Assistant Protection Officer at United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

Position Number: 10024180
Location: Maiduguri, Borno
Category: Protection Operational Support
Grade: NOA
Duration of Contract: One Year
Contract Type: Fixed Term Appointment

Context, Duties and Responsibilities
Operational Context:

• The Assistant Protection Officer reports to the Protection Officer. The Assistant Protection Officer will plan and implement protection activities in their specific location(Gwoza and Bama) in Borno State whilst interfacing with other UNHCR staff and partners, members of the Protection Sector and the wider humanitarian community, including government actors of various backgrounds and capacities, the judiciary, police and other actors involved in civilian protection.
• The incumbent must be able to conduct trainings and field assessment missions, to advocate with diverse interlocutors and to draft documents in English. The post requires a mix of managerial, policy, legal and practical skills. The incumbent should have a good experience in the north-eastern Nigeria humanitarian context, human rights law and humanitarian law and repatriation.
• It is hereby noteworthy to indicate clearly that these positions will be based out of Maiduguri in the Local Government Areas (Monguno LGA respectively) and staff are expected to operate in the said LGA where the security situation is volatile and unpredictable. Staff are therefore expected to reside in the existing humanitarian hubs and adhere strictly to UN Security Management Guidelines in place which may be revised from time to time.
  

Functional Statement
Accountability:

• The protection of populations of concern is met through the application of International and National Law, relevant UN/UNHCR protection standards and IASC principles.
• Protection activities are guided by the protection strategy and respect the policy of UNHCR on age, gender and diversity (AGD).
• The participation of persons of concern is assured through continuous assessment and evaluation using participatory, rights and community based approaches.
• Protection incidents are immediately identified and addressed.

Responsibility:

• Stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that have an impact on the protection environment.
• Consistently apply International and National Law and applicable UN/UNHCR and IASC policy, standards and codes of conduct.
• 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.
• Conduct eligibility and status determination for persons of concern in compliance with UNHCR procedural standards and international protection principles.
• Implement and monitor Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection/solutions activities.
• Promote and contribute to measures to identify, prevent and reduce statelessness.
• Contribute to a country-level child protection plan as part of the protection strategy.
• Contribute to a country-level education plan as part of the protection strategy.
• Provide inputs for the development of global / regional international protection policies and standards.
• Manage individual protection cases including those on SGBV and child protection. Monitor, and intervene in cases of refoulement, expulsion and other protection incidents.   
• Assess needs for Promote and find 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 with sectorial and/or cluster partners.
• Contribute to and facilitate effective information management through the provision of disaggregated data on populations of concern and their problems.
• Contribute to capacity-building initiatives for communities and individuals to assert their rights.   
• Participate in initiatives to capacitate authorities, relevant institutions and NGOs to strengthen national protection related legislation and procedures.

Authority:

• Intervene with authorities on protection issues.
• 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.
• Recommend and prepare payments to individual cases.

Essential Minimum Qualifications

• Undergraduate Degree (equivalent of a BA/BS) in Law, International Law, Political Sciences or related field plus minimum 1 year of previous work experience relevant to the function. Graduate degree (equivalent of a Master’s) or Doctorate degree (equivalent of a PhD) may also be accepted.
• Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.
• Demonstrated work experience in the education sector.
• Knowledge of refugee protection principles and framework.
• Familiarity with INEE standards   
• Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English

Desirable Qualifications & Competencies:

• Diverse field experience desirable.
• Good IT skills including database management skills.
• Completion of the Protection Learning Programme, RSD- Resettlement Learning Programme.
• Knowledge of additional UN languages.