Internships at the Multilateral Diplomacy and Humanitarian Coordination Unitmof the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)

The Multilateral Diplomacy and Humanitarian Coordination Unit of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) offers five paid internships for a period of one year. The internships begin at different dates, all between January and April 2010.

The Multilateral Diplomacy and Humanitarian Coordination Unit:
The Multilateral Diplomacy and Humanitarian Coordination Unit’s role is to assist the action of the ICRC with a view to promoting respect for humanitarian principles and international humanitarian law in the international arena through the establishment of relations and/or coordination with other humanitarian organizations. In addition, the unit serves as a centre of expertise for the ICRC’s multilateral relations and co-ordination within the ICRC, monitoring the multilateral humanitarian environment and providing advice and support to field operations and training.

Job description:
Under the supervision of Diplomatic Advisers, the interns will be responsible for:

• Assisting the unit with the day-to-day management of relations with international organizations and UN agencies (mainly IOM, IPU, OCHA, OHCHR, UNHCR, UNICEF, and WFP), regional organizations (African, American, Asian, European, and Middle Eastern intergovernmental organizations); and humanitarian coordination fora and NGOs (IASC, ICVA and SCHR consortia,
• MSF, OXFAM…);
• Preparing and attending conferences, seminars and bilateral meetings, which may involve research work and speech-writing, and in terms of follow-up, the drafting of reports;
• Informing ICRC delegations in the field on a variety of international issues;
• Representing the unit at internal and external meetings.

Qualifications:
We are looking for candidates that meet the following mandatory requirements:

• A Master's degree in a relevant field (e.g. international relations, international law, international economics…).
• An excellent command of both French and English (fluency in one and very good working knowledge of the other). You will be expected to be able to converse and write in both languages.
• Age between 25 and 30 (born between the 1st of January 1980 and the 1st of January 1985).
• Prior experience with an international organization, NGO or Red Cross or Red Crescent society (see non-exhaustive list above).
• Available for 1 year, starting sometime between January and April 2010.

If you do not fulfill the above conditions, your application will not be considered.

Moreover, successful candidates will fulfill the following conditions:

• A manifest interest for humanitarian action and the ICRC.
• A demonstrated interest in international affairs and diplomacy.
• The ability to think strategically; to express ideas clearly, both orally and in writing and to work independently and as part of a team.
• Flexibility and the ability to assist with a variety of tasks based on the needs of the unit.
• Additional languages, especially Arabic or Spanish, are an asset.
• Experience with the issue "business and conflict" or "business and human rights" and/or prior experience within a transnational corporation, are also an asset.

Contract:
Recruited interns will be offered a 12-month paid contract. The positions are based at the ICRC headquarters in Geneva.

To apply:
Interested candidates should send their complete application (cover letter, resume/CV, and the 2010 internship application form), in either English or French to: internshipudh@icrc.org (quote reference number: DIMCOH2010).

Do not send any documents other than the three listed above.

Please be aware that ICRC has other internship programmes with a separate applications process (for further information see the ICRC website). No information on these will be provided by the Multilateral Diplomacy and Humanitarian Coordination Unit.

Deadline for the receipt of applications is July 31st 2009.

Late or incomplete applications, as well as those which do not meet the stated requirements, will not be considered. Therefore, please refrain from applying if you do not fulfil the mandatory criteria listed above.

Due to the high number of applications, no information on the selection process or personal queries can be provided. As the selection for the internship is based upon a highly competitive screening process, applicants meeting the basic requirements may not go through the entire selection process. Short-listed candidates will be contacted in late August / September for a phone interview. Thereafter, the remaining 16 candidates will be invited to a selection day in Geneva (Switzerland) which will take place in the second half of October 2009.

Please be aware that the ICRC is not in a position to cover any related travel or accommodation costs.