Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)

B

Family

UNOPS LICA5

2024-04-01

March 18, 2024

Operational Context

Thailand hosts along the Thai-Myanmar border more than 80,000 displaced persons (refugees) from Myanmar over the last three decades. UNHCR Offices are engaged in a range of activities to support the Royal Thai Government (RTG) in ensuring their international protection and seeking solutions to the protracted refugee situation. UNHCR, in close collaboration with RTG and third country governments, is undertaking a large-scale resettlement programme for refugees residing in the border camps. Travel to the border camps in Tak province is expected.

Desired candidate profile

The Senior Child Protection Assistant will be based at the UNHCR Field Office in Mae Sot, and will be a member of Protection team covering the border camps in Tak province. Flexibility and strong team spirit are essential as regular travel to the border camps is required.

The incumbent will support UNHCR’s best interests procedures for unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) and other children at heightened risk in accordance with standard operating procedures and guidelines. The incumbent will also contribute to strengthened engagement with national best interests procedures by establishing and maintaining links with national actors such as social welfare workforce staff and judicial and immigration authorities. Furthermore, the incumbent will closely liaise with other stakeholders like COERR, IRC and HI. Proven experience in liaising with partners would be an advantage.

The incumbent will also provide counseling to refugees and assist in assessments of children at risk in the framework of the resettlement process. Therefore, strong interpersonal skills are required to build relationships of trust with the refugee community. The incumbent will conduct physical and electronic filing and can also be requested to support in continuous registration activities.

Experience in working with refugees – particularly in child protection and/or resettlement – and/or in related fields would be an advantage. The incumbent should have effective written/oral communication skills in English and Thai. Knowledge of Karen and/or Burmese is desirable, as well as prior experience with the UNHCR proGres database.

Languages

• Required: Fluency in written and spoken English and Thai
• Desirable: Knowledge of Karen and/or Burmese language

Location: Mae Sot

Contract: Until end 2024

Standard Job Description

Senior Child Protection Assistant

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
UNHCR is committed to the effective protection to children of concern, with children representing more than half of the persons falling under its mandate. UNHCR adopts a rights and community-based approach to address the protection needs of children, with a strong emphasis on inclusion within national child protection, child friendly procedures and working with other sectors to protect children including education. Child protection is recognized as global organizational priority for UNHCR. Dedicated child protection positions are needed to provide technical support to improve UNHCR’s operational capacity to deliver effective protection to children, adolescents and youth of concern.
The Senior Child Protection Assistant normally reports to a higher-grade Protection or Child Protection colleague responsible for child protection. S/he monitors child 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 Child Protection Assistant is expected to coordinate quality, timely and effective protection responses to the needs of populations of concern (children, women, marginalized groups) and is responsible for implementation of Best Interests Procedures for children at risk in their area of responsibility, under the guidance of the supervisor. S/he identifies opportunities to mainstream Child Protection methodologies and integrate protection safeguards in operational responses in all sectors and liaises externally with authorities and partners on protection doctrine and policy as guided by the supervisor. The Senior Child Protection Assistant also ensures that persons of concern under area of responsibility are involved with the Office 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 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
Needs identification, Strategy and Advocacy
– Contribute to assessing child protection issues through multi-sectoral and protection specific assessments.
– Facilitate consultation with children, youth and communities to inform child protection strategy and programme activities.
– Contribute to the formulation of child protection strategy and planning.
– Ensure compliance with UNHCR’s child protection policy, priorities and commitments, as well as other aligned policies on age, gender, diversity (AGD) and accountability to affected populations (AAP), GBV, gender equality, disability and youth empowerment.
– Undertake consultation with children, youth and communities and provide information on appropriate and meaningful approaches for their effective participation and programmatic responses on child protection issues.
– Provide input to Protection Unit to inform advocacy to address key child protection concerns.

Programme planning and implementation
– Engage children, youth and communities in the implementation of child protection activities, provide information to children, youth and communities about child protection services and monitor and report on needs and issues to inform the Operations Response.
– Conduct Best Interest Procedures for individual children at heightened risks and prepare Best Interests Determination report, when required.
– Participate in the Best Interests Procedure Case Conferences and BID panels and draft associated documentation as required.
– Implement child protection SOPS and ensure up to date and effective referral to key services.
– Store and update child’s case file in UNHCR data bases in accordance with UNHCR standards.
– Engage with children, youth and community members in identifying community-based child protection activities.
– Monitor and support appropriate care arrangements for unaccompanied and separated children and referral of children to ICRC or other relevant partners for establishment of family linkages.
– Regularly report on emerging protection issues and concerns voiced by children, youth and communities and assist in drafting reports, compiling and preparing data for the protection unit/section.
– Provide functional guidance to UNHCR and partner staff involved in child protection activities.

Partnership, coordination and capacity building
– Assist the Child Protection interagency coordination and information management activities as needed.
– Provide technical support and monitoring to child protection partners.
– Support in implementing learning activities for UNHCR and partners staff and communities.

– 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 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 Protection Learning Prg;
(Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
2 years of previous work experience relevant to the function of child protection in a local context and having experience in the field of child protection prevention and response, broader protection or social work involving empowerment of women and girls, gender, child protection, mental health, counselling and working with survivors, humanitarian and development issues. Skills and experience in interviewing and working with children and families.

Desirable
Experience with child protection case management. Knowledge of UNHCR child protection policies and tools including the UNHCR Best Interests Procedures Guidelines, and interagency child protection Minimum Standards, Guiding Principles and GBV case management standards. Knowledge of local child protection laws, policies and services. Knowledge and experience of participatory approaches to engage with and mobilize communities. Understanding of displacement and protection issues including GBV, education and the application of the Age, Gender and Diversity Policy. Completed Protection Learning Programme. Experience working with marginalized groups. Knowledge of protection information management tools, including but not limited to proGres and/or CPIMS.

Functional Skills
IT-Computer Literacy
PR-Child Protection Information Management System
PR-Child Protection Case Management and Best Interests Procedures
(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

Thai

,

,

Desired Languages

,

,

Additional Qualifications

Skills

IT-Computer Literacy, PR-Child Protection Case Management and Best Interests Procedures, PR-Child Protection Information Management System

Education

Certifications

HCR Protection Learning Program – UNHCR

Other information

This position doesn’t require a functional clearance

Home-Based

No