Enhanced Water Security and Community Resilience in the Adjacent Cuvelai and Kunene Transboundary River Basins (CUVKUN) Project
*Please note that this advertisement is for three (3) intern positions on the CUVKUN Project. The 3 positions available are:
- Water Resources Management Intern
- Water Resources Management Intern
- Finance and Administration Intern
The Cuvelai Watercourse Commission (CUVECOM) was established on 16 September 2014 to manage the shared transboundary waters of the Cuvelai Watercourse. The secretariat is currently based in Oshakati, Namibia. Adjacent to the Cuvelai River Basin is the Kunene River Basin, which manages transboundary cooperation for the Kunene Watercourse through a Permanent Joint Technical Commission (PJTC) that was established in 1990. Both the Cuvelai and Kunene Watercourses are shared between the Republic of Angola and the Republic of Namibia.
The Global Water Partnership Southern Africa (GWP) is an intergovernmental organisation established in 1996 to support countries in their efforts to implement more equitable and sustainable management of their water resources. The network spans 13 regions with 2,400 institutional Partners in 158 countries. The global secretariat is in Stockholm, Sweden. The GWP Africa Coordination Unit is based at GWP Southern Africa in Pretoria, South Africa and coordinates GWP Africa programmes across Africa. GWPSA also hosts the GWP global theme on Climate resilience and is charged with providing global strategic leadership and coordination of the implementation of the GWP strategy on climate resilience.
ENHANCED WATER SECURITY AND COMMUNITY RESILIENCE IN THE ADJACENT CUVELAI AND KUNENE TRANSBOUNDARY RIVER BASINS (“CUVKUN PROJECT”)
The CUVKUN project aims to improve the management of water resources of the transboundary Kunene and Cuvelai basins shared by Angola and Namibia. There is increasing water scarcity and hydrological variability, exacerbated by climate change within the region, even though both basins are stark in contrast. The need for the comprehensive monitoring of climate and water resources and the sharing of information has never been greater, as also the need to improve systems that can provide early warning of climate-related disasters.
The USD 11 million project is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as the GEF Implementing Agency. The Global Water Partnership Southern Africa (GWPSA) is the Executing Agency, while the Cuvelai Commission (CUVECOM) and Kunene Permanent Joint Technical Committee (PJTC) are the focal custodians of the project implementation.
The project undertakes a suite of other activities designed to strengthen joint management and planning capacity and practices at the transboundary basin level. These activities are being implemented under six (6) project components:
Component 1: Strengthening the transboundary and conjunctive water resources management in the Cuvelai River Basin;
Component 2: Strengthening the transboundary water resources management with future development scenario analysis in the Kunene River Basin;
Component 3: Strengthening the governance of the Cuvelai and Kunene River Basins to foster joint management by the two countries in the most cost-effective manner;
Component 4: Strengthening institutional, technical and operational capacity in Angola to sustainably develop and manage the sub-region’s water tower located in southern Angola;
Component 5: Enhancing the community participation in Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) to build resilience in their livelihoods;
Component 6: Supporting outreach and Knowledge Management for replication, upscaling, and stakeholder engagement.
INTERN DUTIES AND OUTPUTS
GWPSA seeks to hire three interns under the UNDP-GEF CUVKUN project. The interns will be stationed in Namibia at The Cuvelai Watercourse Commission (CUVECOM) Secretariat in Oshakati and Angola (Ondjiva) CUVECOM Satellite Office.
TECHNICAL INTERNS (TWO)
The Water Resources Management Interns will support successful implementation of the UNDP-GEF CUVKUN project, working closely with the IWRM Technical Advisors, the Project Implementation Unit (PMU) and will support project activities by contributing to specific deliverables as agreed with the programme/project leaders. Specific duties will include:
- Support project implementation by contributing to specific deliverables as agreed with the programme/project leaders;
- Conduct background studies in the thematic priority areas that will be determined jointly by the specific programme/project leader (supervisor and the intern);
- Provide support to the meetings, workshops, conferences, trainings organised and support stakeholder initiatives within the Cuvelai and Kunene basins;
- Support to the implementation of the Project Stakeholder engagement Strategy;
- Support the implementation of the GESI Action plan;
- Supporting in the implementation of the Communication strategy;
- Support to project Monitoring and Evaluation;
- Support implementation of the Knowledge and Information Management Strategy
- At the end of the internship, the following outputs will be expected:
o A report on the thematic priority areas that are determined jointly by the supervisor and the intern.
o Overall report on the experiences gained, challenges faced, and reflections on areas that need improvement for managing future internship. The report should contain reflections and recommendations of possible solutions to any challenges that they would have been exposed to.
o An internship certificate will be provided by GWP and its collaborating partners under the UNDP-GEF CUVKUN project, along with an official letter of recommendation.
FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION INTERN (ONE)
A finance and admin intern in the CUVKUN project would support the financial and administrative functions necessary for the smooth implementation of project activities. Their tasks include:
Financial Support:
- Assist in preparing financial reports, budgets, and expenditure tracking for project components.
- Help process invoices, payments, and expense reimbursements in compliance with organizational policies.
- Support the monitoring of project funds to ensure alignment with donor requirements and budget allocations.
- Maintain proper documentation of financial transactions for auditing purposes
Administrative Support:
- Organise and maintain project records, including contracts, meeting minutes, and correspondence.
- Assist in scheduling meetings, workshops, and events, including logistical arrangements such as venue booking and travel coordination.
- Prepare agendas, meeting materials, and follow-up documentation for project-related events.
- Ensure timely communication with stakeholders, including project partners in Angola and Namibia.
Procurement Assistance:
- Support procurement processes by assisting in the preparation of purchase orders and vendor management.
- Maintain an inventory of project assets and supplies.
Data Entry and Reporting:
- Input financial and administrative data into relevant systems or databases.
- Assist in compiling reports on administrative and financial activities for internal use or submission to donors.
Compliance Monitoring:
- Help ensure adherence to organizational policies, donor guidelines, and local regulations in all financial and administrative activities.
- General Office Support
- Provide general clerical support to the project team, such as filing, photocopying, and responding to routine inquiries
ELIGIBILITY
- Have some understanding of transboundary water resources management, gender, social inclusion, water security, climate change, environmental management, and climate change adaptation;
- Be fluent in English (for Namibia);
- Be fluent in Portuguese (for Angola);
- Fluency in local dialects in the Cuvelai and Kunene basins is desirable.
- Should be not more than 35 years of age.
· Technical Interns: Possess a minimum of Bachelor’s degree in water resources management / environment/areas relevant to the work of GWPSA,
· Finance & Admin Intern: Possess a minimum of Bachelor’s degree in Finance and Administration and areas relevant to the work of GWPSA.
INTERNSHIP DURATION
The duration for the internships will be a maximum of 12 months renewable once and starting April 2025.
REMUNERATION
GWPSA will provide a monthly stipend to interns to cover expenses associated with the internship. Direct costs linked to participation in project activities will be covered by GWPSA. Interns are entirely responsible for their own living costs such as accommodation, groceries and health insurance.
OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION
The interns must keep confidential any and all unpublished information made known during the course of the internship and not publish any reports or paper on the basis of information obtained except with the written approval and authorization of GWPSA.
APPLICATIONS
- Interested applicants that meet the above requirements are invited to submit their CV’s and cover letter of motivation via the Bamboo HR online system no later than 28 March 2025: https://gwpsanpc.bamboohr.com/careers/115
- Candidates must indicate in their cover letter which internship they are applying for: “WATER RESOURCES MANAGMENT INTERNS” or “FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION INTERN”
- Questions can be directed to Silvanus Uunona silvanus.uunona@gwpsaf.org and Mark Naidoo: mark.naidoo@gwpsaf.org
