Intern – Governance & Inclusive Growth at UNDP

Background and Context

The UNDP Kenya Country Programme (2022–2026) supports the Government of Kenya to strengthen democratic governance, promote peace and inclusive growth, and advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The programme emphasizes gender equality, youth inclusion, and leaving no one behind. UNDP works with national and county governments, civil society, and development partners to implement projects that promote resilience, reduce inequality, and improve service delivery. Interns are engaged to support documentation, knowledge sharing, and programme implementation. This internship is an opportunity for a motivated university student to gain exposure to international development work, especially in governance, peace, security, and inclusive development

Under the direct supervision of the project lead working on enhancing inclusive governance processes within the Governance and Inclusive Growth (GIG) Unit, the intern will play an active role in advancing inclusive governance processes, with a focus on promoting meaningful youth participation in policy, decision-making, and civic life. The role will provide direct support to flagship initiatives such as the UN Joint Programme on Youth and the project Advancing Inclusive Governance – Empowering Youth Voices. The intern will contribute to both online and offline engagement strategies, leveraging civic technology tools and innovative outreach methods to strengthen youth involvement in governance. This includes supporting policy and practice reforms to enhance and sustain youth participation, fostering partnerships with civil society and community-based organizations, and assisting in the design and delivery of capacity-building sessions for youth leaders. The intern will also help develop communication and advocacy materials, contribute to knowledge products that capture best practices, and coordinate with implementing partners to ensure that youth voices remain central to governance dialogues at local and national levels. Accordingly, this will include the following: 

Duties and Responsibilities

• Research and Analysis
• Support the undertaking of research and trends analysis in relation to inclusive governance, youth participation, and democratic engagement.
• Contribute to the mapping of relevant policies, actors, and opportunities to strengthen civic space and participation.
• Supporting advocacy initiatives towards drafting and implementation of laws and policies that promote more inclusive, responsive, and resilient governance.
• Knowledge Generation and Advocacy
• Assist in drafting research and advocacy briefs to inform internal programming and engagement with national and subnational partners.
• Support the production of knowledge products, including policy notes and discussion papers aligned with programme priorities.
• Programme Design and Implementation
• Provide administrative, research, and coordination support in the design, planning, and implementation of programme activities under the Governance Unit, with a focus on enhancing youth participation and inclusive governance processes.
• Assist in the preparation of workplans, concept notes, briefing materials, and knowledge products to inform programme delivery and stakeholder engagement.
• Contribute to programme monitoring by supporting data collection, entry, analysis, and document management, ensuring timely and accurate reporting of progress and results.
• Provide logistical and coordination support for meetings, trainings, consultations, and outreach activities with government institutions, civil society, youth networks, and development partners.
• Support the documentation of lessons learned, success stories, and best practices from programme engagements to inform adaptive programming, advocacy, and knowledge sharing.
• Assist in leveraging both digital platforms and in-person approaches to engage diverse youth constituencies, ensuring active participation of marginalized and underrepresented groups.
• Experience in using tools/software’s to maintain and update stakeholder databases, contact lists, and partner engagement trackers to support effective collaboration and follow-up.
• Attend project technical meetings, take comprehensive meeting notes with a focus on action points and share with the line manager for review and onward circulation.
• Stakeholder Engagement and Logistics
• Support the planning, coordination, and organization of meetings, trainings, workshops, and consultations with internal teams, government institutions, civil society, youth networks, and other external partners.
• Assist in preparing agendas, concept notes, briefing materials, and presentations for stakeholder engagements to ensure strategic alignment with UNDP’s governance and youth participation objectives.
• Participate in internal discussions and external partner meetings to capture key points, prepare meeting summaries, and follow up on agreed action items.
• Contribute to outreach efforts by mapping and maintaining an updated database of stakeholders, including youth-led organizations, civic tech actors, and development partners working on governance and electoral processes.
• Provide logistical and administrative support for events, including venue arrangements, travel coordination, documentation, and dissemination of meeting outcomes.

Other Duties

• Perform additional tasks as assigned to contribute to the effective delivery of the GIG Unit’s mandate on governance, peace, and inclusive growth.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Candidates must at the time of application meet one of the following criteria:
• Be enrolled in a bachelor’s or master’s degree in social sciences, Political Science, Development Studies, Communication, or any related field.
• Have graduated from such a programme within the past year.