Plan International recruits 01 Child Protection Officer

Child Protection Officer

Location: Kigali, 01, RW

Company: Plan International

The Organisation

Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls.

We believe in the power and potential of every child. But this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination. And it’s girls who are most affected.

Working together with children, young people, our supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges facing girls and all vulnerable children.

We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood. And we enable children to prepare for – and respond to – crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.

We have been building powerful partnerships for children for over 80 years, and are now active in more than 70 countries.

ROLE PURPOSE

Rwanda currently hosts more than 150,000 refugees across six refugee camps and urban area of Kigali. Protection concerns have been noted in these camps including gender-based violence and child protection incidents. It is against this backdrop that Plan has partnered with UNHCR to lead protection activities in all refugee camps and Kigali.

The Child Protection Officer will support case management of child protection incidents in camps. He/she will report to the Project Coordinator and will support supervision of community animators and casual workers as necessary.

S/he will be responsible for providing accurate and timely documentation of activities and ensuring the project is complying with UNHCR /Plan requirements and is implemented as planned.

Dimensions of the Role

The Child Protection Officer reports directly to the Protection Coordinator. This position will be a fixed term 1 year contract with possibility to renew (contingent on renewed funding). The Child Protection Officer has no budget management under his/her responsibilities.

Accountabilities

Objectives and scope of the work

In collaboration with the Child Protection Coordinator:

§  Supports project implementation in the camp to be in conformity with UNHCR  and Plan’s standards and policies;

§  Provides counselling for children of  GBV survivors;

§  Regular case management, case conferencing, participation in Best Interest Determination/Assessment processes;

§  Mobilizes community members to strengthen community-based protection mechanisms;

§  Monitors community-based protection systems; manage community animators and volunteers;

§  Regularly reports child protection cases and ensures ;

§  Participation in regular protection assessments;

§  Support the strengthening of child protection community-based systems inclusive of developing trainings, supervision/coaching tools, monitoring and tracking tools and improve referral systems

§  Manage community sensitization campaigns;

§  Manage case files; input data into information management system/database;

§  Liaise with local authorities, healthcare and judicial system and police and  an ongoing referral support services;

§  Provide support in the development of alternative care systems in accordance with international policies and national procedures/norms;

§  Work collaboratively with UNHCR, stakeholders, MINEMA, Police, district officials and other partners.

§  Support the establishment and strengthening of self-help groups for informal foster carers, male and female youth, and women’s groups to work on CP issues that are related to GBV cases;

Key deliverables and Indicators for success:

Submit weekly reports on protection issues;

Maintain a database on child protection issues in the camp;

Participate in regular coordination meeting with all the actors in the camps

Collect, share and disseminate project best practices and lessons learnt on a quarterly basis

Maintain and share protection data base and provide feedback to Community volunteers

Submit report for all field visit activities and various trainings and meetings

Dealing with Problems

Ensures that Plan International’s global policies for Safeguarding Children and Young People and Gender Equality and Inclusion are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring staff and associates are aware of and understand their responsibilities under these policies and Plan International’s Code of Conduct (CoC), their relevance to their area of work, and that concerns are reported and managed in accordance with the appropriate procedures.

Plan International’s Values in Practice

We are open and accountable

·         Promotes a culture of openness and transparency, including with sponsors and donors.

·         Holds self and others accountable to achieve the highest standards of integrity.

·         Consistent and fair in the treatment of people.

·         Open about mistakes and keen to learn from them.

·         Accountable for ensuring we are a safe organisation for all children, girls & young people

We strive for lasting impact

·         Articulates a clear purpose for staff and sets high expectations.

·         Creates a climate of continuous improvement, open to challenge and new ideas.

·         Focuses resources to drive change and maximise long-term impact, responsive to changed priorities or crises.

·         Evidence-based and evaluates effectiveness.

We work well together

·         Seeks constructive outcomes, listens to others, willing to compromise when appropriate.

·         Builds constructive relationships across Plan International to support our shared goals.

·         Develops trusting and ‘win-win’ relationships with funders, partners and communities.

·         Engages and works well with others outside the organization to build a better world for girls and all children.

We are inclusive and empowering

 ·         We empower our staff to give their best and develop their potential

·         We respect all people, appreciate differences and challenge equality in our programs and our workplace

·         We support children, girls and young people to increase their confidence and to change their own lives.

Key relationships

·         UNHCR field Office

·         MINEMA field Office

·         Implementing partners at field level

·         Local authorities at field level

·         Migration filed office

Technical expertise, skills and knowledge

Experience

·         University degree or equivalent in Clinical Psychology and/or Social Work or Disaster Risk Management

·         Minimum of 2 years relevant working experience in protection (Child Protection) prevention and response programming, humanitarian affairs or human rights.

·         Must have 2 years of experience counselling (with children)

·         Prior experience working with refugees and other vulnerable populations.

Knowledge /Competencies

·         Knowledge of Sphere and established international child protection/GBV standards, methodology and tools

·         Knowledge of developing referral pathways, case management systems and reporting mechanisms.

·         Knowledge of multi-sectoral approaches to child protection and SGBV prevention and response.

·         Experienced with participatory approaches to protection, emergency preparedness, crisis/emergency relief management, or other related area.

Physical Environment

Based at the Camp with limited movements to CO.

Interaction with children/youth in and outside of refugee camp settings is very high.

Level of contact with children

Low contact:

Medium Contact

High Contact

Location: Kigeme refugee camps

Reports to: Child Protection Coordinator, Plan International Rwanda

Grade: C2

Closing Date: 21st May 2019

Early application is encouraged as we will review applications throughout the advertising period and reserve the right to close the advert early.

A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Plan International’s Safeguarding Children and Young People policy.

As an international child centred community development organisation, Plan International is fully committed to promoting the realisation of children’s rights including their right to protection from violence and abuse. That means we have particular responsibilities to children that we come into contact with.

Plan International believes that in a world where children face so many threats of harm, it is our duty to ensure that we, as an organisation, do everything we can to keep children safe. We must not contribute in any way to harming or placing children at risk.

Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the very heart of everything that Plan International stands for. Our organisation is based on a culture of inclusivity and we strive to create a workplace environment that ensures every team, in every office, in every country, is rich in diverse people, thoughts, and ideas.

We will provide equality of opportunity and will not tolerate discrimination on any grounds. We foster an organisational culture that embraces and exemplifies our commitment to gender equality, girls’ rights and inclusion while supporting staff to adopt good practice, positive attitudes and principles of gender equality and inclusion.