Internship - (Malaria vaccines), HQ/UHL/IVB/PDR Malaria Team

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME

The Immunization, Vaccines and Biologicals (IVB) Department’s mission is “To promote the health and well-being of all people, in all countries, by advancing the impact of vaccines and immunization programmes through partnership and leadership; policies and guidance; evidence and research”. Our work is aligned with the WHO Global Programme of Work (GPW), with a central focus to drive impact in countries, to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being at all ages.

The Strategic Objectives of the IVB Department include:

1. Establishing global immunization agendas, strategies and policies to build and harness commitment to action.
2. Promoting research and innovation to increase impact of vaccines, technologies and immunization practices.
3. Advancing evidence-based introduction and access to vaccines and immunization innovations.
4. Optimizing immunization delivery to ensure high-impact, sustainable and equitable programmes.
5. Harnessing Vaccine Alliances and Partnerships, including collaborations with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and other key WHO partners, towards cross-programme coordination and collaboration in pursuit of universal vaccine and health coverage.

The Malaria Vaccine Team is a dynamic team in the WHO Department of Immunizations, Vaccines and Biologicals. In 2021, WHO recommends the programmatic use of the world’s first malaria vaccine for the prevention of P. falciparum malaria in children living in malaria endemic areas. In 2023, WHO updated its policy recommendation to include a second vaccine addressing considerable supply shortages. Demand for malaria vaccines on the part of Governments in malaria-endemic countries has been high. Since Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, opened a funding window in mid-2022, 20 countries have been approved to receive support for malaria vaccine introduction with many of these countries preparing for introduction in 2024 and 2025.

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

Under the supervision of a technical expert within the Malaria Vaccines Team, the intern will be assigned the agreed terms of reference:

• Assist in the facilitation and documentation of high-level meetings with world experts in malaria and vaccine public health.
• Support malaria vaccine introduction planning and implementation, working within WHO structures across its three levels and with established partners to provide accurate and timely guidance and technical support to countries for decision making, introduction planning, and scale-up of malaria vaccines.
• Support the review and updating of WHO’s malaria vaccine country implementation tracker and WHO’s malaria vaccine introduction guidelines.
• Assist with the consolidation and communication of early learnings as new countries implement the malaria vaccine.
• Engage in the review and updating of the Malaria vaccine pipeline dashboard.

Learning objectives

The purpose of the WHO Internship Programme is to provide an enriching learning experience for students and recent graduates. The Learning Objectives outlined within each internship vacancy are a key component of the programme.

Within this internship, the intern will:

• Receive hands on experience working within WHO, learning about the organization’s governance structures, advisory bodies, and role working with member states.
• Have a thorough understanding of malaria vaccines and learnings from the malaria vaccine pilot implementation experience.
• Become knowledgeable in supporting new countries during introduction planning and roll-out roll out of malaria vaccines, understanding the potential risks and challenges of malaria vaccine implementation and mitigation strategies.

DURATION OF INTERNSHIP

12 - 16 weeks - tentative start date 26 August 2024

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

Have completed the equivalent of three years of full-time studies in public health, epidemiology, medicine, nursing or related subject 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 to the internship within six months after completion of their formal qualification).

Skills and knowledge

• Public health communications, policy, advocacy or related areas of work.
• Malaria
• Immunization and vaccine
• Familiarity with databases utilized for performing literature searches is also an asset

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

Experience

• Previous experience of work in Africa
• Experience working with related partners or WHO Member states

LANGUAGES

Essential: Expert knowledge of English.
Desirable: Intermediate knowledge of French. Intermediate knowledge of other UN language.

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 1680 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 (https://www.who.int/about/values) 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 Staff Health and Wellbeing Services (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.