Protection Assistant (Community Based Protection)

Details

Mission and objectives

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is a global organization dedicated to saving lives, protecting rights and building a better future for refugees, forcibly displaced communities and stateless people.

Context

The Office of the UNHCR was established on 14 December 1950 by the UN General Assembly. The agency is mandated to lead and co-ordinate international action to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems worldwide. Its primary purpose is to safeguard the rights and well-being of refugees. It strives to ensure that everyone can exercise the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge in another State, with the option to return home voluntarily, integrate locally or to resettle in a third country (www.unhcr.org). UNHCR initiated activities in Bulgaria in 1993 in tandem with the country’s accession to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees. Since then, it has been engaged with national and local authorities, civil society organizations and refugee, stateless and host communities to promote access to territory, legal status, and opportunities for legal and socio-economic inclusion. Currently, the office is supporting authorities and communities in the response to the needs of refugees fleeing the armed conflict in Ukraine and those from the Middle East, North Africa and Near Asia, who are seeking protection and opportunities for meaningful inclusion in Bulgarian society.

Task description

Within the delegated authority and under the supervision of the Protection Officer or his/her designated mandated representative(s), the UNV Protection Assistant, Community Based Protection (CBP) will: • Conduct awareness raising and sensitization activities on a range of protection-related topics (education, feedback and complaint mechanisms, etc.), ensuring coordination with various stakeholders. • Through regular participation in community activities, conduct a mapping of community structures, in coordination with local partners and community leaders. • Regularly participate in team meetings. • Support in participatory assessments. • Any other related tasks as may be required or assigned by the supervisor. Furthermore, UN Volunteers are encouraged to integrate the UN Volunteers programme mandate within their assignment and promote voluntary action through engagement with communities in the course of their work. As such, UN Volunteers should dedicate a part of their working time to some of the following suggested activities: • 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; • Provide annual and end of assignment self-reports on UN Volunteer actions, results and opportunities. • 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. Results/expected outputs: • As an active UNHCR team member, efficient, timely, responsive, client-friendly and high-quality support rendered to UNHCR and its beneficiaries in the accomplishment of her/his functions, including: • Support in mapping community structures, monitoring CBP activities and strengthening Accountability to Affected Populations in UNHCR’s programming in Bulgaria. • Enhance experience sharing of good practices amongst teams and partners. • Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) perspective is systematically applied, integrated and documented in all activities throughout the assignment. • A final statement of achievements towards volunteerism for peace and development during the assignment, such as reporting on the number of volunteers mobilized, activities participated in and capacities developed.