Internship/ Contracts and Legal Affairs/BOS-LEG

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME

The Contracts and Legal Affairs team (LEG), under the Division of Business Operations (BOS) at WHO Regional Office for Europe, provides legal advice, services, and support, including planning, decision and implementation of WHO EURO’s policies and activities in the region.

LEG assists and provides advice to senior management, technical and administrative units, as well as country offices, field offices, project offices, geographically dispersed offices, and hosted partnerships in all legal matters related to their activities.

The core mission of the Contracts and Legal Affairs team is to ensure that the Organization’s activities are carried out in accordance with WHO Constitution, policies, rules, and regulations and to protect its interests.

WHO is the directing and coordinating authority on international health within the United Nations’ system. WHO has 194 Member States and more than 9000 professionals working in 160 country offices, 6 regional offices and headquarters in Geneva.

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

Terms of reference

Under the direct supervision of the Legal Officer of the Contracts and Legal Affairs team, the intern will assist the Legal Officer in the following areas:

• Legal research and analysis, including preparing legal opinions, studies, briefs, reports, and correspondence

• Use and misuse of WHO’s emblem and name in relation to WHO’s involvement in meetings and other activities

• Preliminary review of standard legal documents, including a variety of commercial and IT contracts

• Update and maintenance of the team page on WHO intranet

• Perform any other related duties as assigned by the Legal Officer to the intern

Learning objectives

The purpose of the WHO Internship Program is to provide an enriching learning experience for students and recent graduates. The Learning Objectives outlined within each internship vacancy are a key component of the Program.

Within this internship, the intern will:

• Understand the objectives of the Contracts and Legal Affairs team’s area of work

• Understand the difference of legal work between WHO headquarters, regional offices and country offices

• Know how to review standard legal documents and prepare a comprehensive analysis

• Prepare background documents for meetings

DURATION OF INTERNSHIP

The internship is offered for an initial period of three (3) months, that may be extended, based on satisfactory performance and availability of funds, to a maximum of six (6) months.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

Required:

• Be enrolled in a course of study at a university (Please note that the applicants who have already graduated may also qualify for consideration provided that they start the internship within six months after completion of their formal qualification).

• Have completed three (3) years of full-time studies (bachelor's level or equivalent) in Law (including international public law as part of the curriculum) at a university level.

Skills

Core competencies

• Teamwork

• Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences

• Communication

All interns should be able to demonstrate the following skills in line with the WHO core competencies:

• Communicating effectively orally and in writing

• Showing willingness to learn from mistakes

• Producing and delivering quality results

• Working collaboratively with team members

In addition, interns need to be familiar with commonly used computer programs (e.g. Microsoft Office skills)

Experience

Previous experience of working in a law firm, within the public sector or another international organization will be an asset.

Languages

Required: Expert knowledge of English
Asset: Intermediate knowledge of Russian, German or French

FINANCIAL SUPPORT

Interns do not receive a salary. They do however receive a living allowance. The allowance depends on the duty station and other external support (grant, scholarships, etc.) received by the intern.

In Istanbul, the maximum amount of the allowance provided by WHO is of USD 1761 per month. The exact amount of the living allowance will be calculated for each intern, after selection, based on a legal financial disclosure form that the individual will complete. In addition, all interns in Istanbul will receive a monthly lunch allowance of USD 184 for meal expenses. WHO also provides all interns with accident and medical insurance coverage.    

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• Please note that internships at WHO are very competitive and only a small number of applicants will be accepted every year. Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.

• Living abroad is expensive and finding accommodation can be challenging. All intern candidates should be aware of these factors before they consider applying for a WHO Internship.

• If selected for a WHO Internship, candidates will be required to provide certified copies of proof of enrolment in an eligible course of studies, a completed WHO medical certificate of fitness for work, and the contact details for reference checks.

• WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter into practice.

• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.

• The WHO is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The WHO recruits and employs staff regardless of disability status, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, language, race, marital status, religious, cultural, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, or any other personal characteristics.

• The WHO is committed to achieving gender parity and geographical diversity in its workforce. Women, persons with disabilities, and nationals of unrepresented and underrepresented Member States (https://www.who.int/careers/diversity-equity-and-inclusion) are strongly encouraged to apply.

• Persons with disabilities can request reasonable accommodations to enable participation in the recruitment process. Requests for reasonable accommodation should be sent through an email to reasonableaccommodation@who.int

• WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.

• Please note that WHO’s contracts are conditional on members of the workforce confirming that they are vaccinated as required by WHO before undertaking a WHO assignment, except where a medical condition does not allow such vaccination, as certified by the WHO Staff Health and Wellbeing Services (SHW). The successful candidate will be asked to provide relevant evidence related to this condition. A copy of the updated vaccination card must be shared with WHO medical service in the medical clearance process. Please note that certain countries require proof of specific vaccinations for entry or exit. For example, official proof /certification of yellow fever vaccination is required to enter many countries. Country-specific vaccine recommendations can be found on the WHO international travel and Staff Health and Wellbeing website. For vaccination-related queries please directly contact SHW directly at shws@who.int