Project Assistant Intern for Ecosystem & Biodiversity Portfolio  

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.

UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Programme & Risk Management Analyst of Pillar II, the Intern will provide effective support and have opportunities as below:

a) support the financial and operational management of the Ecosystem and Biodiversity (EBD) Portfolio in Quantum system/UNALL platform, through which the intern may have opportunities to advance in project management, including project finance, project documentation, as well as logistics and administration,

b) support quality assurance and risk management of projects under EBD portfolio, through which the intern will have opportunities to learn more about project risk management, UNDP social and environmental screening standards, cross-sector coordination, as well as project monitoring & evaluation.

C) support biodiversity project formulation and pipelines. This will involve research into key environmental and biodiversity issues and development of reports and publications to increase UNDP advocacy and visibility. Through these tasks the intern will be able to improve his/her skills in strategic planning, research, technical documentation, partnership engagement, and media exposure.

D) The intern might have opportunities for field visits and stakeholder engagement meetings and activities, including government agencies, private sector, and academia.

E)  The intern will also have opportunities to learn about UNDP’s role in supporting China’s  landscape conservation practices, legal mainstreaming, and public awareness  in the areas of ecosystem and environment as below:

wildlife protection; protected areas and national parks; marine conservation; wetland and migratory birds conservation; invasive alien species control; agrobiodiversity; land degradation.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Provide effective support in Quantum system or UNALL platform to facilitate the financial and operational management of EBD Portfolio, including:
• Support Recruitment of consultants
• Monitor the progress of milestone deliverables of direct recruitment by UNDP Country Office and provide management support as needed
• Raise payment/financial request
• Facilitate travel process
• Track liquidation/advance payment progress

• Provide support on quality assurance and risk management including:
• Monitor & update the risk status of the projects in system
• Collect the Project Progress Reports of on-going projects, do the first review and find out information gaps for the report and contact PMO for gap filling
• Support Mid-term Review & Terminal Evaluation
• Daily contact with implementing partners (IPs), international and national consultants for catch up on the program progress

• Provide support on pipeline formulation
• Assist in the formulation of pipeline projects in GEF VIII
• Assist in translation/interpretation of related documents
• Assist in identifying relevant partnerships from the private sector and civil society
• Help logistic arrangement of related meetings with partners, provide translation and take meeting minutes, etc.
• Provide additional support as necessary.

Competencies

• Skills for solution-oriented contacting with related different stakeholders;
• Demonstrated multitasking ability through accurate priority-setting as well as timely and active progress-checking with the supervisor, team members, colleagues, and stakeholders;
• Teamwork spirit and sense of responsibility;
• Computer proficiency, especially related to professional office software packages (Microsoft Office).

Required Skills and Experience

Education and Experience

·       Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent in English, Finance management and environmental science or related fields

·       Intern experience in other organizations/UN agencies preferred

Language and Skills

• Good communication skills both Chinese and English, excellent communication (both oral and written) and partnership building skills with multi-dimension partners, people skill to solve conflicts and negotiation skills.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS

Please submit your application with below documents in one PDF. For those who apply from UNDP Jobs, please note that the system will not accept the uploading of more than one document so please merge or scan all your documents into one prior to uploading.

a)     CV and letter of motivation

b)     Copy of school transcript

c)     Indicate if you will be financially supported by any institution or programme, such as a university, government, foundation or scholarship programme, and the financial amount.

*Candidate who didn’t submit required documentation will not be further considered.

INTERNSHIP CONDITIONS

• Interns must provide proof of enrolment in health insurance plan and medical certificate of good health prior to starting the internship. Any cost arising from accidents and illness incurred during an internship assignment will be the responsibility of the intern.
• The stipend will be paid monthly. Interns will have 1.5 days of leave per month.
• Interns are responsible for obtaining necessary visas and arranging travel to and from the duty station where the internship will be performed; Cost and arrangement for travel, visas, passports, accommodations and living expenses are the responsibility of the nominating institution, related institution or government, which may provide the required financial assistance to its students; or the intern.
• Interns must not apply for or be appointed to a position that should be encumbered by a staff number during the period of their internship. Interns are expected to fulfil the terms of their internships. Therefore, the internship must not be foreshortened for the purposes of allowing an intern to apply for a position.
• Interns are not staff members and may not represent UNDP in any official capacity.

Disclaimer

Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

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