Normally UN interns are unpaid and have to find their own accommodation, food and travel expenses.

But after a campaign led by Wolverhampton doctor and ex-intern Dr Ashton Barnett-Vanes, the World Health Organisation based in Geneva has agreed to provide full financial support for interns by no later than 2020.

It aims to ensure that 50% of interns come from developing countries by 2022.

Ashton spent six years rallying the international community before eventually working with ministers across the Caribbean and Africa to persuade the UN member states to reach the agreement.

“This change could see more than 500 young people each year from developing countries receive professional training that they can invest back into their communities,” Aston told the BBC.

More about this story on the BBC website.