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Assc Field Officer (Prot)

Cox's Bazaar

  • Organization: UNHCR - United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
  • Location: Cox's Bazaar
  • Grade: Level not specified - Level not specified
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Civil Society and Local governance
    • Protection Officer (Refugee)
  • Closing Date: Closed

This vacancy is advertised in the frame of the US JPO Programme and is only open to candidates with US nationality. Violence and serious human rights violations in Myanmar triggered the largest influx of refugees-as of 25 August 2017, over 650,000 people have fled from Myanmar to Bangladesh, joining some 33,000 registered refugees in refugee camps and an estimated 274,500 unregistered refugees living in make-shift settlements. The new arrivals bring the total number of refugees to some 900,000 across 30 camps. Bangladesh has seen the de facto establishment of what will be the largest and probably the most densely refugee camp in the world, with space and access constraints severely hindering the provision of assistance and of protection. The refugee camps are located in two sub-districts or Upazila of Cox's Bazar, namely Ukhiya and Teknaf.

UNHCR Office in Bangladesh has been mobilizing efforts to support the Government in identifying the needs and protection concerns of the refugees, as well as capacitating partners on the ground to scale up interventions. According to multiple needs assessment and protection monitoring analyses, gaps exist in creating an enabling environment to; ensure overall safety and security of refugees; promote safe and systematic reporting and referrals of protection incidents; as well as coordinated responses. The operation has also been structured in a way that maintains and further enhances an integrated approach across all functions, including field, protection and technical functions.

As Protection Sector Lead, UNHCR coordinates and promotes the implementation of its mandate with various relevant stakeholders in order to provide protection and assistance to the hundreds of women, men, boys and girls who continue to arrive in Bangladesh and live under very compelling human and protection conditions. UNHCR will continue to boost its presence and operations to match the scale and complexity of this still fluid and evolving refugee crisis. In the second half of 2018, UNHCR expanded its protection monitoring and community based protection programmes to eight additional sites- responding to the gaps and needs of refugees there. UNHCR¿s protection programmes are currently operational in 24 Camps, working with some 20 national and international partners. In the current structure, an increased protection capacity is needed to scale up protection monitoring and presence in the refugee camps, especially in the eight sites of expansion.

The Associate Field Officer (Protection), part of the Protection team, will monitor protection standards, operational procedures and practices in protection delivery in line with international standards in a number of camps, in close coordination with local authorities and in support of protection partners. The position is instrumental to plan, lead and coordinate quality, timely and effective protection responses to the needs of populations of concern. This includes ensuring that operational responses in all sectors are shaped in a protection optic, mainstream protection methodologies and integrate protection safeguards. Another important function of the position is to ensure 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.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT.

The Associate Field Officer (Protection) is part of the Protection Unit in the Sub-Office and reports to the Protection Officer. The incumbent has direct supervisory responsibility for part of the protection staff and supports the application of protection standards, operational procedures and practices in protection delivery at the field level. He/she liaises with protection partners and local authorities on the delivery of the protection strategy and programmes at the field level.

The Associate Field Officer (Protection) contributes to designing a comprehensive protection strategy, in particular by ensuring that it is based on consultations and actual needs of persons of concern. Through protection monitoring, he/she provides timely analysis on the protection situation in the field, highlighting important political, social, military and economic developments affecting the protection of persons of concern. The incumbent is thus relied upon by the Sub-Office to plan and undertake quality, timely and effective responses to the needs of populations of concern. To achieve this, the incumbent will build daily contacts with persons of concern, authorities, protection and assistance partners as well as a broader network of stakeholders who can contribute to enhancing protection.

The Associate Field Officer (Protection) will be expected to coordinate and oversee field level protection activities of the protection colleagues acting as focal points in the camps, participate in key meetings and discussions in the field with authorities, partners and refugees, identify intervention priorities as well as coach and build staff and partner capacity. Thus, he/she will need to have demonstrated field protection experience, preferably in a refugee camp setting; good interpersonal/ communication and coordination skills to work in a highly complex inter-agency context; decision making ability; and, excellent drafting skills in English. Due to the complexity and fast-pace of the operation including daily challenges, the candidate must be highly flexible and adaptable. He/she should be an advocate of protection and gender mainstreaming. Previous work experience with refugees in the field of protection monitoring, child protection, SGBV, and/or counter-trafficking would be an asset.

2.2 FUNCTIONAL STATEMENT.

Accountability
- The protection needs of populations of concern are met through the application of International and National Law, relevant UN/UNHCR protection standards and IASC principles.
- Effective and timely support is provided to the formulation of a clear and coherent protection strategy, which incorporates a thorough age, gender and diversity (AGD) analysis and reflects the Organization¿s global, regional and country level priorities.
- The Participation of persons of concern is assured through continuous assessment and evaluation using participatory, rights and community based approaches.
- Protection incidents and gaps in assistance are immediately identified and addressed.
-Government and partners are capacitated to identify and respond to protection risks and incidents.

Responsibility
- Stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that have an impact on the protection environment and provide advice to senior management.
- Support UNHCR¿s consultative process with local government counterparts, partners and persons of concern for effective needs assessment and planning.
- Facilitate UNHCR¿s responses in addressing Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) priorities and other specific protection needs of women and men, children, youth and older persons, persons with disabilities, minority groups such as sexual minorities and persons living with HIV/AIDS.
- Manage individual protection cases including those on SGBV and child protection.
- Monitor the integrity of UNHCR operations management standards and procedures in the AOR and facilitate the respect of deadlines.
- Maintain protection presence through regular field missions and reports, making direct contact with persons of concern, host communities, local authorities and partners.
- Monitor and report on the protection, security and safety situation of persons of concern.
- Facilitate and monitor programmes on an AGD basis to address identified protection needs.
- Support communities in establishing representation and coordination structures. Promote confidence building and conflict resolution among populations of concern, authorities and host communities.
- Provide advice and guidance on protection issues to internal and external interlocutors; ensure legal assistance is accessible to persons of concern; liaise with competent authorities to ensure the issuance of personal and other relevant documents and services to persons of concern.
- Intervene in cases of refoulement, expulsion, arbitrary deprivation of nationality, and other protection incidents through close working relations with governments and other partners.
- Assess all durable solutions needs and where relevant, apply priorities for the resettlement of individuals and groups of refugees and other persons of concern.
- Support the effective systematization and management of data to enhance monitoring, response and evaluation mechanisms.
- Contribute to initiatives to build the capacity of Government actors, local partners and civil society through training and other initiatives to protect persons of concern.

Authority
- Endorse field protection documents for submission to senior management.
- Chair protection meetings with partners.
- Intervene with authorities on protection issues.
- Enforce compliance with, and integrity of, standard operating procedures.
- Negotiate with local counterparts, partners and populations of concern.

ESSENTIAL MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE REQUIRED. 

EDUCATION/QUALIFICATION:
Graduate degree (equivalent of a Master's) obtained in a recognised institution (listed under www.whed.net), plus minimum 2 years of relevant professional work experience. An undergradute degree (equivalent of a Bachelor's) plus 3 years or a Doctorate degree (equivalent to a PhD) plus 1 year may also be accepted.

Fields: International Law, Political Science, or other clearly related fields.


WORK EXPERIENCE: Job Experience relevant to the function.


SKILLS:
- Diverse field operational experience.
- Good IT skills including database management skills.
- Proven communication skills, both oral and written.
- Demonstrated knowledge of community communication and engagement approaches.
- Understanding of and demonstrated competencies in forced displacement and protection.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS & COMPETENCIES. 

Experience in coordination/coordinating diverse protection interventions (legal, SGBV, Child Protection) with Government and partners would be an asset. REQUIRED COMPETENCIES

Managerial Competencies              

M002: Managing Performance
M003: Judgement and Decision Making

Code Cross-Functional Competencies     
X001: Analytical Thinking
X005: Planning and Organizing
X007: Political Awareness LANGUAGE KNOWLEDGE
Please indicate languages required (Official UN Languages: English, French, Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Arabic)

- Essential: English,     
Desirable: Working knowledge of any other UN language (French, Spanish, Chinese, Russian or Arabic) SUPERVISION: The JPO will be under the direct supervision of the manager indicated under `Supervisor title and position number¿.  The supervisor will be responsible for the performance evaluation of the JPO. The manager will also ensure that the JPO is provided a thorough induction and orientation briefing, followed by on-the-job training as well as continuous guidance for training/learning opportunities throughout the assignment. In support to the manager, the JPO Unit provides the Supervisory Guidelines upon recruitment/reassignment of the JPO. TRAINING COMPONENTS AND LEARNING ELEMENTS

TRAINING COMPONENTS:
- Mandatory training courses:
1. Basic Security in the Field (NB: needs to be retaken every 3 years)
2. Advanced Security in the Field  (NB: needs to be retaken every 3 years)
3. Protection Induction Programme (PIP)
4. UN Course on Harassment, Sexual Harassment and Abuse of Authority
5.    Orientation to IPSAS

The incumbent will have  be expected to design or facilitate the delivery of internal training/capacity building activities organized by UNHCR. S/he will have access to apply to learning programmes organized by UNHCR¿s Global Learning Centre, including Protection Learning Programme as well as other local/regional learning opportunities.


LEARNING ELEMENTS
Please indicate what the incumbent will learn during the assignment, defined in measurable results through applied skills or demonstrated competencies and specified per year.

The incumbent will gain a comprehensive understanding and knowledge of the various aspects of `protection in action¿ in refugee camp context, including a thorough understanding of UNHCR¿s protection mandate, standards and procedures.  S/he will strengthen analytical skills, as well as gain a solid understanding and experience in protection planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of UNHCR projects. The incumbent will also be involved in coordination of other actors within other protection areas (access to civil documentation, legal, SGBV, Child and Community Based Protection) and fora-building networking, advocacy and consensus building skills. LIVING CONDITIONS AT THE DUTY STATION

Housing/accommodation: International staff are able to rent apartments as well as stay in UNDSS cleared hotels suitable for longer-term arrangement. 

Health care: Limited medical facilities are available, which are not up to the international standard. Serious cases to be treated out of country (medical evacuation).

Educational facilities: Limited facilities are available, which are not up to the international standard

Security: Phase 3

Other (transports, banks, etc): Bangladesh has a subtropical monsoon climate characterized by wide seasonal variations in rainfall, high temperatures and humidity. There are three distinct seasons: a hot, humid summer from March to June; a cool, rainy monsoon season from June to October; and a cool, dry winter from October to March. 
Cox¿s Bazaar is a `D¿ category duty station.  Even though it is a family duty station, educational facilities are limited, international school from primary to secondary school are available in Dhaka. There are no satisfactory health services available.  There are some private hospitals in Dhaka which could address simple sicknesses. Malaria risk exists throughout the year, Cox¿s Bazaar is a high risk area. Very basic infrastructure as well as leisure and recreational facilities are available.International staff benefit from Rest of Recuperation (R & R) every 8 weeks.  Place of R&R is Bangkok, however staff may travel where they wish to travel up to cost to Bangkok. There are domestic flights available from/to Dhaka on a daily basis.There are UNDSS cleared hotels available, the rates differ depending on the availability and season.There are few banks or ATM machines available in Cox¿s Bazar. Most major credit and debit cards are accepted in hotels, restaurants and larger shops. Foreign currency can be exchanged easily in banks and exchange houses. Please note that the closing date for applications for this position is Sunday 7 April (midnight Geneva time).
This vacancy is now closed.
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