Protection Associate

The Protection Associate normally reports to the Protection Officer or the Senior Protection Officer. The incumbent monitors protection standards, operational procedures and practices in protection delivery in line with international standards and provides functional protection support to information management and programme staff.

The Protection Associate is expected to coordinate quality, timely and effective protection responses to the needs of populations of concern (PoC) and identify opportunities to mainstream protection methodologies and integrate protection safeguards in operational responses in all sectors. S/he contributes to designing a comprehensive protection strategy and liaises externally with authorities and partners on protection doctrine and policy as guided by the supervisor.

The Protection Associate also ensures that PoC are involved 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, local authorities and protection and assistance partners.

• Stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that impact 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 (PoC).

• Provide advice on protection issues to PoC and liaise with competent authorities to ensure issuance of personal and other relevant documentation.

• Assist in conducting eligibility and status determination for PoC.

• 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.

• Monitor Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection and solutions activities.

• Manage individual protection cases, including GBV and child protection cases; monitor and intervene in incidents of refoulement, expulsion and other protection violations.

• Assist in identifying durable solutions for as many PoC as possible through voluntary repatriation, local integration and, where appropriate, resettlement.

• Contribute to the design, implementation and evaluation of protection-related AGD-based programming with implementing and operational partners.

• Facilitate effective information management by providing disaggregated data on PoC and their protection challenges.

• Participate in initiatives to build the capacity of authorities, institutions and NGOs to strengthen national protection legislation and procedures.

• Assist the supervisor in prioritizing PoC for interviews, counselling and proposing protection support for individual cases.

• Assist the supervisor in enforcing compliance of local implementing partners with global protection policies and standards of professional integrity in delivering protection services.

• Assist the supervisor in enforcing compliance with and integrity of all protection standard operating procedures.

• Submit individual payment requests for PoC for approval.

• Support the identification and management of risks and seek opportunities affecting objectives in the area of responsibility; ensure risk-based decision-making and raise risks, issues and concerns to the supervisor or relevant functional colleagues.

• Perform other related duties as required

• For G6 - 3 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 2 years relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

• Certificate in International Law or Political Science

• Protection Learning Programme

• Computer Literacy

• Refugee Protection Principles and Framework

• Protection-related guidelines, standards and indicators 

• For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.

• For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language.

• For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.