Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)

D

Family

UNOPS LICA5

2025-01-01

November 12, 2024

1. General Background

The UNHCR Representation in Venezuela is comprised of the Country Office in Caracas, two Field Offices located on the border with Colombia (San Cristobal and Maracaibo), as well as three Field Units, one in Caracas, the capital district; Carúpano (Sucre) in the border with Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana; and Santa Elena de Uairén in the border with Brazil.

The operational context in Venezuela remains challenging, affecting both refugees and asylum seekers and the Venezuelan population in humanitarian crisis, including displaced persons, returnees, and people on-the-move. Since the first quarter of 2022, an increase in returns and a high need for protection has been observed.

The Senior Protection Assistant normally reports to the Assistant Protection Officer. 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 Assistant provides quality, timely and effective protection support to persons of concern (PoC) and identifies opportunities to mainstream protection methodologies and safeguards in operational responses. S/he contributes to designing a comprehensive protection strategy and may liaise externally with local authorities and partners on protection issues as guided by the supervisor.

The Senior Protection Assistant 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 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.

2. Purpose and Scope of Assignment

– Follow up at Field Level on the implementation of the reintegration appendix of the protection and solutions strategy.
– In coordination with IM, follow up on the development of baselines for the (re)integration and community resilience interventions.
– Work with authorities and NGOs to identify strategies, develop services, and implement specific actions that promote community resilience and support internally displaced persons (IDPs) and returnees to (re)integrate.
– Map key gaps/issues and problem areas around (re)integration and community resilience that require urgent attention and support required interventions through facilitating the development of specific services or referral and support mechanisms helping IDPs and returnees to make use of mainstream social policies.
– Liaise with and provide guidance and advice to government authorities, NGOs, community groups, local municipalities, and volunteer groups in connection with the establishment and improvement of (re)integration services.
– Facilitate capacity building, training activities, and provision of other support through, for example, bilateral arrangements involving other countries in close consultation with the supervisor.
– Report on activities and follow up on legal, social, and protection aspects of the (re)integration of IDPs and returnees.
– Monitor Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection/solutions activities.
– Assist in identifying durable solutions for PoC in 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 initiatives to enhance national and local protection capacities.
– Enforce integrity in the delivery of protection services by local implementing partners.
– Perform other related duties as required.

3. Monitoring and Progress Controls

– Documentation of good practices and results of the interventions.
– Monitoring system and indicators to report results of the developed actions.
– Identification and proposal of possible improvements in the (re)integration interventions.
– Mid-term review and final evaluation where performance progress and development of agreed objectives will be assessed.

4. Qualifications and Experience

a. Education (Level and area of required and/or preferred education)
A university degree in Law, Community Development /Social Work, Social Science, Political Science, or a related field.

b. Work Experience
Years of Experience / Degree Level
Minimum 2 years of previous work experience relevant to the function with Bachelors, equivalent or Higher.
Minimum 3 years of previous work experience relevant to the function with a High School Diploma.

c. Key Competencies

Core Competencies
Accountability
Communication
Organizational Awareness
Teamwork & Collaboration
Commitment to Continuous Learning
Client & Result Orientation

Cross-Functional Competencies
Stakeholder Management
Planning and Organizing
Political Awareness

d. Language requirements
Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English is desirable.

e. Functional Skills
*IT-MS Office Applications
*IT-Computer Literacy
IT-Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
UN-UN/UNHCR Administrative Rules, Regulations and Procedures
UN-UN/UNHCR Financial Rules and Regulations and Procedures
PR – Area Based Protection Programming
PR – Durable Solutions Strategies on Internal Displacement
PR – Protection-related guidelines, standards, and indicators
PR-Community-based Protection – Principles and methodologies
CL-Multi-stakeholder Communications with Partners, Government & Community
(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)

f. Travel requirements
Contractor may be required to travel 20% of the time to locations other than their assigned work location.

Standard Job Description

Senior Durable Solutions Assistant

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
The Senior Durable Solutions Assistant reports to a Durable Solutions Associate or Officer.

The incumbent is relied upon to contribute to the implementation of a durable solutions strategy. Contributing to fostering an environment to enhance partnerships is a critical element of the work, as are activities designed to strength the involvement of refugee communities and their hosts in the design and implementation of solutions strategies.

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
– Provide counselling to refugees and other persons of concern (POC) about their durable solutions needs.
– Interview candidates for voluntary repatriation and prepare documentation for their return, in line with Voluntary Repatriation SOPs.
– Interview candidates for local integration and prepare the appropriate documentation for onward submission to local authorities or partners, in line with Local Integration SOPs.
– Participate in identifying resettlement needs of refugees, in line with Resettlement SOPs.
– Assist in updating the electronic database for resettlement, voluntary repatriation and local integration, in line with Standard Operating Procedures.
– Process documentation to ensure that POC receive the documents required for their durable solutions in a timely manner.
– Prepare statistical and ad-hoc reports to ensure accurate information is available and shared with relevant offices and partners.
– Interview and advise on the appropriate durable solution to be provided to POC.
– Prepare documents relating to durable solutions.
– Enter information into available database, in line with SOPs.

– 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 G5 – 2 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 1 year relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Field(s) of Education
Not applicable.

Certificates and/or Licenses
HCR Resettlement Lrng Prg;
HCR Protection Induction Prog;
(Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Not specified.
Desirable
Diverse field experience. Experience in interviewing.

Functional Skills
DM-Database Management
IT-Microsoft Office Productivity Software
(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

,

,

Desired Languages

,

,

Additional Qualifications

Skills

DM-Database Management, IT-Microsoft Office Productivity Software

Education

Certifications

HCR Protection Induction Prog – UNHCR, HCR Resettlement Learning Program – UNHCR

Other information

This position doesn’t require a functional clearance

Home-Based

No