Associate CB Protection Officer

Contract

This is a UNV International Specialist contract. This kind of contract is known as International UN Volunteer. It is normally internationally recruited only. More about UNV International Specialist contracts.

Colombia is the country most impacted by the outflow of over 7.2 million Venezuelan refugees and migrants, hosting over 2.4 million Venezuelans, the majority of whom are in the process of regularization. In addition, and despite the 2016 Peace Agreement, conflict and armed violence continue to uproot Colombians (an estimated 955,000 people newly displaced by the internal conflict since November 2016) and, in a growing and worrying trend, also Venezuelans and other nationalities. Afro-Colombians and indigenous people continue to be disproportionally affected by large-group displacement events and confinements, particularly in the Pacific Coast. UNHCR and partners work to strengthen preventive actions as well as to respond to emergencies, providing protection and solutions for the people with and for whom UNHCR works.

Over 2.4 million Venezuelans who live in Colombia have registered to benefit from the Temporary Protection Status (TPS), issued by the Government of Colombia in February 2021. The TPS provides a 10-year protection status and access to a full range of rights including healthcare, education, formal employment, and financial inclusion. More than 1.6 million permits have been delivered, however, challenges remain in terms of access to rights and services. Xenophobia against Venezuelans persists, as misinformation and the perceptions that Venezuelans will take away job opportunities from Colombians, fuel general discontent. UNHCR supports the TPS roll-out, believing that it is a promising pathway for addressing the vulnerable situation of Venezuelan refugees and migrants, and continues to work towards durable solutions.

Mixed movements of refugees and migrants continue to increase in the region, so that from the more than 240,000 transiting through the Darien in 2022, there are up to 400,000 persons estimated for 2023.

UNHCR continues to advocate for the expansion of lawful pathways, including resettlement, that avoid the risk of irregular, dangerous journeys, while, at the same time, preserves the fundamental human right to seek asylum.

Under the direct supervision of the Head of Field Office, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:

• Be fully informed about community structures and the protection and security situation of the population of concern, and develop strong links with a cross-section of members of refugee/Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)/stateless communities, using an Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) approach; • Through relationships with persons of concern 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 senior management. Ensure that the perspectives, capacities, needs and resources of the persons of concern, are reflected in the protection strategy, by planning processes and operations addressing the specific protection needs of women and men, children, youth, older persons, persons with disabilities, minority groups such as sexual minorities, and persons living with HIV/AIDS; • Ensure, through direct action and advocacy with more senior protection staff, that the necessary resources are allocated to enable community work, aiming to identify and address protection and assistance gaps; • Assist in supporting consultative processes, with government counterparts at local levels, partners, and persons of concern, to develop and implement integrated strategies that address the key protection priorities, including, for example, child protection, education and SGBV, as well as solutions approaches; • Provide technical guidance and support to UNHCR and partners, and implement and oversee Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) on all community-based protection related issues; • Support the design, implementation, and evaluation of protection centred and solutions oriented programming, with implementing and operational partners, guaranteeing that community-owned activities are integrated; • Support communities in establishing representation and coordinated structures; • Promote confidence building and conflict resolution among populations of concern, authorities, and host communities; • Ensure participatory, community-based protection, and AGD approaches, are included in the strategies and plans of the country operation; • Ensure community understanding of UNHCR's commitment to deliver on accountability and quality assurance in its response; • Support persons of concern to develop structures that enhance their participation and protection.

Furthermore, UN Volunteers are encouraged to integrate the UN Volunteers programme mandate within their assignment, and promote voluntary action through engagement with communities in the course of their work. As such, UN Volunteers should dedicate a part of their working time to some of the following suggested activities:

• Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and by taking active part in UNV activities (for instance in events that mark International Volunteer Day); • Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country; • Provide annual and end of assignment self- reports on UN Volunteer actions, results and opportunities;
• Contribute with articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publications/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc.; • Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers; • Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering, or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible.

Results/expected outputs:

As an active UNHCR team member, render an efficient, timely, responsive, client-friendly and high-quality support to UNHCR and its beneficiaries in the accomplishment of her/his functions, delivering the following results:

• The protection needs of populations of concern are met through the application of International and National Law, and relevant UN/UNHCR protection standards; • Effective and timely support is provided to the formulation of a clear and coherent protection strategy, which incorporates a thorough age, gender and diversity (AGD) analysis, and reflects the Organization’s global, regional and country level priorities; • The participation of persons of concern is assured through continuous assessment and evaluation, using participatory rights and community based approaches, and ensuring that UNHCR is accountable to persons of concern; • Protection incidents and gaps in assistance are immediately identified and addressed; • The capacity of national staff or (non-) governmental counterparts, including Implementing Partners (IPs), is developed through coaching, mentoring and formal on-the-job training, when working with them (including supervising); • A final statement of the achievements during the assignment, towards volunteerism for peace and development -such as reporting on the number of volunteers mobilized, activities participated in and capacities developed- is provided; • Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) perspective are systematically applied, integrated and documented in all activities throughout the assignment.

• Integrity and professionalism: demonstrated expertise in area of specialty and ability to apply good judgment; high degree of autonomy, personal initiative and ability to take ownership; willingness to accept wide responsibilities and ability to work independently under established procedures in a politically sensitive environment, while exercising discretion, impartiality and neutrality; ability to manage information objectively, accurately and confidentially; responsive and client-oriented. • Accountability: mature and responsible; ability to operate in compliance with organizational rules and regulations. • Commitment to continuous learning: initiative and willingness to learn new skills and stay abreast of new developments in area of expertise; ability to adapt to changes in work environment. • Planning and organizing: effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner; ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work; ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities. • Teamwork and respect for diversity: ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries; ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity and gender; • Communication: proven interpersonal skills; good spoken and written communication skills, including ability to prepare clear and concise reports; ability to conduct presentations, articulate options and positions concisely; ability to make and defend recommendations; ability to communicate and empathize with staff (including national staff), military personnel, volunteers, counterparts and local interlocutors coming from very diverse backgrounds; ability to maintain composure and remain helpful towards the staff, but objective, without showing personal interest; capacity to transfer information and knowledge to a wide range of different target groups; • Flexibility, adaptability, and ability and willingness to operate independently in austere, remote and potentially hazardous environments for protracted periods, involving physical hardship and little comfort, and including possible extensive travel within the area of operations; willingness to transfer to other duty stations within area of operations as may be necessary; • Genuine commitment towards the principles of voluntary engagement, which includes solidarity, compassion, reciprocity and self-reliance; and commitment towards the UN core values

the areas of community-based protection, community services, social work, and human rights.

Desirable Qualifications and Skills:

• Knowledge of UN policies and procedures; • Field experience; • Community-based protection experience • Experience working with refugees and IDPs with UNHCR is highly desirable. • Good analytical skills; • Strong interpersonal and communication skills in a multi-cultural setting; • Ability to live and work in the difficult and harsh conditions of developing countries is essential. • Experience working with ethnic communities.

Colombia is a large country (1,141,748 km2); its population rises to 47,000,000 citizens. Quibdó is the capital city of Chocó Department, in Western Colombia, and is located on the Atrato River. The municipality of Quibdó has an area of 3,337.5 km² and a population of 129,237, predominately Afro Colombian and Indigenous communities.

Quibdó is located in one of the most biodiverse regions of Colombia, close to large ecological reserves such as the Emberá National Natural Park. It is also one of the regions with the largest number of indigenous reserves.

Quibdó has an extremely wet and cloudy tropical rainforest climate without noticeable seasons. It has the highest amount of rainfall in South America and of any city of its size or greater.

Quibdo is served by El Caraño Airport with flights by two commercial airlines.

The security situation in Quibdo and the Chocó region has been deteriorating in the past months, especially around urban areas. Petty crime in the form of assaults, thefts, muggings and pick pocketing are often accompanied by intimidation or violence and are likely to be the most significant threat and danger for unaware tourists and short-term visitors especially in urban areas.

In the city of Quibdó, there are restaurants and supermarkets. Regarding health services, Quibdó has both primary and secondary health services. For more specialized health services, the best option is the city of Medellin, located 30 minutes fly distance from Quibdó.

The initial contract is issued upon arrival for the period indicated above. The contract can be extended depending on continuation of mandate, availability of funding, operational necessity and satisfactory performance. However, there is no expectancy of renewal of the assignment.

A UN Volunteer receives a Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA), which is composed of a Monthly Living Allowance (MLA) and a Family Allowance (FA) for those with dependents (maximum three).

The Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) is paid at the end of each month to cover housing, utilities, transportation, communications and other basic needs. The VLA can be calculated by applying the Post-Adjustment Multiplier (PAM) to the VLA base rate US$ 1,631. The VLA base rate is a global rate across the world, while the PAM is duty station/country-specific and fluctuates on a monthly basis according to cost of living. This method ensures that international UN Volunteers have comparable purchasing power at all duty stations irrespective of varying costs of living. The PAM is established by the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC) and is published at the beginning of every month on the ICSC website - http://icsc.un.org.

In non-family duty stations that belong to hardship categories D or E, as classified by the ICSC, international UN Volunteers receive a Well-Being Differential (WBD) on a monthly basis. Furthermore, UN Volunteers are provided a settling-in-grant (SIG) at the start of the assignment (if the volunteer did not reside in the duty station for at least 6 months prior to taking up the assignment) and in the event of a permanent reassignment to another duty station.

UNV provides life, health, permanent disability insurances as well as assignment travel, annual leave, full integration in the UN security framework (including residential security reimbursements).

UN Volunteers are paid Daily Subsistence Allowance at the UN rate for official travels, as well as flight tickets for periodic home visit and for the final repatriation travel (if applicable). Resettlement allowance is paid for satisfactory service at the end of the assignment.

UNV will provide, together with the offer of assignment, a copy of the Conditions of Service, including Code of conduct, to the successful candidate.