The United Nations in Somalia recently hosted a career fair attended by more than 200 Somali students and members of the civil society.

Organised by the Human Resources Working Group (HRWQ), the career fair aimed to raise awareness about job opportunities and career pathways within the UN system.

Dr Aisa Kirabo Kacyira, Head of United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS), addressed the students highlighting the fairs significance in capacity-building and opening doors to UN careers.

“This is a good step towards capacity building, opening doors and helping you to understand how you can navigate the system to access job opportunities within the UN to serve Somalia, and beyond,” said Dr Kacyira.   

She urged the students to utilise the forum to explore available career opportunities within various UN entities in Somalia, reaffirming the world body’s commitment to a successful transition process, including additional investment in expertise and capacity-building efforts.

“In the end, we are serving one community, which is Somalia. Feel free to ask, engage and interact, and I believe this is only one step into our adventure together,” added Kirabo.

The event was attended by the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia, Catriona Laing; UN Women Representative in Somalia Dr Syed Sadiq; World Food Programme Country Director, El-Khidir Daloum among other representatives from the UN agencies, Federal Government of Somalia, and civil society.

Acknowledging the remarkable progress in Somalia’s state-building, Ms Laing reiterated the UN’s dedication to supporting Somali youth to help better their lives.

“One career route is through working with us at the UN, and there are many routes into that. There are many agencies, funds, and programs all of which are represented here today, which are going to talk and inspire you,” said Ms. Laing.

She emphasised the significance of prioritising careers for individuals aspiring to work for the UN and contribute immensely to the nation’s development progress.

“I look forward in future years to one of you standing here and addressing your colleagues,” added Laing, who also welcomed the role played by national staff in implementing the UN’s mandate in Somalia.

Somalia’s Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs representative, Hodan Omar Mohamed, affirmed that the UN in Somalia has provided platforms with exciting opportunities earmarked for national staff.

“We are here to encourage you to pay attention to these opportunities that the UN is giving you in this event today,” said Hodan.

She added that the ministry strongly supports the UN agencies’ mandate in the country and actively collaborates with them on diverse projects focusing on labour and social protection.

Somalia’s UN Women representative, Dr Syed Sadiq, described the event as a golden opportunity for the women to take advantage of and apply for the available job opportunities in the UN agencies.

Reiterating the UN Secretary-General Antonio Gutterres’ vision for gender inclusivity, Sadiq welcomed the role played by the UN Women in promoting women’s empowerment to bridge the gender gap through equal participation of women in the job market and other disciplines.

“There should not be any restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in every capacity under conditions of equality in the system principles subsidiary organs,” said Sadiq, who virtually opened the second day of the event.

Youths from various tertiary institutions including Hormuud, Zam Zam, Hope, Horseed, Jamhuriya, SomBridge, Salaam, University of Somalia and Mogadishu University were oriented on the UN’s recruitment modalities, competencies, vacancy announcements, applications processes, as well as interviews and selection methods among others.

Maryan Ali, a graduate of Mogadishu Aviation College said the career fair had broadened her knowledge and understanding of UN careers and how to improve one’s chances of being employed by various agencies.

“I have learned a lot, including how to build my resume, networking with agencies and explore career opportunities, as well as interview techniques. I look forward to contributing to the development of my country,” stated Maryan, who dreams of being a flight operator.

Participant Abdi Aden Mohamed, currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in social sciences and public administration at Hope University, urged the UN to hold similar events in other towns to enable more youth to participate.

“The programme is important because it creates job opportunities and provides the platform where students and the community interact in promoting social development.”

The two-day event, which involved both physical and virtual sessions, provided an opportunity for representatives of various UN agencies to interact with the students and members of the civil society.

“The UN has different tools and principles like the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the UN Convention on the Persons with Rights to Disabilities, which are great tools that support PWDs (People Living With Disabilities) within the world,” said Mohamed AbdiSalam Diriye, the Chairperson of the Somalia Disability Empowerment Network (SODAN).

In his closing remarks, Mohamed Abdullahi, the National Staff Union President urged students to be proactive in seeking job opportunities offered by the UN.

“Let us work together and learn, keep applying and learning, do not lose hope.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS).