Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)H (no hardship)
Family Type (not applicable for home-based)
Family
Staff Member / Affiliate TypeUNOPS IICA3
Target Start Date2025-09-01
Deadline for ApplicationsAugust 19, 2025
Terms of ReferenceThis is a home based contract
1. General Background
Protection risks continue unabated with over 272 million people exposed to protection risks impacted by conflicts and disasters. Conflict, violence, and systematic breaches of international humanitarian law remain the main causes of protection needs, exacerbated by climate change, socio-economic shocks and food insecurity. At the end of 2024, some 74 million people were internally displaced due to armed conflict, generalized violence, human rights violations and disasters. Against this background, the humanitarian response system continues to be challenged to act faster and more effectively, particularly in protecting the human rights of crisis-affected people and to find lasting solutions to displacement and recurring emergencies.
The Global Protection Cluster is mandated by the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), led by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), governed by a Strategic Advisory Group, co-chaired by the GPC Coordinator and an operational NGO, and serviced by a multi-partner Operations Cell. The GPC brings together UN agencies, NGOs and international organizations working on protection-related themes in humanitarian response, including those with mandates and/or expertise in human rights, child protection, gender-based violence, housing, land, and property issues and Mine Action. With its focus on protecting the human rights of crisis-affected populations, which is core to and yet transcends humanitarian action, the GPC and its country protection clusters provide technical support and protection risks analyses to Humanitarian Country teams to support the roll out of the Centrality of Protection in the humanitarian responses.
The work of the GPC covers three areas: i) Field operational support (including rapid response in emergencies; protection risks analyses, and strategy development; coordination of service delivery; protection information management; technical support to HCT on Centrality of Protection, contribution to the Humanitarian Programme Cycle; innovation in humanitarian response; inter-agency collaboration); ii) providing a global platform for protection advocacy, and; iii) developing global standards and policy on protection.
The position of the Cluster Coordination Officer โ Snr Roving Coordinator is home based, within the Durable Solutions and Protection Support Service of the Division of International Protection and Solutions (DIPS). As the Cluster Coordination Officer โ Snr Roving Coordinator, the incumbent will contribute to the GPCโs field operational support, including rapid response in emergencies, strategy development, technical protection coordination, support on centrality of Protection, and capacity building.
2. Purpose and Scope of Assignment
The Senior Roving Coordinator will contribute mainly to strengthen protection cluster coordination response capacity by ensuring timely and quality support to country level cluster coordination teams.
The Senior Roving Coordinator will be an integral part of the Field Support team, working closely with the regional/country focal points, and be supervised by the GPC Coordinator, and the main functions will be:
i. Ensure consistent support to protection coordination in operations with cluster and cluster like mechanisms.
ii. Ensure regular remote support or in country deployments with focused support during HNO/HRP process (Coordination, Technical) or new emergencies. In country support will be under the following modalities:
a. 3-month deployments (with extensions in some cases) as Protection Cluster Coordinator to support the establishment of the Protection Cluster and create the necessary coordination systems and processes or filling critical gaps in leadership and coordination capacity in case of turnover and as identified by the field support team. The deployment will take place under the direct supervision of the person who represents UNHCR at the Humanitarian Country Team with a technical reporting line to the GPC.
b. Missions to countries where the Protection Cluster is active to provide support on core coordination processes, crises analysis, strategy development, training and other types of support. The missions will take place under the direct supervision of the person who represents UNHCR at the Humanitarian Country Team with a technical reporting line to the GPC.
iii. Engage with country level cluster coordination teams when common challenges are observed and contribute to processes to discuss these issues (i.e. webinars, peer exchanges, trainings guidance/best practices). Thematic areas of focus could include durable solutions, area-based coordination, neglected crisis etc.
iv. Support country clusters with technical support to further strategic issues.
Additionally, the Senior Roving Coordinator when appropriate, will participate in Global Protection Cluster initiatives such as trainings, reporting, organization of the Global Protection Conference and Forum, liaison with working groups and communities of practice and other tasks upon request.
3. Monitoring and Progress Controls
- Number of country cluster and cluster like mechanisms supported:
Sustain engagement and regular support to cluster coordination teams provided on coordination and programmatic/operational protection response with focused support during HNO/HRP process (Coordination, Technical).
- Number of field missions implemented as:
o Deployment as Protection Cluster Coordinator to support the establishment of the Protection Cluster.
o Missions to support established and active Protection Cluster to provide technical support.
- Coordinators webinars and trainings provided to support cluster coordination teams when common challenges are observed.
- Contribute to updating relevant protection and coordination tools and best practices and make them more easily accessible to coordinators and partners.
- Improve situation planning to include preparedness and contingency planning in context of disasters and climate change.
- Support the Global Protection Cluster initiatives such as trainings, reporting, organization of the Protection conference and forum, liaison with working groups and communities of practice and others.
4. Qualifications and Experience
(List the required education, work experience, expertise and competencies of the individual contractor. The listed education and experience should correspond with the level at which the contract is offered.)
a. Education (Level and area of required and/or preferred education)
- Advanced University Degree in Law, International Human Rights Law, or related fields.
b. Work Experience
- Minimum 9 yearsโ experience in field protection cluster coordination, including experience in the development and implementation of IASC protocols and guidelines, tools and policies, performance and/or risk management.
c. Key Competencies
- Experience of working collaboratively with multiple internal and external stakeholders.
- High level of familiarity with humanitarian coordination mechanisms, protection norms, standards and understanding of a holistic approach to protection, and the ability to incorporate these into operational and technical solutions.
- Excellent interpersonal and coordination skills and ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and collaboration across institutional mandates.
- Ability to break down complex concepts into understandable components.
- Excellent communication skills โ both written and oral. Fluency in English, with other UN languages being an advantage (French, Spanish or Arabic in particular).
- Flexible work attitude: proactive, ability to work independently and productively in a fast-paced environment, in different time zones, and to handle requests or issues as they arise
Standard Job Description
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Desired Languages
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Other informationhome basedThis position doesn't require a functional clearance
RemoteYes