Assistant Protection Officer

UNOPS

May 21, 2020 (3 years ago) 0 Comments



Organizational Context

Starting in 2015, East Harage and West Harage zones experienced conflict induced humanitarian crisis in various parts of the zones mostly along the lowland woredas, bordering the Somali region. These conflict-induced displacements hit their climax in September 2017 when a huge number of ethnic Oromos were displaced from urban cities of Somali region and Somaliland which left over 400,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in both zones until end of February 2019.  Following the changes in the federal and regional governments since 2018, relative peace has been observed across some areas at the borders of Oromia and Somali regions due to the peace building process, and this has contributed to return of most of the border IDPs to their areas of origin, since March 2019. Over 253,000 IDPs returned to areas along the Somali-Oromia border by the end of July 2019. 

UNCHR will start conducting protection monitoring missions in the areas affected by displacement including IDP and IDP returnee locations in Dire Dawa, Harar, East Harage and West Harage zones. The protection monitoring will be linked with protection services to be provided on the ground. Protection monitoring in the context of internal displacement involves collecting, verifying and analysing information in order to identify violations of rights and protection threats and risks encountered by IDPs and returnees for the purpose of informing effective responses. Protection monitoring seeks to identify and measure events, trends and changes in the protection situation over a period of time.  Protection monitoring includes considerations of gender and age and any other individual or collective characteristic vis-à-vis risks of and violations of rights and protection threats and risks encountered. Protection monitoring teams will receive information from a range of community members of different ages and genders, in line with the principle of Do No Harm, and will potentially contribute to ensuring access to basic services, the prevention, mitigation and response to gender-based-violence.

The Assistant Protection Officer reports to the Head of Office or Respective Officer. The incumbent will have supervisory responsibility for protection staff including protection assistants and Information management. He/she provides functional protection guidance to information management and program staff; and monitors protection standards, operational procedures and practices in protection delivery in line with international standards.

The Assistant Protection Officer is expected to: coordinate quality, timely and effective protection responses to the needs of populations of concern; and identify opportunities to mainstream protection methodologies and integrate protection safeguards in operational responses in all sectors.  He/she contributes to designing a comprehensive protection strategy and represents the organization externally on protection doctrine and policy as guided by the supervisor. 

He/she also ensures that persons of concern are involved with the Office in making decisions that affect them, whether in accessing their rights or in identifying appropriate solutions to their problems. To achieve this, the incumbent will need to build and maintain effective interfaces with communities of concern, local authorities and protection and assistance partners.  

 

Accountability

  • The protection of populations of concern is met through the application of International and National Law, relevant UN/UNHCR protection standards and IASC principles.
  • Protection activities are guided by the protection strategy and respect the policy of UNHCR on age, gender and diversity (AGD).
  • The participation of persons of concern is assured through continuous assessment and evaluation using participatory, rights and community-based approaches.
  • Protection incidents are immediately identified and addressed

 

Responsibility

  • Stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that have an impact on the protection environment;
  • Consistently apply International and National Law and applicable UN/UNHCR and IASC policy, standards and codes of conduct;
  • The incumbent will lead protection monitoring teams to one or two sites or collective centres a day, depending on size of site/centres, distance between locations, and the security situation from Tuesday to Thursday and complete assessments using the protection monitoring tools developed by UNHCR;
  • As the Team Leader of this Protection monitoring project, he/she will coordinate the protection monitoring team deciding where monitoring missions will take place in collaboration with the Head of Office;
  • On Fridays, the protection monitoring teams under the leadership of the Assistant Protection Officer will conduct analysis on the basis of the information gathered, draft a report with key protection finds and key actions identified for various sectors.
  • The incumbent will be responsible for drafting the bi-weekly protection reports for the area of concern and any adhoc reports per the direction of management. The information within these reports will often be shared with partners and donors through the National Protection Cluster.
  • Protection mainstreaming and working with other Clusters that provide feedback to the Protection Cluster on challenges and opportunities in order to implement targeted monitoring and advocacy.
  • Implementing protection monitoring using both paper-based forms and mobile devices (Kobo) provided by UNHCR. Training on the use of Kobo will be provided by UNHCR;
  • Establishing and maintaining coordination with a governmental focal point (liaison) in each woreda with returnee population;
  • Supporting the establishment and training for community members on referral pathways, including GBV;
  • Referring identified cases in need of protection response, as per referral pathways, where case management systems already exist, and helping the establishment of systems, where they do not yet exist; Identifying child protection and GBV concerns;
  • Supporting the establishment of a complaints and feedback mechanism in coordination with the PSEA network (Chaired by UN Women) and the Protection Cluster in Dire Dawa and sometimes Jijiga. Supporting the usage of community-based complaints mechanisms where complaints are channelled through elders and kebele leaders;
  • Implement and monitor Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection/solutions activities.
  • Contribute to the design, implementation and evaluation of protection related AGD based programming with implementing and operational partners.
  • Contribute to and facilitate a program of results-based advocacy with sectorial and/or cluster partners.
  • Contribute to capacity-building initiatives for communities and individuals to assert their rights.
  • Participate in initiatives to capacitate authorities, relevant institutions and NGOs to strengthen national protection related legislation and procedures.
  • Carrying out other duties as assigned by his/her supervisor and management.

 

Authority

  • Intervene with authorities on protection issues.
  • Decide priorities for reception, interviewing and counseling for groups or individuals.
  • Enforce compliance of staff and implementing partners with global protection policies and standards of professional integrity in the delivery of protection services.
  • Enforce compliance with, and integrity of, all protection standard operating procedures.
  • Recommend and prepare payments to individual cases

 

Essential Minimum Qualifications and Experience

  • Education: University degree in Law, International Law, political Sciences or related field; Graduate degree (equivalent of a Master’s) or Doctorate degree (equivalent of a PhD) may also be accepted.
  • Job Experience: Minimum 1-year relevant professional experience
  • Excellent knowledge of English, working knowledge of local language and good knowledge of local institutions

 

Managerial and Cross Functional Competencies

  • Judgement and Decision Making
  • Analytical Thinking
  • Negotiation and Conflict Resolution

 

Desirable Qualifications & Competencies

  • Diverse field experience in Protection is desirable
  • Good IT skills including database management skills, excellent report writing skills and Protection programming
  • Completion of Protection Learning Programme, Trainers Program on PLP, AGD and other pertinent programs
  • Knowledge of additional UN Languages

 

Submission of Applications 

This vacancy is open for qualified Ethiopians only. Female candidates are encouraged to apply.

UNHCR is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

 

IMPORTANT

Applicants who wish to be considered for this position should send a motivation letter the P11 Form and or the most recent fact sheet through the online application system.

Candidates may be required to sit for a test.

Due to the volume of applications only short-listed candidates will be invited for interview. 

 

 

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