Employment Opportunity in Adjumani-Pakelle, Uganda

Associate Protection Officer (Field) – Adjumani-Pakelle, Uganda

February 27, 2015

Application Deadline: March 20th 2015

Applications must be emailed to JPOCoordinator@state.gov by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Daylight Savings Time on the date indicated in order to be considered. Thank you.

How to Apply:

Please note that PRM-sponsored JPO positions are open to U.S. Citizens only.

Applicants must submit a completed United Nations Personal History form (UN P-11) via email to JPOCoordinator@state.gov by the deadline noted above. The UN P-11 form is available for download from the UNHCR website at http://www.unhcr.org/recruit/p11new.doc. PRM will accept the UN P-11 form without a signature. If desired, you may also submit a resume or curriculum vitae and letter of interest. Please specify the position for which you are applying in the Subject line of the email (i.e. Associate Protection Officer – Kabul, AFGHANISTAN). You must send a separate email and application for each position for which you are qualified and wish to be considered. For more information, please see the Frequently Asked Questions on the PRM website.

PRM Notes:

• For more information about UNHCR’s operations at this post, please visit the UNHCR website at www.unhcr.org.
• University degree in Law, International Law, political Sciences or related field. Advanced degree strongly preferred.
• Minimum 4 years (2 years with advanced University degree) relevant professional experience. Diverse field experience and experience in refugee work or humanitarian work desirable.
• Strong working knowledge of a second UN language (French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, or Russian) in addition to English is highly desirable for participation in the JPO program.
• JPO contracts are initially issued for one (1) year and then renewed. American JPOs are expected to serve a complete (2) two-year JPO term.
• The JPO job description and related information below are provided by UNHCR.

Associate Protection Officer (Field)
Adjumani, Uganda
Job Description (JPO)

GENERAL INFORMATION:

Title: Associate Protection Officer (Field)

Sector: Protection

Location: UNHCR Sub-Office, Adjumani-Pakelle

Duration of the assignment: 1 Year renewable (total of 2 years)

SUPERVISION:

Supervisor: Umar Yakhyaev, Protection Officer

Title of other international staff members in same duty station: Head of Sub-Office, Associate Field Officer (Protection), Associate Community Services Officer, Associate Supply Officer.

Content and methodology of the supervision: The Associate Protection Officer reports to the Protection Officer. Depending on the size and structure of the Office, the incumbent may have supervisory responsibility for protection staff. He/she provides functional protection guidance to information management and program staff; and supervises protection standards, operational procedures and practices in protection delivery in line with international standards.

The Associate Protection Officer is expected to coordinate quality, timely and effective protection responses to the needs of populations of concern, ensuring that operational responses in all sectors mainstream protection methodologies and integrate protection safeguards. He/she contributes in designing a comprehensive protection strategy and in representing the organization externally on protection doctrine and policy as guided by the supervisor. He/she also ensures that persons of concern are involved with the Office in making decisions that affect them, whether in accessing their rights or in identifying appropriate solutions to their problems. To achieve this, the incumbent will need to build and maintain effective interfaces with communities of concern, authorities, protection and assistance partners as well as a broader network of stakeholders who can contribute to enhancing protection.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

- Stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that have an impact on the protection environment.
- Promote International and National Law and applicable UN/UNHCR policy, standards and codes of conduct.
- Foster their consistent and coherent interpretation and application through mainstreaming in all sectors of the operation.
- Assist in providing comments on existing and draft legislation related to persons of concern.
- Provide legal advice and guidance on protection issues to persons of concern; liaise with competent authorities to ensure the issuance of personal and other relevant documentation.
- Promote and contribute to measures to identify, prevent and reduce statelessness.
- Contribute to a child protection plan as part of the protection strategy to ensure programmes use a child protection systems approach.
- Contribute to an education plan.
- Implement and oversee Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection/solutions activities.
- Oversee and manage individual protection cases including those on SGBV and child protection. Monitor, and intervene in cases of refoulement, expulsion and other protection incidents through working relations with governments and other partners.
- Recommend durable solutions for the largest possible number of persons of concern through voluntary repatriation, local integration and where appropriate, resettlement.
- Assess resettlement needs and apply priorities for the resettlement of individuals and groups of refugees and other persons of concern.
- Contribute to the design, implementation and evaluation of protection related AGD based programming with implementing and operational partners.
- Contribute to and facilitate a programme of results-based advocacy through a consultative process with sectorial partners.
- Contribute to capacity-building initiatives for communities and individuals to assert their rights.
- Participate in initiatives to capacitate national authorities, relevant institutions and NGOs to strengthen national protection related legislation and procedures.

ACCOUNTABILITY:

- The protection of populations of concern is met through the application of International and National Law, relevant UN/UNHCR protection standards and principles.
- The protection strategy incorporates a thorough age, gender and diversity (AGD) analysis and reflects the Organization’s global, regional and country level priorities and objectives.
- The Participation of persons of concern is assured through continuous assessment and evaluation using participatory, rights and community based approaches/protection.
- Protection incidents are immediately identified and addressed.

AUTHORITY:

- Intervene with authorities on protection issues.
- Negotiate locally on behalf of UNHCR.
- Decide priorities for reception, interviewing and counselling for groups or individuals.
- Enforce compliance of staff and implementing partners with global protection policies and standards of professional integrity in the delivery of protection services.
- Enforce compliance with, and integrity of, all protection standard operating procedures.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:

Education: University degree in Law, International Law, political Sciences or related field.

Experience: Job Experience: Minimum 4 years (2 years with advanced University degree) relevant professional experience. Diverse field experience desirable.

Skills: Excellent knowledge of English and working knowledge of another UN language.

REQUIRED COMPETENCIES, which illustrate behaviors that are essential to achieving deliverables described above, and that are critical to successful performance. All jobs require the staff to abide to the Values and Core competencies of UNHCR
- Judgement and Decision Making (M003)
- Analytical Thinking (X001)
- Negotiation and Conflict Resolution (X004)
- Political Awareness (X007)

TRAINING COMPONENTS AND LEARNING ELEMENTS:
 
Training components:

The staff member is encouraged to use the Learn&Connect website for further learning. However, the on-the-job training and coaching, that includes feedback from the supervisor are inevitable element of the learning in Protection Unit in Adjumani, UNHCR Sub-Office.

Learning elements:

The learning elements result from the tasks the JPO has to carry out during the assignment.
More specifically, the staff member shall be able to learn to strengthen/improve his/her:
- assessment reports with an emphasis on protection
- assess project proposals
- draft project budget according to UNHCR standards
- familiarize with the RBM cycle
- analytical skills
- formulate project document to address protection problems of populations of concern in the area of operation.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

The very fast evolving protection situation in Adjumani district requires very strong ability to adjust to the context. The incumbent is required to possess very strong commitment to the changing environment in Adjumani. The number of refugees is increasing from one week to another. The operation is still in emergency mode and the incumbent is required to immediately get the grasp of the situation and start protection co-ordination with many protection partners, who need to get guidelines from UNHCR, which is a leading agency in the district. The incumbent is required to possess very strong negotiations skills. Significant experience interacting with Government officials, different NGOs and other UN sister agencies is essential since the key function of this position is to represent UNHCR in negotiations/discussions with all relevant agencies. The incumbent is required to have an ability to find compromise and be strong enough to make sure that the UNHCR protection mandate is accepted and implemented. Given the nature of the operation the incumbent will need to fit easily in an inter-agency team.