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The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (the UN Refugee Agency, also known as UNHCR) is an intergovernmental organization with a mandate to protect refugees and stateless persons worldwide. Promoting respect for international protection norms in European Union (EU) law and policy is of vital importance to UNHCR, and the agency, accordingly, provides its views on a wide range of issues related to access to Europe, asylum, refugee protection, resettlement and integration in the Member States of the EU. UNHCR's reports, proposals and observations on EU asylum law and policy can be found on this page: www.unhcr.org/eu.

The European Asylum Support Office (EASO), which is based in Malta, is an EU agency which acts as a center of expertise on asylum by providing practical, technical, and operational support to member states, the Commission and in the external dimension while also contributing to the creation of a Common European Asylum System (CEAS). EASO‘s main areas of activity include providing country of origin information (COI) on key countries, providing the latest asylum trends data, developing and providing trainings, coordinating on EU relocation, developing the use of operational tools, and providing operational support to EU+ member states. EASO’s Management Board is made up of the 32 EU+ Member States (28 EU MS plus Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland), the European Commission, UNHCR and Frontex (the EU’s border guard agency). EASO is currently undergoing a rapid expansion of staff, resources and activities in preparation for eventual conversion into a fully-fledged EU Agency, the European Union Asylum Agency (EUAA).

UNHCR has a bilateral working arrangement with EASO implemented, through expertise and information sharing, as well as advocacy work led by the UNHCR Regional Representation for EU Affairs and a dedicated Liaison Office based in Valletta.

Selection Criteria

In order to be considered eligible for an internship, the following criteria must be fulfilled:

• Be a current student or a recent graduate (completed studies within one year) of a graduate school program from a university or higher education facility accredited by UNESCO, in a field relevant or of interest to the work of the Organization (law, international relations, political science, public policy, or other relevant field);
• Candidates who have immediate relatives (father, mother, son, daughter, brother or sister) working as staff members of UNHCR are not eligible;
• Excellent research, analytical, judgment, drafting and organizational skills;
• Knowledge of fundamental rights and international refugee law and demonstrated interest in refugee protection;
• Understanding of the EU legal and institutional framework, EU policies and the work of relevant EU Agencies;
• Excellent spoken and written English, knowledge of another EU language considered an asset;
• Good IT and information management skills;
• Flexibility and strong interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills;
• Discretion in handling sensitive and confidential information;
• Ability to prioritize work and deliver under pressure;
• Results-orientated and constructive thinking.

The ideal candidate will be detail-oriented, highly organized and a team player who is able to work independently.

Work Responsibilities

• To support research on a wide range of subjects related to refugee protection and asylum policy and practice relevant in the EU context, including international and European refugee and human rights law;
• To review and analyze relevant reports issued by EASO, including comparing where similar UNHCR documents exist, and to summarize and disseminate to concerned UNHCR colleagues;
• To summarize key highlights and disseminate EASO’s daily Press Preview;
• To provide statistical analysis of refugee and migration trends in Europe;
• To assist in the drafting of minutes of meetings, both with internal and external colleagues;
• To assist in the preparation of UNHCR meetings and events, and to attend conferences and meetings on topics of relevance to UNHCR as necessary, as well as support to follow-up action;
• To assist in the registration and reimbursement of UNHCR colleagues participating in EASO events;
• To collect weekly points for inclusion in the weekly Policy and Legal Support Unit (PLUS) staff meetings and follow-up on the final minutes;
• To support in the preparation for quarterly EASO MB meetings;
• To assist with other tasks that may arise.

Work Dates & Conditions

The UNHCR Liaison Office to EASO is looking for a full-time intern for three months (with the possibility to extend), ideally starting on 15 April 2020. Exact dates to be agreed with successful candidate.

The successful candidates will be based at the UNHCR Liaison Office to EASO in Valletta, Malta.

Interns who do not receive financial support from an outside party will receive an allowance to support costs related to cost of food, local transportation and living expenses. Interns should be ready to cover their own travel to the duty station as well as any additional costs above and beyond any allowance they may receive from UNHCR. It is the intern’s responsibility to arrange for a visa and to cover related costs. UNHCR can provide support with the required documents.

How to apply

Please send the completed UNHCR Personal History (P11) form and motivation letter in English to UNHCR Liaison Office to EASO (mtavalo@unhcr.org). Deadline for submission is 23:59 20 March 2020 (Malta time). Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to participate in an interview.

The UNHCR workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages and opinions. UNHCR seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. Applications are encouraged from all qualified candidates without distinction on grounds of race, color, sex, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity.

this job offer is not open for applications