Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)E (most hardship)
Family Type (not applicable for home-based)
Non Family
Staff Member / Affiliate TypeUNOPS LICA5
Target Start Date2023-10-15
Job Posting End DateSeptember 26, 2023
Terms of ReferenceTitle: Senior Protection Assistant/Call Operator
Project: UNOPS
Section: Protection
Contract/Level: LICA-Level 5
Duty Station: Country Office Kabul
Duration: From 01. Oct.2023 to 31. Dec.2023 (Maternity Leave Replacement)
General Background:
Decades of conflict, recurrent natural disasters and economic decline continue to have a severe impact on population movement and resilience in Afghanistan. Although an improved security situation is anticipated to decrease conflict-induced displacement, Afghans remain affected by widespread exhaustion of coping capacities. Consequently, an urgent imperative to address immediate life-saving needs while also exploring solutions to address forced displacement, is required.
The severe economic contraction, high levels of unemployment and sustained inflation of key commodity prices, have caused the average household’s debt to increase. Coupled with population growth, internal displacement and continued high rates of cross-border returns, the situation has contributed to increased strain on livelihood opportunities and basic services. The result is a complex and multi-faceted crisis that generates and amplifies existing community tensions and degrades the protection environment, particularly for displaced populations, women and girls and vulnerable individuals.
UNHCR Afghanistan's population of concern includes refugees, asylum seekers, refugee returnees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and members of the host community. Some 50,000 refugees are residing in Khost and Paktika Provinces as well as in urban areas in Kabul and Herat. In addition, since 2002, UNHCR has facilitated the voluntary return of over 5.3 million Afghan refugees through the Voluntary Repatriation programme from Pakistan, Iran, and other countries.
UNHCR Afghanistan maintains a Complaint and Feedback Mechanism (CFM) system in order to receive queries, provide appropriate response and refer vulnerable cases for further assistance. At Country Office level, three Hotline Phones and a Protection mailbox are managed and additional hotlines are available across the country. The main purpose of UNHCR's CFM engagement is to enhance our ability to reach affected populations, and provide them with a two-way communication with UNHCR. With the change in regime and incresed concerns and needs, the number of queries received by UNHCR Afghanistan’s hotline channels exponentially increased and remains high as of 2023 (wtith an average of 3000 queries per month). In order to effectively manage the calls and emails received by the office, UNHCR is seeking to recruit a staff member who will be dedicated to handling and managing UNHCR's communications channels as well as other CFM tools
The objective of the recruitment is to support UNHCR's communication with populations of concern. This includes reviewing and responding to email queries in a timely manner as well as attending to phone queries and conducting necessary counselling and dissemination of information by phone. In addition, the staff member may also be involved in needs assessments, displacement monitoring, post-distribution monitoring, and other requested activities.
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.
Based on the operational needs in the field, the staff member should fulfill their duties/ responsibilities as well as serve as a back up to support other team members when needed.
Under the supervision of the Protection Officer, the incumbent will undertake the following responsibilities:
Duties/Responsibilities:
- Respond to queries received through the Hotline Phone
- Review and respond to email queries in a timely manner
- Identify and flag vulnerable cases to the Protection Unit for further interventions
- Enter query data into the Feedback and Response System
- Conduct data analysis to identify and monitor query trends
- Draft weekly Protection Query Tracking Report and other related publications
- Conduct phone surveys and monitoring upon request by the Office
- Liaise with other field offices
- Perform other tasks as directed
Education:
Completion of High School Diploma or higher
Work experience:
For G5 - 2 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 1-year relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher
Core Competencies:
Accountability
• Communication
• Organizational Awareness
• Teamwork & Collaboration
• Commitment to Continuous Learning
Client & Result Orientation
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Skills
Education
Certifications
Work Experience
Other informationOnly shortlisted candidates will be invited for a competency base interview.This position doesn't require a functional clearance