JOB DESCRIPTION

E (most hardship)

Non Family with Residential Location

Non Family with Residential Location

Addis Ababa,Eth Fed Dem Rep

NOA

National Professional Officer

Reason

Regular > Regular Assignment

2025-09-01

August 2, 2025

Assistant Community-Based Protection Officer

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
The Assistant Community-Based Protection Officer is a member of the Protection Unit in a Country Operation and may report to the Protection Officer, Community-Based Protection Officer, or another more senior staff member in the Protection Unit. Under the overall direction of the Protection Unit, and in coordination with other UNHCR staff, government, NGO partners and other stakeholders, the Assistant Community-Based Protection Officer works directly with communities of concern to identify the risks they face and to leverage their capacities to protect themselves, their families and communities. The incumbent may have direct supervisory responsibility for part of the protection and/or support staff and supports the application of community-based protection standards, operational procedures and practices in community-based protection delivery at the field level. To fulfil this role the Assistant Community-Based Protection Officer is required to spend a substantial percentage of the workday outside the office, building and maintaining networks within communities of persons of concern (PoC). The development and maintenance of constructive relationships with PoC that measurably impact and enhance protection planning, programming and results form the core of the work of the incumbent. S/he also supports the designing of a community-based protection strategy by ensuring that it is based on consultation with PoC.

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.

Duties
– Be fully informed about community structures and the protection and security situation of the PoC and develop strong links with a cross-section of members of refugee/IDP/stateless communities, using an AGD approach.
– Through relationships with PoC and network of partners stay abreast of political, social, economic and cultural developments that have an impact on the protection environment and provide advice to senior management.
– Ensure that the perspectives, capacities, needs and resources of the PoC are reflected in the protection strategy, planning processes and operations plan addressing the specific protection needs of women and men, children, youth and older persons, persons with disabilities, and marginalized groups.
– Support a consultative process with government counterparts at local levels, partners and PoC to develop and implement integrated strategies that address the key protection priorities, including, for example, child protection, education and GBV, and solutions approaches.
– Provide technical guidance and support to UNHCR and partners and implement and oversee Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) on all community-based protection related issues.
– Support the design, implementation and evaluation of protection centred and solutions oriented programming with implementing and operational partners guaranteeing that community-owned activities are integrated.
– Support communities in establishing representation and coordination structures
– Promote confidence building and conflict resolution among PoC, authorities and host communities.
– Maintain protection presence through regular field missions and reports, making direct contact with PoC, host communities, local authorities and partners. In operations applying the humanitarian cluster system, contribute the development of an AGD-compliant strategy on which the response of the Protection Cluster is grounded and covers all assessed and prioritized protection needs of the affected populations.
– Support the Operation’s work to fully integrate the protection strategy into the Country Operations Plan, the UN Development and Assistance Framework (UNDAF), the Humanitarian Country Team’s common humanitarian action plan where applicable.
– Contribute to the Protection team’s information management component which: provides disaggregated data on PoC and their problems; researches, collects and disseminates relevant protection information and good practices to enhance protection delivery and provide technical advice if necessary.
– Support the inclusion of participatory, community-based protection and AGD approaches in strategies and plans in the Country Operation.
– Support community understanding of UNHCR’s commitment to deliver on accountability and quality assurance in its response.
– Support PoC to develop structures that enhance their participation and protection.
– Contribute to the design of project submissions and the budget for endorsement by the supervisor.
– Intervene with authorities on community-based protection issues.
– Negotiate with local counterparts, partners and PoC.

– Support the identification and management of risks and seek to seize opportunities impacting objectives in the area of responsibility. Ensure decision making in risk based in the functional area of work. Raise risks, issues and concerns to a supervisor or to relevant functional colleague(s).
– Perform other related duties as required.

Minimum Qualifications

Years of Experience / Degree Level
For P1/NOA – 1 year relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or no experience with Graduate degree; or no experience with Doctorate degree

Field(s) of Education
International Development, Cultural Studies, Human Rights,
International Social Work, Social Science, Political Science,
Anthropology, International Law

or other relevant field.

Certificates and/or Licenses
Not specified

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Some professional working experience.in the areas of community services, social work (e.g., gender, GBV programs, women’s empowerment and protection, work with refugees) or/and human rights or related tasks in government, NGO or international organisation.

Desirable
Proven communication skills, both oral and written. Demonstrated knowledge of community communication and engagement approaches. Understanding of and demonstrated competencies in forced displacement and protection, particularly GBV prevention and response, child protection, education, gender equality, and the application of the Age, Gender and Diversity Policy.

Functional Skills
PR-Refugee Protection Principles and Framework
IT-Computer Literacy
DM-Database Management
PR-Coordination in Forced Displacement situations
PR-Child Protection Prevention and Response Programming
PR-Gender Equality
PR-Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD)
PR-Gender Based Violence (GBV) prevention programming
PR-Gender Based Violence (GBV) response programming
(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Language Requirements
For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.
For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language.
For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.

All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination and abuse of power.

As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise.

This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.

The ideal candidate should have solid experience across key areas of Community-Based Protection (CBP), including child protection, prevention and response to gender-based violence (GBV), education, cash-based interventions, community mobilization, communication, and assistance to persons with specific needs (PwSN).
The candidate should have excellent drafting and written communication skills in Frensh,
Proven experience in advocacy and coordination to effectively engage a broad range of stakeholders.
Desirable: ability to speak at least one of the following languages: Sango, Kaba, Fulani (Foulbe)

French

,

,

English

,

,

Operational context

Occupational Safety and Health Considerations:

To view occupational safety and health considerations for this duty station, please visit this link:

https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel

Nature of Position:

Chad remains the leading country of asylum in Africa relative to the density of its population, with approximately 6.2% of its population composed of refugees and asylum seekers. Despite this demographic burden and its immense challenges, the Government of Chad continues to provide a peaceful asylum environment for refugees and a supportive working environment for its humanitarian and development partners.

In the southern part of the country, following various political and military crises in the neighboring Central African Republic (CAR), more than 135,000 Central African refugees have been received and settled between 2003 and 2023 across four provinces (Logone Oriental, Mandoul, Moyen Chari, and Salamat). These refugees are primarily hosted in camps and, to a lesser extent, in out-of-camp sites within host communities in so-called “villages of opportunity.”

Since their arrival, these refugees have benefited from humanitarian assistance within the limits of available resources, the security and hospitality of the Chadian Government, and the protection and support of UNHCR, other partners, and UN agencies.

Given the protracted nature of their presence, it has become urgent and necessary to shift from a purely humanitarian response to a more integrated and sustainable approach that promotes refugee self-reliance while supporting host communities. The 2025–2028 strategy focuses on the integration and sustainable development of populations. This approach is implemented through the Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus (Triple Nexus), which began in 2017 with the funding of resilience and development activities under the PARCA (Support Project for Refugees and Host Communities) and DIZA (Inclusive Development of Hosting Areas) projects, financed respectively by the World Bank and by the French Development Agency (AFD) and the European Union (EU).

As these two foundational projects near their end amid sporadic security instability—due to farmer-herder conflicts, intercommunal violence, and kidnappings for ransom in the south—the implementation of the PARCA Project (Alternative to Camps and Agricultural Resilience in Southern Chad) for the 2025–2028 period, with financial support from the European Union, presents a real opportunity to support the sustainable integration of populations.

In response to the 2025 financial crisis caused by the suspension of financial resources, the Chad operation is undergoing restructuring, including the closure of three out of its four southern offices (Maro, Moissala, and Haraze). Only the Gore office, with reduced staffing, will remain operational as of July 1, 2025, to cover all four southern provinces. The strategy will focus on:

(i) strengthening development and integration activities through increased involvement of the government and development actors in the south,

(ii) the gradual withdrawal of UNHCR, and

(iii) the reduction in the number of project partners.

To achieve these objectives, interventions in the south will increasingly rely on a community-based approach, with remote monitoring and supervision conducted from the sole office in Gore.

Living and Working Conditions:

 

Additional Qualifications

Skills

DM-Database Management, IT-Computer Literacy, PR-Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD), PR-Child Protection Prevention and Response Programming, PR-Coordination in Forced Displacement situations, PR-Gender Based Violence (GBV) prevention programming, PR-Gender Based Violence (GBV) response programming, PR-Gender Equality, PR-Refugee Protection Principles and Framework

Bachelor of Arts: Anthropology, Bachelor of Arts: Cultural Studies, Bachelor of Arts: Human Rights, Bachelor of Arts: International Development, Bachelor of Arts: International Law, Bachelor of Arts: International Social Work, Bachelor of Arts: Political Science, Bachelor of Arts: Social Science

Certifications

Competencies

Accountability, Client & results orientation, Commitment to continuous learning, Communication, Judgement & decision making, Managing resource, Organizational awareness, Stakeholder management, Teamwork & collaboration

https://icsc.un.org/Home/SalaryScales

Compendium

Additional Information

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Shortlisted candidates may be invited to undertake written and or oral test.

This position doesn”t require a functional clearance