Grade: Internship
Publication date: 30 September 2024
Application deadline (midnight Geneva time): 14 October 2024
Vacancy no.: INTERNROSTER/2024/2/SOCIALFINANCE/ENTERPRISES
Job ID: 12438
Department: ENTERPRISES
Organization Unit: SOCIAL FINANCE
Location: Geneva, Switzerland
Duration of contract: 3 to 6 months (starting on the 1st or the 15th of a given month)
You are applying to the ILO generic internship roster, which is published several times per year. The roster will be made available to all departments and field offices, which will then select and directly contact suitable candidates. Due to the high volume of applications we receive, the ILO does not inform candidates about the status of their application.
ILO Internship Programme provides an opportunity for talented individuals to:
(a) increase understanding of relevant issues at the international level by involving them directly in the work of the Office and the application of ILO principles, programmes and strategies;
(b) gain practical experience with the ILO directly related to their field of study.
The internship programme is not intended to lead to a career in the ILO. There should be no expectation of further employment at the end of the internship.
**Please note that you can apply to a maximum of three internship profiles during the current application period. If you apply to more than three internship profiles, your application will not be considered for any profile.** Note that you may withdraw your candidature at any time via the Jobs Applied section of your profile.
It is highly recommended that you submit your application as soon as possible to avoid last minute technical issues or delays. Late applications will not be considered.
The ILO values diversity. We welcome applications from candidates from non- or under- represented member States.
The ILO also encourages applications from persons with disabilities. If needed, reasonable accommodation will be provided to candidates with disabilities in the recruitment phase as well as during the internship to promote equality of opportunities. For assistance, please send an email to ilojobs@ilo.org.
IMPORTANT:
Please only apply for an internship if you fulfil the following two criteria:
(1) You have no close relative serving in the ILO.
(2) This is your first internship with the ILO (only one internship is permitted).
The internship is based in the ILO’s Social Finance, one of the five units of the ILO Enterprises department. Social Finance contributes to the overarching goal of the Enterprises department, which is sustainable enterprises that create more and better jobs.
The mission of Social Finance is enabling the financial sector to contribute to the ILO’s Decent Work Agenda. The unit has two substantive priorities: creating quality jobs through enterprise development, and reducing vulnerability by increasing access to risk management tools. To do so, the unit is looking at how to use financial instruments to promote Decent Work. This means sustainable finance with a social goal.
Social Finance is about savings, insurance, credit, and other products that help to cope better with risk, take advantage of income-generating opportunities, organize and have a voice. Social Finance is also about promoting financing mechanisms – including banks, financial cooperatives, microfinance institutions, insurance companies, investment funds and others – that cater to the financial needs of micro, small, medium and large enterprises, and to do so in a responsible way. Social Finance is about financial sector policies that set incentives to open financial services to the unserved and create an enabling environment in which financial mechanisms can operate.
This internship primarily involves supporting the ILO’s Financial Education programme, which empowers diverse groups by enhancing their financial knowledge and skills, enabling them to access and effectively use financial products and services in a sustainable manner
As an intern with the ILO’s Social Finance team, you will gain experience in supporting the design, implementation, and technical backstopping of financial education projects across the globe, from South-East Asia through to East Africa and Arab States. You will work closely with project coordinators, technical specialists, and local partners to enhance the quality and impact of ILO-led financial education initiatives. While your primary focus will be on financial education, you will also contribute to activities related to the financial inclusion of refugees and host communities as part of the PROSPECTS Programme, particularly in the later stages of your internship.
This internship would provide you with the opportunities to:
• Develop tangible hard and soft skills in project implementation support, including in the areas of technical backstopping, capacity building, stakeholder engagement and project management.
• Collaborate with ILO-HQ and field-level staff to adapt and localise Financial Education training materials and tools, relevant for targeted beneficiaries and various socio-economic contexts.
• Contribute to the institutional development of the ILO’s Financial Education Programme to enable to extend its reach, leverage the growing AI-powered digital learning ecosystem and test more integrated solutions bridging the gap between the supply and demand for financial services.
• Participate in monitoring and evaluation activities, helping to improve the effectiveness of the financial education initiatives’ impact measurement.
• Assist in financial education research and knowledge generation activities to support evidence-based programming and enable the extraction of key learnings and best practices.
As an intern, the key responsibilities you can expect from this experience include the following:
• Provide technical support to ILO country offices and project teams in the design, planning and implementation of financial education activities, including coordinating with local partners, supporting the preparation of training materials and assisting the delivery of capacity-building workshops.
• Support in the development and update of tools for ILO’s Financial Education certified regional and national trainers to support their training planning and delivery.
• Contribute to the maintenance and update of the ILO’s Financial Education Portal, the official database of the programme, including content reviews, updates and enhancements to ensure it remains a relevant and effective tool for trainers and practitioners.
• Assist in the review of adapted ILO Financial Education training materials, ensuring that they are contextually relevant for different target groups.
• Support in developing research products by extracting lessons learned and best practices from field-level implementation, supplemented with desk research, to create briefs on key topics related to financial education and the evolving socio-economic context and trends.
• Conduct research on innovative approaches to financial education delivery, including digital and community-based methods, and contribute to the design and testing of pilot projects.
• Provide initial support to activities related to the financial inclusion of refugees and host communities, including research on best practices and participation in strategic planning sessions.
Fluency in English is required. Working (both oral and written) knowledge of at least another of the ILO’s official languages (French or Spanish) would be an advantage.
How to apply:
1. Search for an internship profile via the page on ILO Jobs
2. Select the internship profile you would like to apply for, and create a profile on ILO Jobs
3. Complete your candidate profile and apply to the internship profile
4. Be sure to attach a cover letter in the last section of the application, as applications without a cover letter will not be considered and you cannot attach a cover letter after the deadline.
Selection process:
Following a first screening by the Human Resources Development Department (HRD), hiring departments will short-list applicants. You will be directly contacted should an internship opportunity match your profile. If you have not been contacted by any department within six months after your application, you can consider that you have not been selected by any department for this roster. If still eligible, you may apply to the next roster.
If shortlisted, you may be contacted by the hiring department for a written test and/or interview. The ILO may use communication technologies such as Skype, Video or teleconference, e-mail, etc for the assessment and evaluation of candidates.
Stipend/Financial compensations:
As an intern in Geneva, you will receive a stipend of 2450 CHF per month from the ILO, unless you receive funding through another institution (for example your university or a foundation). If you receive partial funding, ILO will cover the difference to ensure you receive 2450 CHF per month. Your travel to Geneva will be at your own expense. In addition to the amounts referred above, each intern shall receive the amount of CHF45 per month, or the equivalent amount in the currency in which the monthly stipend is paid, which is a contribution from the Office towards the cost of medical insurance to cover the period of the internship.
Qualified candidates from non- and under- represented countries may be eligible for a special fund that provides financial assistance for round-trip airfare (economy class) in addition to the stipend.
Insurance:
Please note that the ILO does not take responsibility for any costs arising from accidents and/or illness incurred during the internship. You will be responsible for your own insurance coverage for illness and accidents for the duration of the internship at the duty station (whether Geneva or the field).
Fraud warning:
The ILO does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment process whether at the application, interview, processing or training stage. Messages originating from a non ILO e-mail account - @ilo.org - should be disregarded. In addition, the ILO does not require or need to know any information relating to the bank account details of applicants.