Assistant Protection Officer

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Standard Job Description

Assistant Protection Officer

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
The Assistant Protection Officer reports to the Protection Officer or the Senior Protection Officer. Depending on the size and structure of the Office, the incumbent may have supervisory responsibility for protection staff including community-based protection, registration, resettlement and education. S/he provides functional protection guidance to information management and programme staff on all protection/legal matters and accountabilities. These include: statelessness (in line with the campaign to End Statelessness by 2024), Global Compact on Refugees (GCR) commitments, age, gender, diversity (AGD) and accountability to affected populations (AAP) through community-based protection, Child protection, Gender-Based Violence (GBV) prevention and response, gender equality, disability inclusion, youth empowerment, psycho-social support and PSEA, registration, asylum/refugee status determination, resettlement, local integration, voluntary repatriation, human rights standards integration, national legislation, judicial engagement, predictable and decisive engagement in situations of internal displacement and engagement in wider mixed movement and climate change/disaster-related displacement responses. S/he supervises protection standards, operational procedures and practices in protection delivery in line with international standards.

The Assistant Protection Officer is expected to coordinate quality, timely and effective protection responses to the needs of populations of concern (PoC), ensuring that operational responses in all sectors mainstream protection methodologies and integrate protection safeguards. The incumbent contributes to the design of a comprehensive protection strategy and represents the Organization externally on protection doctrine and policy as guided by the supervisor. S/he also ensures that PoC are meaningfully engaged in the decisions that affect them and support programme design and adaptations that are influenced by the concerns, priorities and capacities of them. To achieve this, the incumbent will need to build and maintain effective interfaces with communities of concern, authorities, protection and assistance partners as well as a broader network of stakeholders who can contribute to enhancing protection.

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 legal advice and guidance on protection issues to PoC; liaise with competent authorities to ensure the issuance of personal and other relevant documentation.
- Conduct eligibility and status determination for PoC in compliance with UNHCR procedural standards and international protection principles.
- Promote and 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.
- Provide inputs for the development of protection policies and standards within the AoR.
- Implement and monitor Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection/solutions activities.
- Manage individual protection cases including those on GBV and child protection. Monitor, and intervene in cases of refoulement, expulsion and other protection incidents.
- Recommend durable solutions for the largest possible number of PoC through voluntary repatriation, local integration and where appropriate, resettlement.
- Assess resettlement needs and apply priorities for the resettlement of individuals and groups of refugees and other PoC.
- 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.
- Contribute to and facilitate effective information management through the provision of disaggregated data on populations of concern and their problems.
- Assist capacity-building initiatives for communities and individuals to assert their rights.
- Participate in initiatives to capacitate authorities, relevant institutions and NGOs to strengthen national protection related legislation and procedures.
- Intervene with authorities on protection issues.
- Assist the supervisor in deciding priorities for reception, interviewing and counselling for groups or individuals.
- Assist the supervisor in enforcing compliance of staff and implementing partners with global protection policies and standards of professional integrity in the delivery of protection services.
- Enforce compliance with, and integrity of, all protection standard operating procedures.

- 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

Years of Experience / Degree Level
For P1/NOA - 1 year relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or no experience with Graduate degree; or no experience with Doctorate degree

Field(s) of Education
Law,

International Law,

Political Sciences
or other relevant field.

Certificates and/or Licenses
Not specified;

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Knowledge of International Refugee and Human Rights Law and ability to apply the relevant legal principles

Desirable
Not specified.

Functional Skills
*PR-Protection-related guidelines, standards and indicators
*PR-Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD)
MG-Project Management
PR-Human Rights Doctrine/Standards
PR-International Humanitarian Law
PR-Assessment of IDPs Status, Rights, Obligation
PR-Climate change and disaster related displacement
CO-Drafting and Documentation
PR-Gender Based Violence (GBV) Coordination
(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.

Desired Candidate Profile

Required languages (expected Overall ability is at least B2 level):

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Desired languages

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Operational context

Occupational Safety and Health Considerations:

To view occupational safety and health considerations for this duty station, please visit this link:

https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel

Nature of Position:

The Government of Pakistan (GoP) is not a signatory to any international refugee convention related to refugees and stateless persons. However, it is signatory to other Human Rights Conventions, inter-alia, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Convention Against Torture (CAT), etc.  Irrespective of this, the country has hosted millions of refugees for more than four decades with a degree of hospitality. UNHCR has been supporting the GoP in addressing disasters that have affected the country including the devastating earthquake in October 2005, floods in 2010, 2011 and 2022.   Following the withdrawal of the U.S. and allied troops from Afghanistan in August 2021, and the return of the Islamic Emirate regime, several hundred thousand Afghans flooded across the borders into Pakistan.  By October 2023, there were some 1.3 million refugees in the country.

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Province, there are over 711,000 Afghan refugees (GoP recognized); over 307,000 Afghan Citizens Card (ACC) holders (not recognized as refugees by GoP); 13 refugees of other nationalities; over 11,000 asylum seekers under UNHCR’s mandate and more than 400,00 undocumented individuals.  The 52% of the refugees resides in 19 urban clusters while 48% resides in 43 Refugee Villages (RVs). In 2023, the care-taker government notified all undocumented individuals to depart the country or risk arrest and deportation under its “Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan (IFRP)”. The GoP began to enforce its notification by 1 November 2023. Consequently, even the documented individuals decided to depart the country, leading to a surge in the number at the UNHCR Voluntary Repatriation Center (VRC).  By the end of 2023, UNHCR facilitated the voluntary repatriation of 4,161 households/17,880 individuals to Afghanistan.  The GoP declared that over 500,000 of the undocumented population repatriated. Although the PoR cards expired 30 June 2024, the GoP renewed extension for one year up to 30 June 2025. However, it has maintained that the IFRP remains under active consideration.

In KP, the refugee situation is protracted with Protection challenges around cultural dynamics, barriers among patriarchal Afghans, political environment, and acute insecurity. Women/girls are largely marginalized and afforded very limited socio-economic opportunities making GBV endemic. Children also face several protections risks i.e. forced separation, forced marriage, and child labor, among others. UNHCR has been endeavoring to address these risks through appropriate interventions by partners and directly through protection assessment and appropriate interventions of individuals cases.

The Assistant Protection Officer will report to the Protection Officer or Senior Protection Officer.

Living and Working Conditions:

The Sub-Office is located in a high-risk area with restricted movements where currently a five-day rest and recuperation leave is applicable every six weeks. Staff members live in a UNHCR provided guest house. Major supplies for food and personal use are available in Peshawar. The city has an international airport and banking services. Medical facilities are available in the city. KP Province has a conservative social environment and staff should be culturally sensitive and aware of local customs and traditions. Social gatherings and interactions may be limited due to security concerns.
The security risk is elevated, characterized   by ongoing cross-border tensions, armed conflict, frequent terrorist activities, civil unrest, crime (murder, theft, burglary, armed robbery, and abduction) and natural disasters (earthquakes, floods, landslides, and avalanches).
 

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Additional Information

Functional clearance