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 role of the Civil Society Division (CSD) is to catalyze, promote and facilitate UN Women’s engagement with civil society. The Division develops strategies for partnerships with civil society organizations (CSOs), women’s rights organizations and networks, and Civil Society Advisory Groups at the country, regional, and global levels. CSD also leads initiatives to support civil society movement building, protect civil society actors, and foster solidarity. CSD’s work is anchored in the Sustainable Development Goals and the Beijing Platform for Action, focusing on amplifying the principle of leaving no one behind. Through this work, CSD supports civil society’s participation in intergovernmental processes, including the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), the principal global body dedicated to advancing gender equality and empowering women.

The year 2025 will mark the 30th anniversary of the Fourth UN World Conference on Women and the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995), a historic framework for gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Under the overall guidance of the Deputy Director of the Civil Society Division and working with the Communications Analyst in preparation for significant events like Beijing+30 and CSW69, this internship will contribute to UN Women’s strategic efforts to engage vulnerable and marginalized groups, including people of African descent.

Duties and Responsibilities

Program Support

Provide communications and administrative support for the Yvonne Hebert Award Programme, including coordinating media interviews, assisting with outreach efforts, and supporting media coverage for awardees participating in CSW69.
Assist with communications and logistical preparations for key intergovernmental events, such as Beijing+30 and the 69th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69). This includes supporting CSW69 presentations at both regional and country office levels.
Contribute to the roll-out of the Push Forward webinar series, supporting engagement and participation across the Division.
Support Division priorities in arts advocacy for social justice and expanding inclusion for marginalized communities, such as LGBTQI+, people of African descent, and Indigenous groups.
Maintain and regularly update the Division’s intranet page, ensuring content is accurate, engaging, and up-to-date.

Support strategic outreach initiatives to amplify CSD’s work on inclusion and social justice, with a focus on marginalized populations, especially people of African descent.

Support other Division activities relating to CSW69 and Beijing+30 as needed

Support to the Civil Society Division

Assist with the organizing and execution of key events, including:

The Push Forward Webinar Series.
CSW69 events, facilitating high-level engagements as required.

Communications and knowledge Management

Provide overall communications support to the Division
Support the reporting of CSD engagement and reflect on the Division’s Intranet Site.
Assist with preparing Division monthly contribution to UN Women’s internal newsletter helping to highlight CSD’s key initiatives and achievements.
Assist with designing and developing communications outreach products for events

Learning objectives

Developed a comprehensive understanding of UN Women’s role in advancing global normative processes and influencing public policy on gender equality.
Acquired in-depth knowledge of NGOs working on gender issues and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within the Agenda 2030 framework, driving action on critical priorities for humanity and the planet.
Gained familiarity with the Civil Society Division of UN Women, including its areas of focus, its collaboration with other UN entities, and its pivotal role in fostering partnerships within the United Nations system.
Attained insight into the functions of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) and its intergovernmental outcomes, including actionable recommendations for governments, intergovernmental bodies, civil society, and other key stakeholders at the international, national, regional, and local levels.

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/en/about-us/employment/application-process#_Values

Functional competencies:

• Strong knowledge of gender equality and women’s rights issues.
• Demonstrated ability to interact effectively with partners, especially women’s right organisations, girl and youth organizations.
• Networking skills, and ability to mobilize support on behalf of UN Women.
• Excellent IT skills, including databases, extranet and office software packages.
• Strong analytical and interpersonal skills.

Required Skills and Experience

Qualifications

Education:

• University studies in one of the following disciplines: social sciences, international relations, communications, women’s studies, or other relevant subjects is required.
• Meet one of the following:
• 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 and, if selected, must commence the internship within a two-year period of graduation; or
• Be enrolled in a postgraduate professional traineeship program which is part of a degree programme and undertake the internship as part of the program requirements.

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).

Note:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment.

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check