Protection Officer

Kampala

Organization: IRC - International Rescue Committee
Location: Kampala
Grade: Mid level - Mid level
Occupational Groups:
- Protection Officer (Refugee)
Closing Date: Closed

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and gain control of their lives. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC works with people forced to flee from war, conflict and disaster and the host communities which support them, as well as those who remain within their homes and communities. At work today in over 40 countries and 25 U.S. cities, we improve outcomes in the areas of health, safety, economic wellbeing, education and power.

The IRC has been working in Uganda since 1998 supporting Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), refugees and various institutions in the country, notably the government, community-based organizations (CBOs), civil society organizations (CBOs) and the private sector. The current program portfolio in Uganda includes health and nutrition, Protection and Rule of Law (PRoL) support to persons with specific needs (PSNs) including case management, legal assistance to refugees, Women Protection and Empowerment (WPE) prevention and response to gender-based violence, and economic recovery and development (ERD). The IRC has a country office in Kampala and field offices in Imvepi, Kyaka II, Lamwo, Moroto, Kiryandongo and Yumbe, as well as an urban office in Nsambya within Kampala.

Job Overview:

The Protection Officer in line with prevention and response approaches will be responsible for the day to day direct delivery of Protection and Rule of Law activities. She\he will lead the provision of; protection case management support for sub-granting partner, regular monitoring of the protection environment, protection dialogues at community level, running of mobile drop-in sessions in community spaces and work with community structures to enable regular communication and access to information by community members especially the most vulnerable. Working closely with other consortium members they will facilitate referrals to other service providers and work with community volunteers to ensure new arrivals to city are identified and have the information and advice required to access essential services. They will work closely with Legal Officers, WPE staff, identifying areas for collaboration and sharing of resources in achieving the objectives of the sector. They will be part of an integrated protection team delivering activities agreed by the Protection consortium.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Lead and conduct protection monitoring exercises, organizing FDGs, KIIs and providing data from mobile drop-in for analysis.
Ensure service mapping is up to date, referral pathways established and follow up of cases, concerns and issues are conducted with the support of volunteers.
Provide technical support to sub-granting partner in case management support for extremely vulnerable individuals (EVIs), ensuring tools provided are used and process and procedures complied with the support of Volunteers.
Organise protection dialogues at community level, working with volunteers to mobilize community leaders and other protection actors.
Have in place a clear system for the collection and storing of data on all activities.
Work closely with the Legal Officers, WPE Officers, ERD staff and staff from other consortium partners to ensure linkages and referrals are done in a safe, effective and timely manner.
Work closely with colleagues in ERD and WPE teams, other consortium members, OPM and UNHCR to provide a comprehensive support to the affected population.
Provide weekly reports, data and work plans covering area of operation in a timely manner for review by the Senior Protection Officer.
Map capacity and resources of refugee communities, supporting them in implementing youth led initiatives among other community-based protection activities\projects.
Liaise with partners to receive and follow up on messaging needs and ensure quality and relevance of messaging are developed and disseminated.
Conduct meetings with volunteers and support lead training as identified and recommended.
Undertake other duties as required by Senior Protection Officer in support of overall running of the programme and specific aspects of implementation consistent with the role of Protection Officer.