Senior Protection Cluster Coordination Officer at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was created in 1950, during the aftermath of the Second World War, to help millions of Europeans who had fled or lost their homes. We had three years to complete our work and then disband. Today, over 65 years later, our organization is still hard at work, protecting and assisting refugees around the world.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Senior Protection Cluster Coordination Officer

Location: Maiduguri, Borno
Employment Type: Full-time

Duties

• Chair cluster meetings and represent the Protection Cluster in meetings with sectoral and external partners, authorities and other relevant interlocutors.
• Issue reports and make advocacy statements on behalf of the Protection Cluster.
• Make decision over format and frequency of meetings, designation of focal points and the establishment of sub-groups/working groups and ad hoc/task-related bodies for specific issues.
• Negotiate with the Humanitarian Coordinator/Resident Coordinator, the Humanitarian Country Team and cluster members the prioritization and inclusion of project proposals and common funding criteria for inclusion in inter-agency funding appeals.
• Allocate financial and other resources within the Protection Cluster, when required, such as regarding Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) or Common Humanitarian Funds (CHF).
• Perform other related duties as required.

Strategic Direction:

• Ensure that the protection response is driven by a Protection Cluster strategy developed in a consultative process with external partners and is integrated into the Humanitarian Country Team¿s common humanitarian action plan.
• Convene and facilitate meetings in line with the Principles of Partnership, ensuring that cluster meetings are consultative and results oriented.
• Ensure coordination with government counterparts and other relevant authorities.
• Lead the design of transition strategies for the Protection Cluster: facilitate the development of a strategy for the cluster ensuring proper linkages with disaster risk reduction, relief, and recovery and development efforts.

Needs Assessment and Resources Mobilization:

• Lead, coordinate and conduct within the Protection Cluster or at Inter-Cluster level protection needs assessments, including participatory assessments of affected populations.
• Provide strategic direction to development of common funding criteria, resource mobilisation and prioritization within the Protection Cluster for inclusion in Consolidated Appeals and pooled funds processes;
• Establish mechanisms for accountable and transparent financial resource allocation within the cluster.

Capacity Development:

• Coordinate the delivery of protection training activities for Protection Cluster members, other local partners, and relevant authorities.
• Coordinate initiatives to build the protection capacity of the national and local government, partners and civil society.

Standards Setting:

• Ensure adherence to IASC standard operating procedures for IDP profiling.
• Coordinate the integration of cross-cutting issues in the work of the Protection Cluster, including any work developed by sub-clusters or working groups.
• Ensure adherence of Protection Cluster activities to Guidelines on Age, Gender and Diversity Mainstreaming.
• Through Cluster-wide consultative processes, provide input into the development of global protection policy and standards led by the Global Protection Cluster.

Information Management:

• Facilitate reporting and information sharing within the Protection Cluster and at the inter-cluster level.
• Ensure that the Protection Cluster has a functional information management strategy and mechanism.
• Ensure that the Protection Cluster produces regular updates and briefing notes on the protection concerns in the affected population, response activities, challenges and recommendations.

Advocacy:

• Identify core advocacy concerns for the Protection Cluster through a consultative process: develop joint cluster/ inter-cluster initiatives to ensure regular and consistent advocacy.
• Ensure a consistent interpretation and application of international law and related UNHCR and IASC legal standards and protection policies.
• Ensure the Protection Cluster¿s adherence to international human rights instruments, the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement as well as other relevant international and regional instruments; in cooperation with the Humanitarian Country Team support local interventions when violations of international protection standards and principles occur.
• Promote and strengthen national legislation relevant to internal displacement and durable solutions
• Lead risk assessments and discussions with team(s) to proactively manage risks and seize opportunities impacting objectives. Ensure that risk management principles are integrated in decision-making both at strategic and operational levels.
• Allocate resources for planned treatments with resource requirements in Strategic Plans. Ensure that risks are managed to acceptable levels and escalate, as needed. If a Risk Owner, designate the Risk Focal Point and certify that the annual risk review is completed and ensure that the risk register is updated during the year, as needed.
• Perform other related duties as required.

Minimum Qualifications
Years of Experience / Degree Level:

• For P4/NOD - 9 years relevant experience with Undergraduate Degree; or 8 years relevant experience with Graduate Degree; or 7 years relevant experience with Doctorate Degree

Field(s) of Education

• Law, Human Rights, International Relations, or other relevant field.

Certificates and/or Licenses

• CCCM Cluster Coordination;
• HCR Coordination Lrng Prog;
• HCR Management Lrng Prg;
• HCR Protection Learning Prg;
• Emergency Mgmt Workshop;
• Tri-Cluster Knowl/Coord Skills;
• Prot in Natural Disaster Situat.

Relevant Job Experience
Essential:

• 9 years of previous work experience preferably in working with Protection Cluster, IDP Operation or Country Operations applying the Cluster Approach.

Functional Skills:

• PR-Country Operations applying the Cluster Approach
• CL-Protection Cluster Coordination.

Application Closing Date
Not Specified.