Org. Setting and Reporting

The position is located in the Office of SRSG within the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) with duty station, Goma. The incumbent reports to the Senior Victims’ Rights Officer (SVRO).

Responsibilities

The Human Rights Officer will support the SVRO to advocate for and influence an integrated, strategic response to victim assistance and support, in coordination with United Nations system actors in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in accordance with: • The Secretary-General’s strategy set out in his report on special measures for protection from sexual exploitation and abuse: a new approach (A/71/818 (2017)); • The United Nations Comprehensive Strategy on Assistance and Support to Victims of Sexual Ex-ploitation and Abuse by United Nations Staff and Related Personnel (A/RES/62/214, Annex (21 December 2007)); and • The United Nations Protocol on the Provision of Assistance to Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, endorsed by the High-level Steering Group on sexual exploitation and abuse in 2019. Within delegated authority, the Human Rights Officer at this level will be responsible for the following duties: 1. Supports the SVRO to implement victims’ assistance and support activities, policies and procedures. 2. Supports the SVRO to maintain direct and regular contact with victims, refer them to assistance and provide support to them. 3. Researches, collects, verifies, analyzes and synthesizes significant amounts of information of relevance to victims’ rights, including from open sources; 4. Reaches out to various UN actors to collect and analyze information of relevance to vic-tims’ rights; 5. Advocates with relevant authorities and other influential actors with a view to ;seek re-medial action by the authorities to prevent similar occurrences in the future; 6. Liaises with appropriate national authorities, civil society, UN Agencies, Funds and Pro-grammes with complementary mandates, and other relevant; 7. Monitors the legal systems and their compliance with international human rights instru-ments and, where appropriate, advises relevant authorities, including on the implementa-tion of recommendations by UN human rights bodies; 8. Develops and, where appropriate, coordinates initiatives to strengthen the response to sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA). 9. Drafts, reviews as appropriate, and ensures timely delivery of a variety of reports, brief-ings and other types of communications relating to SEA victims and victims’ assistance and support in compliance with established standards; 10. Formulates recommendations and suggests strategies to better promote and protect vic-tims’ rights in the mission area; 11. Contributes to the mainstreaming of victims’ rights in the formulation and implementation of projects and programmes related to victims’ of SEA of the UN peace mission and UN agencies at country and local levels, including in the work of the Protection against Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Network (PSEA); 12. Represents the SVRO at working-level meetings; 13. Contributes to the integration of victims’ rights in humanitarian action, through participat-ing or coordinating emergency preparedness and response activities, including in the work of the Protection Cluster and Gender Based Violence (GBV), as appropriate; 14. Works directly with other UN peace operation components/sections, including the police and military, to integrate victims’ rights considerations and victims centered approach into the planning and review of their programs and operations; 15. Supports and coordinates human rights capacity building efforts for civil society and state authorities, including military and police, to promote the protection of human rights, in-cluding through providing technical assistance; 16. Designs, as appropriate, delivers and evaluates human rights training programmes for na-tional officials/ civil society representatives, human rights non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other national stakeholders; 17. Contributes to the establishment of transitional justice dialogues or processes and advises national counterparts on accountability and compensation mechanisms/ as appropriate; 18. Ensures, and where relevant supervises, the timely entry of accurate and verified infor-mation about assistance to victims of SEA into the Victims’ Assistance Tracking System (VATS) or other relevant database in compliance with established standards; 19. Contributes to the integration of gender perspectives/considerations and specific wom-en/girls’ rights issues in all activities and for the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; 20. Ensures cooperation and appropriate communication with the relevant MONUSCO and UNCT offices in the establishment of policies and sharing of best practices; 21. Maintains effective working relationships with other UN and non-UN actors, national au-thorities, donors and other stakeholders for effective policy coordination; 22. Defines the work plan for an assigned geographic area in accordance with established terms of reference; 23. Manages or supports the management of technical cooperation projects; 24. Supports more senior staff and/or team leaders in staffing, planning and budgeting as re-quired; 25. Provides guidance and coaching to new or more junior staff; 26. Performs other related duties as required.

Competencies

Professionalism: Knowledge of and exposure to human rights problems, including their political, ethnic, racial, gender and socio-economic dimensions. Ability to evaluate and integrate information from a variety of sources and assess impact on the human rights situation in DRC. Knowledge of the United Nations framework for protection from sexual exploitation and abuse and the mandate of the Victims’ Rights Advocate, as well as relevant policies. Knowledge of in-country programming of UN Agencies, Funds and Programmes with complementary mandates. Expertise in approaches and techniques to embed a victims’ rights approach in the delivery of assistance and support. 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; commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of work. Communication Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two- way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed. Teamwork Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise and is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

Education

An advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in law, political science, international relations, social sciences, including psychology, or in a related area is required. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Job – Specific Qualification

Not available.

Work Experience

A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in the human rights field or closely related areas is required, of which at least half should be in human rights. A minimum of one (1) year of working with victims of sexual exploitation and abuse or victims of gender based violence’s is required. Experience in capacity building activities for the assistance and support and promotion of victims’ rights is desirable. Experience implementing technical cooperation projects is desirable. Experience in human rights protection work is desirable Previous experience acquired in humanitarian response is desirable Experience with child protection and/ or sexual gender based violence is desirable. 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 is desirable. Experience working on confidential matters is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position(s) advertised, fluency in both English and French is required. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is an advantage. Fluency in Swahili is required; knowledge of other local languages is desirable.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

This position is subject to local recruitment pursuant to staff rule 4.4 of the United Nations Staff Rules. Applicants for positions in the General Service and related categories must be authorized to work for the United Nations in the duty station where the position is located. Eligible applicants selected from outside the duty station are responsible for any expenses in connection with their relocation to the duty station. Staff members subject to local recruitment are not eligible for allowances or benefits exclusively applicable to international recruitment. Candidates for the National Professional Officer category shall be of the nationality of the country where this position is located. The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance 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. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process. By accepting a letter of appointment, staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). Further, staff members in the Professional and higher category up to and including the D-2 level and the Field Service category are normally required to move periodically to discharge functions in different duty stations under conditions established in ST/AI/2023/3 on Mobility, as may be amended or revised. This condition of service applies to all position specific job openings and does not apply to temporary positions. Applicants are urged to carefully follow all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira, and to refer to the Applicant Guide by clicking on “Manuals” in the “Help” tile 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.