Senior Protection Assistant

Organizational Context

UNHCR is a global organization dedicated to saving lives, protecting rights, and building a better future for refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people. This role supports UNHCR's mission by providing essential protection assistance and ensuring the rights and well-being of persons of concern.

Job Purpose

The Senior Protection Assistant plays a crucial role in delivering effective protection support to persons of concern (PoC) within UNHCR's operations. The incumbent monitors protection standards and operational procedures, ensuring alignment with international best practices. They provide functional protection support to information management and programme teams, identifying opportunities to integrate protection methodologies into all operational responses. A key aspect of this role is contributing to the development of a comprehensive protection strategy and liaising with local authorities and partners on protection matters under the guidance of a supervisor. The position emphasizes the involvement of PoC in decision-making processes that affect their lives, rights, and solutions, fostering strong relationships with communities, authorities, and partner organizations.

Responsibilities

The Senior Protection Assistant is responsible for consistently applying International and National Law, as well as applicable UN/UNHCR and IASC policies, standards, and codes of conduct. This includes providing direct counseling on protection issues to persons of concern (PoC) and liaising with competent authorities to facilitate the issuance of personal and other essential documentation. The role involves supporting protection-related activities within AGD-based programming, collaborating with implementing and operational partners. Preliminary information gathering and interviews are conducted to support eligibility assessments, status determination, durable solutions, and social needs assessments. The incumbent contributes to initiatives aimed at identifying, preventing, and reducing statelessness, and participates in the development of country-level child protection and education plans for PoC as part of the broader protection strategy. Monitoring Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection and solutions activities is essential, as is participating in individual case management, including cases involving Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and child protection. Reporting on cases of refoulement, expulsion, and other protection incidents is a key duty. The Assistant aids in identifying durable solutions such as voluntary repatriation, local integration, and resettlement. They contribute to the design, implementation, and evaluation of protection-related AGD-based programming. Drafting reports, routine correspondence, updating databases, and compiling statistics within the Area of Responsibility are also required. Furthermore, the role involves contributing to initiatives that enhance national and local protection capacities, selecting PoC for preliminary interviews, and deciding on the appropriate sharing of relevant information. Enforcing integrity in the delivery of protection services by local implementing partners and supporting the identification and management of risks impacting objectives are also core responsibilities.

Work Experience

2 years of relevant experience with a High School Diploma, or 1 year of relevant work experience with a Bachelor's degree or equivalent.

Skills

IT-Computer Literacy PR-Protection-related guidelines, standards and indicators PR-Refugee Protection Principles and Framework Information Management Programme Management Case Management Reporting Data Management Risk Management Capacity Building Legal Compliance Community Engagement

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