Community-Based Protection Associate

Interested applicants should consult the Administrative Instruction on Recruitment and Assignment of Locally Recruited Staff (RALS). Interested staff members should consult the Administrative Instruction on Recruitment and Assignment of Locally Recruited Staff (RALS, UNHCR/AI/2020/1/Rev.2). If you have questions regarding your eligibility, you may also contact the HR Unit.

In line with the RALS, the below category of candidates are eligible to apply for internally/externally advertised vacancies.

Group 1 candidates: Group 1 comprises current GS staff members holding an indefinite or fixed-term appointment who, at the date of the deadline for application, are serving in the country of the vacancy at the grade of the position or one grade below or above. However, current GS staff members holding an indefinite or fixed-term appointment in the country of the vacancy who apply for a position two grades above their current position are considered as Group 2.

Group 2 candidates: Group 2 comprises candidates from the below categories after completion of one cumulative or continuous year of service in the country of the vacancy.
I. Currently employed locally recruited UNHCR staff members holding a Temporary Appointment up to a maximum of two grades above their current positions;
II. Former locally recruited UNHCR staff members who held an indefinite or fixed-term appointment (within 2 years of separation for males and 5 years for females) up to a maximum of two grades above the last position at UNHCR;
III. National United Nations Volunteers currently working for UNHCR;
IV. National UNOPS and individual contractors currently working for UNHCR;
V. Current GS staff members holding an indefinite or fixed-term appointment applying to a position in the same category two grades above the staff member¿s personal grade;
VI. Current UNHCR staff members in the International Professional category holding an indefinite or fixed-term appointment applying to a GS post;
VII. Current UNHCR staff members in the NPO category holding an indefinite or fixed-term appointment applying to a GS post;
VIII. Current locally recruited female staff members from other UN system Organizations holding the equivalent of an indefinite or fixed-term appointment.

External candidates: External candidates are candidates who are not in Group 1 or Group 2. They must meet the essential minimum requirements of the position and candidates not citizens of the country must comply with all eligibility requirements for employment in line with the prevailing legislative prerequisites in the country. Community-Based Protection Associate

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships

The Community-Based Protection Associate is a member of the Protection Unit and may report to the Protection Officer, Community-Based Protection Officer, or another more senior staff member in the Protection Unit. Under the overall direction of the Protection Unit, and in coordination with other UNHCR staff, government, NGO partners and other stakeholders, the Community-Based Protection Associate works directly with communities of concern to identify the 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 spend a substantial percentage of the workday outside the office, building and maintaining networks within communities of PoC. 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.

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
- 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 GBV.
- 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.

Minimum Qualifications

Education & Professional Work Experience
Years of Experience / Degree Level
For G6 - 3 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 2 years relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Field(s) of Education
Not applicable

Certificates and/or Licenses
Development, Human Rights,                        International Law
International Social Work, Social Science, Political Science,

(Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Not specified

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
(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Language Requirements
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. All jobs at UNHCR require six core competencies and may also require managerial competencies and/or cross-functional competencies. The six core competencies are listed below.

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

Managerial Competencies
¿ Judgement and Decision Making
¿ Managing Performance

Cross-Functional Competencies
¿ Stakeholder Management
¿ Planning and Organizing
¿ Political Awareness Please also note that English and Portuguese are essential for this Job Opening. Remuneration:

A competitive compensation and benefits package is offered. For information on UN salaries, allowances and benefits, please visit the portal of the International Civil Service Commission at: http://icsc.un.org

Submission of Applications:

Interested internal candidates (Group 1 and Group 2) should apply through MSRP - Self-Service - Recruiting Activities - Careers (please search by JO number or by Location). Please update your personal profiles with all required information in order to be able to apply. Please consult the attached documents for further guidance on how to update the personal profile.

Interested external applicants are also invited to apply online and complete the mandatory motivation letter. External vacancies are posted on the external UNHCR website and applicants who do not have internal status must apply through the external UNHCR website. https://www.unhcr.org/careers.html  - Careers - Career opportunities - Other Opportunities - Vacancies - sort by Location or search by Job Opening number .

Not signed, incomplete and late applications will not be accepted. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Shortlisted candidates will be required to sit for a written test and only candidates who have passed the test will be called for oral interviews. UNHCR does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, processing or any other fees).
Applications will be accepted only via the online portals. Please do not send application via email.

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 strongly encourages qualified female applicants for this position. UNHCR seeks to ensure that male and female employees are given equal career opportunities. UNHCR is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, and culture. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality.

UNHCR has a zero-tolerance policy against Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (SEA). SEA is unacceptable behaviour and prohibited conduct for UNHCR personnel. It constitutes acts of serious misconduct and is therefore grounds for disciplinary measures, including dismissal. Any concerns or suspicions about a possible case of SEA should be reported immediately to the Inspector General¿s Office (IGO) at inspector@unhcr.org or through the online complain form at https://www.unhcr.org/php/complaints.php or by confidential fax: +41 22 739 73 80.

For any technical problems encountered during the online application, please send an email to the below email address titled ¿Online VA Query-your name and surname¿. Human Resources mozma@unhcr.org.
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See below for this postion's Operational Context
======================================================================================================== The situation in Cabo Delgado continue to deteriorate. The violent insurgency which surfaced in October 2017 has displaced more than 730,000 persons, majority across various districts in province, and spilt over into Nampula and Niassa provinces. There have been increasing reports of kidnappings, forced recruitment, and gender-based violence especially affecting women and children. The security situation remains unstable especially in hard to reach locations where people have been cut off from basic services for months and unable to flee violence and reach safe locations where services can be provided.

Given the deteriorating situation, IDPs are mostly concentrating in the southern districts due to safety and security as well as access to humanitarian assistance. Since the beginning of the humanitarian crisis in Cabo Delgado, humanitarian partners have been providing humanitarian assistance to IDPs and host communities in new arrival areas, temporary sites and relocation sites. UNHCR is engaged in the Humanitarian Country Team Cabo Delgado Response, leads the sub-national Protection Cluster in Pemba (the provincial capital of Cabo Delgado) and participates actively in the Shelter and CCCM clusters. UNHCR¿s engagement in the IDP situations is considered within the framework of the cluster system and guided by the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement and the Durable Solutions Framework for IDPs. 

In view of the context and in line with the HCT Rapid Response Plan for Cabo Delgado (May-December 2020) and the Humanitarian Response Plan for 2021, UNHCR objectives in Cabo Delgado are as follows:

¿Identify, mitigate and respond to protection risks of the affected populations.
¿Support the resilience of affected communities.
¿Expand community-based protection mechanisms, so as to ensure that affected communities are empowered to address their own protection concerns.
¿Strengthening public institutions to respond directly to the needs of IDPs in Cabo Delgado.
¿Ensure an effective coordination among all humanitarian actors on the ground to guarantee a coordinated response to affected population in agreement with UNHCR¿s protection mandate.

This position reports to Protection Officer (Community Based). Previous work experience in humanitarian sectors is desirable. The closing date for submission of applications is 6 August 2021 midnight Geneva time.