Child Protection Officer at Center for Advocacy, Transparency, and Accountability Initiative (CATAI)

Job Summary

• The Child Protection Officer (CPO) plays a key role in ensuring the effective implementation of the Child Protection program, reporting directly to the Child Protection Program Coordinator.
• The CPO will work on a variety of activities related to program development, staff and community capacity building, inter-agency coordination, and monitoring and evaluation, ensuring that all interventions are designed to protect vulnerable children and promote their rights within the community

Responsibilities
Program Development and Implementation:

• Support the Child Protection Program Coordinator in designing and implementing effective child protection programs that meet best practice standards, ensuring the safety of beneficiaries and staff.
• Assist in conducting assessments to determine the appropriate interventions for children in need, in collaboration with the program coordinator and other relevant stakeholders.
• Implement psychosocial strategies in line with program objectives to meet the needs of targeted children and families.
• Contribute to community-driven programming by ensuring that community leaders understand and participate in the project design and implementation.
• Support the Child Protection Program Coordinator in the development of the Child Protection strategy and provide oversight of day-to-day project operations, ensuring quality implementation at field sites.
• Lead the implementation of child protection activities, including case management, psychosocial support, risk mitigation and community-based protection initiatives.
• Ensure all CP interventions comply with the CP Minimum Standards, Child Safeguarding Policy and PSEA guidelines.
• Provide technical guidance and daily supervision to CP Case Workers and other CP staff.

Case Management & Referrals:

• Oversee child protection case management processes, ensuring quality, timeliness and survivor-centred approaches.
• Review and approve case plans, follow-ups and case closures.
• Ensure proper documentation and secure management of case files, including CPIMS+ where applicable.
• Strengthen referral pathways with health, GBV, legal, education and MHPSS service providers.
• Work with and supervise the case workers to identify and register child protection concerns, as well as pin-point needs of children whose cases are being managed and ensuring that these needs are provided.

Staff and Community Capacity Building:

• Provide ongoing training, technical assistance, and capacity building to program staff and local partners, ensuring adherence to child protection best practices.
• Collaborate with the Child Protection (CP) Coordinator to implement staff training plans, ensuring all staff members are equipped to handle child protection concerns.
• Train community service providers and relevant partners in child protection mechanisms, case management, and safe referral pathways.
• Work closely with the Protection and Education sectors to ensure integrated child protection and education programming.
• Work with the Child Protection Program Coordinator to identify training needs and help deliver training sessions, as needed, for field officers and other CATAI staff.
• Works with and supervises the case workers to identify and register child protection concerns, as well as pin-point needs of children whose cases are being managed, and ensures that those needs are met at the appropriate time.

Inter-Agency Coordination:

• Build and maintain effective working relationships with key stakeholders, including community leaders, NGOs, UN agencies, local partners, and government entities such as NEMA and SEMA, to foster multi-agency cooperation.

• Share information from coordination meetings with relevant stakeholders to ensure alignment of activities and shared understanding of child protection needs.

• Represent CATAI at external and internal coordination meetings, ensuring the active participation of CATAI in child protection dialogues and responses.

Monitoring and Evaluation:

• Support the monitoring and evaluation of child protection programs by ensuring the proper implementation of monitoring and data collection tools, including child protection monitoring systems.
• Regularly review data from field sites, ensuring the accuracy and completeness of child protection data, and conduct data cleanup before submission.
• Provide weekly and monthly reports to the Child Protection Program Coordinator, highlighting program progress, challenges, and recommendations.
• Conduct field visits to program sites regularly to monitor the quality of implementation, offer support to field staff, and assess the effectiveness of child protection interventions.

Qualifications / Skills Required

• Bachelor's Degree in Social Work, Education, International Development, or related fields is required. A Master's Degree is an added advantage.
• A minimum of 3 years of experience working in child protection programming in emergency or post-crisis settings.
• Proven experience in managing and implementing child protection activities, including case management, psychosocial support, and family tracing and reunification.
• Experience in implementing child safeguarding policies and procedures for organizations and local partners.
• Demonstrated success in working in conflict or crisis settings, particularly in Northeast Nigeria
• Strong understanding of child protection issues, including gender-based violence, child labor, early marriage, and exploitation in conflict settings.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build relationships with government officials, local leaders, and community members.
• Ability to work effectively with diverse teams, including local partners, NGOs, UN agencies, and government bodies.
• Familiarity with Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) systems, particularly in the context of child protection programming.
• Strong problem-solving, critical thinking, and organizational skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
• Fluent in English (both written and spoken). Proficiency in local languages is an added advantage.
• Knowledge of workflow and case management using Primero’s CMPIS+

Values:

• Exemplifying integrity
• Demonstrating commitment to CATAI
• Embracing cultural diversity
• Embracing change

Policy Statements:

• Center for Advocacy Transparency and Accountability Initiative (CATAI) operates in an equal opportunity environment and has policies that actively encourage gender equality, diversity and social inclusion, Child Safeguarding, Adolescents and Youth Initiatives, PSEA, and does not condole GBV, VAC and Fraud.