National Protection Coordinator (Protection Cluster Co-coordinator)

Job Description

Title: National Protection Coordinator (Protection Cluster Co-coordinator)

Location: Addis Ababa

Employment Category:  G1/ Non-Management

Reporting To: Country Director

Direct Reports: None

Unit/Department: Protection

Start of Contract & Duration:  12 Months

Posting date: March 29, 2022

Closing date: April 12, 2022

INTRODUCTION

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC), an international non-governmental organization (NGO), has been providing relief and development services in the Horn of Africa since 1997. DRC promotes and supports solutions to the problems faced by refugees, internally displaced people (IDPs), and migrants. The organization has offices across the region, and has been operational in Ethiopia since 2009.  With funding from bilateral and multilateral donors, DRC is currently implementing a range of activities across Ethiopia and Djibouti, including WASH and shelter provision, child and youth protection, gender based violence response, awareness-raising of migration risks, protection monitoring of migration routes, and livelihoods support for returning migrants or those at-risk of migration.

Overall Purpose of the Role: 

Since late 2019 Ethiopia has been embroiled in a context of complex emergencies. The national-level Protection Cluster has never been so relevant and the successor to the current Co-Coordinator been so essential. The Co-Coordinator role is hosted by DRC in partnership with UNHCR – the Lead Agency for Protection. The Co-Coordinator supports and works alongside other humanitarian sectors, liaising closely with OCHA and the broader humanitarian community, to respond to increasingly complex humanitarian needs including significant numbers of conflict- and climate-induced displacement. The DRC Protection Cluster Co-Coordinator will work with the UNHCR-appointed Coordinator  – responsible for the overall implementation of the cluster coordination role in accordance with IASC guidelines on cluster leadership and accountability – to: a) strengthen effective management of the cluster, b) improve the representation of INGOs and other key stakeholders, including national civil society organizations and c) reinforce the accountability of the humanitarian response towards the cluster’s people of concern in order to enhance humanitarian protection programming and advocacy.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The Co-coordinator is responsible for performing the following Protection Cluster activities and delivering the following outputs alongside and in collaboration with the UNHCR-appointed Coordinator, and in coordination with relevant sub-groups. The Co-Coordinator represents the Protection Cluster jointly with the Coordinator and ensures an NGO voice in humanitarian coordination.  The Co-Coordinator complements the Coordinator and provides a representation of NGOs in this essential coordination body.

The Protection Cluster Co-Coordinator will support the Protection Cluster Coordinator to carry out activities outlined in the Protection Clusters ToRs. Activities will be shared and divided as agreed, with the ultimate responsibility remaining with the Protection Cluster Coordinator who reports through UNHCR on the implementation of the Protection Cluster ToRs.

Protection Cluster Meetings, Information Exchange and Representation

• Co-facilitate meetings for the Protection Cluster alongside the Coordinator, ensuring agreement and follow-through of key decisions and action points.
• Ensure that Protection Cluster partners are updated on protection needs and situation analysis, gaps, planning, funding processes, etc.
• Ensure coordination and information exchange on protection issues with other clusters, UN and government counterparts, and strengthen links with recovery and development partners as appropriate.
• Contribute to inter-cluster coordination and planning, including meeting participation in the Inter-Cluster Coordination Group on behalf of the Protection Cluster.
• Liaise with and coordinate the different components (‘Areas of Responsibility’) (AoRs) of the Protection Cluster (i.e. Child Protection, GBV, Housing, Land and Property (HLP) and Mine Action), including consolidate input received from the AoRs.
• Represent the interests of the Protection Cluster in discussions with the Humanitarian Coordinator (HC)/Humanitarian Country Team (HCT), donors and other stakeholders on issues related to prioritization, resource mobilization and advocacy issues identified by the Protection Cluster members.
• Conduct field missions to strengthen links between sub-national clusters and the Protection Cluster at the national level.
• Enhance monitoring, tracking, documentation and information exchange on protection concerns between Protection Cluster members.
•  Provided support via internal and external advocacy at national and global level.

Strategic Planning and Reporting

• In equal partnership with the Cluster Coordinator, facilitate and contribute to Protection Cluster needs assessment and analysis, reporting and development/review of strategic, contingency and response plans, ensuring that these are in line with and contribute to the Protection Cluster strategy.
• Develop in equal partnership with the cluster coordinator and periodically review a common protection strategy and work plan that prioritises protection needs and gaps and identifies response, remedial and environment building activities.
• Ensure effective implementation of the workplan in consultation with partners and sub-clusters or sub-national Protection Cluster.
• Ensure adequate monitoring and reporting mechanisms are in place to review the progress and outcomes of Protection Cluster activities.
• Ensure that cluster analysis and priorities are adequately reflected in humanitarian country strategies and plans, e.g. Humanitarian needs overview (HNO) and the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP).
• Ensure strong cluster participation, including of international and national NGOs, in the Ethiopian Humanitarian Fund (EHF) pooled funding process.        

Capacity Building, Trainings and Promotion of Protection Mainstreaming

• Ensure the integration of protection issues in sectoral needs assessment, analysis, planning, monitoring and response.
• Ensure gender-sensitive programming and promote gender equality.
• Support the development and dissemination of beneficiary selection and vulnerability criteria and guidance.
• Support efforts to strengthen the capacity of the local authorities and civil society.
• Together with the Cluster Coordinator, identify gaps in current cluster member capacities and opportunities for the roll-out of targeted capacity building activities. To that end, design, facilitate and/or deliver protection trainings, including tools and methodology for protection mainstreaming in emergency response and protection needs assessment, to Protection partners and across sectors, to ensure adherence to relevant standards and guidelines.

Protection Tools and Protection Information Analysis

• Support the compilation of information and draft reports and briefs on protection concerns for sharing with partners, the HCT, donors and government counterparts as appropriate.
• Identify key advocacy concerns and consolidate policy positions amongst protection partners; support the development and implementation of advocacy initiatives.

Resource Mobilization

• Liaise with donors to mobilize resources for joint protection response and update donors on Protection cluster priorities and needs.
• Engage with donors to fund humanitarian actors to carry out priority activities while encouraging sectoral group participants to mobilize resources for their activities through their usual channels.

Promote and Support Accountability to Affected Populations

• Support timely and coordinated action by cluster participants to meet the protection needs of IDPs and affected populations in the country, according to humanitarian principles, including Do No Harm.
• Based on assessed protection vulnerabilities, needs and gaps, develop or update agreed upon response strategies and action plans for the Cluster and ensure that these are adequately reflected in overall country strategies.
• Ensure that Cluster participants are aware of relevant policy guidelines, technical standards and commitments under international humanitarian and human rights law.
• Support Cluster partners in their development and implementation of mechanisms for increased accountability to affected populations.
• Support and build the capacity of the Government to uphold its obligation and responsibilities to protect the rights of affected civilian population in adherence with international and national laws. 

Job Requirement

Experience and Technical Competencies: (include years of experience)

• Excellent understanding of protection issues in emergency situations and detailed knowledge of humanitarian principles, standards and relevant legal frameworks (e.g. human rights, international humanitarian law, Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement).
• Excellent leadership, coordination, capacity building, planning, advocacy and analytical skills
• Minimum of 7years proven experience working on protection related issues in humanitarian environments, including provision of technical advice to field teams.
• Previous experience in cluster/sector coordination in complex emergency context; Previous experience as cluster coordinator or co-coordinator preferred.
• Proven experience with protection monitoring, documentation and analysis of protection data.
• Excellent analytical and report writing skills.
• Excellent representation and interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to establish effective and working relationships with members of cluster, consortiums, or other groups with diverse members.

Preferred: experience in development of advocacy strategy and messaging.

Education (include certificates, licenses etc.):

• Postgraduate degree in international law, social sciences or related field

Languages: (indicate fluency level)

• Excellent verbal and written English.

All DRC roles require the post-holder to master DRC’s core competencies:

• Striving for excellence: Focusing on reaching results while ensuring efficient processes.
• Collaborating: Involving relevant parties and encouraging feedback.
• Taking the lead: Taking ownership and initiative while aiming for innovation.
• Communicating: Listening and speaking effectively and honestly.
• Demonstrating integrity: Acting in line with DRC's vision and values