Five reasons to apply for an Advocacy Internship at CARE International UK

by 20th Sep 2013
A village savings and loans group in Uganda collecting their weekly savings A village savings and loans group in Uganda collecting their weekly savings © Jon Spaull / Banking on Change

Perhaps, you're hoping to break into the development sector, or you are looking for a career change from the private sector? Maybe you want to build your CV while completing your post graduate studies or want to learn more about the world of microfinance and influencing policy makers? If so, an internship in the Advocacy and Policy Team at CARE UK might be just what you are looking for. Here are five reasons why we think you should apply:

1. You will be helping poor women and girls to become financially included

Affordable financial services are central to addressing poverty and can help poor people (especially women and girls) earn a living, grow their businesses and create new jobs, pulling whole communities out of poverty. You will be supporting the development of a Charter to build an alliance of individuals and institutions who can influence and facilitate responsible linking of poor people to financial institutions. The charter is an ambitious goal, which would really make a difference to people's lives, and you will play a vital role in delivering it.

2. You will gain an insight into one of our flag ship partnerships, Banking on Change

Banking on Change is a partnership between Barclays, CARE International UK and Plan UK and focusses on savings-led microfinance. Launched in 2009 Banking on Change has reached 513,000 people and established over 25,000 savings groups across 11 countries in Africa, Asia and South America. Nearly 660 of the savings groups have been linked to formal banking through branches of Barclays in Uganda, Kenya, Ghana and Tanzania. Phase 2 started in January 2013, and will target over 330,000 people, and aim to link another 5,000 savings groups to Barclays branches. You will be part of the Banking on Change Advocacy and Communications Working Group, and play a key role in achieving one of the strategic goals of the partnership.

3. You will be exposed to CARE's cutting edge work in Advocacy and Financial Inclusion

It remains the fact that 2.5billion people have no access to a bank account. Through this internship you will help us to advocate for two things to change this:

  1. We want more banks to replicate Banking on Change and responsibly link poor savers to formal financial institutions – which is why we are launching a Charter to seek support. You will help to get 100 individuals and institutions, such as global banks, UN, DFID, Foundations, NGO's, Academics to sign the charter, which will be presented at Davos 2015.
  2. We need to convince governments that the new development framework that replaces the MDGs in 2015 includes financial inclusion as a key indicator of inclusive growth.

4. You will gain new skills and experience for your CV

You will build your CV by researching potential signatories to the charter, including global banks, private sector actors, foundations, donors, governments, authoritative peers, NGOs and global and local networks; maintaining and monitoring a high quality database of supporters and potential supporters; drafting communications about the charter; supporting planned launch events in Africa and at the World Economic Forum in 2014 and 2015; researching opportunities to promote the charter; monitoring the post 2015 development negotiations and seeking opportunities to influence

5. You will gain wider insight into working for an international NGO

You will sit in the Advocacy and Policy team within the Programmes department at CARE International UK, and work closely with the Private Sector Engagement team and participate in other internal meetings and processes within CARE. CARE International is a leading development and humanitarian charity supporting the poorest communities in 84 countries around the world. Our mission is to create lasting change in poor communities and we put money where it is needed most.

And finally, in return for your services we will pay you the equivalent of £15,561 per annum pro rata

For more information about how to apply and full Terms of Reference for this role please visit the CARE International UK's jobs page.

The closing date for applications is: Sunday 29 September 2013

Interviews: Monday 7 October April 2013

 

Ella Moffat

Ella was formerly Partnerships Manager overseeing CARE International UK’s private sector partnerships. She worked closely with companies including Mondelez International and Barclays to develop and deliver innovative partnerships with shared values for business and poor communities.

Before joining CARE, she was a VSO fundraising advisor in India where she worked for grassroots disability and rural development organisations. She holds a Masters in Development Studies.