CHILD PROTECTION OFFICER

Contract

This is a P-4 contract. This kind of contract is known as Professional and Director staff. It is normally internationally recruited only. It's a staff contract. It usually requires 7 years of experience, depending on education.

Salary

The salary for this job should be between 171,387 USD and 220,969 USD.

Please keep in mind that the salary displayed here is an estimation by UN Talent based on the location and the type of contract. It may vary depending on the organization. The recruiter should be able to inform you about the exact salary range. In case the job description contains another salary information, please refer to this one.

Org. Setting and Reporting

This temporary position is located in the Policy and Best Practices Service of the Division of Policy, Evaluation and Training in the Department of Peace Operations. The Child Protection Officer reports to Deputy Chief of the Service. The Service provides institutional crosscutting capacity to strengthen peace operations including through doctrine, policies and guidance, forward-looking policy research and advice to UN leadership. See https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/department-of-peacekeeping-operations.

Responsibilities

Within delegated authority, the Child Protection Officer is the team leader of its Child Protection Team, and will be responsible for the following duties:

• Serves as the focal person for Child Protection issues in UN peace operations, providing advice and guidance on the integration of child protection concerns into the work of peace operations, coordinate substantive and technical aspects on child protection, including backstopping to the field, in line with the DPO/DPPA Policy on Child Protection in UN Peace Operations, Security Council resolutions on children and armed conflict and mission mandates. • Develops, implements and evaluates assigned activities in the area of protection, and specifically Child Protection in peacekeeping; monitors and analyzes Child Protection mandate implementation, including in the context of broader Protection of Civilians efforts, and makes proposals to render mandate implementation more effective; reviews relevant documents and reports; identifies problems and issues to be addressed and initiates corrective actions; liaises constructively with relevant parties; ensures follow-up actions. • Develops strategies to support and enhance the delivery of protection, and particularly Child Protection, mandates by field missions. • Researches, analyzes and presents information gathered from diverse sources related to the team's area of work. • Coordinates policy development, including the review and analysis of issues and trends, preparation of evaluations or other research activities and studies. •Provides input on Child Protection into cross-cutting policy, guidance, training and planning materials and leads the preparation of outputs, e.g. draft background papers, analysis, sections of reports and studies, inputs to publications and presentations, etc. • Develops, manages, implements, evaluates and fundraises for large-scale projects aimed at strengthening the implementation of the Child Protection mandate in UN peacekeeping. • Leads on coordination with partners in the Secretariat, UN peacekeeping missions, Agencies, Funds and Programmes, regional organizations, troop and police-contributing countries, donors, NGOs as well as other partners in support of the Child Protection mandate. • Contributes to knowledge-building related to Child Protection including through best practice collection and lessons learned exercises, the design of data collection tools; the review, analysis and interpretation of responses, identifying problems/issues and preparing conclusions. • Plans, delivers and provides substantive backstopping to consultative and other meetings, workshops, conferences, etc., by including proposing agenda topics, identifying participants, preparing documents and presentations, etc. • Initiates and coordinates outreach activities; conducts training workshops, seminars, etc.; makes presentations on assigned topics/activities. • Leads on and/or participates in large, complex field visits, including through the provision of guidance to external consultants, government officials and other parties and the drafting of mission reports, etc. • Performs other duties as required.

Competencies

Professionalism: Knowledge of UN institutional mandates, organizational structures, policies, guidelines and methodologies relating to the Protection of Civilians and more specifically Child Protection; Knowledge of peacekeeping processes, including mission planning and management, guidance development, and training. Conceptual and strategic analytical capacity and ability to thoroughly analyse and evaluate critical matters pertaining to operational challenges that impact on children in peace operations settings and to provide concrete strategy and policy recommendations for action; Ability to seek new and improved methods of work, to identify best practices and devise approaches to incorporate lessons learned into peace operations' actions to protect children; Ability to manage complex projects and independent judgment in advising on and handling major policy, project and other issues/problems; Capacity to maintain effective working partnerships with UN, NGO, civil society, donors and government stakeholders, including military and police personnel; Demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; Is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; Is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; Shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work. Shows pride in work and in achievements.

Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; Asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; Tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; Demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Planning and Organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; Identifies priority activities and assignments; Adjusts priorities as required; Allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; Works with minimal supervision; Foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; Monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; Uses time efficiently.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in law, political science, international relations, human rights, child rights or a related field. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Job - Specific Qualification

Not available.

Work Experience

A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in protection-related work, including the promotion and protection of the rights of civilians and children in armed conflict, or a related field is required.

A minimum of two years of experience working in a conflict or post-conflict setting is required.

Experience working in or in support of an international peacekeeping operation is required.

Experience in design, development and delivery of training on child protection is required.

Experience in project management, donor relations and resource mobilization in the framework of/relation to international peacekeeping is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of French is desirable. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is an advantage.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

• This position is temporarily available from 26 January to 31 December 2024. If the selected candidate is a staff member from the United Nations Secretariat, the selection will be administered as a temporary assignment.

• While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post.

• Subject to the funding source of the position, the eligibility for this temporary job opening may be limited to candidates based at the duty station.

• This temporary job opening may be limited to “internal candidates,” who have been recruited through a competitive examination administered according to staff rule 4.16 or staff selection process including the review of a central review body established according to staff rule 4.15.

• Staff members of the United Nations common system organizations who will reach the mandatory age of separation or retirement within the duration of the current temporary need period are not eligible to apply.Submitting an application or selection for the current temporary job opening does not delay or increase the mandatory age of separation.

• Retirees above the mandatory age of separation who wish to be considered for the current temporary job opening must indicate the reason for their last separation as "retirement." Such retirees shall not be employed by the Organization, unless (a) the operational requirements of the Organization cannot be met by staff members who are qualified and available to perform the required functions; and (b) the proposed employment would not adversely affect the career development or redeployment opportunities of other staff members and represents both a cost-effective and operationally sound solution to meet the needs of the service.

• The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position

• At the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the recruitment and employment of staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity, with due regard to geographic diversity. All employment decisions are made on the basis of qualifications and organizational needs. The United Nations is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The United Nations recruits and employs staff regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religious, cultural and ethnic backgrounds or disabilities. Reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities may be provided to support participation in the recruitment process when requested and indicated in the application

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process.

By accepting a letter of appointment, staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). Further, staff members in the Professional and higher category up to and including the D-2 level and the Field Service category are normally required to move periodically to discharge functions in different duty stations under conditions established in ST/AI/2023/3 on Mobility, as may be amended or revised. This condition of service applies to all position specific job openings and does not apply to temporary positions.

Applicants are urged to carefully follow all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira, and to refer to the Applicant Guide by clicking on “Manuals” in the “Help” tile of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.