Org. Setting and Reporting

This position is located in the Human Rights Division of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA). The Senior Human Rights Officer will be based in Bangui and reports to the Director of the Human Rights Division.

Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the Director, Human Rights and with the substantive support and general policy guidance of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Senior Human Rights Officer will act as Deputy Chief of the Human Rights Division and be responsible for the following main functions as relevant to the mandate of the mission.

General
Advises on appropriate policies and strategies to better promote and protect human rights in the mission area, including for peace processes;
Develops procedures and policies for the effective cooperation with other components of the mission, including
with the police and military, and for the integration of human rights;
Provides strategic guidance to the UN peace-mission, the United Nations Country Team and Humanitarian Country Team on the mainstreaming of human rights in the activities as required and advocate for the integration of human rights in these programmes including with respect to the United Nations Development Assistance and Integrated Strategic frameworks as well as the Consolidated (Humanitarian) Appeal processes;
Advises senior management and contributes to the integration of human rights in humanitarian action through participating or coordinating emergency preparedness and response activities, including the work of the Protection Cluster as appropriate;
Devises advocacy strategies, advocates and advises relevant authorities including Government and State officials, UN Country Team (UNCT), and the UN mission senior management on strategies to better protect and promote human rights, mechanisms to stop impunity and to redress serious violations of human rights and humanitarian law;
Ensures cooperation and appropriate communication with OHCHR in the sharing information and best practices, and in the creation of policies;
Represents the human rights component In decision-making fora;
Contributes to the integration of gender perspectives/considerations and specific women/girls’ rights issues in all activities, programmes and strategies;
Establishes and maintains contact with national authorities, civil society, UN actors and bodies, and other relevant partners, to inform on the human rights situation in the mission area and advice on strategic and policy issues to better protect and promote human rights;
Promotes coordination among all human rights related mandates present in the mission area;
Analyzes and synthesizes significant amounts of information of relevance to human rights, including from open sources;
Reaches out to various UN actors to collect and analyze information ofrelevance to human rights;
Ensures the effective flow of information and channels human rights analysis and concerns for inclusion in crisis management and response;
Coordinates the implementation of and where relevant designs the human rights work plan and evaluates its impact;
Serves as team leader with responsibility for carrying out, in consultation with the Chief of the Human Rights component, work coordination and administrative functions relating to staffing, planning and budgeting;
Performs other duties as required.

Human Rights Monitoring, Reporting and Field Coordination:
Coordinates, supervises and ensures adequate Human Rights component’s conduct of human rights monitoring activities in compliance with UN methodology and relevant to the observance of the international human rights and humanitarian law in the mission area;
Provides strategic guidance to and, as required, leads multidisciplinary teams in the conduct of investigations of Provides strategic guidance to civil society and authorities on building the protection mechanisms for victims and witnesses of human rights and humanitarian law violations;
Oversees the use and maintenance of a database of human rights cases, monitors access rights at regional field level, evaluates quality of data in compliance with established standards;
Coordinates the drafting of and reviews a variety ofreports, including internal reports, public human rights reports, and regular Inputs to Secretary-General reports on the mission and priority thematic issues including under the Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Arrangements, ensuring quality and conformity with standards;
Provides substantive coordination and management oversight as required to the Human Rights component’s field offices, ensuring a link between field operations, strategic direction and results targeted by the Human Rights component, including in its results-based work-plan;
Ensures information on human rights situation in the mission area is readily available to influence decision, strategy and policy-making;
Contributes, and where required, coordinates the implementation of the Human Rights Due-Diligence Policy on UN support to non-UN forces, including by coordinating risk assessments and ensuring relevant human rights monitoring information is gathered, as well as advises on support and follow-up for the implementation of the Policy;
Contributes to the integration of human rights in the mission’s protection of civilians (PoC) efforts and, where relevant, coordinates such efforts, including by, inter-alia, mapping and reporting protection risks, early warning, advising UN uniformed personnel on human rights issues during the conduct of their operations, and participating or coordinating in Joint Protection Teams, as required;
Oversees the coordination of activities and allocation of resources and expertise within the component to support the work of Women Protection Advisors and the engagement of the Human Rights component in combating impunity for sexual violence as appropriate;

Transitional Justice:
Provides technical expertise and strategic guidance to the human rights component, the UN mission and national
authorities on the establishment of transitional justice processes-and accountability and reparations mechanisms, as appropriate;
Advises national authorities on national legislation relative to transitional justice processes;
Establishes and maintains effective working relationships with national authorities, civil society (human rights and victim organizations, and organizations with a focus on transitional justice), and other partners in order to develop and strengthen transitional justice mechanisms and the implementation of transitional justice processes;
Ensures compliance with national efforts with UN-developed methodologies and best practices in the areas of transitional justice and rule of law for post-conflict countries;
Leads the coordination of mission and UNCT actions in support of transitional justice mechanisms and processes;
Advises UN and national authorities on the establishment of a vetting framework and implementation mechanisms in the mission area, as required;
Ensures the integration of gender-sensitive victim perspectives in the design and implementation of transitional justice mechanisms and processes, as well as relevant advocacy strategies and capacity building initiatives;

Capacity Building and Technical Cooperation:
Oversees the planning of human rights training and educational programmes for national officials, representatives of
civil society, human rights non-governmental organizations (NGOs), National Human Rights Institutions and other national
stakeholders, and ensures they are in line with gaps assessed through human rights monitoring and mission priorities;
Coordinates with other UN mission components, UN actors and other regional and international organizations to create opportunities to integrate human rights into their training programmes, including those aiming at legl slative, rule of law and security sector reforms;
Oversees the coordination of and ensures the appropriate management of technical cooperation projects and funds; participates in fund-raising activities, as necessary and ensures compliance with project-based reporting to donors;
Monitors and ensures reporting on compliance of the human rights component’s capacity building activities with appropriate UN policy directives and methodology;
Oversees the planning and delivery of human rights training programmes for staff and personnel of the UN mission;
Devises training needs assessments and training strategies for new or-junior human rights staff and monitors their implementation.

Competencies

Professionalism:
Professionalism: Shows pride in work and in achievements. 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.

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. Foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning. Monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary. Uses time efficiently.

Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments. Delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards. Operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules. Supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments. Takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.

Leadership: Serves as a role model that other people want to follow. Empowers others to translate vision into results. Is proactive in developing strategies to accomplish objectives. Establishes and maintains relationships with a broad range of people to understand needs and gain support. Anticipates and resolves conflicts by pursuing mutually agreeable solutions. Drives for change and improvement; does not accept the status quo. Shows the courage to take unpopular stands. Provides leadership and takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing.

Managing performance: Delegates the appropriate responsibility, accountability and decision-making authority. Makes sure that roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are clear to each staff member. Accurately judges the amount of time and resources needed to accomplish a task and matches task to skills. Monitors progress against milestones and deadlines. Regularly discusses performance and provides feedback and coaching to staff. Encourages risk-taking and supports creativity and initiative. Actively supports the development and career aspirations of staff. Appraises performance fairly.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent), preferably in law, political science, international relations or another discipline related to human rights is required. A first-level university degree with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience

A minimum of ten ‘years of progressively responsible experience in the human rights or closely related field of which half in human rights is required.

Experience in human rights monitoring, reporting and/or investigating violations is required.

At least three years in a managerial capacity and supervision of teams is required.

Experience acquired in multidimensional crisis is required.

Experience on human rights advocacy and capacity building programmes is required.

Experience in the management of projects is required.

Demonstrated experience in the management of cases of sexual and gender-based violence, including conflict-related sexual violence and/or experience on child protection is desirable.

A minimum of 3 years’ experience providing services in the field of Human Rights to or in a field operation of the United Nations Common System or a comparable international organization or non-­ governmental organization is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position advertised, fluency in both English and French is required.

Assessment

Previously rostered candidates are not subject to any further assessment and as such, will not be invited for such an assessment.

Special Notice

This “Recruit from Roster” job opening is only open to roster applicants who are already placed on pre-approved rosters, following a review by a United Nations Central Review Body. Only roster applicants who were placed on rosters with similar functions at the same level are considered to be eligible candidates. Eligible applicants receive an email inviting them to apply. Rostered applicants are encouraged to apply only if they are interested and available to take up the position at the duty station/s specified in the Job Opening. Applying to this job opening carries an expectation to accept the offer, if selected.

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

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.

The paramount consideration in the appointment, transfer, or promotion of staff shall be the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. By accepting an offer of appointment, United Nations staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and assignment by him or her to any activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). In this context, all internationally recruited staff members shall be required to move periodically to discharge new functions within or across duty stations under conditions established by the Secretary-General.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side 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.