Associate Durable Solutions Officer

Volunteering Admin

Overview

Ensure effective case identification and submission for refugee resettlement.

You have:

• Minimum 3 years of relevant professional experience in humanitarian assistance, refugee resettlement, or protection related activities.
• Fluency in English and Thai; knowledge of other languages is an asset.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a multi-cultural environment and adhere to UNHCR's principles and regulations.
• Experience in child protection and case management is a plus.
• Strong planning, organizing, and problem-solving skills are essential for this role.

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.

The Facilitated Voluntary Repatriation (FVR) program, however, did not materialize with an anticipated pace due to refugees’ reluctance and persistent suspicions against the Myanmar government authorities. Hope for FVR largely disappeared with the military coup in Myanmar in February 2021. UNHCR declared a level 1 emergency for Thailand in March 2021; In 2021 – 2023, four major refugee influxes to Mae Hong Son took place after armed clashes along the border.

Against the above background, in May 2023, the US government, Thai government, and UNHCR made a joint announcement about the resumption of a group resettlement program to the US from the border camps. A Verification Exercise was completed in 2023 in preparation for the group resettlement program. In the meantime, P1 submissions for other countries and complementary pathway programs continue.

The Associate Durable Solutions Officer will ensure smooth identification, assessment, and submission of cases for group resettlement, P1 programs, while providing support to complementary pathway programs. In addition to continued durable solution functions, the Incumbent will also cover Child Protection component of the Office which will entail BIA/BID processing from the broader protection perspectives.

The Associate Durable Solution Officer will report to the Head of Field Office/Protection Officer. The incumbent will be working in a team comprising of 3 staff members (with 2 Durable Solution Assistants).

The UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks in particular:

• Implement the relevant SOPs.
• Develop durable solution strategies for the Field Office of Mae Hong Son (FOMHS). Submit work plans outlining how the field office will meet durable solutions objectives including the number of refugees to be submitted for resettlement each month, quarterly, annually.
• Conduct durable solution interviews, review, prepare and submit Resettlement Referral Forms for further processing.
• Monitor durable solution activities to ensure progress against targets, transparency, and efficiency in case submissions and appropriate follow up with stake holders.
• Guide the two Durable Solutions Assistants at the Field Office.
• Oversee child protection activities of FOMHS as the child protection focal point. Develop child protection strategy of the office.
• Monitor UNHCR funded partner conducting child protection activities (COERR). Contribute to the periodic reporting.
• Ensure that BIA/BIDs are smoothly conducted. Act as BID supervisor.
• Ensure that all data and information is entered correctly into UNHCR’s database.
• Undertake field missions as required.
• Assist selection missions by resettlement countries.
• Systematically apply an Age, Gender, and Diversity perspective in all aspects of resettlement and child protection processes.
• Any other relevant work as clearly agreed with and assigned by the Supervisor.

Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to:

• Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take 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; • Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities; • Contribute 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. • Adhere to and follow the UNHCR Code of Conduct.

Results/Expected Outputs:

• Actively contributed to UNHCR’s protection mandate and engagement in solutions, including resettlement and repatriation. • Contributed to the development of policies and staff capacity in relation to durable solutions through coaching, mentoring and formal on-the-job training, when working with the Durable Solutions Assistants or governmental or non-governmental counterparts, including Partners; • Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) perspective is systematically applied, integrated and documented in all activities throughout the assignment • A final statement of achievements towards volunteerism for development during the assignment, such as reporting on the number of volunteers mobilized, activities participated in and capacities developed.

• 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

professional work related to the relevant resettlement or durable solution work.

Mae Hong Son is a small local town. Usually, there are regular flights to and from Mae Hong Son. The route and the frequency of the flights largely depend on the business interest of airline companies.

Ma Hong Son is set in a beautiful valley surrounded by hills and rice paddies, River Pai flows on the outskirts of the town. Weather ranges from very hot (above 40C during the months of March – June) to mild (November – February). The rainy season is from mid-June to mid-October. The months of March and April are specially hot and smoky as farmers burn their field which results in extremely smoky conditions not only in Mae Hong Son but the most provinces of the North region of Thailand.

Mae Hong Son has functional airport, bus station, relatively well maintained road and it is considered to be a clean city. The daily market is full of local vegetables, fruits, and chicken, and pork meat. As Mae Hong Son is considered a small and remote province, the schools operate with Thai language. Work opportunities for spouses of international staff are limited. Mae Hong Son town is considered to be one of the most safe or criminal free towns. Mae Hong Son is classified as Category B family duty station without International Schooling and advanced medical facilities.

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Potential interview questions

Added 2 years ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: unv.org