Org. Setting and Reporting

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities. UN-Habitat is the focal point for all urbanization and human settlement matters within the UN system. UN-Habitat works with partners to build inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable cities and communities. UN-Habitat promotes urbanization as a positive transformative force for people and communities, reducing inequality, discrimination and poverty. UN-Habitat’s Programme Review Committee Working Group is the linchpin for the whole of UN-Habitat’s project approvals and is a repository for all project-approval related information across the agency. This Group whose membership include select senior managers who represent key functions within the UN-Habitat, has received an extended mandate to periodically and randomly select strategic projects for in-depth monitoring, for the purpose of learning, risk management and accountability. Monitoring is a continuous process of collecting and analysing information to compare how well a project, program or policy is being implemented against approved plans. Projects being complex adaptive systems, they must reflect, learn and adapt. Implementation must therefore be resilient and able to adapt to change. Claims of success must be supported by data-evidence. Failure must be explained by data, and decisions/choices made must be supported by data-evidence. The PRC’s new mandate is to ensure that this process of learning, adapting and steady progression towards results is happening as required.

The intern reports directly to the associate expert for monitoring and reporting as well as the secretariat’s administrative assistant and the officer in charge of the programme review committee.

Responsibilities

• Assist the PRC Secretariat in their mandate to improve project quality and compliance, as well in administrative tasks and in setting up data banks to enable identifying trends, patterns and early warning.
• Assist with cross-checks of data entry into the project information system
• Assist in ensuring compliance of projects with PRC guidelines
• Assist in database management and maintenance
• Contribute to project data reconciliation exercises across branches and project offices
• Assist in establishing an implementation monitoring system at UN-Habitat
• Assist project teams to enhance the quality of logical frameworks and theory of changes for projects at entry
• Assist in advising project staff regarding the PRC process
• Respond to requests for information from UN-HABITAT branches and offices

Qualifications/special skills

Applicants must at the time of application, meet one of the following requirements:

a. Be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher),

b. Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree program (minimum Bachelor's level or equivalent),

c. Have graduated with Bachelor's degree, Masters, PhD or equivalent.

Be computer literate in standard software applications (Microsoft Office Suite).

Have demonstrated a keen interest in the work of the United Nations and have a personal commitment to the ideals of the Charter.

Have a demonstrated ability to successfully interact with individuals of different cultural backgrounds and beliefs, which includes a willingness to try and understand and be tolerant of differing opinions and views.

Preferred areas of study: Undergraduate or graduate including data science, computer science, economics, political science, international development, social sciences or similar.

Applicants to the UN Internship Programme are not required to have professional work experience. However, a field of study that is closely related to the type of internship that you are applying for is required.

Applicants must be a student in the final year of the first university degree (bachelor or equivalent), Master’s or Ph.D. Programme or equivalent, or have completed a Bachelor’s, Master’s or Ph.D. Programme.

It is required that applicants are proficient in Excel (e.g. able to efficiently apply various functions and to use pivot tables) and basic data analysis.

Experience with Microsoft 365 and Power Automate is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this internship position, fluency in oral and written English is required. Knowledge of another UN language is desirable.

Additional Information

Interns are not financially remunerated by the United Nations. Costs and arrangements for travel, visas, accommodation and living expenses are the responsibility of interns or their sponsoring institutions. Interns who are not citizens or permanent residents of the country where the internship is undertaken, may be required to obtain the appropriate visa and work/employment authorization. Successful candidates should discuss their specific visa requirements before accepting the internship offer.

• Assist the PRC Secretariat in their mandate to improve project quality and compliance, as well in administrative tasks and in setting up data banks to enable identifying trends, patterns and early warning.
• Assist with cross-checks of data entry into the project information system
• Assist in ensuring compliance of projects with PRC guidelines
• Assist in database management and maintenance
• Contribute to project data reconciliation exercises across branches and project offices
• Assist in establishing an implementation monitoring system at UN-Habitat
• Assist project teams to enhance the quality of logical frameworks and theory of changes for projects at entry
• Assist in advising project staff regarding the PRC process
• Respond to requests for information from UN-HABITAT branches and offices

• Proficient in Excel (e.g. able to efficiently apply various functions and to use pivot tables)
• Basic data analysis
• Computer literate in standard software applications (Microsoft Office Suite)
• Experience with Microsoft 365 and Power Automate is desirable

• Be enrolled in a graduate school programme (second university degree or equivalent, or higher), OR
• Be enrolled in the final academic year of a first university degree program (minimum Bachelor's level or equivalent), OR
• Have graduated with Bachelor's degree, Masters, PhD or equivalent.
• Demonstrated a keen interest in the work of the United Nations and have a personal commitment to the ideals of the Charter.
• Demonstrated ability to successfully interact with individuals of different cultural backgrounds and beliefs, which includes a willingness to try and understand and be tolerant of differing opinions and views.
• Preferred areas of study: Undergraduate or graduate including data science, computer science, economics, political science, international development, social sciences or similar.