Democracy, Human Rights, Refugees: Associate Regional Protection Officer: Dakar, Senegal

Application Deadline: January 27^th 2015

Applications must be emailed to JPOCoordinator@state.gov by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on the date indicated in order to be considered. Thank you.

How to Apply:

Please note that PRM-sponsored JPO positions are open to U.S. Citizens only.

Applicants must submit a completed United Nations Personal History form (UN P-11) via email to JPOCoordinator@state.gov by the deadline noted above. The UN P-11 form is available for download from the UNHCR website at http://www.unhcr.org/recruit/p11new.doc. PRM will accept the UN P-11 form without a signature. If desired, you may also submit a resume or curriculum vitae and letter of interest. Please specify the position for which you are applying in the Subject line of the email (i.e. Associate Protection Officer – Kabul, AFGHANISTAN). You must send a separate email and application for each position for which you are qualified and wish to be considered. For more information, please see the Frequently Asked Questions on the PRM website.

PRM Notes:

• For more information about UNHCR’s operations at this post, please visit the UNHCR website at www.unhcr.org.

• University degree in International Law, Human Rights Law, and Refugee Law preferred. Advanced degree strongly preferred.

• At least 2 years working in international protection related activities.

• Fluency in French and English (both written and oral) essential

• The JPO job description and related information attached are provided by UNHCR.

• JPO contracts are initially issued for one (1) year and then renewed. American JPOs are expected to serve a complete (2) two-year JPO term.

Associate Regional Protection Officer

Dakar, Senegal

Job Description (JPO)

GENERAL INFORMATION:

Title: Associate Regional Protection Officer (JPO)

Sector: Protection

Location: Dakar, Senegal

Duration of the assignment: 1 Year renewable (total of 2 years)

SUPERVISION:

Supervisor: Raouf Gnon-Konde

Content and methodology of the supervision:

During an initial period of six months, close supervision will be the norm both on regular tasks as well as specific projects. After this the incumbent will be expected to work increasingly autonomous with less supervision. Review of tasks and an evaluation against set objectives will be conducted every six months.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Protection support for emergency situations:

• Provide protection analysis for the protection activities taking place in in Mali, the three surrounding countries of asylum, and any other existing emergency in the sub region such as the Nigeria Situation.

• Ensure existence of forums for discussing various protection issues related to the Mali situation and Nigeria Situation. This includes regional protection meetings, teleconferences, reports and analysis, etc.

• Provide ad-hoc assistance to Mali situation affected operations, liaising with program, human resources, administration.

• Provide protection analysis for the protection activities taking place in Mali and Nigeria situations.

• Provide ad-hoc assistance to Nigeria situation affected operations, liaising with program, human resources, administration.

Solutions for operations in the Mali situation:

• Provide support to operations engaging in the return of Malian refugees, and to the Mali operation for reintegration and return of both IDPs and refugees.

• Help operations think and act strategically to take into account the other two durable solutions.

Support for the regional protection group:

• Provide support for UNHCR's co-leadership of the regional protection working group, including drafting position papers on regional protection issues, communicating with other group members and beneficiaries (national protection groups in the region), and seeking consensus on the Sahel response plan.

ACCOUNTABILITY:

• Regular protection analysis reports for the Mali region

• Tri-mestrial organization of regional protection meetings

• Drafting position papers for the regional protection group

AUTHORITY:

• Limited decision making, but the incumbent shall be encouraged to take initiative within the broad objectives of the terms of reference.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:

Languages: French and English (both written and oral) essential.

Qualifications: University education with a law degree - International Law, Human Rights Law, and Refugee Law preferred. Post graduate qualifications in law will be an added advantage. University degree (LL.B.) with 4 years of relevant job experience or Advanced University degree (LL.M. – or JD) and 2 years of relevant job experience.

Experience: At least 2 years working in international protection related activities.

Skills: Knowledge of international legal framework governing refugees and IDPs, excellent research and writing skills, willingness to work throughout West Africa, capacity to adapt to changing requirements and to work both independently and in a team, knowledge of UN policies, procedures and field experience is highly desirable. Team player.

REQUIRED COMPETENCIES, which illustrate behaviors that are essential to achieving deliverables described above, and that are critical to successful performance. All jobs require the staff to abide to the Values and Core competencies of UNHCR.

- Judgement and Decision Making (M003)

- Managing Resources (M006)

- Analytical Thinking (X001)

- Policy Development and Research (X006)

- Political Awareness (X007)

TRAINING COMPONENTS AND LEARNING ELEMENTS:

Training components:

The incumbent will have access to the UNHCR learning programmes on resettlement, protection and other relevant topics and skills managed by the agency’s Global Learning Centre and partly implemented through the online Connect and Learn programme.

Learning elements:

• Application of UNHCR’s mandate, principles, code of conduct and humanitarian goals.

• International and regional refugee protection standards and policies, with an emphasis on ensuring non-refoulement, non-discrimination, and voluntary repatriation.

• Analysis of large data sets and qualitative protection reports.

• Operational practices for communication and coordination between UNHCR Headquarters and regional offices, and between regional and country and field offices.

• Liaisons with regional representatives of countries in emergencies in the context of multi-year strategies and specific protection issues.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

The Regional Protection Unit of the UNHCR Regional Representation for West Africa covers 18 countries in West Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Cote d’Ivoire, the Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo).

The activities for the incumbent will involve providing protection support for regional operations in emergencies. In the past two years, these operations were Mali and the surrounding countries, where the international intervention and political processes aimed at reunifying the divided nation are still incomplete. There is increasing attention on northern Nigeria, where violence has left hundreds dead, driven tens of thousands of the civilians into neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon, and millions more have been internally displaced.

The incumbent will work closely with the Senior Regional Protection Officer and the Regional Deputy Representative (Protection), identifying outstanding protection issues, providing strategic responses to these protection issues, and communicating with operations in the region on these protection issues. S/he will undertake missions to various countries to provide support for operations in emergencies as they build up their capacities, as well as in the context of regional coordination meetings.

Dakar is an “A” duty station; there are no specific living conditions nor security measures to be taken into consideration. Nevertheless, the incumbent will be briefed on conditions in locations within the region when on mission as appropriate.

June 2014