Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)
A (least hardship)
- Family Type (not applicable for home-based)
Family
- Staff Member / Affiliate Type
- UNOPS LICA4
- Target Start Date
- 2025-01-01
- Deadline for Applications
- December 1, 2024
- Terms of Reference
- IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
- This position is offered under UNOPS Local ICA contract until 30/06/2025 with possibility of extension.
- Remuneration: A competitive compensation and benefits package is offered. For more information on UN salaries, allowances and benefits, please visit the portal of the Office of HR Management of United Nations. UNHCR also offers comprehensive medical insurance and pension plans.
1. General Background
(Brief description of the national, sector-specific, or other relevant context in which the individual contractor will operate)
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees was established on December 14, 1950, by the United Nations 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 also has a mandate to help stateless people.
Mexico is a country of destination, transit, and origin, thus UNHCR is supporting the Government and other actors to build a stronger asylum system that allows asylum seekers and refugees to fully exercise their human rights, from the moment of entry into Mexico, to when a durable solution is found. However, it is crucial to work on alternative migratory pathways and other forms of complementary protection to preserve the integrity of the asylum system in such a complex and dynamic context of human mobility. Such dynamics particularly affect refugees and asylum seekers with specific protection needs due to the interaction of varied factors related to their profiles, their journey, and the conditions in their country of origin.
UNHCR Mexico has progressively strengthened its protection response, including registration procedures in proGres, robust case management and identity systems to provide the required protection services, cash-based assistance -when applicable
- and other forms of humanitarian assistance, legal and psychosocial interventions, as well as the establishment of community protection networks. The increasing numbers of asylum seekers in Mexico and, therefore of UNHCR assistance, require a solid capacity to provide timely and effective registration procedures and referral pathways to appropriate services in all Field Offices, as well as together with key partners.
The Protection Assistant normally reports to a more senior Protection colleague. The incumbent provides functional and administrative support to the protection unit on protection related liaison, correspondence, monitoring, case management and reporting activities.
The Protection Assistant also supports the protection unit in designing a comprehensive protection strategy and in providing quality, timely and effective protection responses to persons of concern (PoC). S/he may liaise externally with local authorities and partners on correspondence and/or protection issues as guided by the supervisor.
The Protection Assistant also facilitates the involvement of PoC in making decisions that affect them, whether in accessing their rights or in identifying appropriate solutions to their problems. To achieve this, the incumbent will need to build and maintain effective interfaces with communities of concern, local authorities and protection and assistance partners.
2. Purpose and Scope of Assignment
(Concise and detailed description of activities, tasks, and responsibilities to be undertaken, including expected travel, if applicable)
- The Protection Assistant will undertake Creole-Spanish translation and will be working under the overall supervision of the Protection Officer and the Protection Team. He/She may be required to work at UNHCR premises, in Tijuana, or perform the services remotely through phone or video conference to assist UNHCR staff in interpreting interviews, whenever necessary. Support may also be required to provide translation services for UNHCR partners.
- Assist within the Protection Unit and other units as needed in various Creole-Spanish translation activities for the population in the following areas: document translation, protection interviews, border monitoring, protection monitoring, community
- based protection activities, participatory assessments, according to the needs of the protection unit.
- Observe and respect protection related Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs).
- Provide functional and administrative support in all protection related AGD based programming with implementing and operational partners.
- Provide asylum seekers basic information related on how to access the refugee status determination procedure, rights, and duties of asylum-seekers within the RSD procedure and how to access free