Children on the Move Programme Assistant

Volunteering Programme & Policy Communications & PR

Overview

Support the Children's education, protection, and social responses.

You have:

• Experience in data collection and analysis on education
• Experience in providing administrative support
• Ability to engage with community members and partner organizations
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications (Excel, Word, etc.)
• Understanding of child protection and social protection systems
• Strong communication skills
• Experience in monitoring and evaluation processes

Contract

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

The ongoing socioeconomic and political situation in Venezuela has led to the displacement of over seven million Venezuelans internationally. Trinidad and Tobago have seen a significant influx of migrant families, including more than 5,000 children. Many of these children face severe barriers to accessing education and protection due to the absence of legal provisions for migrants in the national systems. Since 2018, UNICEF has been responding to the needs of children on the move in Trinidad and Tobago, beginning with a child protection and education response.

UNICEF’s response has matured over time and now includes child protection, education and social protection and is supported by social and behaviour change, technology for development, communications and planning and monitoring and evaluations. From the embryonic stages of the response to present, UNICEF has been engaging and partnering with both governmental and non-governmental organisations to ensure that the rights of children on the move and their families are protected, considered and their needs met.

Education Component Recent amendments to regulations have permitted some children on the move access to formal education, but legal constraints prevent most from accessing the national education system. To date UNICEF’s response to education has been coordinated through the Education Working Group (EWG) which includes key international and local organizational partners. With the recent integration of some children into national schools, more focus will be placed on supporting systems strengthening particularly through the Ministry of Education. Parallel to this, the EWG will also continue partnering with community-based organisations who provide Child Friendly Spaces that offer informal education to children on the move.

Social Protection Component UNICEF has been employing a range of social policy instruments to ensure that the affected population has access to social protection whilst building the national system and advocating for universal inclusion of children on the move and their families. These instruments include humanitarian cash transfers, expansion of the evidence base, advocacy and the establishment of coordination mechanisms. Through these instruments, UNICEF has developed a parallel social protection system that is child-sensitive whilst strengthening the national social protection system. Towards this end a partnership was forged between UNICEF and the Trinidad and Tobago Red Cross Society (TTRCS) to implement the "Cash for Education" programme, which aims to reduce these barriers by providing financial assistance to migrant families. This initiative supports children’s access to education by helping families afford essential resources, including internet-capable devices and connectivity, transport and other related materials required for them to be equipped to attend school.

Child Protection Component UNICEF through its Child Protection response works to support community-based mechanisms for children on the move, including providing support through Child Friendly Spaces, and promoting integration through programs such as Friends Beyond Borders and the Migrant Ambassadors. These spaces and programs support the mental health and psychosocial wellbeing of children, help identify children at risk and streamline pathways where they can access specialized services.

Under the direct supervision of the Chief Social Policy, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks: • Provide research and administrative support to the Education Working Group, and other working groups and meetings supporting the migrant response. • Support with monitoring, data collection and analysis on the needs, responses, and outcomes for children on the move in the formal (national schools, and DAWERE) and informal education (Child Friendly Spaces). • Support the collection of data from Implementing partners towards the completion of internal and external UNICEF reports (e.g. Humanitarian Performance Monitoring (HPM), the Migrant Response Situation Reports etc.) • Support post distribution monitoring and payment verification activities for UNICEF’s humanitarian cash interventions. • Provide administrative support for advocacy activities related to the integration of children on the move into national systems. • Contributes to community building at both technical and cultural levels. • Supports the strengthening of Child Friendly Space Networks through application of their lived experiences, and community-based discussions. • Support UNICEF officers/colleagues (in planning, monitoring and evaluation) to enhance capacity on mainstreaming into programming, research and evidence base, of children on the move. • Support the monitoring of programmes, including implementing partners, in sup- port of results for children on the move and the identified work plans. • Support collaboration with other UN agencies and partners to enhance results for children on the move. • Keep updated on the global migration strategies, and guidance to support the implementation, and the regional trends (from the Latin America and Caribbean region), to support programming.

Accountability Adaptability and flexibility Communication Commitment and Motivation Empowering Others

volunteering or in community engagement.

• Excellent interpersonal skills; culturally and socially sensitive; ability to work inclusively and collaboratively with a range of partners, including grassroots community members, religious and youth organizations. • Self-motivation and ability to adapt professionally in a challenging environment and work effectively in a multicultural team of international and national personnel • Proficient digital skills to deliver the assignment, including proficiency in Microsoft Office applications (Excel, Word, among others), email, and internet. • Demonstrate UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS)

• This position is only open to refugees, asylum seekers, migrants or IDPs with a valid work permit. Length of assignment based on MRF work permit validity can be discussed. In their motivation statement, applicants can demonstrate they face learning to earning barriers. • Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

Trinidad and Tobago is a vibrant island nation that boasts a natural beauty and hospitality. While there is no restriction on movement, serious crimes do occur, and level of caution should be exercised.

Specific UN Volunteer entitlements, including insurance coverage, Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA), Expertise differential, Entry / Exit lump sums, among others, are available at: https://app.unv.org/calculator The complete UN Volunteer Conditions of Service is available at: https://explore.unv.org/cos

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Potential interview questions

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