Internship – Financial Assessment

Business Development CBT, FINB, Rome, Italy – Remote work

The World Food Programme (WFP) is the leading humanitarian organization saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience.  We are currently seeking to fill a Financial Assessment intern position in our Business Development CBT unit of the Corporate Finance (FIN) division, based in Rome, Italy.

Brief description of (Unit), (Division):

Cash-based transfers (CBT) represent an increasing share of WFP’s total humanitarian assistance (38 percent in 2019), and include assistance distributed as physical banknotes, e-money, mobile money, vouchers or debit cards. In 2019, WFP transferred US$2.1 billion to 27.9 million people in 64 countries, empowering them to meet their essential needs.

In support of WFP’s global scale up of cash-based transfers, the Finance function through the Business Development and Cash Based Transfers Branch (FINB) is developing corporate tools and guidance, providing day-to-day technical advice and assistance to Country Offices while also undertaking a range of other strategic activities and engagements internally as well as with external service providers. The Intern will be supporting global market research in the areas of Financial Technologies and Know-Your-Customer regulations as a baseline for the design of various corporate tools and platforms.

General Information

• Title of Post: Financial Assessment Internship
• Supervisor: Chief, Business Development CBT (FINB)
• Unit: FINB
• Country: Italy (working remotely)
• Duty Station: Rome (working remotely)
• Duration of internship:  6 months
• Expected Start Date: May 2021

Duties and responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of Lead Strategy & Financial Sector Advisor, the candidate will perform the following duties:

• Support FinTech and Mobile Money baseline assessment in the humanitarian sector
  1. Detail research scope into criteria set, geographic reach, categories of providers
  2. Review landscape of providers relevant to the humanitarian sector
  3. Conduct a comparative analysis of providers relevant to the humanitarian sector by market size, market share, products & services, capacity, reach, etc.
  4. Conduct primary data collection through internal and external channels
  5. Consolidate available internal and secondary information into multi-facetted report and accompanying documentation, i.e. various output formats and presentations
  6. Complete provider factsheets and rosters for process mapping purposes
  7. Conduct a review of best practices in implementing fintech solutions in a humanitarian setting
• Support KYC (Know-Your-Customer) mapping
  1. Review relevant criteria for KYC in humanitarian settings and detail research scope in relation to existing assessments
  2. Conduct data collection from legislative bodies and secondary data to carry out regulatory framework analysis (including researching KYC stages and thresholds)
  3. Complete data fields for indexing
  4. Produce mapping of relevant WFP target countries
• Regularly update CBT databases with details of Financial Service Providers (FSPs) and markets
• Provide overall support to the Market Engagement team in its various activities
• All other duties as required

Qualifications and experience

• Currently enrolled with at least two years undergraduate studies completed, or recently graduated (within the past six months) in Economics or Finance, Business Administration or related fields;
• University course attendance in the past 12 months;
• Excellent command of English; Working knowledge of a second UN language would be an asset;
• Proficiency in MS Office (Word, Excel, Power Point, Outlook)

Required soft skills/WFP Competencies:

• Overall understanding of market research and financial institutions
• Additional insights as a plus:
  • Knowledge of global financial markets, sub-sectors and its institutions and stakeholders
  • Overview of payment instruments, respective features and functionalities in developing markets
  • Understanding of the regulatory setting for payment instruments in the context of humanitarian interventions
• Demonstrated ability to work both independently and as part of a diverse team.
  

Working Languages

Working knowledge of English (proficiency/level C) is required. knowledge of French and/or another additional UN language is a plus

Supervision (Level/Methods of Supervision)

Under the direct supervision of Lead Strategy & Financial Sector Advisor, the incumbent will be provided with close mentoring, guidance and technical supervision. Performance planning and reviews as well as learning and development discussions will be elemental part of the supervision. Chief, Business Development CBT (FINB) will be the second-level supervisor. With the support of a comprehensive induction package and assignment of a buddy/mentor, the intern will rapidly become a productive member of the team.

Training components

Throughout their assignment WFP interns have access to an industry leading learning platform, weLearn.  Depending on opportunities and availability of funds, he/she may participate in WFP workshops or seminars, as appropriate.

Learning Elements

At the end of the assignment, the Intern should deliver:

• • Reviewed and cleared FinTech/MNO assessment
  • Reviewed and cleared KYC mapping
  • FSP data for local and regional rostering
• Collection of lessons learned into various types of communication material

Information on the Country of Assignment

• Living conditions in Rome, Italy
  (Living conditions, security, health, etc)
  

The security situation in Italy remains in line with other European Countries. There are no specific threats against the UN in Italy. Considering the ongoing defeat of Daesh in the war territories, the trend in the short and mid-term will most likely continue to see the return of the militants to the countries of origins, including Italy. Insurrectional anarchism remains sufficiently organized on the Italian territory, as it has been present for many years. This movement could target the UN in the context of its anti-capitalism/anti-western narrative. 2) Whilst UN staff continue to be victims of minor crime such as street robbery and apartment break-ins, the infrequency of attacks and random nature of locations do not indicate that UN staff are at an elevated risk in comparison to residents or tourists in Italy. 3) Italy’s national territory is exposed to a broader range of natural hazards than any other European country. The vulnerability of its population and built environment is often severe and has in some cases been exacerbated by human activities. 

• Other relevant information

VA Reference no:  141796

Closing Date:  10 May 2021

Please note that the deadline is at 11:59 pm Rome time (GMT + 1)

Terms and Conditions:

• Interns receive a monthly stipend from WFP up to the maximum amount of US$1000 per month depending on the duty station of assignment.
• WFP is not responsible for living expenses, arrangements for accommodation, necessary visas and related costs.
• WFP will reimburse travel ticket for candidates who are nationals of developing countries and are pursuing their studies in their home country.
• WFP will recognize candidates’ educational credentials from recognised institutions that have been certified by competent international or national authorities such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) or Ministries of Education.
• Candidates who bear any of the following relations to WFP staff members are not eligible to apply: sons, daughters, brothers or sisters.

Female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply.  WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.

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