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Community-Based Protection Associate

Jalalabad

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

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Office in Afghanistan invites qualified AFGHAN candidates to apply for the following vacancy:

Functional Title: Community-Based Protection Associate
Type of Appointment: Temporary Appointment
Grade: GL6
Duty Station: Sub Office Jalalabad with the position entails a roving element whereby the staff may be requested to move to areas where additional staffing resources are needed.
Issue Date: 19 July 2021
Closing Date: 28 July 2021

Organizational/ Operational Context:

The humanitarian situation in Afghanistan has been facing a multitude of challenges as a result of protracted and ongoing conflict and insecurity (40 years) and frequent natural disasters drought/floods, now exacerbated by COVID-19. Some 42 percent of the population were facing severe acute food insecurity in early 2021, while nearly half of the population lived below USD 1 a day. Poverty and food insecurity are highest in rural areas, with women, children, the elderly, female-headed households and persons with disabilities the most vulnerable. COVID-19 is exacerbating this situation and under a worst-case scenario monetary poverty may have increased to 72 percent.

UNHCR Afghanistan¿s population of concern includes refugees, refugee returnees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and members of the host communities. There are 72,000 refugees living primarily in Khost and Paktika Provinces as well as in urban areas in Kabul, Herat and Kandahar. In addition, since 2002, UNHCR has facilitated the voluntary return of over 5.2 million registered Afghan refugees through the Voluntary Repatriation programme from Pakistan, Iran, and other countries. Moreover, there is an estimate 4.9 million IDPs in Afghanistan largely driven by conflict, insecurity, and natural disasters. Due to the intensification of conflict across the country, already 194,018 persons (28,868 households) have been displaced in 2021 (as of 17 June 2021).

Against the backdrop, UNHCR has been working to complement and support the Government in addressing the need of IDPs through its coordinator role in the Afghanistan Protection and ES/NFI Clusters as well as the provider of last resort. In particular, during emergency phases, UNHCR conducts joint needs assessments with other humanitarian actors and coordinates its responses. In addition, UNHCR is one of the key actors conducting Community-Based Protection Monitoring (CBPM) to assess the protection needs and concern of the IDPs and other POCs. In addition, for IDPs identified as most vulnerable, UNHCR provides assistance through its Persons with Specific Needs Programme (PSN) and Cash for Protection Programme (CFP). Under the ¿Whole of Community Approach¿ and to realize the Humanitarian-Development-Peace nexus, UNHCR also concentrates its effort to support durable solutions for IDPs, primarily in the Priority Areas of Return and Reintegration (PARRs). In the PARRs, IDPs benefits from a range of services and projects, including, among others, education, health, shelter, youth empowerment, livelihood opportunities, WASH, and infrastructure.

Work Description ¿ General

The Community-Based Protection Associate is a member of the Protection Unit in Sub Office Jalalabad, and may report to the Protection Officer, or the Head of Sub Office in the absence of the Protection Officer. Under the overall direction of the Protection Unit, and in coordination with other UNHCR units, government, NGO partners and other stakeholders, the Community-Based Protection Associate performs his/her duties and responsibilities. The Community-Based Protection Associate works directly and in coordination with partners and with communities of concern to identify the protection risks they face and to leverage their capacities to protect themselves, their families and communities. The incumbent may have direct supervisory responsibility for part of the protection and/or support staff and supports the application of community-based protection standards, operational procedures and practices in community-based protection delivery at the field level. To fulfil this role, the Community-Based Protection Associate is required to pay regular field visits to concerned areas including comprehensive border monitoring for both outflows and in flows in the Eastern region. S/he is expected to actively and professionally take part in responding to emergency situations of the displaced populations in communities including in urban centres within the eastern Region, and in case of crowding situation of stranded persons with intention to flee in to Pakistan through Torkham border (following the border closure alert by Pakistan authorities).  S/he must be abreast with timely response and prevention of GBV, SEA, and Child Protection issues. The development and maintenance of constructive relationships with PoC that measurably impact and enhance protection planning, programming and results, form the core of the work of the incumbent. S/he also supports the designing of a community-based protection strategy by ensuring that it is based on consultation with PoC.

To maintain a flexible approach to respond to the evolving and fast-changing protection environment, the position entails a roving element whereby the staff may be requested to transfer to areas where additional staffing resources are needed.

The Community Based Protection Associate will also closely work with the reintegration unit to evaluate the protection environment in the PARR areas and project that will be implemented under the `Co-PROSPER¿ strategy.

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 and Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of Head of Office, the incumbent will undertake the following responsibilities:

Duties/Responsibilities:

¿ Assist functional units, the Multi-Functional Team (MFT) and senior management to integrate participatory and community-based approaches in the overall protection strategy and operational procedures.
¿ Through relationships with PoC and network of partners, stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that have an impact on the protection environment and provide advice to the protection team. Understand the perspectives, capacities, needs and resources of the PoC and advise the protection team accordingly, highlighting the specific protection needs of women and men, children, youth and older persons, persons with disabilities, marginalized groups.
¿ Work with host communities to identify opportunities for national civil society involvement in improving the protection of PoC.
¿ Work with implementing and operational partners as well as with displaced and local communities to develop community-owned activities to address, where applicable, the social, educational, psycho-social, cultural, health, organisational and livelihood concerns as well as child protection and prevention and response to SGBV.
¿ Assist in the analysis that identifies the capacities of communities of concern and risks they face.
¿ Support participatory assessments by multifunctional teams and ongoing consultation with PoC.
¿ Assist in planning and monitoring of programmes and budgets, with an AGD perspective
¿ Build office capacity for community-based protection through training and establishing systems for community mobilization and participation of PoC.
¿ Support communities in establishing representation and coordination structures.
¿ Ensure community understanding of UNHCR's commitment to deliver on accountability and quality assurance in its response.
¿ Act as an interpreter in exchange of routine information, contribute to related liaison activities and respond directly to routine queries.
¿ Contribute to the enforcement of participatory AGD sensitive analysis as an essential basis for all of UNHCR¿s work.
¿ Initiate AGD sensitive interventions at the appropriate level on community-based protection issues and to respond to protection concerns and incidents within the office, with external interlocutors, groups and individuals based on agreed parameters.
¿ Identify and select which individuals or groups to prioritize for counselling and field visits based on agreed criteria.
¿ Intervene with authorities on protection.
¿ Enforce compliance of implementing partners with global protection policies and standards of professional integrity in the delivery of protection services.
¿ Recommend and prepare payments to individual cases.
¿ Perform other related duties as required.

Essential qualifications, skills and professional experience

Education:
¿ Completion of High School Diploma or higher

Language:
¿ Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English

Certificate:
Development Studies, Human Rights Community Development /Social Work
Social Science, Political Science International Law

Work Experience:
¿ For G6 - 3 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 2 years relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Desirable
¿ UNHCR learning programmes (PLP). Knowledge of MSRP.

Functional Skills:
¿ *IT-MS Office Applications
¿ *IT-Computer Literacy
¿ IT-Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
¿ UN-UN/UNHCR Administrative Rules, Regulations and Procedures
¿ UN-UN/UNHCR Financial Rules and Regulations and Procedures
¿ PR-Community-based Protection
¿ PR-Community-based Protection - Principles and methodologies
¿ CL-Multi-stakeholder Communications with Partners, Government & Community
¿ PG-Experience with coordinating with Implementing Partners (Governmt/INGO/NGO/Corporate)
¿ TR-Capacity Building

Core Competencies
¿ Accountability
¿ Communication
¿ Organizational Awareness
¿ Teamwork & Collaboration
¿ Commitment to Continuous Learning
¿ Client & Result Orientation

Cross-Functional Competencies
¿ Political Awareness
¿ Planning and Organizing
¿ Stakeholder Management
Managerial Competencies
¿ Judgement and Decision Making
¿ Managing Performance

Additional Information:

Candidates will be required to sit for a test. Only candidate who score 50% of the total marks will be invited for oral interview.

Due to the volume of applications, only shortlisted candidates will be invited for written test. 

The recruitment for this position shall be in line with the new Recruitment and Assignment of Locally Recruited Staff (RALS) policy.

Qualified female candidates are encouraged to apply for consideration
This vacancy is now closed.
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