Kigali Peacebuilding Office internships
From Never Again
Contents |
NEVER AGAIN RWANDA: PEACEBUILDING INTERNSHIPS
About Never Again & Never Again Rwanda (NAR): NAR is a young and upcoming human rights and peacebuilding non-governmental organization centrally located in the Rwandan capital of Kigali. NAR, founded in 2002 as part of Never Again, creates a collaborative partnership of youth around the world.
A youth-oriented, international collaboration, Never Again was developed by Rwandan and British students and has chapters in Rwanda, The Democratic Republic of the Congo, the UK, Canada, China and the USA. It has been instrumental in bridging divides between youth by encouraging them in critical thinking, encouraging them to learn about and advocate for human rights, socio-economic development and peace issues.
NAR aims at promoting a constructive exchange of ideas to prevent violent conflicts and help remedy their effects. NAR highlights the importance of focusing on youth, as more than 60% of Rwanda’s population are under 20 years old. Youth have a significant role in society to ensure future stability in Rwanda and the African Great Lakes Region.
NAR’s brand new Peacebuilding Centre (PbC) is located beneath plush foothills in Kigali’s Nyamirambo district. Though NAR operates all over Rwanda, the PbC serves as the hub of NAR’s activities, project creation, management and organizational capacity building. The PbC also houses an extensive multimedia resource library unlike any other in Rwanda and possibly the Great Lakes Region of Africa. This library consists of scholarly research, education supplements, documentation of Never Again’s activities from the past and other pertinent books and materials that relate to studying, researching and working in peacebuilding, non-violence, conflict and genocide prevention in Rwanda and throughout the world.
Purpose of Internship Work:
Local Approaches to Peacebuilding in a Post-Conflict Society within the Globalized Community
Never Again Rwanda finds it important to examine, assess and constantly transform its methods and actions in accordance with the best practices in peacebuilding. The intern would help study, design, enhance and supplement existing and non-existent forms of peacebuilding through youth-oriented activities, actions and networks.
Goal: To positively reflect progressive forms of peacebuilding at a grassroots level, but with regional and global ambitions; to gauge the “success” of existing programs; and to provide pro-active criticism for improvement and transformation of programs.
Description: NAR’s Peacebuilding Centre offers a unique opportunity for students, young professionals and wanderers to be a part of something new and on the rise in the world of human rights inspired action. Choosing to be here from 2 months until who knows when, can offer differing and tangible outcomes of work, experience and study. Mostly, the intern will have an important role in choosing what to work on and how to do it, in collaboration with the NAR members. Ideas include, but are not limited to:
1. Research:
1. What is peacebuilding?
2. The role of media in peacebuilding throughout Rwanda and the Great Lakes Region. What influence does TV, radio, internet, newspaper, etc play at this level? How much does government influence play a role? What are ways media enhance or detract from peacebuilding?
3. Educationà Is there education for peacebuilding in this region? What does it look like? Can it be formal and non/in-formal? Is it sustainable—that is does it provide the key tools to make peace long lasting? How does it compare to education for peace in your country?
4. Sport as peacebuilder?
5. Local activism versus outsider influence in creating the context for peace and peacebuildingà What role do international development, aid and humanitarian organizations play in peacebuilding? Do they enhance or detract from the goals of peacebuilding?
6. Can peace exist where the economy is weak? How much do market forces influence peacebuilding at a grassroots level?
2. Hands-on Experienceà The intern can get valuable, firsthand experience working with and for an organization that works in peacebuilding, human rights, and social justice at a grassroots level. This will allow the intern to be pro-active and involved; there will also be plenty of time for observation, analysis and critical thinking and discussion. Sometimes the best way to understand is to do, and this will allow the intern to do just that. There are a myriad of local organizations in Rwanda doing this work. NAR is a possibility and NAR often partners with other organizations as well.
1. Ask yourself: What role does the “western-self” play in all these actions and organizations?
Resources:
NAR provides countless resources for international and local scholars, workers and professionals alike. This includes, but is not limited to:
1. Local and national organizers and activists with knowledge of local approaches and contexts. These activists and organizers are also “well-connected” which can help expedite research and work processes.
2. Access to and opportunity to observation of peacebuilding, human rights and social justice “minded” activities.
3. A multimedia library that includes books, tapes, DVDs, VHS, and other functional literature related to peacebuilding, post-conflict societies, development, etc.
4. Rwanda.
Flexibility:
A very important part of the internship is flexibility. The intern will be responsible in determining most of their core work; it also acknowledged that the intern will bring their own expertise and experiences with them and that this will enhance and supplement the work of NAR. Being flexible is a great arbiter of “success.”
Requirements
Duration: This is up to the intern. NAR recommends at least 2 months, but this can be modified to suit needs. The duration does need to be decided upon with application so as to have space.
Costs (as of 13 Nov, 2006 $1usd=550RwF):
* Program fee would be $50 USD for every 2 weeks. This fee will cover resources, salaries and other administrative upkeep costs of the PbC.
* There will be rent and utilities charged interns staying at the PbC. This charge would be no less than $50 USD per month of residence, but no more than $200 at the PbC. This scale is determined based on the number of interns at any particular time. Still, $200/month is less than the approximately $220/month it would take to stay at even the cheapest lodging in Kigali (4000 RwF/night).
o Additional charges for utilities (water, electricity, security, etc) will also depend on the number of interns at one time. This may be around $20-$40/month.
* Other typical costs in Rwanda (on the low-end of the scale):
o Food/Waterà $4-6/day (water in Rwanda is more expensive than soda)
o Internetà $1/hr
o Transportà $.50-1/day (unless using more expensive taxis)
o Miscellaneousà $1/day
References:
Each candidate is required to submit 2 references with their application. Full contact (phone, email, address, title) should be included.
Ideal Candidate:
Anyone from the global south or north interested in being a part of something special and unique in a post-conflict, “developing” society. Fees can be subsidized for candidates from the global south.
- Medical/travelers insurance is an absolute must to come intern at NAR. Proof of Yellow Fever immunization is required upon entry into Rwanda. Consult a travel doctor about the best malaria medication that would suit you.
- Also, please check the visa requirements from your country to Rwanda (e.g. US citizens do not need a visa for up to 90 days of stay in Rwanda).
- THERE IS NO DEADLINE; THERE IS ROLLING ADMISSION**
APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE BY EMAILING JED@NEVERAGAININTERNATIONAL.ORG
CONTACTS
For further questions, or to submit an application, email:
Albert Nzamukwereka, Director Peacebuilding Center and Never Again Rwanda
nzamukwereka2000@yahoo.fr or +250 08350092
Joseph Nkurunziza, Coordinator of Peacebuilding Center and Never Again Rwanda
josephnziza@yahoo.com or +250 08451287
Jed Oppenheim, Assistant to the Director and Coordinator
jed@neveragaininternational.org or +250 08688320
Peacebuilding Centre:
B.P. 4431 Kigali, Rwanda
Tel: +250 576028
neveragain@post.com
www.neveragaininternational.org
