Internship Report

Its hard to believe my 3 months internship in Tumen Secretariat‚ UNDP is over and that I am here writing my exit report.

First of all I would like to express my deepest appreciation to all the TS staffs‚ especially the director Ms. Nataliya Yacheistova‚ in providing me assistance during my time in the Secretariat. I would also like to express my gratitude towards Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the United Nations Peace and Development Foundation for recommending and sponsoring me to take part in this intern project.

When I first learned of the existence of this intern project‚ I was informed that I could choose among different working environments. Tumen Secretariat immediately caught my attention. From reading the introduction of the programme‚ I learned that the programme is aimed at fostering and promoting economic cooperation within the Northeast Asia region surrounding Tumen River. The Greater Tumen Initiative (GTI) consists of 5 member countries, People Republic of China‚ Russian Federation‚ Mongolia‚ ROK and DPRK. 

Before my arrival to the Secretariat‚ I thought that I would be working as an intern in either the Transportation or the Environment Department‚ but after my first meeting with my director‚ I was informed that I would be in charge of the Business Advisory Council‚ which later turned out to be an extremely pleasant surprise.

Without proper preparation for such position‚ I was a little concerned that I would not be able to carry out my responsibility well, fortunately with the patience guidance of my predecessor‚ I was able to understand the operation of the council

To briefly introduce the nature of the Business Advisory Council‚ it functions as a bridge connecting the member countries of Greater Tumen Initiative and the private sector to implement communications in between governmental officials and business representatives.  My duty daily was to allocate information in order to help coordinate the BAC members. My responsibilities also included many back stage works such as drafting the council future work plan, maintaining the BAC budget balance, and translating documents.

Considering that many business representatives from BAC would attend the Expo and other activities under its framework, I was kindly invited by Nataliya to join the TS delegate team in Changchun. Surprised and overwhelmingly excited, I soon realized there was also a great deal of responsibility that came with this opportunity.

Much pre-mission work had to be performed before our departure to Changchun, I had to communicate with Jilin Government officials intensely in order to gather information and coordinate our invited guests. During our preparation for the expo, I realized that organizing agenda was a very challenging mission as I had to accommodate the tight schedule of the Jilin government.

After 2 months of preparation, the long awaited expo finally opened. Except for some unexpected tasks I was given to provide interpretation and tours for guests which I handled without much difficulty, almost everything we had planned worked out very smoothly

On the third day in Changchun, we went on a technical tour to the Changbai Mountain, the mountain bordering China and DPRK, organized by the local tourism bureau. When we reached the top of the mountain, I was stunned by the beauty of the mountain.  It was my first time witnessing DPRK which is on the other side of the mountain. At that moment, I was able to genuinely relate with the mission of TS and United Nations to develop and strengthen relationship with all different country in the world, and I am extremely honored to be part of the contributing force of them.

I learned a lot during my time in the TS, and I know that the knowledge I acquired will continue to guide me through different aspects of my life. For example, how to compose letters effectively and prioritize work according to their importance. For these, I would like to once again thank Nataliya for being consistently patient and caring in giving me guidance, and other TS staffs Ms. Xia Gao, Mr. Shu Zhu, Mr. Ruslan Guildov, Ms. Holly Dong and, last but not least, Mr. Bok Chul Song, my personal mentor and also my host family in Beijing.

The United Nations Development Programme-Peace and Development Foundation Internship Programme is a unique opportunity for Hong Kong students to gain experience working at an international organisation, and develop a better understanding of the United Nations and its work. Through this programme, interns will be exposed to UNDP's development activities, thematic priorities, and technical cooperation practices. The Internship Programme is also an opportunity for young people to apply their studies in a practical settings, and acquire skills for their career development.

Other Previous UNDP-PDF Interns:
- 2008 UNDP-PDF Interns
- 2007 UNDP-PDF Interns
- 2006 UNDP-PDF Interns

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