Protection Specialist (Legal Analyst)

Danish Refugee Council (DRC) has been operating in Ukraine since 2014 and is currently scaling up its operation in Ukraine to deliver lifesaving assistance and emergency response to people affected by the war.

Overall purpose of the role:

The Protection Specialist (Legal Analyst) supports the Programme Manager in leading, coordinating and overseeing all legal research and analysis works within the PSPU project. The legal focus in project is to provide support of local youth in improving their skills and confidence and local women in increasing their capacity in accessing social benefits within selected local self-governments as well as to support LSGs on the youth policy. The position ensures that high quality legal research and analysis are available for developing awareness raising materials, training program and capacity building initiatives within the project.

The position holder contributes towards research on the employment, taxation, and other legal issues for adolescents, research and analysis on youth policy, coaching DRC lawyers to deliver training and other related activities.

Responsibilities:

Thematic research, legal analysis and reporting

• Responsible for research and analyze law, by-laws, judicial and administrative practices on issues relevant for DRC program operations within the project
• Work in close coordination with the Programme Manager to ensure that research, analysis, drafting, editing and publishing of all project related materials comply with DRC standards and are completed on time
• Provide legal analysis on youth policy-related information and analytics, responsible for drafting and designing research on youth policy and programmes
• Draft and review raising awareness materials and training products on legal issues of adolescents and on supporting local youth groups to develop and implement small-scale initiatives and have a platform for engagement with local authorities and the broader civil society
• Coach lawyers on project-related thematic legal issues within designed training programs and project developments
• Responsible for providing thematic input for project donor reporting
• Conduct research and analysis and thematic reports on issues assigned by the Program Manager
• Provide legal and conflict context analysis to any DRC program as assigned by the Program Manager
• Responsible for drafting legal opinion, in consultation with the program manager, sought by donor or other external partners
• Contribute to preparation of questionnaires and other tools for needs assessment in the relevant area if needed
• Draft or review literature used for training

Coordination, representation training and advocacy

• Create and maintain a network of major advocacy stakeholders at the local, regional and national level on thematic areas assigned by the program manager
• Coordinate work with field lawyers to observe the trends, gather data and facts for advocacy
• Conduct field visits if necessary
• Support communication and coordination with relevant DRC departments, programmes, and Implementing Partners if necessary
• Represent DRC in humanitarian, public and private forums as assigned by the Program Manager
• Lead DRC youth-related advocacy initiatives
• Undertake other advocacy initiatives assigned by the Program Manager  
• Perform as a resource person for training programmes and drafting training materials
• Ensure youth-related advocacy integration with other DRC sectors
• Support the team in carrying out monitoring and evaluation exercises
• Collaborate with field lawyers to conduct pilot cases and strategic litigation
• Attend Project Consortium meetings for collaboration and coordination within legal research and analysis on youth and women’s empowerment
• Cooperate with relevant focal points inside Project consortium on regular and ad-hoc basis

Key stakeholders: 

• UN Agencies
• Other humanitarian actors and coordination mechanisms
• Relevant ministries (of internal affairs, social welfare, etc.)
• Local communities in Moldova hosting refugees from Ukraine
• Builds networks of key informants and stakeholders in the region
• Establishes and maintains coordination with regional and local authorities focusing
• Represents DRC in advocacy-related national and regional fora
• Liaises with key (inter)national NGOs in the country to ensure DRC has up to date information on the humanitarian coordination and response in the region.

Experience and technical competencies: 

• Minimum 3 years of practical experience in legal sector
• Technical expertise in youth policy and women empowerment promotion and strengthening LSGs in development and supporting of local youth
• Strong background in public international law
• Complete knowledge of the conflict and displacement related legal policy and political developments of the last four years
• Strong skill on critical analysis of law
• Advanced written skill in English
• Representation and public speaking skill in English
• Experience of and strong skills in developing and implementing project strategies and advocacy campaigns
• Experience in producing high-quality technical and advocacy material (training material, programme tools, proposals, advocacy and strategic documents etc.)

Education: 

• Strong analytical skill
• Excellent public speaking skill
• Advanced writing skills in English
• University degree in International Law/ Human Rights or higher.
• Deep understanding of the humanitarian architecture
• Excellent writing and editing skills for external audiences (including governments and donors).
• Excellent skills in cooperation and advocacy towards government officials.
• Extensive knowledge of national legislation pertaining to rights of IDPs and conflict-affected population.
• Good knowledge of human rights and international humanitarian law.

We offer

Length of contract: 12 months (funding driven)

Designation of Duty Station: Kyiv

Start Date: April 2023

Application process

All applicants must upload a cover letter and an updated CV (no longer than four pages) in English. Applications sent by email will not be considered.

Closing date for applications: 27 March January 2023