Protection Officer

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in social sciences, Social Work, Psychology, Gender Studies, Human Rights, or a related field.
  
• Over 3 years of relevant experience in protection programming, with demonstrated engagement in one or more of the following areas Gender-Based Violence (GBV) prevention and response, Child Protection, Women’s Protection and Empowerment, or Protection Mainstreaming in humanitarian or development contexts.
  
• Experience working with vulnerable populations, including women, children, and marginalized groups, in crisis or displacement-affected settings.
  
• Strong understanding of international protection principles, inter-agency guidelines, and minimum standards, including but not limited to GBVIMS, Child Protection Information Management (CPIMS), and SPHERE standards.
  
• Fluency in English is r
  

Program Implementation

• Contribute to the development and execution of detailed workplans and ensure timely delivery of assigned activities in line with project objectives and timelines.
  
• Participate in regular on-the-job mentoring and training sessions for staff, community-based facilitators, and partners on GBV, Child Protection, and core protection principles.
  
• Ensure that all protection activities adhere to best practices, including survivor-centered and child safeguarding approaches.
  
• Support the implementation of adolescent girls’ and women’s empowerment initiatives, including Women and Girls’ Safe Spaces (WGSS) and community-based protection mechanisms.
  
• Participate in field-level protection assessments and contribute to data collection, analysis, and reporting to inform program design and improvements.
  
• Promote the integration of protection principles across sectoral interventions by flagging protection risks and ensuring appropriate responses are in place.
  
• Assist in strengthening and maintaining referral pathways to ensure safe, confidential, and timely access to services for survivors, children, and other at-risk individuals.
  
• Support the establishment and implementation of strong monitoring systems to track protection activities, identify gaps, and contribute to program improvements.
  

Grants

• Contribute to the preparation and regular updating of detailed work plans, spending plans, and procurement plans in coordination with the Protection Manager and relevant departments.
  
• Actively participate in grant opening, review, and closing meetings to support effective project implementation and documentation.
  
• Collaborate with the Protection Manager, Program Coordinator, Protection Technical Coordinator, and Grants Unit by providing technical and operational input during proposal development and budget planning.
  

Capacity Building

• Support the planning and facilitation of training sessions for national and refugee staff on core protection and GBV principles, including Psychological First Aid (PFA), survivor-centered approaches, and referral pathways.
  
• Assist in the delivery of basic GBV-related trainings, such as core concepts, case management principles, and Clinical Care for Sexual Assault Survivors (CCSAS), in coordination with technical leads.
  
• Collaborate with sector teams (Health, WASH, Nutrition, Protection, and livelihood) to promote understanding of safe and appropriate GBV referrals and survivor support across sectors.
  
• Provide day-to-day mentorship and support to case workers and protection volunteers to enhance their skills in case documentation, safe information sharing, and survivor engagement.
  

Coordination and networking

• Assist in developing and maintaining strong, collaborative relationships with key stakeholders, including community leaders, implementing partners, and other IRC teams—to promote coordinated, multi-sectoral protection responses.
  
• Represent the protection program in relevant sub-county and inter-agency coordination meetings as delegated by the Protection Manager, ensuring that protection concerns—especially related to GBV, Child Protection, and general protection—are effectively communicated and integrated into broader humanitarian interventions.
  
• Participate regularly in GBV and Protection sub-cluster meetings, contributing field-level updates and advocating for the protection needs of vulnerable groups, while ensuring follow-up actions are shared with the Protection Manager.
  
• Facilitate the exchange of tools, technical guidance, and good practices on GBV prevention and response.
  
• Participate in coordination meetings with protection partners, community representatives, and relevant working groups to enhance collaboration and ensure timely follow-up on action points.
  
• Work closely with GBV, Child Protection, and general protection teams to support activity implementation and ensure effective collaboration across protection sectors.
  
• Ensure adherence to IRC and donor policies, including safeguarding, protection principles, and ethical standards during the implementation of protection activities.
  
• Undertake any other duties as assigned by the Protection Manager to support the achievement of protection program objectives.
  
• Comply with IRC’s Code of Conduct, operational policies, and protection standards, including those related to Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and Child Protection.