Associate Protection Officer

Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)

B

FamilyUNOPS LICA9

2023-03-01-08:00April 15, 2023People of different nationalities are currently seeking asylum in Guyana. As a national legal framework on asylum does not exist in Guyana, UNHCR offers the only mechanism in the country to access international protection through the refugee status, under its mandate. UNHCR receives and processes applications, assesses the individual needs of asylum seekers and refugees, counsels them about their stay in Guyana and makes efforts to identify the most suitable durable solution for each case. Additionally, it is estimated that over 24,000 Venezuelan nationals have entered Guyana in search of safety and stability. UNHCR supports governmental efforts to give them access to public services, especially Education and Health; access to documentation and to justice are also important priorities. Initiatives are under consideration, to promote joint projects in the area of livelihoods. The need for accurate data on Venezuelans has been discussed at several levels. The main protection needs relate to the situation of indigenous populations in remote border areas, and that of men and especially women in mining areas, often submitted to labor and/or sexual exploitation, frequently amounting to trafficking in persons. Gender-Based Violence, Child protection, access to a stable legal status, livelihoods and shelter are other important concerns. UNHCR refers or accompanies asylum-seekers, refugees and Venezuelan displaced people, especially those in the most vulnerable situations, to services provided by the government or by other institutions. Partnerships are also established with other organizations to provide support to individuals in situations of vulnerability. According to availability, UNHCR also distributes assistance to the most vulnerable people under its responsibility.

The Associate Protection Officer works under the supervision of the Protection Officer and will be responsible for a variety of tasks related mainly to legal assessments, design and implementation of emergency responses based on needs assessments of people UNHCR serves, improving coordination with governmental institutions, civil society and other UN agencies, as well as liaising with and reporting to supervisory offices and other coordination structures. S/he frequently conducts field missions to get first-hand information on the people UNHCR serves and their situation, strengthen coordination with local authorities, conduct needs assessments and/or directly distribute assistance to beneficiaries. S/he supervises the work of field staff, according to the team’s organization. In collaboration with the rest of the Protection team, s/he works to promote initiatives to consolidate UNHCR collaboration with key governmental institutions and other partners, including the academia, in order to contribute to building the capacity of national institutions and to create a better protection environment to ensure that people in situation of international displacement effectively access rights and services available, in line with international principles and protection standards.

Desired candidate should have:
- Excellent writing and analytical skills;
- Strong interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills;
- Clear understanding of Guyanese legal and institutional framework; ability to build a strong interaction and networking with governmental institutions at the national and local levels, as well as with other relevant organizations.
- Demonstrated understanding of human rights issues in human displacement and humanitarian contexts;
- Knowledge and experience of participatory approaches to engaging with and mobilizing communities;
- Good understanding of protection issues including the application of UNHCR's Age, Gender and Diversity Policy;
- Demonstrated coordination and consensus building skills to manage multiple stakeholder consultation processes;
- Ability to identify and circumvent risks associated with political sensitivities
- Ability to work under significant time pressure and come up with innovative and creative solutions faced with fast-paced changing circumstances.

Candidates will have to sit a complementary written test as a part of the selection process.

Please note that this position is offered under UNOPS LICA contract at LICA-9 level until 31 December 2023, with possible extension subject to budget, good performance and operational needs. Persons interested in applying for this position must be legally present in Guyana at the time of recruitment.

Recruitment as a UNHCR staff member and engagement under a UNHCR affiliate scheme or as an intern is subject to proof of vaccination against Covid-19.

Levels of language knowledge in the application refer to:
A1-beginner
A2-elementary
B1-lower intermediate
B2-upper intermediate
C1-advanced/proficient
C2-fluent

The United Nations in Guyana is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The United Nations recruits and employs staff regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religious, cultural and ethnic backgrounds or disabilities. Reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities may be provided to support participation in the recruitment process when requested and indicated in the application.

 

Standard Job Description

Associate Protection Officer Organizational Setting and Work Relationships The Associate Protection Officer reports to the Protection Officer or the Senior Protection Officer. Depending on the size and structure of the Office, the incumbent may have supervisory responsibility for protection staff including community-based protection registration, resettlement and education. S/he provides functional protection guidance to information management and programme staff on all protection/legal matters and accountabilities. These include: statelessness (in line with the campaign to End Statelessness by 2024), Global Compact on Refugees (GCR) commitments, age, gender, diversity (AGD) and accountability to affected populations (AAP) through community-based protection, Child protection, Gender-Based Violence (GBV) prevention and response, gender equality, disability inclusion, youth empowerment, psycho-social support and PSEA, registration, asylum/refugee status determination, resettlement, local integration, voluntary repatriation, human rights standards integration, national legislation, judicial engagement, predictable and decisive engagement in situations of internal displacement and engagement in wider mixed movement and climate change/disaster-related displacement responses. S/he supervises protection standards, operational procedures and practices in protection delivery in line with international standards. The Associate Protection Officer is expected to coordinate quality, timely and effective protection responses to the needs of populations of concern, ensuring that operational responses in all sectors mainstream protection methodologies and integrate protection safeguards. The incumbent contributes to the design of a comprehensive protection strategy and represents the organization externally on protection doctrine and policy as guided by the supervisor. S/he also ensures that persons of concern are meaningfully engaged in the decisions that affect them and support programme design and adaptations that are influenced by the concerns, priorities and capacities of persons of concern. To achieve this, the incumbent will need to build and maintain effective interfaces with communities of concern, authorities, protection and assistance partners as well as a broader network of stakeholders who can contribute to enhancing protection. All UNHCR staff members are accountable to perform their duties as reflected in their job description. They do so within their delegated authorities, in line with the regulatory framework of UNHCR which includes the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions as well as relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, staff members are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, cross-functional and managerial competencies and UNHCR's core values of professionalism, integrity and respect for diversity. Duties - Stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that have an impact on the protection environment. - Promote International and National Law and applicable UN/UNHCR and IASC policy, standards and codes of conduct. - Foster their consistent and coherent interpretation and application through mainstreaming in all sectors and /or in clusters in applicable operations. - Assist in providing comments on existing and draft legislation related to persons of concern. - Provide legal advice and guidance on protection issues to persons of concern; liaise with competent authorities to ensure the issuance of personal and other relevant documentation. - Conduct eligibility and status determination for persons of concern in compliance with UNHCR procedural standards and international protection principles. - Promote and contribute to measures to identify, prevent and reduce statelessness. - Contribute to a country-level child protection plan as part of the protection strategy to ensure programmes use a child protection systems approach. - Contribute to a country-level education plan. - Implement and oversee Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection/solutions activities which integrate AGD sensitive procedures. - Oversee and manage individual protection cases, including those on GBV and child protection. Monitor, and intervene in cases of refoulement, expulsion and other protection incidents through working relations with governments and other partners. - Recommend durable solutions for the largest possible number of persons of concern through voluntary repatriation, local integration and where appropriate, resettlement. - Assess resettlement needs and apply priorities for the resettlement of individuals and groups of refugees and other persons of concern. - Participate in the organisation and implementation of participatory assessments and methodologies throughout the operations management cycle and promote AGD sensitive programming with implementing and operational partners. - Contribute to and facilitate a programme of results-based advocacy through a consultative process with sectorial and/or cluster partners. - Facilitate effective information management through the provision of disaggregated data on populations of concern and their problems. - Promote and integrate community-based approaches to protection and contribute to capacity-building initiatives for communities and individuals to assert their rights. - Support activities in the area of risk management related to Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, fraud, case-processing, data protection, and human rights due diligence at country level. - Participate in initiatives to capacitate national authorities, relevant institutions and NGOs to strengthen national protection related legislation and procedures. - Intervene with authorities on protection issues. - Negotiate locally on behalf of UNHCR. - Decide priorities for reception, interviewing and counselling 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. - Perform other related duties as required. Minimum Qualifications Years of Experience / Degree Level For P2/NOB - 3 years relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or 2 years relevant experience with Graduate degree; or 1 year relevant experience with Doctorate degree Field(s) of Education Law, International Law, Political Sciences or other relevant field (Field(s) of Education marked with an asterisk* are essential) Certificates and/or Licenses Protection Learning Programme (Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential) Relevant Job Experience Essential Professional experience in the area of refugee protection, internal displacement, human rights or international humanitarian law. Good knowledge of International Refugee and Human Rights Law and ability to apply the relevant legal principles. Desirable Field experience, including in working directly with communities. Good IT skills including database management skills. Functional Skills *PR-Protection-related guidelines, standards and indicators *PR-Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) PR-Gender Based Violence (GBV) Coordination MG-Project Management PR-Human Rights Doctrine/Standards PR-International Humanitarian Law PR-Assessment of IDPs Status, Rights, Obligation PR-Climate change and disaster related displacement CO-Drafting and Documentation (Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential) Language Requirements For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English. For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language. For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English. All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination and abuse of power. As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise. This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.

Required Languages

Spanish

,

English

Desired Languages

,

Additional Qualifications

Skills

Education

BA: International Law (Required), BA: Law (Required), BA: Political Science (Required)

Certifications

HCR Protection Learning Program - UNHCR

Other information

The candidate will need to sit a testThis position doesn't require a functional clearance