Child Protection Officer

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Application deadline 1 year ago: Thursday 5 May 2022 at 00:00 UTC

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This is a UNV National Specialist contract. This kind of contract is known as National UN Volunteer. It is normally only for nationals. More about UNV National Specialist contracts.

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favouritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated.

One of the four prioritized components of the UNICEF Viet Nam Country Office (VCO) Country Programme 2022-2026 aims at protecting children and adolescents, especially the most vulnerable girls and boys, from violence, exploitation, abuse, neglect, and unnecessary family separation, through inclusive and effective child protection, child care and justice sys-tems, empowerment with knowledge and skills against harmful social norms, practices, and improved mental health and psychosocial support.

The above goal has been designed to respond to the current situation that children are more vulnerable to family shocks, as the number of cases of child abuse and violence are increas-ingly reported. Together with violence and abuse, child abandonment are among key mani-festations of deprivation of children to their right to protection in Viet Nam. There is a large number of children in special circumstances accounting for 7.2% of the total child population in Viet Nam, including 600,000 children with disabilities and 156,000 children without parental care. It is estimated that 33,000 children live in 251 public and non-public social protection centres, SOS villages, and reformatory schools throughout the country. However, there is a lack of accurate and disaggregated national data on the number of children living in institu-tions, their situation, the reasons for placement in residential care as well as their prospects for family reunion . At the same time there is also a lack of family- based alternate care ar-rangements, including functioning formal kinship and foster care systems. There are very limited services in the community to support vulnerable families and children, including social assistance and family preservation services. Viet Nam currently lack an effective gatekeep-ing mechanism.

In addition, increased individual and inter-personal stress, family breakdowns and increased negative coping mechanisms that parents might resort to, including alcohol and substance abuse, family violence increase the risks of children to neglect, abuse and violence. Covid-19 pandemic has increased the risks of children to neglect, abuse, violence, as well as mental health issues. Covid has increased the number of orphans as their parents and caregivers lost their lives due to the virus.

To support Viet Nam to address the above issues, UNICEF is providing technical assistance to the government and other partners in strengthening family support and reform alternative care system with a focus on promoting community-based care services for children without adequate parental care, including orphans, abandoned children, and children with disabilities to prevent unnecessarily family separation and institutionalization of children. UNICEF will support strengthening the child protection system in responding to climate change and emer-gency situations, including child protection in emergencies (CPiE) preparedness, prevention of violence against children, and unnecessary family separation, and providing mental health and psychosocial support.

A large proportion of parents and caregivers in Viet Nam lack appropriate knowledge and parenting skills to provide nurturing care care, educate and keep their children healthy and safe. UNICEF has supported to successfully piloted the IECD Parenting Project helping more than 10,000 parents from Dien Bien, Gia Lai, Kon Tum and Pouchen company. From 2022, UNICEF will help to scale-up the IECD Parenting Project to 15 provinces and in the work-place in about 40 companies.

Under the direct supervision of the Child Protection Specialist Alternative Care (NOC) and overall guidance by the Chief of Child Protection Section of UNICEF Viet Nam, the national UN Volunteer Child Protection Officer will provide timely and duly technical and coordination support to the implementing partners for the planning and implementa-tion of selected activities related to Integrated Early Childhood Development Parenting Programme, Alternative Care for vulnerable children, Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) and support monitoring of Child Protection in Emergencies (CPIE) activities. Specifically, the UNV will undertake the following tasks: • Provide support in conducting literature reviewing of relevant international and national good practices and guidelines on alternative care and MHPSS for children and adoles-cents. • Document project related lessons learned and success stories. • Collect and compile required information for project implementation, especially related to the IECD Parenting and Alternative Care components. • Facilitate, coordinate and assist relevant implementings and support to co-implementing partners for accurate and timely submission of quarterly activity progress reports and fi-nancial reports that are in accordance with UNICEF, UN guidelines and HACT proce-dures. • Support monitoring the implementation of the IECD Parenting project and CPiE activities, including providing inputs to relevant office and donor reports, and briefings. • Provide administrative and logistical support throughout the implementation of the project activities including arranging and attending meetings, taking minutes of meetings as nec-essary, supporting filing an maintaining project documents, and assisting donor visits when required. • Provide support for any other tasks when required to support achieving the objectives of the project and of the Child Protection Programme.

Results/Expected Output:

The overall objective is to support the Child Protection team in ensuring quarterly and annual workplans of the IECD Parenting, Alternative Care, MHPSS, and CPiE components timely and effectively planned, implemented, monitored, documented and reported. Specifically, the followings are expected: - Planning and review meetings/workshops between UNICEF, MOLISA, and relevant implementing and co-implementing at national level and local levels effectively coordinated. - The implementation of project activities is closely monitored, challenges are timely identified and reported for relevant correction measures. - Monitoring tools to measure progress in the implementation of activities under the project interventions developed and used. - All deliverables and reports (including annual financial summary and annual progress reports on the implementation of project activities) to be submitted to UNICEF and and other relevant donors are monitored and pre-reviewed to ensure that the quality of the deliverables and reports are according to relevant guidelines and project proposals. - Relevant project related lessons, good practices and success stories are documented; required information for project implementation, monitoring and evaluation are collect-ed and compiled. - Timely communication to all stakeholders at subnational and national levels is maintained. - Project documents including meeting and workshop minutes orderly filed and maintained. - Relevant programme and donor visits to project sites effectively planned and facilitated.

• Professionalism: demonstrated understanding of operations relevant to UNICEF; technical capabilities or knowledge relevant or transferrable to UNICEF procedures and rules; discretion, political sensitivity, diplomacy and tact to deal with clients; ability to apply good judgement; • Integrity: demonstrate the values and ethical standards of the UN and UNICEF in daily activities and behaviours while acting without consideration of personal gains; stand by decisions that are in the organization’s interest even if they are unpopular; take prompt action in cases of unprofessional or unethical behaviour; does not abuse power or authority; • Teamwork and respect for diversity: ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, mixed-gender environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity; sensitivity and adaptability to culture, gender, religion, nationality and age; commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of UN operations; • 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. • Communication: 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 communicate and empathize with staff, military personnel, volunteers, counterparts and local interlocutors coming from very diverse backgrounds; capacity to transfer information and knowledge to a wide range of different target groups; • Genuine commitment towards the principles of voluntary engagement, which includes solidarity, compassion, reciprocity and self-reliance; and commitment towards UNICEF’s mission and vision, as well as to the UN Core Values.

project management in the development context; • Experience in working with government counterparts; • Experience in documenting success stories, lessons learnt and best practices; • Excellent communication skills, including writing (in English and Vietnamese) and intercul-tural communication skills; • High ethical standards and understanding of sensitivities pertaining to child-related/rights issues and working in a politically sensitive environment; • Ability to research, design and execute ideas and ability to transfer knowledge and skills; • Excellent teamwork skills (self-starter as an asset); • Experience in working with UN agencies and NGOs is a strong advantage.

As this is a national UN Volunteer assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing and other living essentials.

-National UN Volunteer Specialist receives approximately USD 847.92 as Monthly Living Allowance. -Provided with assignment travel cost and entry lumpsum if applicable. -Enrolled in health, life, disability insurance. -Applicable dependents (primary family unit, up to 3) are eligible for health insurance. -Entitled to annual leave, 2.5 days per month. -Provided with exit lumpsum to support transition at the end of assignment.

For more information about UNV Conditions of Service and Entitlements, please refer to the following:

-https://www.unv.org/become-volunteer/volunteer-your-country -https://www.unv.org/sites/default/files/unvpf/UNVcos2021%20Complete%20hi-res-final_compressed_30.08.2021.pdf

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