ThaiNGO

UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (UNHCR)

INTERNAL / EXTERNAL VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

Vacancy Notice No. 21/2020

1. Operational Context

The Royal Thai Government is not a signatory to the 1951 Convention and does not have national legislation governing the stay and rights of refugees on its territory. The presence of refugees is regulated under an exception clause in the Immigration Act and refugees from Myanmar are hosted in temporary shelters on the Thai-Myanmar border, administered by the Ministry of Interior. Tak Province, in which Mae Sot is located, hosts approximately 50,000 refugees in three temporary shelters. Protection issues are emblematic of a prolonged stay in enclosed shelters and continue to surface, requiring prevention measures and responses from UNHCR and partners.

The Protection Assistant reports to Associate Protection Officer and acts as a critical interface between UNHCR and communities of concern, providing an AGD sensitive analysis of community risks and capacities. To fulfill this role, the Protection Assistant will spend a substantial percentage of their time working outside of the office, building and maintaing networks within communities of persons of concern. S/he will undertake regular field trips to strengthen relationships with persons of concern and partners and will stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that have an impact on the protection environment.

The Protection Assistant will be expected to highlight the specific protection needs of women and men, children, youth and older persons, persons with disabilities and marginalized groups. In particular, s/he will act as the focal point on SGBV prevention and response interventions and will coordinate with partners to ensure SGBV survivors receive adequate assistance.

Excellent inter-personal skills are required. Experience in working with refugees, persons with specific needs or SGBV survivors would be an advantage, as well as knowledge of the Karen and Burmese languages.  

2. Organizational Setting and Work Relationships

The Protection Assistant normally reports to a more senior Protection colleague.  The incumbent provides functional and administrative support to the protection unit on protection related liaison, correspondence, monitoring, case management and reporting activities.  

The Protection Assistant also supports the protection unit in designing a comprehensive protection strategy and in providing quality, timely and effective protection responses to persons of concern (PoC). S/he may liaise externally with local authorities and partners on correspondence and/or protection issues as guided by the supervisor.

The Protection Assistant also facilitates the involvement of PoC 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.

3. Duties

• Consistently apply International and National Law and applicable UN/UNHCR and IASC policy, standards and codes of conduct.
• Observe and respect protection related Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• Provide functional and administrative support in all protection related AGD based programming with implementing and operational partners.
• Provide functional and administrative support in implementing participatory approaches, needs assessments, monitoring, reporting and case management. 
• Support assessments on durable solutions through voluntary repatriation, local integration and where appropriate, resettlement.
• Facilitate liaison with competent authorities for the issuance of personal and other relevant documents.
• Assist in drafting reports, routine correspondence, updating relevant databases and compiling statistics within the Area of Responsibility (AoR).

• Select PoC for preliminary interviews and decide which relevant information to share.
• Enforce integrity in the delivery of protection services by local implementing partners.

• Perform other related duties as required.

4. Minimum Qualifications

Education & Professional Work Experience

Years of Experience / Degree Level

1 year relevant experience with High School Diploma; or no experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Certificates and/or Licenses

Protection (desirable)

Functional Skills

IT-Computer Literacy (desirable)

CL-Protection & Solutions Awareness (desirable)

PR-Protection-related guidelines, standards and indicators (desirable)

PR-Refugee Protection Principles and Framework (desirable)

Language Requirements

.

For General Service jobs: Fluency in English and Thai

5. Competency Requirements

Core Competencies

Accountability

Communication

Organizational Awareness

Teamwork & Collaboration

Commitment to Continuous Learning

Client & Result Orientation

Managerial Competencies

Not applicable.

Cross-Functional Competencies

Analytical Thinking

Political Awareness

Stakeholder Management

Remuneration:

A competitive compensation and benefits package is offered. For information on UN salaries, allowances and benefits, please visit the portal of the International Civil Service Commission at: http://icsc.un.org

Submission of Applications:

If you wish to be considered for this vacancy, please submit your letter of motivation, updated factsheet (for internals), signed Personal History Form (for externals) by e-mail clearly stating the position title, vacancy notice number and your Last Name in the subject line to THABAHR@unhcr.org by the closing date.

The Personal History Form and its supplementary sheet can be downloaded from: https://www.unhcr.or.th/sites/default/files/u11/P11_UNHCR.docm and

https://www.unhcr.or.th/sites/default/files/u11/P11SUP_UNHCR.docm

No late applications will be accepted. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Shortlisted candidates may be required to sit for a written test and/or oral interview. UNHCR does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, processing or any other fees).

UNHCR strongly encourages qualified female applicants for this position. UNHCR seeks to ensure that male and female employees are given equal career opportunities. UNHCR is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality.

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