Community-Based Protection Associate Full-Time

The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is hiring a Community-Based Protection Associate.

Operational Context

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is a global organization dedicated to saving lives, protecting rights, and building a better future for asylum seekers, refugees, internally displaced, returnees and stateless people. The operation in Mozambique has its main office in Maputo, field office in Nampula, and sub-office in Pemba. The incumbent will be based in Nampula; however, s/he will also support the implementation of activities in Niassa and Zambezia, requiring frequent field missions. The working language in the UNHCR offices in Mozambique is English. The incumbent as a member of the Protection Unit reports to Assistant Protection Officer. The staff will work under the overall direction of the Protection Unit, and in coordination with other UNHCR staff and units, the government, NGO partners and other stakeholders. The incumbent will work directly with communities of concern to identify the risks they face and to leverage their capacities to protect themselves, their families, and communities. As part of the protection, he/she supports the application of UNHCR community-based protection standards, operational procedures, guideline, 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 her/his time working outside the office, building, and maintaining networks within communities of persons of concern. The development and maintenance of constructive relationships with persons of concern that measurably impact and enhance protection planning, programming and results forms the core of the work of the Protection in the AoR and operation. The incumbent also supports the designing of a community-based protection strategy by ensuring that it is based on consultation with persons of concern.

Please also note that engagement under a UNHCR affiliate scheme is subject to proof of vaccination against COVID-19.

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, organizational 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:

• 3 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 2 years relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher.

Education: Certificates and/or Licenses:

• Development Studies;
• Human Rights;
• Community Development/Social Work;
• Social Sciences;
• Political Science/international affairs;
• International Law.

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 (Government/INGO/NGO/Corporate)
• TR-Capacity Building
• (Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Language Requirements:

• Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.

Competency requirements:

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.

Eligibility:

External candidates: External candidates 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.

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:

• Applicants are invited to apply online and complete the mandatory motivation letter. For help with logging in to the MSRP External Portal, or with online applications, please contact the HR Unit well before the deadline to allow sufficient time for any technical problem to be resolved. External vacancies are posted on 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/or oral interview. UNHCR does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, processing or any other fees).
• 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 to apply. UNHCR seeks to ensure that male and female employees are given equal career opportunities. UNHCR is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms gender, disability, marital or civil partnership status, race, colour or ethnic and national origins, religion or belief, or sexual orientation. 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 Maputo mozma@unhcr.org.