The Junior Professional Officer (JPO) Programme
For more than 30 years, the JPO Programme has constituted an important and flexible tool of the ILO to attract and retain young talented professionals. The programme reflects the interests and priorities of different partner countries that fund young professionals for a duration of 2-3 years. It offers on-the-job training opportunities to young professionals, provides them with a unique opportunity to discover the UN system and enhances the source of potential future talents for the Organisation.
Currently there are 30-40 JPOs assigned worldwide (to ILO field offices, decent work teams and/or DC projects) and at Headquarters (with interregional projects, research activities and/or programming work). A JPO usually has a Master’s degree in combination with some years of working experience. Most are recruited at P1/P2 level and the specifics of the desired profiles are defined by the donor.
The selection of positions is usually carried-out by the national Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the donor country. The vacancies are mostly advertised through ministry websites, and the assessment and selection of candidates is done jointly between the Ministry and the ILO.
List of current partner countries to the ILO JPO Programme:
Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, The Republic of Korea, The Netherlands, Norway, People's Republic of China, Portugal, Spain, Sweden.