Where did you interned at?
The Sustainable Development Section of the Development and Economic and Social Issues Branch of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva.
What did you work on?
The key responsibility of the role is to support OHCHR in fulfilling its mission to work for the protection of all human rights for all people; to help empower people to realize their rights, and to assist those responsible for upholding such rights in ensuring that they are implemented.
Other tasks include (but are not limited to):
- Conduct research and analysis on issues related to OHCHR’s mission, such as the all-human rights mechanisms that require International Financial institutions to do, as well as how taxation can be used as a means to follow the human rights-based standards.
- Provide administrative support to the Secretary-General, High Commissioner and the Secretariat as well as the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council and the Human Rights Council, its subsidiary bodies and other OHCHR units as well as events like the Capacity-strengthening training sessions of RCO Economists of the Africa Region UN Development Coordination Office (DCO) in Africa & OHCHR Surge Initiative.
What was most memorable?
The highlight of my internship was having the opportunity to participate in the 51st Human Rights Council session from 12 September to 7 October 2022, held at the UN Office in Geneva. The Council discussed issues like current human rights situations that require the Council’s attention, human rights bodies and mechanisms, follow-ups on other policies and implementations, technical assistance, and capacity-building. It was a great eye-opener, to be able to witness how global leaders come together to discuss issues on a global scale.
What’s it like being a LKYSPP student in Singapore?
The excellent reputation of LKYSPP helped tremendously in securing this internship as well as paving the way for me to pursue an international career. In today’s fast-changing world, the MIA programme not only helped me to gain a higher perspective on how the world operates, but it also helped me to better understand the future of the world, like what geopolitical challenges Asia is facing now and how other international relations scholars perceive and address these issues. The engaging educators have very interesting and inspiring perspectives to share and they are always encouraging students to speak their minds and exchange ideas.
Studying in Singapore has been a very rewarding experience because it is a very safe country for students, and its well-organised learning environment makes it second to none against the backdrop of a world that is being hit by multiple challenges.
How’s life in…?
Life in Switzerland is quite good but really expensive (for a student)! The view is breathtaking and the local food is mainly many different types of cheese.