Programme Coordinator (Protection)
Organizational Context
The International Organization for Migration (IOM), established in 1951, is a UN-related agency dedicated to promoting humane and orderly migration. It collaborates with governments and partners to save lives, protect migrants, resolve displacement issues, and facilitate legal migration pathways. The organization fosters an inclusive and supportive workplace to maximize the potential of migration and enhance support for people on the move.
Job Purpose
The Programme Coordinator (Protection) role in Afghanistan is crucial for managing, implementing, coordinating, executing, and monitoring IOM's protection projects. This position operates under the supervision of the Deputy Chief of Mission and Head of Programmes and Operations. The role aims to elevate the reduction of protection risks at a strategic mission level, aligning with the IASC Protection Policy and ensuring synergy with ongoing programming. It involves close coordination with the Afghanistan Protection Cluster, relevant working groups, and de facto authorities. Furthermore, the position supports the IOM Afghanistan Country Office by providing expertise in protection mainstreaming to other units and coordinating with the Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) network.
Responsibilities
The Programme Coordinator (Protection) is responsible for managing and coordinating the development of IOM Protection activities, ensuring adherence to IOM and interagency policies and standards. This includes resource mobilization, monitoring, and reporting for the Protection Programme portfolio. The role involves strengthening the Country Office's capacity to analyze protection risks and deliver on protection centrality through a defined strategy, ensuring the quality of core protection activities like monitoring, analysis, advocacy, and case management. Responsibilities also include supervising and training protection staff, coordinating with project managers and RMOs for harmonized implementation, and developing a comprehensive protection strategy with an advocacy action plan. The coordinator will represent protection activities in relevant meetings, coordinate with humanitarian actors, mentor staff, support capacity building on protection standards, and undertake travel for context analysis and project oversight. Additionally, the role involves contributing to the Afghanistan PSEA network, providing technical expertise to regional and headquarters units, and performing other assigned duties.
Work Experience
Extensive experience is required in direct implementation of protection programming within conflict, crisis, migration, or displacement contexts. Prior experience in specialized protection fields such as GBV, Child Protection, Housing Land and Property, and Human Trafficking is necessary. Experience in community-based protection, case management, and protection monitoring/information management is also essential. The role requires experience in managing protection teams and projects, strategic representation in protection clusters/platforms, and emergency operations liaison. Experience with cash-based interventions is beneficial, and regional working experience is an asset.
Skills
Key skills include strong analytical and advocacy capabilities, excellent communication, and an understanding of complex socio-political environments. Knowledge of the Afghan conflict, displacement dynamics, and the humanitarian architecture, particularly in protection (internal displacement, child protection, GBV, identity documentation), is crucial. Familiarity with human trafficking phenomena, border and migration management policies, and the project management cycle is advantageous. The ability to work effectively with diverse stakeholders, strong report writing, managerial, and organizational skills, along with advanced computer literacy, are also required.