Associate Protection Officer

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (the UN Refugee Agency, also known as UNHCR) is an intergovernmental organization with a mandate to protect refugees and stateless persons worldwide. Since 1950, the agency has helped tens of millions of people restart their lives. Today, a staff of more than 15,000 people in 130 countries continues to help and protect millions of refugees, returnees, internally displaced and stateless people. UNHCR provides lifesaving assistance, protection, shelter, food, clean water, education and medical care to some of the world’s most vulnerable. UNHCR also provides assistance to refugees who want to return home when it is safe to do so and helps integrate refugees within their local host country or resettle to a third country when returning home is no longer an option. Non-governmental organization (NGO) partners work with UNHCR around the globe to assist and protect refugees and internally displaced people.

The protection unit in Mexico City provides support to UNHCR’s field offices, as well as more direct support and capacity building to national authorities within the federal government on topics related to refugees, statelessness and internal displacement. Part of this support focuses on the implementation of UNHCR’s Age, Gender, and Diversity (AGD) Policy, ensuring accountability to affected populations and promoting an enjoyment of their rights on an equal footing with others.

Projects and activities will include:

•Ensuring accountability to affected populations;
•Protection mainstreaming
•Community outreach
•Coordination support for protection, GBV and child protection working groups;
•Other activities assigned by the supervisor.

Under the direct supervision of Assistant Community-Based Protection Officer the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:

1. Ensuring accountability to affected populations (AAP):

•Supporting the implementing the Community-based Compliant Mechanism
•Supporting operational participatory consultations
•Implementing AAP interventions with an Age, Gender and Diversity in Tapachula, Chiapas in coordination with the Field Office.

2.Protection mainstreaming:

•Conducting regular mapping on Who is doing What, Where, When and Why?
•Coordinating programs and activities with various humanitarian actors’ expert in working with groups with specific protection needs.
•Ensuring that the protection practice related to refugees is guided by relevant national and international policies and standards.
•Maintaining communication with focal points and relevant actors, encouraging their active engagement in the various protection working Groups.
•Mainstreaming a MHPSS approach in protection and solutions responses.
•Supporting protection monitoring activities in Tapachula, Chiapas in coordination with the Field Office.

3.Community outreach:

•Mapping, planning, organizing and monitoring community outreach sessions.
•Supporting role in implementing the Community Outreach Volunteers.
•Recommend follow-up actions to enhance meaningful engagements with communities.

Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to:

•Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for instance in events
that mark International Volunteer Day);
•Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country;
•Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities;
•Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publications/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc.;
•Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers;
•Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering, or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically
possible.