Inter-Agency Coordination Associate, UNOPS LICA - 6

Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)

BFamilyUNOPS LICA62025-01-02October 29, 2024IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
• This position is advertised to internal and external applicants. This position is advertised to internal and external applicants. Candidates must be legally present in Honduras at the time of application, recruitment and hire. Only Honduran citizens or candidates legally present in Honduras will be considered eligible.

• Only short-listed candidates will be notified. The recruitment process might include written test and/or oral interview for this job opening. No late applications will be accepted.

• UNHCR does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing, training or any other fees).

• Remuneration: A competitive compensation and benefits package is offered depending on relevant experience as per the requirements of the job advertisement.

• The evaluation of applicants will be conducted based on the information submitted during the application. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

• UNHCR is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, sexual orientation, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization. UNHCR seeks to ensure that male and female employees are given equal career opportunities. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality.

• 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.

• UNHCR has a zero-tolerance policy against Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (SEA). SEA is unacceptable behavior and prohibited conduct for UNHCR personnel. It constitutes acts of serious misconduct and is therefore grounds for disciplinary measures, including dismissal.

1. General Background
     
According to the HNRP 2024, Honduras faces a multicausal crisis generated by complex social, economic, political, environmental, and human rights scenarios. This diversity of adverse scenarios occurs in a context of widespread violence that exacerbates risks to the population, which requires a constant update of territorial dynamics and differential impacts on women, children, adolescents, older adults, LGBTIQ+ individuals, people with disabilities, people in mobility situations, and Indigenous and Afro-Honduran populations.

The country faces insufficient economic growth, minimal poverty reduction, high levels of informal labor, and structural inequality that disproportionately affects women, children, adolescents, older people, LGBTIQ+ individuals, people with disabilities, people in situations of mobility, and Indigenous and Afro-Honduran populations.

In this context, Honduras has a Humanitarian Architecture composed of 63 organizations and agencies of the United Nations System. This structure responds to four humanitarian shocks: (i) food and nutrition insecurity; (ii) the impacts of generalized violence; (iii) human mobility, including forced displacement, mixed movements, and the return of Hondurans, many of them with protection needs; and (iv) climate change and disasters such as drought, flash floods and more recently El Niño.

UNHCR, as the Protection Cluster's lead agency, has an important role in providing information for strategic decision-making regarding the planning and implementation of the humanitarian response to prioritize and safeguard the well-being and rights of people. The response is carried out by seven sectors currently addressing the impacts of the four prioritized humanitarian shocks in the country.

UNHCR is instrumental in identifying protection priorities that require a comprehensive humanitarian response. This involves collaborating with affected communities, humanitarian and development actors, government institutions, and the private sector, as well as leveraging the expertise and capacities of different actors to address the prioritized risks. The Protection Cluster plays an essential role in addressing the challenges caused by violence and human mobility, including mixed movements and internal displacement. At the local level, UNHCR is currently leading three Local Teams in Honduras. The South-Eastern Border Local Team and Western Border Local Team are primarily focused on responding to people in mixed movements and host communities at entry and exit points. Meanwhile, the Valle del Sula Local Team is responsible for covering the northern region of the country, which is affected by violence, forced displacement, and multiple crises. These local coordination mechanisms facilitate an agile, coordinated response and timely protection analysis, avoid duplication, and foster synergies.

Considering the above, the desirable candidate profile for this position has knowledge, skills, and understanding of:

- Protection of internal displaced persons,
- Protection monitoring systems and solid ability to draft/produce regular and targeted/thematic reports.
- Strategic advocacy on protection issues at different levels and for various audiences.
- Human rights and humanitarian laws and principles, IASC standard operating procedures for IDP profiling, and related UNHCR and IASC legal standards and protection policies.
- Working with local governments.
- Experience working with authorities, partners, local and international organizations and participating in inter-agency forums.
- Proven working experience with diverse communities' structures, e.g., women, children & youth, LGBTIQ+, and ethnic minorities affected by internal forced displacement and violence in high-risk areas is highly desired.

2. Purpose and Scope of Assignment

All UNHCR affiliates are accountable for performing their duties as reflected in their terms of reference. They do so within their delegated authorities, which aligns with the UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions on Managing the Affiliate Workforce and relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, affiliates are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, and cross-functional competencies and UNHCR’s core values of professionalism, integrity, and respect for diversity.

The Inter-Agency Coordination Associate is a member of the Protection Unit and reports to the Protection Cluster Coordination Officer. The incumbent receives regular guidance and advice from the supervisor and participates in all meetings/working groups related to the Humanitarian Architecture in Honduras.

Duties and responsibilities:

- Support the Protection Cluster Coordination Officer and act as a bridge between the Inter-Sector, the Sectors/Sub-sectors, and the Task Forces.
- Contribute to implementing comprehensive coordination strategies and empowering coordination mechanisms under the Protection Cluster vision, plan, and guidance.
- Support the Protection Cluster Coordination Officer in preparing strategies, work plans, budgets, and other planning documents.
- Support to optimize complementarity between the Inter-Sector and Sectors/Sub-sector activities by supporting building on a series of common processes.
- Support promoting consistency in coordination standards and capacity between/among Sectors/Sub-sectors.
- Ensure cross-cutting issues, including gender equality programming, are appropriately reflected in Sectors/Sub-sector activities.
- Coordinate, identify, process, and elevate relevant topics/issues to the Protection Cluster Coordinator, referring to UNHCR policy decisions and guidance when needed.
- Coordinate quality, timely, and effective support to the Inter-Sector and Sectors/Sub-sectors, ensuring that gender equality and gender with age marker are part of the working/sub-working group’s agendas and work plans.
- Act as the information management focal point with the duty to collect and compile data on activities, analyze and present information on the sector activities in a concise manner, and support the Protection Cluster Coordination Officer in writing specific reports as narratives and infographics.
- Facilitate the flow of information between the Inter-Sector and Sectors/Sub-sectors, update and maintain the relevant pages at the UNHCR information sharing portal and other support coordination tools of the Inter-Sector and Sectors/Sub-Sectors, including the calendar of meetings, upload documents, update sector-relevant information, and member information.
- Support the Protection Cluster Coordination Officer in organizing presentations, events, workshops, and training in accordance with their work plans and strategies.
- Encourage consistency in Inter-Sector and Sector/Sub-sector coordination standards, minimize duplication, and develop synergies between them.
- Perform other related duties as required.

3. Monitoring and Progress Controls

The UNOPS Contractor will be required to:

Facilitate the strategic direction and coordination of the Protection Cluster through the provision of analysis, organization, and reporting; impartially represent the interests of the members of the Protection Cluster, and the subnational-level protection clusters.

- Convene and facilitate Protection Cluster meetings, ensuring that meetings are consultative and results oriented. At least one regular bimonthly meeting will be guaranteed, and ad hoc sessions on technical issues and with relevant stakeholders will be established when required.

- Promote the centrality of protection in the overall humanitarian response throughout the humanitarian program cycle, including through a timely and comprehensive protection analysis and recommendations for action. Progress on this objective will be reported at each meeting.

Ensure that the Protection Cluster produces analytical protection reports, regular updates, and briefing notes on the protection concerns of the affected populations, response activities, challenges, and recommendations, including for the HC, HCT, and other stakeholders.

- Lead and coordinate protection needs assessments, including participatory assessments of all affected populations within the Protection Cluster or at the inter-cluster level. At least four protection assessments will be produced annually.

Provide training and guidance to sufficiently mainstream protection across clusters and sectors.

- Coordinate and contribute to initiatives, including the delivery of protection training activities, to build the protection capacity of, among other things, Protection Cluster members, national and local authorities, external partners, and civil society. At least one training plan every three months will be prioritized.

- Ensure capacity building in preparedness and contingency planning.

4. Qualifications and Experience

a. Education
     
International Law, Political Science, Social Science, International Relations, Communication or other related field.

b. Work Experience

3 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 2 years relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Relevant Job Experience:

Essential:
Knowledge of UNHCR and interagency policies, standards, programmes and humanitarian operations in operational context. Demonstrated coordination and inter-personal skills. Drafting skills and strong ability to collect, analyze, and communicate information in written/oral formats.

Desirable:

Solid experience in humanitarian coordination (including but not limited to interagency coordination) is an asset. Emergency response experience is an asset. Previous experience in intersectorial collaboration is an asset. Strong computer skills – with a preference for ability to use Excel, Powerpoint, Publisher, etc. Some knowledge of data base design and management will be an asset.

Language Requirements:
Spanish level: C2 (required)
English level: B2 (desirable).  

Functional Skills:

IT-Computer Literacy
DM-Database Design & Development
CO-Drafting and Documentation
EX-Experience in the corporate sector

c. Key Competencies
(Technical knowledge, skills, managerial competencies or other personal competencies relevant to the performance of the assignment. Clearly distinguish between required and desired competencies)
     
Core Competencies:
Accountability
Communication
Organizational Awareness
Teamwork & Collaboration
Commitment to Continuous Learning
Client & Result Orientation

Cross-Functional Competencies:

Analytical Thinking
Planning and Organizing
Political Awareness

 

Standard Job Description

Required Languages

Spanish

,

,

Desired Languages

English

,

,

Additional Qualifications

Skills

Education

Certifications

Other information

This position doesn't require a functional clearance

Home-Based

No