Job Title:  Child Protection Officer (UN Volunteers)

Organisation: United Nations Volunteers (UNV)

Placement Organization: United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)

Duty Station: Moroto, Uganda

About Organisation:

The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide. We work with partners to integrate qualified, highly motivated and well-supported UN Volunteers into development programming and promote the value and global recognition of volunteerism. UNV is administered by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and reports to the UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board.

About UNICEF:

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is mandated by the UN general assembly to advocate for the protection of children’s rights, to help meet their basic needs and expand their opportunities to reach their full potential. Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere.

Job Summary:   Under the supervision of the Chief of Field Office in Moroto, the UNV will provide critical support to the Child Protection services and response team in the Karamoja region and collaborate with the Kampala office and other zonal offices to strengthen service delivery at all levels. This strategic role offers an opportunity to contribute to impactful, system-strengthening initiatives that protect Uganda’s most vulnerable children.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:   Under the direct supervision of Chief of Field Office in Moroto in collaboration with the Chief of Section Child protection based in Kampala the UN Volunteer will undertake the following strategic tasks:

Joint Programme Support:

• Actively participate in joint programme coordination meetings, including task force and weekly/monthly coordination meetings, to ensure effective implementation of child protection activities. Provide strategic support by preparing agendas, documenting key discussions, and following up on action points.
• Support the preparation and submission of high-quality progress updates and activity reports, ensuring data accuracy and alignment with programmatic goals.
• Contribute to the development of tools for monitoring and tracking the progress of ongoing child protection activities to ensure timely implementation and achievement of key milestones.

Support to the Child Protection Program/Project Development, Planning, and Reporting:

• • Support the capacity development initiatives for the social service workforce, ensuring alignment with national priorities.
  • Contribute to the design and development of project proposals by gathering, analyzing, and synthesizing relevant data, ensuring alignment with child protection needs and the Rolling Work Plan.
  • Assist in the development and monitoring of budgets and activity plans, ensuring compliance with UNICEF and donor requirements to achieve efficient program delivery.
  • Conduct field visits and remote monitoring to assess the implementation and impact of child protection activities in the districts within the Karamoja Region. Proactively address discrepancies, provide actionable recommendations, and ensure accountability for results.
  • Support the development and application of monitoring and evaluation frameworks to assess program effectiveness and measure the impact of emergency child protection interventions.
  • Assist in the consolidation of data from multiple sources to prepare high-quality reports for internal and donor reporting, ensuring consistency and accuracy.

Networking and Partnership Building:

• Collaborate in the development of regular communication materials, including social media posts, photography, videography, and human-interest stories, to raise awareness, foster partnerships, and support resource mobilization for child protection programs.
• Contribute to strengthen partnerships with government entities, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders to ensure coordinated and sustainable child protection interventions.

Innovation, Knowledge Management, and Capacity Building:

• Support research and provide actionable insights on best practices to inform the development of knowledge products and systems, particularly focusing on the inclusion of refugees and emergency-affected children in government-led child protection system strengthening initiatives.
• Support the documentation and dissemination of lessons learned and best practices to enhance program effectiveness and build stakeholder capacity.
• Through these tasks, the UN Volunteer will play a critical role in advancing UNICEF’s mandate to strengthen child protection systems, ensuring that children—particularly the most vulnerable—are protected, supported, and empowered to thrive in safe and nurturing environments.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

Eligibility criteria

• Age
• 18 – 80

Required experience

• 3 years

Nationality

• Candidate must be a national or legal resident of the country of assignment.
• Assignment requirements

Relevant experience

• 5 years

Languages

• English, Level: Fluent, Required

Required education level

• Bachelor degree or equivalent in Social work, social policy, psychology, sociology, anthropology, political science, Law, Human rights.

Competencies and values

• Professionalism: Demonstrated understanding of operations relevant to UNICEF’s technical capabilities or knowledge relevant or transferrable to UNICEF’s procedures and rules; discretion, political sensitivity, diplomacy and tact to deal with clients; ability to apply good judgement; ability to liaise and coordinate with a range of different actors, especially in senior positions; where appropriate, high degree of autonomy, personal initiative and ability to take ownership; resourcefulness and willingness to accept wide responsibilities and ability to work independently under established procedures; ability to manage information objectively, accurately and confidentially; responsive and client-oriented.
• Integrity: Demonstrate the values and ethical standards of the UN and UNICEF in daily activities and behaviours while acting without consideration of personal gains; resist undue political pressure in decision-making; stand by decisions that are in the organization’s interest even if they are unpopular; take prompt action in cases of unprofessional or unethical behaviour; does not abuse power or authority.
• Teamwork and respect for diversity: Ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries; excellent interpersonal skills; ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, mixed-gender environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity; sensitivity and adaptability to culture, gender, religion, nationality and age; commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of UN operations; ability to achieve common goals and provide guidance or training to colleagues.
• Commitment to continuous learning: Initiative and willingness to learn new skills and stay abreast of new developments in area of expertise; ability to adapt to changes in work environment.
• Planning and organizing: Effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner; ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work; ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities;
• Communication: proven interpersonal skills; good spoken and written communication skills, including ability to prepare clear and concise reports; ability to conduct presentations, articulate options and positions concisely; ability to make and defend recommendations; ability to communicate and empathize with staff (including national staff), military personnel, volunteers, counterparts and local interlocutors coming from very diverse backgrounds; capacity to transfer information and knowledge to a wide range of different target groups;
• Flexibility: adaptability and ability to live and work in potentially hazardous and remote conditions, involving physical hardship and little comfort; to operate independently in austere environments for protracted periods; willingness to travel within the area of operations and to transfer to other duty stations within the area of operations as necessary;
• Genuine commitment towards the principles of voluntary engagement, which includes solidarity, compassion, reciprocity and self-reliance; and commitment towards UNICEF’s mission and vision, as well as to the UN Core Values.

Skills and experience

• Experience in social development planning and management within child protection or related fields at the national and sub-national levels is required.
• Experience in program/project development and management, particularly within a UN agency or similar organization, is highly desirable.
• Additional experience in both development and humanitarian contexts will be considered an asset.
• Strong cultural sensitivity and a deep understanding of the subject matter and local context are key assets.
• Experience in Child protection in development and humanitarian contexts.
• Experience in coordination and partnership building in child protection programs.
• Experience in advocacy and awareness-raising for children’s rights.
• Experience in supporting vulnerable children, including unaccompanied and separated children.

Area(s) of expertise

• Development programmes, Social work, Community development

Driving license

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