Protection assistant - Misrata

Background/IRC Summary:

The International Rescue Committee responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, IRC offers life-saving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. At work today in more than 40 countries and in 22 U.S. cities, IRC restores safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted by conflict or disaster. IRC leads the way from harm to home.

Following the 2014 civil war, Libya has been divided into two governmental territories. Since the civil war, the protracted political and internal armed conflict has deteriorated the humanitarian situation in Libya. In April 2019, military and armed forces from the parties of the conflict have engaged in armed clashes in Tripoli. Since that day, over 60,000 Libyans and non-Libyans have been displaced, many are still trapped in the active conflict areas, and more than 1 million people in need of life-saving health care and protection services.

The situation, also coupled with Covid-19 pandemic, has impacted the physical and mental well-being and living standards of Libyans, migrants and refugees while exposing them to significant protection risks. The break-down in governance structures has resulted in deterioration of public services, exacerbating existing vulnerabilities and diminishing people’s coping capacities. The country’s capacity of responding the basic needs and the impact of the crisis has been shrunken. Migrants and refugees are especially affected by the prolonged conflict and political instability, the lack of national legal framework providing international protection, arbitrary detention, fear of violence and abuse, movement restrictions as well as the limited number of specialized services providing the protection solutions. Among them, people with disabilities, with mental health issues, children, women, and elderly are particularly vulnerable and at risk in such an environment lacking the protection measures.

In response to the situation in Libya, the IRC launched an emergency program in September 2016 which aimed to provide life-saving medical care and integrated protection services. At present, the IRC is conducting health and protection activities in Tripoli and Misrata, expanding its protection department, with a focus on community-based protection, rule of law, child protection, GBV, and MHPSS across all its project locations.

Job Overview/Summary: 

Under the direct supervision of the WPE Officer, the Protection Assistant will conduct the WGSS activities (recreational and PSS) for the vulnerable IDP and returnee women and girls in Misrata and Tawergha, Libya. The tasks particularly entail the conducting the IRC’s Girl Shine curriculum, identifying the women and girls with specific needs and refer them to WPE Caseworkers, engage the parents to the Parenting Skills and caregiver activities, and keep sound and regular records of the implemented activities as well as the needed.

Key Responsibilities:

·Attend training on implementing the Girl Shine curriculum and receive ongoing capacity building and support.

·Work with a specific segment of girls for a full cycle of curriculum implementation.

·Provide factual information to girls, not opinions, and where there are knowledge gaps, follow up to provide the correct information in upcoming sessions.

·Regularly collect feedback from women and girls to ensure their voices, requests, and opinions are represented during staff meetings.

·Follow up with girls who require referrals, ensure they have access to information, and link them with services as necessary.

·Regularly check in with the WPE Officer to confirm that your availability has not changed and to ensure that your workload is manageable.

·Be present at WGSS on daily basis and prepared to engage in positive way with women and girls

·Take attendance for each session and keep and maintain an attendance and improvement database and shared it with the WPE Officer on a weekly basis.

·Lead activities assigned by the WPE Officer and deliver activity plans based on the WGSS schedule

·Assist the WPE Officer for creating the schedules for daily/weekly activities for Girl Shine beneficiaries

·Conduct regular safety audits at WGSS to ensure the safety measures in place and to identify the needed improvements

·Support Community Outreach Volunteer(s) for safe information dissemination under the supervision of WPE Officer

·Report supply/material needs to the WPE Officer

·Support IMO and provide timely inputs for the project indicators as requested to support quality programming

·Attend the regular weekly and monthly team meetings and provide inputs regarding the achievements and challenges at the field level

Undertake other tasks as requested by the line manager. (The duties and responsibilities listed are representative of the nature and level of work assigned and are not necessarily all inclusive.)

Key Working Relationships:

Position Reports to: WPE Officer

Position directly supervises:N/A

Other Internal and/or external contacts:

Internal: CP Caseworker, WPE Assistant, PIMO, Community Volunteer Volunteers, IRC’s Health Teams, Supply Chain, Access and Security Focal Points     

External:  Local stakeholders, community leaders, Local NGOs and INGOs in coordination/collaboration with the WPE Officer