OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME

The Global NCD Platform Department (GNP) coordinates and mobilizes meaningful and effective commitments and contributions from UN organizations, NGOs, academic institutions, philanthropic foundations and the private sector to support the overall strategic directions and priorities of WHO’s work on SDG target 3.4 and other NCD-related SDGs.

The Global Coordination Mechanism on the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases (WHO GCM/NCD) is a Member State-led platform facilitating multistakeholder engagement and cross-sectoral collaboration to prevent and control NCDs and mental health conditions. The Secretariat of the WHO GCM/NCD constitutes one of the Global NCD Platform’s Units, leveraging WHO’s three strategic shifts – leadership functions as global health agency, norms and standard setting, and county support – to build technical capabilities for effective leadership, governance, multisectoral action and partnerships to accelerate country responses for the prevention and control of NCDs.

The GCM/NCD’s strategic priority areas of work include:

  • facilitating knowledge collaboration and the dissemination of innovative multistakeholder and multisectoral responses to NCDs at country level;
  • enabling the global stocktaking of multistakeholder action at country level and for co-designing and scaling up supporting initiatives;
  • providing up-to-date guidance to Member States on engagement with non-State actors, including on the prevention and management of potential risks;
  • strengthening the capacity of Member States and civil society to develop national multistakeholder responses; and
  • convening civil society, including people living with NCDs, to raise awareness and build capacity for their meaningful participation in national NCD responses.

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

Launched by the GCM/NCD in 2018, the Knowledge Action Portal on NCDs (KAP) is an online knowledge repository and community platform focused on the prevention and control of NCDs. The KAP is designed as an inclusive, community-driven platform facilitating a coherent multisectoral and multistakeholder response to the global NCD epidemic. Connecting diverse stakeholders and actors at local, national and international levels, the KAP is GNP’s core tool for knowledge-sharing and mutual learning, collaboration in digital communities of practice, and the uptake of evidence-based solutions, lessons learned, and best practices. The portal was recently relaunched with a new design and novel knowledge-sharing and stakeholder engagement features.

The purpose of this internship is to support knowledge collaboration and stakeholder engagement activities on and around the KAP. Under the supervision of the Unit Head and supported by the GCM/NCD’s knowledge translation and communication specialist, the intern is assigned the following activities:

  • support the GCM team in engaging with stakeholders across WHO and the GCM Participant base to access knowledge resources relevant for the KAP
  • research and source thematic knowledge resources and country stories for the KAP
  • manage and maintain and up-to-date knowledge repository for stakeholders and partners
  • review current KAP legacy resources for compliance with latest GCM/KAP taxonomy and strategic priorities
  • identify and support engagement opportunities for new thematic collections and reading lists
  • research and draft country stories on NCD prevention and control to be featured on the portal
  • support daily user-management and onboarding activities for new KAP members and community moderators
  • support liaison with GCM Participant organizations to manage their platform subscription and user rights, including the contribution of knowledge resources and news elements
  • assist in drafting, formatting, and editing KAP-specific promotional and campaigning materials (presentations, mailings, articles, and other inputs to the monthly GCM newsletter)
  • participate in regular GCM- and KAP-coordination meetings on ongoing departmental projects and their visibility on KAP

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

The purpose of the WHO Internship Programme 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 programme. Within this internship, the intern will:

  • get a first-hand understanding of WHO’s and GNP’s global agenda to leverage, multistakeholder collaboration and multisectoral action to tackle NCDs
  • actively work on an innovative knowledge-sharing and multistakeholder community platform dedicated to responding to the global burden of NCDs
  • gain insights into developing and maintaining processes of a global digital community and engagement platform
  • explore and apply a thematic knowledge taxonomy on health conditions, risk factors, social determinants and WHO GCM/NCD priority areas to a wide range of knowledge resources
  • develop tailored content including news, event posts and country stories to be published on the KAP
  • communicate with GCM Participants from non-State actors, research institutions, philanthropic foundations, and other partners
  • facilitate contributions from colleagues across headquarters, regional offices and country offices

DURATION OF INTERNSHIP

6 months, tentative start date - 20 November 2023

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Minimum Education requirement
Have completed the equivalent of three years of full-time studies in public health, medicine, international relations, media & communications, humanities, or related fields at a university or equivalent institution prior to commencing the assignment; AND be enrolled in a course of study at a university or equivalent institution leading to a formal qualification (applicants who have already graduated may also qualify for consideration provided that they apply to the internship within six months after completion of their formal qualification).

SKILLS

Core competencies

  • Team work
  • 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 programmes, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint. Knowledge of specialized computer programmes, for example, statistical software such as XLStat may be an advantage. Experience in using web content management systems (Sitefinity, Drupal etc.), multimedia editing (Photoshop, Illustrator etc.) and social media content creation may be an advantage.

EXPERIENCE

  • Experience in creating and managing content on websites and social media
  • Experience in drafting reports, web articles and related web content
  • Good understanding of the global health and health policy landscape, particularly in the field of NCD prevention and control, mental health, multistakeholder collaboration, and health equity, for example through academic work or research
  • Experience in basic multimedia content creation and management is an asset
  • Field and/or developing country experience is an an asset

LANGUAGES

Essential: Expert knowledge of English
Desirable: Intermediate knowledge of French. Intermediate knowledge of other UN language

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 Geneva, the maximum amount of the allowance provided by WHO is CHF 1680 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 Geneva will receive a lumpsum of CHF 15 for each working day to buy lunch at WHO campus or elsewhere. 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.
  • Interns are not eligible to take up a consultant or other non-staff contract in WHO for a period of three months following the end of the internship. However, no such restriction applies to temporary or longer-term staff positions if the vacancy has been advertised and a competitive process completed.
  • 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 Department of Staff Health and Wellbeing (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.
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