Senior Protection Associate
Lead and coordinate operational activities ensuring timely delivery of protection interventions.
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Overview
Lead and coordinate operational activities ensuring timely delivery of protection interventions.
You have:
- 4 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 2 years relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher
- Certificates in International Law, Political Science or other relevant field
- Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English
Deadline for Applications
June 4, 2026Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)
A (least hardship)Family Type (not applicable for home-based)
FamilyStaff Member / Affiliate Type
UNOPS LICA7Target Start Date
2026-06-01Terms of Reference
Ability to lead and coordinate operational activities at location level, ensuring timely and efficient delivery of protection interventions aligned with project objectives. The candidate is highly skilled in planning, organizing, and monitoring activities, with a strong capacity to oversee implementation progress and adjust approaches as needed to ensure results.
They possess excellent managment skills and interinstitutional coordination, enabling effective collaboration with internal teams, partners, and authorities to ensure overall project success. Strong analytical and reporting abilities are essential, including experience in data collection, results tracking, and producing high-quality, accurate reports in line with strict donor and organizational requirements. The candidate is detail-oriented and accountable, with the ability to establish and maintain robust monitoring systems and ensure compliance with reporting standards.
Additionally, they excel at building trust with communities and stakeholders, demonstrating cultural sensitivity, empathy, and discretion in handling sensitive cases. They are adaptable, able to manage competing priorities, and comfortable using data and evidence to inform decision-making. A collaborative mindset, combined with strong communication and advocacy skills, enables them to support coordination efforts while upholding protection principles, ethical standards, and safeguarding commitments.Standard Job Description
Senior Protection Associate
Organizational Setting and Work Relationships The Senior Protection Associate reports to the Protection Officer or the Senior Protection Officer. The position may entail supervisory responsibilities for protection staff including community services, registration, resettlement and education depending on the structure of the Office. The incumbent monitors protection standards, operational procedures and practices in protection delivery in line with international standards and provides functional protection support to information management and programme staff.
The Senior Protection Associate is expected to coordinate quality, timely and effective protection responses to the needs of populations of concern (PoC) and identify opportunities to mainstream protection methodologies and integrate protection safeguards in operational responses in all sectors. The incumbent contributes to designing a comprehensive protection strategy and represents the Office externally on protection doctrine and policy as guided by the supervisor.
S/he also ensures that PoC are involved in making decisions that affect them, whether in accessing their rights or in identifying appropriate solutions to their problems. To achieve this, the incumbent will need to build and maintain effective interfaces with communities of concern, local authorities and protection and assistance partners.
All UNHCR staff members are accountable to perform their duties as reflected in their job description. They do so within their delegated authorities, in line with the regulatory framework of UNHCR which includes the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions as well as relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, staff members are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, cross-functional and managerial competencies and UNHCR's core values of professionalism, integrity and respect for diversity.
Duties - Stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that have an impact on the protection environment. - Consistently apply International and National Law and applicable UN/UNHCR and IASC policy, standards and codes of conduct. - Assist in providing comments on existing and draft legislation related to PoC. - Provide advice and guidance on protection issues to PoC; liaise with competent authorities to ensure the issuance of personal and other relevant documentation. - Assist in conducting eligibility and status determination for PoC in compliance with UNHCR procedural standards and international protection principles. - Contribute to measures to identify, prevent and reduce statelessness. - Contribute to a country-level child protection plan as part of the protection strategy. - Contribute to a country-level education plan as part of the protection strategy. - Assist the supervisor in implementing and monitoring Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection/solutions activities. - Manage individual protection cases including those on GBV and child protection. Monitor, and assist the supervisor with intervening in cases of refoulement, expulsion and other protection incidents. - Assist in identifying durable solutions for the largest possible number of PoC through voluntary repatriation, local integration and where appropriate, resettlement. - Contribute to the design, implementation and evaluation of protection related AGD based programming with implementing and operational partners. - Contribute to and facilitate a programme of results-based advocacy with sectorial and/or cluster partners. - Facilitate effective information management through the provision of disaggregated data on PoC and their problems. - Participate in initiatives to capacitate authorities, relevant institutions and NGOs to strengthen national protection related legislation and procedures. - Assist the supervisor with intervening with authorities on protection issues. - Provide assistance to the supervisor in deciding priorities for reception, interviewing and counselling for groups or individuals. - Assist the supervisor with enforcing compliance of staff and implementing partners with global protection policies and standards of professional integrity in the delivery of protection services. - Assist the supervisor with enforcing compliance with, and integrity of, all protection standard operating procedures. - Recommend and prepare payments to individual cases.
- Support the identification and management of risks and seek to seize opportunities impacting objectives in the area of responsibility. Ensure decision making in risk based in the functional area of work. Raise risks, issues and concerns to a supervisor or to relevant functional colleague(s). - Perform other related duties as required.
Minimum Qualifications
Education & Professional Work Experience Years of Experience / Degree Level For G7 - 4 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 2 years relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher
Field(s) of Education Not applicable
Certificates and/or Licenses International Law; Political Science; or other relevant field. (Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)
Relevant Job Experience Essential Not specified.
Desirable RSD-Resettlement LP and/or Protection Learning Programme
Functional Skills IT-Computer Literacy PR-Protection-related guidelines, standards and indicators PR-Refugee Protection Principles and Framework (Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)
Language Requirements For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English. For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language. For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.
All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination and abuse of power.
As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise.
This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.
Required Languages
Spanish,
English,
Desired Languages
,
,
Additional Qualifications
Skills
IT-Computer Literacy, PR-Protection-related guidelines, standards and indicators, PR-Refugee Protection Principles and FrameworkEducation
High school diploma (Required)Certifications
International Law - Other, Political Science - OtherWork Experience
Other information
N/AThis position doesn't require a functional clearance Remote
No
Potential interview questions
| Describe a time when you had to manage competing priorities in a protection context. | This assesses your ability to handle pressure and prioritize tasks. | Provide a specific example demonstrating your problem-solving and organizational skills. |
| How do you ensure compliance with protection standards in your work? | The interviewer wants to understand your commitment to maintaining high standards. | Pro members can see the explanation. |
| Can you give an example of how you've built trust with a community or stakeholders? | Pro members can see the explanation. | Pro members can see the explanation. |
| What strategies do you use to keep updated on political and social developments that affect the protection environment? | Pro members can see the explanation. | Pro members can see the explanation. |
| Discuss a situation where you had to enforce compliance with global protection policies. | Pro members can see the explanation. | Pro members can see the explanation. |
| Explain how you would manage a critical protection case involving GBV. | Pro members can see the explanation. | Pro members can see the explanation. |
| How would you contribute to developing a country-level child protection plan? | Pro members can see the explanation. | Pro members can see the explanation. |
| What do you find most challenging about working in protection and how do you address these challenges? | Pro members can see the explanation. | Pro members can see the explanation. |
Added 1 month ago
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Updated 1 month ago
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Source:
unhcr.org
