Partnerships Intern

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners' peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world.  UNOPS supports partners to build a better future by providing services that increase the efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of peace building, humanitarian and development projects.  Mandated as a central resource of the United Nations, UNOPS provides sustainable project management, procurement and infrastructure services to a wide range of governments, donors and United Nations organizations.  

Based in Dakar, UNOPS Senegal Multi-Country Office (SNMCO) covers all of Francophone and Lusophone West Africa and the Maghreb countries (18 countries in all).  SNMCO has developed a strong working relation with Governments and international development partners over the last decades. We support our partners in key development areas such as infrastructure rehabilitation and development; project management; capacity development and management services such as procurement and human resources.

The Partnerships unit (PU) has been established to expand our presence in the sub-region, grow SNMCO’s project and programme portfolio and develop strategic partnerships for the region. The Partnerships Unit coordinates, supports and monitors the development of the portfolio.

The Unit reports directly to the SNMCO Director.

The incumbent will be responsible for the following specific tasks: 

Partner outreach

• Support the preparation of outreach materials customized for targeted key audiences such as donors, UN agencies, governments, foundations, NGOs, civil society and private sector for effective advocacy among existing and potential partners

• Develop presentations, correspondences, briefing notes, talking points and all necessary outreach material

• Support ensuring that the achievements of the Hub’s outstanding projects are properly captured in the right communication formats for external outreach purpose

• Support Partner Surveys and resulting action plans

Knowledge Management 

• Ensure that organizational systems are updated and populated frequently including the internal Partnerships Unit Google Drive

• When needed, provide regular reports on business acquisition pipeline to the Head of the Partnerships Unit

• When needed, take minutes at internal and/or external meetings, providing action points for follow-up

• Liaise with the Communications and Partnerships colleagues in Headquarters, as well as project communication focal points as necessary 

Business intelligence 

• Conduct analysis and mapping of donor priorities, areas of focus and geographical priorities as well as national country strategies 

• Prepare business/market analysis reports for major donors and countries in the region to support the development of new engagements opportunities 

• Research events, publications and announcements, to track and screen opportunities for possible UNOPS interventions and identify trends that will drive partnership opportunities 

Partnerships and Project development 

• Support the Hub’s efforts in liaising with potential donors, funding partners, agencies and institutions 

• Participate in meetings with potential partners and ensure their systematic and timely follow-up

• Support in the development of project-related documents including project descriptions, budgets, legal accords, risk registers and gender action plans

• Liaise with AFR Regional Office and Headquarters as needed to assure clearances are obtained in order to finalize engagements and move to implementation of projects

• Perform other related duties as required.

Training components and learning elements

Based in Dakar, the intern will be exposed to working in an international and culturally diverse environment. He / She will benefit from the substantial field experience of a range of international and national colleagues in the areas of partnerships, programme management and operations.

The intern will also have the opportunity to learn through hands-on experience. For instance, he / she will be able to grasp the challenges of developing and implementing projects in development and humanitarian contexts and will gain a thorough understanding of the project management methodology.

Participation in missions or training courses

The Hub strongly encourages training courses for all its personnel. The intern will be able to access the broad range of trainings provided by UNOPS. When appropriate, he / she will also be involved in the trainings organized for the Hub personnel in the areas of Partnerships development and Project Management.

In addition, the intern will have access to diverse knowledge sharing materials such as targeted webinars, articles and meetings with partnerships and project management communities across UNOPS.

while no prior work experience is required, some professional experience is desirable either in the private or public sector, in areas such as: 

• Management

• Research

• Project Management

• Proposal and project development

• Data analysis

• Institutional communication

• Consulting

• Partnership Development

• Resource Mobilization

• Fluency in French (written and spoken) is required

• Fluency in English (written and spoken) is a strong asset

• Knowledge of Portuguese and Arabic is an asset

[Instructions: Please delete this paragraph and insert relevant information below:

1. Contract type: Intern
2. Contract level: N/A
3. Contract duration: 6 months renewable

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time.
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• UNOPS embraces diversity and it is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, or disability.
  
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (around 4 hours) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS.
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  
• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns. Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

UNOPS – an operational arm of the United Nations – supports the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by successfully implementing its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian, and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve peace and sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management, and human resources.

Working with us

We are proud of our people. With a wealth of knowledge and skills in various disciplines – engineering, finance, human resources, ICT, leadership, project management, procurement, and more – they help tackle some of the biggest challenges of our time. Their work around the world supports progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

At UNOPS, we offer a range of short- and long-term opportunities in various environments and duty stations – from Denmark and Kenya to Mexico, Switzerland, Myanmar, Senegal, Uganda, and many more.

Diversity

With over 5,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,400 personnel recruited on behalf of our partners, spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced and diverse labor force — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs. We continually strive to maintain our gender-balanced workplace. We encourage qualified underrepresented groups as per UNOPS Gender, Diversity, and Inclusion Strategy to apply for our vacancies.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.