UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.
At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.
UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture.., coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.
Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.
For every child, a protection
How can you make a difference?
Description of Assignments:
Justice for children is one of the focus areas for the UNICEF Child Protection Programme in Bhutan. UNICEF collaborates with the Bhutan National Legal Institute (BNLI), the Legal Aid Center, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP), the National Commission for Women and Children (NCWC), Pema Secretariat, and Nazhoen Lamtoen to strengthen laws concerning children in conflict with the law (CICL) and to build the capacity of service providers to meet the needs of CICL and other children who come into contact with the justice system.
Reinforcing all aspects of the child protection system, including justice mechanisms to ensure they serve the best interests of children, is a priority. This involves improving the quality of justice services, ensuring access to these services to address child protection and uphold their rights, and supporting the Government in fulfilling its national and international obligations.
In 2027, continuing with the work on Justice for Children, UNICEF will be:
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Supporting the Legal Aid Centre and BNLI in improving access to legal aid for children, women, and vulnerable people through capacity building of key service providers.
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Working with RBP, OAG, and the PEMA Secretariat to strengthen capacity to respond to child online sexual exploitation and abuse and review of the Diversion Guidelines 2019.
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Working with JSWLS to strengthen justice for children’s workforce capacity through continuing legal education.
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Work with JSWLS to support enhance restorative justice tools such as the Family Group Conferencing.
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Working with the Pema Secretariat on enhancing child protection and GBV services.
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Support the PEMA Secretariat and SID (MoESD) to revise the Child Online Protection training packages.
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Support the PEMA Secretariat to strengthen the rehabilitation programmes at the YDRC.
Under the direct supervision of the Child Protection Officer, the intern will:
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Support the research and development of policy, laws, and legal frameworks related to Child Rights.
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Support the coordination mechanism for child protection and justice for children.
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Contribute to the dissemination of research on climate change, online risk, and restorative justice.
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Support the strengthening of social service workforce, including justice for children’s workforce.
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Contribute to developing project proposals, document review, analysis, drafting reports, and presentations.
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Assist in coordination, data entry and preparation of advocacy materials.
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Support other programme activities related to child protection as required by the supervisor.
To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…
Minimum requirements:
To be considered for an internship, applicants must meet the following requirements:
- Applicants must be at least 18 years old;
- Should be a current "Final Year" student of "Jigme Singye Wangchuck School of Law";
- Must be proficient in English and fluent in the Dzongkha.
- Have excellent academic performance as demonstrated by recent university or institution records.
- Have no immediate relatives (e.g. father, mother, brother, sister) working in any UNICEF office; and
- Have no other relatives in the line of authority to which the intern will report to.
Benefits:
- The intern shall be entitled to all the benefits as provided by UNICEF Procedure on Internship Programme.
Duration of Engagement: 4 months (01 February - 31 May 2027)
Documents to be submitted:
1. Letter of motivation/Cover Letter
2. CV
3. Copy of Citizenship ID Card
4. Proof of enrollment in JSW Law of School
5. Recent Academic Transcripts
For every Child, you demonstrate...
UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values
The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…
(1) Builds and maintains partnerships
(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
(3) Drive to achieve results for impact
(4) Innovates and embraces change
(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity
(6) Thinks and acts strategically
(7) Works collaboratively with others
[add the 8th competency (Nurtures, leads and manages people) for a supervisory role].
Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.
UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.
UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.
UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, discrimination, fraud, corruption and other forms of misconduct.
UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference, safeguarding and background verification checks. These checks may include verification of academic credentials and employment history, screening against relevant United Nations misconduct databases, and requests for misconduct disclosures from current and former employers, professional associations, other relevant organizations and participating organizations under inter-agency safeguarding initiatives, including the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme (MDS), where applicable.
Appointment, selection and continued engagement are subject to the satisfactory completion of all required checks. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information and consent to enable UNICEF to undertake these checks.
Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially
UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments are conditional on the selected candidates’ willingness to comply with current or future vaccination requirements, should UNICEF mandate it for personnel.
Failure to comply with such requirements, where applicable and without a duly approved medical exemption from the relevant UN authority, will result in the cancellation of the selection or may lead to other administrative measures, including separation from service
Remarks:
As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.
UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates are encouraged to apply.
Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.
UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.
Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.
All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.
Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.