Associate Analyst on Women, Peace and Security

Host entity: UNWomen MYS

Volunteer type: National

Areas of expertise: Education, Communication, advocacy, public information, Climate change, environment

Application deadline: 11/11/2026

Mission and objectives

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

Assignment context

The UN Volunteer will join the work of the Governance, Peace and Security team of the UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. The volunteer will be based in Kuala Lumpur and support the UN Women’s consultant in Malaysia. This UNV assignment is part of UN Women’s regional project Securing Peace, Advancing Equality: Women, Peace and Security (WPS) in the Indo-Pacific (BRIDGES 4 PEACE), which works with defence institutions in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Timor Leste and Viet Nam to strengthen WPS implementation through: institutional capacity-building, support to women’s leadership, gender adviser training, civil–military dialogue, and climate-responsive security planning in Malaysia. The volunteer will support coordination with national defence and security institutions and civil society, as well as activity logistics and reporting.

Task description

Under the supervision of the Project Manager and in close collaboration with the Malaysia-based consultant, the UN Volunteer will:
Support engagement with the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF).

-Arrange meetings, prepare briefing materials, follow up on agreed actions
-keep track of official correspondence and approvals.
-Support Women, Peace and Security (WPS) work.

Research and summarize relevant policies, data and practice in Malaysia and the region. -Draft short notes, presentations and background papers for the consultant.

Plan and organize project events. This covers workshops, trainings and dialogues.
Tasks include:
-Drafting agendas and invitations, managing participant lists, coordinating venues, travel and suppliers
-preparing materials
-writing meeting summaries

Support the consultant.
-Help with day-to-day coordination, scheduling, note-taking, translation between Malay and English where needed, and preparation of project documents.

Support monitoring and reporting.
-Collect attendance records, feedback and gender-disaggregated data.
-Contribute to progress reports and keep project files up to date.

Support communications.
-Document activities and draft short stories or social media content in line with UN Women and donor visibility rules.

Skills and experience

Must haves

•At least 1 year of experience in project support, coordination or event organization.
•Interest in gender equality and peace and security issues.
•Good writing and organizational skills.
•Working knowledge of Microsoft Office and online meeting platforms.
Assets
•Experience working in/with government or defence institutions.
•Basic knowledge of the Women, Peace and Security agenda.
•Experience with reporting or communications.
Practical requirements
•Based in Kuala Lumpur and able to travel within Malaysia.

Competencies and values

• Adaptability and flexibility
• Creativity
• Judgement and decision-making
• Planning and organising
• Professionalism
• Self-management

Living conditions

Malaysia is an upper-middle-income country, multi-ethnic and multi-religious country in Southeast Asia. Malaysia's population is a mix of three major ethnic groups (Malays, Chinese, and Indians), each with its own heritage, culture, and tradition. Spoken languages are Malay (official), English, Tamil, and Chinese (Cantonese).

English is taught as a second language in schools and is mandatory; hence, English is frequently used by the population.

Malaysia's official religion is Islam, with a majority of the population (Malays, mostly) practicing the religion, followed by other religions such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, and others. The UN office is located in Putrajaya, which is approximately 40 kilometres away from the capital city, Kuala Lumpur.

Putrajaya is a planned city which functions as the administrative capital and the judicial capital of Malaysia. Both Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya are well-developed urban cities, making it easy to access accommodations, transportation, and facilities. The accommodation facilities are, in general, good with a range of choices, with easy access to the UN office.

It is possible to rent unfurnished and furnished accommodations from 800 to 3000 MYR, depending on the areas in KL and Putrajaya. Transportation in Kuala Lumpur is diverse and efficient, offering an extensive network of buses, light rail commuter trains, and metered taxis; however, transportation in Putrajaya is only limited to public buses and taxis. Another popular transportation mode in both cities is by using Grab, similar to metered taxis but using personal cars instead. You can install the Grab application on your phone and use the service anywhere in Malaysia. As this is a national UN Volunteer assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing and other living essentials.

Full eligibility requirements, conditions of service and application instructions are available on the official UNV platform.