Child Protection Officer, NO-2, Temporary Position, 6 months, Wau, South Sudan, #00137335

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website [link removed] to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, the right to a Chance

How can you make a difference?

Across South Sudan, Gender-Based Violence (GBV) including sexual violence, intimate partner violence (IPV), sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) and child marriage, are pervasive. Adolescent girls are particularly vulnerable to sexual violence, exploitation, and abuse, with child marriage on the rise. However, access to lifesaving multi-sectoral GBV responses, including health, GBV case management, psychosocial support, higher-level mental health, and other services, are very limited. Adolescent girls are particularly vulnerable to sexual violence, exploitation, and abuse, with child marriage on the rise. However, access to lifesaving multi-sectoral GBV responses, including health, GBV case management, psychosocial support, higher-level mental health, and other services, is very limited. Even in locations where there are services, there are multiple barriers to survivors seeking support, including self-blame, fear of reprisals, mistrust of authorities, and risk of retaliatory attacks, coupled with cultural norms and values that promote a culture of silence. Quality of care and capacity of service providers also impact the utilization of services when available. Deep-rooted gender inequalities in education, economic opportunities, decision-making, harmful socio-cultural norms, and weakened social and community support systems perpetuate vulnerability and marginalization, disempowering women and girls. As a consequence, South Sudanese women and girls have some of the lowest education and health outcomes in the world.

Since 2023, UNICEF South Sudan has been scaling up efforts to address GBV and is expanding partnerships with national partners, including women-led organizations (WLO), to increase the availability of GBV prevention, response, and risk mitigation interventions. UNICEF is working closely with partners to strengthen their capacity to deliver GBV services, with a focus on enhancing GBV case management and psychosocial support (PSS), and on implementing GBV minimum standards. In 2024, the Communities Care [link removed] programme in South Sudan was restarted. This is UNICEF’s flagship.

PURPOSE

Under the overall supervision of the Chief of Field Office and in close collaboration with the GBViE Specialist (P4) in Juba and field offices, the GBV Officer provides oversight to ensure quality assurance and coherence with UNICEF’s global GBViE Operational Guidance and Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action. The role supports the development, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of GBV prevention and risk mitigation interventions in South Sudan, ensuring effective and results-driven programming aligned with national and international standards, including UNICEF and IASC guidelines.

The GBV Officer will be responsible for providing technical support to UNICEF GBV and Child Protection partners particularly women-led organisations on GBV case management, psychosocial support (PSS), safe identification and referral of vulnerable children, and strengthening referral pathways. The role also supports programming for adolescent girls and other at-risk children, promoting their safety, resilience, and access to services. Furthermore, the GBV Officer supports the implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the Communities Care programme, with a focus on strengthening community-based care systems, enhancing protective environments for women and children, and addressing harmful social norms and practices through coordinated GBV and child protection interventions.

The GBV Officer will work directly with UNICEF sections in Wau Field Office and Country Office, the Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare (MGCSW) and NGO partners. The GBV Officer will also provide technical guidance and supervision to third party child protection consultant/s. The proposed assignment is for a period of one year with the possibility of extension. The position will be based in Wau with regular visits to field offices and partners across Greater Bahr el Ghazal.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Key responsibilities

1. Supporting programme development and planning
2. Programme management, monitoring, and delivery of results
3. Technical and operational support to programme implementation
4. Networking and partnership building
5. Innovation, knowledge management, and capacity building

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here: ToR - Child Protection Officer_NO-2_South Sudan [link removed]

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

• Education: Bachelor or equivalent (First Level University Degree) in Public Health, Social Science, GBViE and any other related fields.
• Work Experience: At least 2 years of relevant work experience in GBV programming, GBV Prevention, GBV Response, Risk Mitigation, Emergencies Child Protection, Early Childhood Development, Adolescent Development, Psychosocial Support, Adolescent
  Safety, Social Norms Transformation and any other related fields with either the UN and/or NGO in emergency settings.
• Skills: Strong understanding of GBV case management including care for child survivors and programming approaches, practices, and applications i.e., GBV Minimum Standards and Interagency GBV Case Management guidelines.
• Proven experience with effective GBV Prevention approaches e.g. EMAP, SASA!, Communities Care
• Strong planning, project management and budget skills required.
• Familiarity with child protection in humanitarian action
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to effectively liaise with people in a wide range of functions in a multi-cultural environment.
• Proven experience of planning and facilitating trainings, workshops and other capacity building modalities.
• Ability to work independently and productively with multiple stakeholders in a fast-paced environment.
• Ability to work productively in a team and independently, and to handle requests or issues as they arise.
• Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables:

• Language: Knowledge of Arabic or another official UN language (Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or local languages.
• Experience in child protection in humanitarian action.
• Ability to collect, collate and analyze data in an effective manner and strong writing skills.
• Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.

This post is based in Wau, Western Bahr el Ghazal with field missions as needed. 

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF's Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values [link removed]

UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships
(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
(3) Drive to achieve results for impact
(4) Innovates and embraces change
(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity
(6) Thinks and acts strategically
(7) Works collaboratively with others

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework [link removed] and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF [link removed]. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable female applicants are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants' bank account information.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF's Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

Visa residence requirements: i.e. UNICEF shall not facilitate the issuance of a visa and working authorization for candidates under consideration for positions at the national officer and general service category.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here [link removed].