DirecciónOBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME
The Department of Nutrition and Food Safety (NFS) is addressing the burden of disease from physical, chemical and microbial hazards in food and unhealthy diets, maternal and child malnutrition, overweight and obesity. The Department aims to ensure universal access to safe, sufficient nutritious food and effective nutrition actions, through setting science-based international food standards, promoting nutrition action in health systems, fostering sustainable food production and consumption, improving food environments and empowering consumers in all situations, monitoring nutrition status, and managing food safety events at the international level, closely working with Member States, UN partner agencies and non-State actors.
The Food and Nutrition Actions in Health Systems (AHS) Unit assists countries with the application of essential nutrition actions delivered through healthcare and community platforms. AHS develops guidance on programmes and policies, creates application tools, provides technical assistance, fosters global partnerships, and supports global advocacy to ensure that proven nutrition interventions are universally accessible to all relevant populations. The Unit addresses multiple forms of malnutrition, including wasting, stunting, obesity, and micronutrient deficiency and supports improvements in infant and young child feeding.
DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES
Terms of reference
Under the supervision of the Unit Head of AHS, the intern will assist in completion of projects on improvement of infant and young child feeding. The following activities are anticipated for Spring/Summer 2024:
- Development of communications products on complementary feeding
- Preparation for global webinars on breastfeeding policies and programmes
- Preparation for World Health Assembly side events
- Consolidation of Code & subsequent WHA resolutions in a single document
- Administration of a survey on sponsorship of health care professional organizations
- Complementary feeding brief
- Literature review of ethics of donor human milk banking
- Analyses for the Global Breastfeeding Scorecard
Learning objectives
- Understand the objectives of infant and young child feeding at WHO
- Communicate clearly about breastfeeding and the marketing of breast-milk substitutes
- Know how to assemble data from Member States and analyze information globally
DURATION OF INTERNSHIP
Ideally, 24 weeks but not less than 12 weeks, with a tentative start date at the end of April 2024.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Education
Have completed three years of full-time studies in nutrition and/or maternal and child health 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 for the internship within six months after completion of their formal qualification).
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 programmes, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom.
Experience
- Experience in the area of breastfeeding through academic work or research
- Experience in developing national or regional policies and/or legislation
- Experience in drafting reports or advocacy documents
- Experience with data presentation, graphical display and analysis of health information
Languages
Essential: Expert knowledge of English.
Desirable: Intermediate knowledge of other UN languages.
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 1620 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 20 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.
