CALL FOR INTERNSHIP APPLICATIONS

THE PROJECT
An alternative political movement has emerged in Nigeria driven by the deeply felt desire, sense of responsibility and patriotic zeal of hitherto non-partisan Nigerian professionals, entrepreneurs, development practitioners, faith community leaders, civil society activists, media practitioners, senior academics, and youth leaders to organize collectively to work for the transformation of Nigeria. This founding group has concluded that creating a new Nigeria requires a new approach to democratic governance and has thus decided to establish a national political party whose principles, values and conduct would set it apart from all of the existing 50 political parties in Nigeria as a genuine people-centered alternative. Its politics shall be issue-based and its quest for the people’s mandate would be solely informed by the drive to fully respond to their felt and expressed needs. The Party shall seek political power for the sake of its exclusive deployment to the project of the social and economic transformation of Nigeria.
The party, KOWA Party (in- formation), will work to consistently represent and respond effectively to the desires and perspectives of the diverse peoples of Nigeria. It shall therefore pursue the national interest on the basis of agreed upon principles that are conducive to the attainment of economic progress, social justice and national security.
Consequently, it seeks to interest, involve, engage and galvanize stakeholders locally and internationally in order to identify, mobilize, and elect credible and competent individuals into leadership positions at all levels of governance with a view to achieving our shared vision of a truly democratic, prosperous, peaceful, and just Nigeria.
THE NEED AREAS
Being in a start-up phase, KOWA Party urgently requires the skills, energies and competencies of interested Nigerian professionals at home and in the Diaspora to help its development into a robust political organization. Its secretariat currently has a few capacity deficits in four broad areas. Suitably qualified interns are therefore needed in these areas for 2-3 month stints to carry out designated tasks geared towards the building of an efficient and effective party secretariat. Successful applicants would be assigned tasks that fit with their individual areas of interest and skills under adequate supervision and mentoring by the Secretariat Coordinator and a number of founding members.
The four areas for which further details on the associated tasks are provided in the next section are:
Website and related IT support


Research


Membership development and donor outreach


Meeting Planning and Logistics


DETAILED RESPONSIBILITIES
Interns may be required to take responsibility for a combination of several of the tasks enumerated below in line with their interests and skills-cum-competencies’ set:
Website and related IT support:
Monitoring and maintaining computer systems and networks
Troubleshooting system and network problems and diagnosing and solving hardware/software faults
Providing process documentation support
Running network applications to support systems and users
Testing and evaluating new technology
Conducting electrical safety checks on computer equipment
Ensuring smooth running of web-based platforms and updating of website contents
Tracking website visits/usage
Installing and configuring computer systems
Assisting with website maintenance
Other secretariat IT tasks as assigned


Research:
Literature review in support of policy position papers’ development
Writing up and reporting on assigned research topics
Maintaining accurate files and records of research findings, both computerised and manual
Supporting the preparation of party informational materials
Preparing background reports and documents for up-coming meetings
Preparing reports and documents as content for website development
Data entry for the purpose of updating existing reports and development of new reports provided through research
Editing reports generated by the Coordinator and policy committees
Research support to the membership development and donor outreach team in the development of membership recruitment and retention strategies
Other secretariat research tasks as assigned



Membership development and donor outreach:
Input into the development of the membership recruitment and retention strategy for the party
Taking the leading role in updating and producing membership communication materials to assist with recruitment and retention
Maintaining communication with members and volunteers on membership issues
Supporting and developing facilities for members and volunteers to interact with the party via the members' web site, the Membership Data On-line site and other web-resources with the help of the IT Support Officer
Compiling monthly membership statistics for dissemination to relevant officers and committees
Assisting with the planning and management of the party’s presence at external functions
Helping to organize fund-raising sessions for the party
Involvement with membership-related training sessions
Building on existing fund-raising initiatives and developing new ones to maximize unrestricted income from members, donors etc
Following-up on pledges and promises by members, donors, supporters, advocates etc
Maintaining good relationships with funders, political organizations and other third parties
Other secretariat membership-related tasks as assigned



Planning and Logistics


Providing effective logistics support for the day-to-day management of the Secretariat
Active involvement in organizing meetings, conventions, dinners, forums etc
Helping draft reports, and preparing briefing materials for meeting folders
Researching and making suggestions on meeting agenda and methodology
Managing correspondences leading towards the commencement of meetings
Making travel and related arrangements
Ensuring optimal resource allocation for activities being undertaking by the Secretariat
Maintaining invoices and receipts, ensuring prompt payment of clients, and keeping up to date accounts
Liaising and negotiating with members, suppliers and other third parties
Analyzing logistical problems and providing solutions
Other secretariat logistics-related tasks as assigned


REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Education
The interns must be graduate students or early-mid career professionals that are interested, willing and able to give 2-3 months of their time to contributing concretely to the building of a credible alternative political party in Nigeria between June and September 2009. They must be passionate about Nigeria and strongly desirous of being active change agents in the growing movement for the political, social and economic transformation of the country.
Skills
The ideal intern must possess the following general skills in addition to role-specific skills:
Good communication skills, both written and oral
Ability to deliver quality results in a timely and efficient manner
A team player who respects and promotes individual differences
Willingness to learn


APPLICATION PROCEDURES
Interested applicants will be required to forward their resumes and also complete an essay of not more than 1,000 (one thousand) words on any one of the following topics:
Vision for a New Nigeria
Making Poverty History in Nigeria
Towards a Sustainable Solution to Niger Delta Crisis
How to Make the Votes of Ordinary Nigerians Count
The Case for State Police Forces in Nigeria
Please send an updated resume, a cover letter specifying your area of interest, the projected time frame and duration of your internship and your essay (all in PDF format) to oyinkansade@gmail.com. Deadline for application submission is 2 weeks from date of this publication – June 1, 2009.