The International Water Management Institute (IWMI), a CGIAR Research Center, is seeking a dynamic individual interested in developing a career in communications and knowledge management within research for development. The internship will be based at IWMI Headquarters in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Scope of internship

The intern will support the IWMI Publications unit with cataloging, inventory list maintenance, workflow coordination, proofreading, referencing, and other related tasks. They will work closely with IWMI’s publications team, and gain exposure to publications workflow coordination, covering a variety of skills such as resource management, project management, and office administration. During the internship period, the intern will also gain insight into working with people from different countries and cultures. The intern will gain practical, hands-on experience in cataloging, organizing, and maintaining a publications archive in a real operational environment. They will also receive structured exposure to the institute’s end-to-end publications workflow, including intake, quality checks, production steps, coordination with consultants, and delivery. In addition, the role provides opportunities to learn essential project coordination skills such as tracking tasks, monitoring progress, identifying bottlenecks, and coordinating effectively with editors and designers.

The intern will assist in the following areas:

• Organize and maintain IWMI’s physical publications archive, ensuring proper classification, labeling, and storage of materials for easy retrieval.
• Apply consistent naming and filing standards.
• Update and maintain IWMI’s publications database/inventory to accurately record each publication and the quantity of stock available in storage.
• Provide general administrative support to the publications team.
• Support the publications workflow.

Requirements

• Undergraduates or recent graduates specializing in the fields of Library & Information Science, Records Management, Administration, or a related field.
• Familiarity with bibliographic data and publication formats.
• Experience in cataloging, archiving, or database management will be an advantage.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
• Ability to work with a multicultural team.

Benefits

IWMI will provide a monthly stipend to the selected candidate during the internship period.

The duration of this internship contract will be 6 months, with the possibility of extension.

This is a nationally recruited internship and only citizens of Sri Lanka are eligible to apply. To apply, visit www.iwmi.org/jobs. Applications must be submitted by 24:00 (Colombo time) on April 02, 2026 (Thursday).

The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) is an international, research-for-development organization that works with governments, civil society and the private sector to solve water problems in developing countries and scale up solutions. Through partnership, IWMI combines research on the sustainable use of water and land resources, knowledge services and products with capacity strengthening, dialogue and policy analysis to support implementation of water management solutions for agriculture, ecosystems, climate change and inclusive economic growth. Headquartered in Colombo, Sri Lanka, IWMI is a CGIAR Research Center with offices in 17 countries and a global network of scientists operating in more than 55 countries. www.iwmi.org

IWMI believes that diversity powers our innovation, contributes to our excellence, and is critical for our mission. We offer a multi-cultural, multi-color, multi-generational and multi-disciplinary working environment. We are consciously creating an inclusive organization that reflects our global character and our commitment to gender equity. We, therefore, encourage applicants from all cultures, races, ethnicities, religions, sexes, national or regional origins, ages, disability status, sexual orientations, and gender identities.