The UN is on the hunt for translators and interpreters as many of its current staff approach retirement age, Muhammad Shaaban, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for General Assembly and Conference Management told China.org.cn.

Muhammad Shaaban, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for General Assembly and Conference Management [China.org.cn]

Mr. Shaaban is in Beijing to sign a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Beijing Foreign Studies University on training language professionals. He will also attend the International Conference on Translation and Interpretation Education Development.

"In the next twelve years, we'll have 40 percent of translators and 33 to 34 percent of interpreters retiring," he told China.org.cn.

To fill the expected shortfall, the UN has been signing MOUs with universities since 2007. The aim is to enhance the training of language professionals and to ensure that enough qualified candidates will be available to fill vacancies at the United Nations and other international organizations.

So far 18 universities around the world have signed MOUs, covering all six official languages used in the United Nations. The next one scheduled to sign up is Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, which will become the third Chinese university to sign, after Beijing Foreign Studies University and Shanghai International Studies University.

Under the agreements, the UN sends senior translators and interpreters to universities to give lectures, offers internships to the students, and helps adapt curricula to the requirements of the United Nations, the Under-Secretary-General said.

UN interpreters work under great pressure, especially Chinese interpreters, because so few UN delegates speak Chinese. "The idea is that in the Chinese booth in particular, there are three interpreters rather than two in the booth for other languages," Mr. Shaban said.

But Mr. Shaaban said a job at the UN carrying a salary of US$5000 per month plus benefits should still be attractive to Chinese graduates. 

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