Associate Protection Officer (Inter-Agency Coordination) – UNOPS (Maternity Replacement)– BEY102 – NOB - Beirut

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT
Eight years into the Syria crisis, Lebanon remains the country hosting the largest number of refugees per capita, with nearly 950,000  Syrian refugees registered with UNHCR, about 20,000 refugees of other origins - mostly Iraqi - and Palestine refugees under UNRWA’s mandate.  There are no formal camps for Syrian refugees in Lebanon, and refugees are living in hundreds of communities and locations across the country. 
The refugee response is led by the Government and UNHCR and UNDP, supported by the international community. As the designated lead agency in the refugee response, UNHCR has established a sector-based structure in Beirut and in the field. The structure brings together over 150 UN agencies, national and international NGO partners [over 150 actors, including UN agencies, national and international NGOs and Ministries] in identifying and agreeing on the strategic priorities to address the needs of Syrian refugees and vulnerable Lebanese communities. The Lebanon Chapter of the Response Plan falls under the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (3RP), whereby UNHCR guides the refugee response and UNDP facilitates the resilience and stabilization component.
The UNHCR operational response in Lebanon is one of the largest for the organization. Media attention and the frequency of influential high-profile visitors is high. The Office has grown substantially in the past years and is currently operating with around 650 staff. Aside from the country office in the capital city of Beirut, UNHCR has field offices in Mount Lebanon, Qobayat, Tripoli, Tyre and Zahle.
UNHCR’s Inter-Agency (IA) Unit plays a lead role in the humanitarian response to the Syrian refugee crisis, in coordination with the GOL, UN agencies, and NGOs. The Associate Protection Coordinator will be assigned to Protection Coordination, which is responsible for co-leading the following structures: Protection Working Group (PWG), the Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Task Force (SGBV-TF), and the Social Stability Sector. The Associate Protection Officer primarily role will be tocontribute to Social Stability Sector activities and to the priority tasks of Protection Coordination, as directed by the supervisor (please see below for complete list of responsibilities). The overall objective of the Social Stability Sector is to mitigate intercommunity tensions so that by 2020, peaceful co-existence will have prevailed and mechanisms are in place to prevent escalation and the potential occurrences of violence and conflict. As such, the Sector is contributing to stabilization byestablishing and empowering local and national mechanisms to build mutual accountability and capacities to address and mitigate existing or emerging drivers of conflict.
The incumbent will be supervised by the Senior Protection Coordinator who will provide guidance, advice, and support on duties to be performed. The Associate Protection Officer will not have formal supervisory functions, however, when necessary, he/she will provide support and assistance to other colleagues in the Unit.
 

FUNCTIONAL STATEMENT
Accountability (key results that will be achieved)

• The protection of populations of concern is met through the application of International and National Law, relevant UN/UNHCR protection standards and IASC principles.   
• Effective coordination mechanisms and tools, including information management, are promoted, facilitated and maintained with Sector partners, government counterparts and donors, for timely and effective needs assessment, planning, and prioritization.

Responsibility (process and functions undertaken to achieve results) 

• Under the guidance of the Senior Protection Coordinator, the Associate Protection Officer will attend Social Stability Sector Working Group and Core Group meetings.
• Ensure coordination with partners in implementing the Social Stability strategy and engage proactively with Sector members to ensure that priority activities are followed through with.  
• Draft guidelines, strategies, monthly updates, and other documents, in cooperation with co-leads, and ensure that protection principles are adequately reflected. 
• Maintain close contact with field counterparts for effective information sharing and for coordination of activities. 
• Collect and analyze available data related to social stability activities and participate in sectoral needs assessment and analysis.
• Provide support to the overall Protection Sector objectives when required and as directed by the Supervisor. 
• Stay abreast of political, social, economic and human rights developments that have an impact on the protection environment.

Authority (decisions made in executing responsibilities and to achieve results)

• In coordination with MoSA and UNDP, organize and facilitate Social Stability Sector meetings. 
• Draft reports to be reviewed and cleared by the Senior Protection Coordinator.