Child Protection Officer

 

Under this assignment and with the support and supervision of Save the Children (SCI) Child Protection /CPiE Advisor; the Child Protection Officer will be working within the United Nations Relief Works Agency “UNRWA” for Palestine refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

UNRWA began operations in 1950. UNRWA’s Mandate: providing assistance and protection for some 5 million registered Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and the occupied Palestinian territory, pending a resolution of their plight in conformity with relevant international law and UN resolutions.

In the West Bank Field Office specifically, where this post would be located: there are over 850,000 Palestine refugees, around 30% live inside camps the remainder live around the West Bank including Palestinian towns and villages. UNRWA is the largest UN Agency in the oPt (with over 4,200 staff, 3,000 teachers working in nearly 100 schools, 800 medical staff working in over 40 clinics in the West Bank alone) – as compared to other UN agencies, it is an operational Agency, directly involved in the provision of services. In general, refugees are more vulnerable than non-refugees: higher levels of unemployment, food insecurity etc.

The Child Protection Officer would be working within the Protection & Neutrality Department of the West Bank Field Office, which is a team of around 20 staff which have specific functions related to the protection of Palestine refugees, in the fulfilment of UNRWA’s mandate. The Child Protection Officer would be located within the technical protection team within this department.
In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and be able to vary working hours accordingly.

 

Role Dimensions: The Child Protection officer will operate within the UNRWA’s overall protection mandate for Palestine refugees, with specific attention to the protection of children. The Child Protection officer’s main areas of work will be in provision of technical assistance on child protection, child protection programming, child protection monitoring, provision of support on child protection advocacy, and general protection work. In the course of the Child Protection Officer’s work, they may be expected to interact with a number of staff members within the organization, both national and international colleagues. The Child Protection Officer would also be interacting with staff in the WB field office on the ground as well as the Country Office staff. Furthermore, coordination and interaction is expected with a wide range of stakeholders active within the West Bank protection cluster and sub-clust ers; including UNICEF, OHCHR, OCHA, ICRC, as well as a number of International and national NGOs.

The oPt Country Office (CO) operates in a highly complex country, with multi-member interest, an annual budget of $10 – 15m, and approximately 70 staff members.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:
Under the direct supervision of UNRWA Technical Team Leader– Protection & Neutrality Department, and the technical support and supervision of the SCI Child Protection/CPiE Advisor, the Child Protection Officer will undertake the following tasks, in relation to the West Bank Field Office (WBFO’s) overall protection and child protection strategy.

• Support the roll out of UNRWA’s Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) on addressing the needs of Children Affected by Armed Conflict (CAAC).
• Support the roll out of a child protection assessment of the operationalization of UNRWA’s inclusive education policy in schools in the West Bank, including around the provision of Psychosocial Support Services and referrals in the school and linkages to services and support in the community.
• Support the development of child-friendly reporting mechanisms, to be integrated into UNRWA’s approach to accountability to affected populations.
• Identification of external service providers for protection related services in the West Bank and provide inputs to the development of a functioning referral system.
• Supporting improvements to the collection, coordination, and analysis of data related to children and child protection within UNRWA WBFO.
• Contributing to the monitoring and reporting on grave violations against children.
• Supporting the implementation of UNRWA’s efforts to eradicate violence against children, including working with community based organizations and civil society for the provision of after-school support to children, advocacy, and messaging.
• Support to the implementation of activities and assessment to enhance the protection of children using water and sanitation in UNRWA facilities.
• Coordinating with partners across the West Bank on child protection related issues and other protection issues – including the representation of the Agency in external fora.
• Undertaking missions within the West Bank to coordinate reporting on violations, evaluating and improving the planning, programming, implementation, and monitoring of the protection activities, projects, and program ming.
• Other tasks which arise which are related to the protection work of the Department.

• The completion of an assessment on WASH in UNRWA facilities in relation to child protection.
• Improved protection of children through the completion of a protection assessment of UNRWA’s inclusive education policy, to make recommendations to enhance Psychosocial Support Services “PSS” support to children in the school environment.
• Enhanced protection and resilience of Palestine refugees in the West Bank, through specific programming, meaningful access, the improved safety and dignity of services delivered, and the enhanced accountability of UNRWA’s service provision.
• Enhanced understanding of situational and contextual factors affecting the protection of Palestine refugees in the West Bank.
• Improved protection of Palestine refugee children in particular by reducing their exposure to violence and facilitating their access to services th at fosters their resilience.
• Improved coordination with a range of actors to enhance the access of Palestine refugees to specialized services and support provided by external actors; including community actors, duty bearers, and dedicated service providers.
• Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) perspective is systematically applied, integrated, and documented in all activities throughout the assignment.

 

QUALIFICATIONS
• Master’s degree in social sciences, social work, development studies, law, international law, political sciences or related field.

 

 

Essential
• Minimum of 4 years’ relevant experience.
• Experience in and knowledge of the oPt and/or the Arab world.
• Experience in humanitarian organisation and humanitarian protection related issues.
• Direct Child protection experience.
• Excellent in Microsoft Office applications.
• Able to generate and use data and evidence to innovate, deliver, learn, and share what works and what doesn’t work for children affected by conflict.
• Demonstrated programme design, monitoring, and evaluation skills.
• Excellent oral and written communications skil ls both in English and Arabic
• Strong organizational skills.
• Good team player and strong interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• A flexible and initiative-taking, proactive attitude with the ability to manage and prioritise an unpredictable workload.
• Commitment to Save the Children and UNRWA’s Values.

 

Desirable
• Good Knowledge and experience in International humanitarian and human rights law and the CRC Convention.

We offer a competitive package in the context of the sector. This role is offered on the basis of national terms and conditions only.