coming years and it constitutes an unprecedented conceptual shift that takes account of the complexity of action in disaster risk reduction and the large variety of actors whose inputs are required in the pursuit of this objective. It provides the basic concepts and prescribes and expected outcome; details three strategic goals for disaster risk reduction and a set of five priority areas for action; and assigns tasks to stakeholders at difference operational levels to reach the expected outcome.
Disaster risk reduction requires the engagement of organizations and actors from diverse specializations, spanning the development, humanitarian and technical/environmental fields, and the development of coherent strategies, programmes and policies across these fields and tailored to the circumstances and needs of specific sectors. The concepts and tools of disaster risk reduction offer significant means to protect development gains, to reduce the demands for humanitarian relief and response, and to cope with the future changes in risks arising from climate change.
The Africa Regional Office of the UN/ISDR secretariat has responsibilities which include:
·  Strengthening the regional and sub-regional Platforms for monitoring, assessing and reporting on the mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction into national and local policies and programmes and reporting on Hyogo Framework for Action progress.
·  Facilitating regional training on mainstreaming of disaster risk reduction into development programmes and post-disaster loss assessments (with partners).
·  Developing regional risk updates and progress reports in close cooperation with regional partner institutions.
·  Producing high quality publications as advocacy tools, including good practices and guidelines.
·  Producing and disseminating a programme update to maintain links and share information with other disaster risk reduction practitioners.
·  Effectively using online advocacy tools to effectively provide, disseminate and target information.
·  Organizing and supporting workshops, trainings, advocacy events, such as the International Day for Disaster Reduction, and high level consultations on disaster risk reduction.
Organizational setting and reporting relationships
The position is located in the secretariat of the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR), in Nairobi, Kenya, under the overall guidance of the Director of the secretariat of the UNISDR. The intern will report to the UNISDR Information Management Officer and to the Head of UNISDR Africa Regional Office, and will work in close cooperation with other members of the UNISDR Africa Regional Office.

Duties and Responsibilities

·  Assisting the members of the UNISDR Africa Regional Office in English language drafting, editing and quality control over: briefing notes, research papers, content for the website/s, substantive publications and periodic update of UNISDR Africa Regional Office’s activities.
·  Supporting the on-going set-up of UNISDR Resource Centre, including classification and sorting of publications and filing.
·  Revision of the current UNISDR publications’ inventory.
·  Supporting the members of the UNISDR Africa Regional Office in compiling information about regional trends of disaster risks and presenting information gathered from diverse sources.
·  Supporting information management activities, including dissemination of relevant documents to partners and UNISDR clients.
·  Supporting the members of the UNISDR Africa Regional Office in facilitating monitoring and reporting the progress of the implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action in the African Region.
·  Support the content update of the UNISDR Africa website, Intranet and Preventionweb.
·  Support the facilitation of the World Disaster Reduction Campaign: Hospitals Safe from Disasters.
·  Perform other duties as required.
Required SelectResults Expected
·  Contribution to editing and production of publications.
·  Support to the establishment of the Resource Centre.
·  Support for coordinating advocacy events and projects for DRR.
·  Contribute to information-sharing, in particular, dissemination of information.

Required Selection Criteria

Competencies
·  Professionalism: Good academic and analytical skills.
·  Planning and Organizing: Effective organizational skills and ability to establish priorities and to plan, co-ordinate and monitor own work plan.
·  Communication: superior English language and editing skills
·  Judgment: Demonstrated sound judgment in applying expertise to resolve a range of issues/problems.
·  Planning & Organizing - Ability to organize, plan and implement work assignments.
·  Teamwork - Good interpersonal skills, works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organisational goals, ability to develop and maintain effective work relationships with different national and cultural backgrounds with sensitivity with respect for diversity.
Education/Experience/Language
·  Education: Applicants should be currently enrolled in their final year of postgraduate studies, with a postgraduate OR undergraduate specialization in communications, journalism or a multimedia discipline. Alternately, applicants’ postgraduate specialization may be in a Social or Natural Science with some relevance to Disaster Risk Reduction, but they should have demonstrated experience in communications, journalism or editing.
·  Experience: Demonstrated experience in writing and editing in English is required: this can include web publications and web journalism, voluntary and student media, and advocacy-blogging. Examples will be required with application, and a short editing exercise will be administered at interview. A contemporary user’s level of computer and web literacy is required, preferably including good user familiarity with Web 2.0 applications, and experience in website content management systems, using email list-servers or web forums. Working knowledge and familiarity with international and national development agencies is advantageous, though not required.
·  Languages: Fluency in spoken and written English is required; knowledge of another UN official language (particularly French) is an advantage.

Submission of Applications

Qualified candidates may submit their application, including a letter of interest, complete Curriculum Vitae and an updated United Nations Personal History Form (P.11) English Version or French Version, to UNISDR, via e-mail to . Kindly indicate the vacancy number and the post title in the subject line when applying by email.

Additional Considerations

General Information and Conditions Governing Internships for UN/ISDR Africa Regional Office administered by the Internship Programmes of the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS)

1. Interns are not staff members of UNOPS. They do not benefit from any protection under the 1946 Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations. Internships carry no expectancy of future employment with UNOPS. The UNOPS Internship Programme is not connected in any way with recruitment for service in any UNOPS office or project.

2. Interns may not be hired for any paid position with UNOPS during their internships, and for the six-month period immediately thereafter.

3. Interns are subject to the authority of the UNOPS Executive Director and such other persons to whom this authority may be delegated.

4. Interns do not receive any remuneration or any other payment from UNOPS. All costs in respect of internships must be borne by the interns, including but not limited to costs for insurance coverage, travel and accommodation.

5. Interns are responsible for arranging their own travel and securing any necessary visas. UNOPS may, at its discretion, provide a letter confirming acceptance of an individual as an intern, and the conditions governing the internship, if this would facilitate that said individual obtain a visa.

6. UNOPS shall not be responsible or liable for any loss or damage (whether suffered by an intern or a third party) arising from any accident or illness incurred during any internship. Any such loss or damage shall be the sole responsibility of the intern. Interns shall indemnify UNOPS for any claims brought by third parties against UNOPS which arise from the conduct of the interns.

7. UNOPS shall own all rights to any material produced in the course of internships.

8. During the period of internship, interns shall discharge their assigned duties as detailed in the Terms Of Reference (TORs).

9. Interns must respect the impartiality and independence of UNOPS. During their internship, they shall neither seek nor accept instructions regarding the services or activities they perform from any government or other authority external to UNOPS, unless otherwise agreed upon in writing by the Chief, Division for Human Resources Management (DHRM) and specifically stated in the TORs. During their internship, interns must refrain from any conduct that reflects adversely on UNOPS and must not engage in any activity that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of UNOPS and the United Nations in general.

10. Interns shall generally work the regular working week for the locality where the internship is undertaken, unless compelling circumstances warrant working in excess thereof.

11. Interns shall submit an internship report to UNOPS during the final week of their internship. The report should be of approximately 500 words. The report should describe their internship experience, and set out elements of the UNOPS Internship Programme which they have found useful, those elements which were not useful, and suggestions for improvement of the UNOPS Internship Programme.

12. Upon completion of an internship, an evaluation report will be prepared by UNOPS and transmitted to the intern and to the intern’s university or learning institution.

13. UNOPS reserves the right to forthwith terminate an internship at any time, by providing written or verbal notice to the intern.

(Ref: http://www.unops.org/UNOPS/Employment/Internships/)

TOR Intern UNISDR Office Nairobi

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