Community-Based Protection Associate

June 2, 2026

Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)

D

Non Family with Residential LocationUNOPS LICA6

2026-07-01The position is located within the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Field Office Odesa and reports to the Associate Protection Officer.

Nature of Position:
The Odesa Field Office covers Odeska, Mykolayvska and Khersonska Oblasts and delivers the full spectrum of UNHCR protection activities, including legal assistance, case management, mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), emergency evacuations, community-based protection, and support to social institutions and service providers.

Within the office, the Protection Unit works in close coordination with the Shelter Unit, which implements emergency shelter repairs, rehabilitation of war-damaged and IDP housing, and renovation of social infrastructure. This integrated approach ensures that shelter interventions contribute to meaningful protection outcomes and protection dividends.

The successful candidate will be joining an established team of protection and community-based protection specialists, who oversee the program activities. UNHCR uses a mix of Direct Implementation and implementation through local Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs).

The primary focus of the role will be to support the Protection Unit in the planning, coordination, and implementation of protection activities. This includes contributing to the delivery of programme priorities, supporting the follow-up with partners and stakeholders, and assisting with the organization and implementation of workshops, trainings, assessments, and other unit-led initiatives.

The incumbent will provide technical and operational support to the Protection Unit team, help ensure timely implementation of activities, and contribute to monitoring progress against agreed objectives. The role will also involve drafting inputs for reports, presentations, and internal products, as well as supporting data analysis, and follow-up actions as required.

In addition, the position will support day-to-day coordination within the unit, facilitate information sharing among team members, and contribute to problem-solving to ensure smooth delivery of protection interventions across partners and locations.

Based in Odesa, travels within the oblasts of Mykolaiv and Kherson are required, including over-night stays in remote locations.

Duties and Responsibilities:
• Support the Protection Unit in the delivery of programme priorities, supporting the follow-up with partners and stakeholders, and assisting with the organization and implementation of workshops, trainings, assessments, and other Unit-led initiatives.
• Support the Protection Unit in the monitoring of the implementation of community-based protection initiatives carried out by partners, both within and outside collective sites.
• Provide technical and operational support to the Protection Unit, contribute to the timely implementation of activities, and support monitoring of progress against agreed objectives.
• Draft inputs for reports, presentations, and other related products, as well as supporting analysis of protection monitoring trends across Oblasts and findings from village level assessments.
• Participate in Protection Unit-led initiatives aimed at building the capacity of authorities, relevant institutions, and partners to strengthen protection related interventions in the Oblasts.
• Support the Protection Unit with the monitoring of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all protection/solutions activities.
• Support day-to-day coordination within the Unit, facilitate information sharing among team members, and contribute to problem solving to ensure smooth delivery of protection interventions across partners and locations.
• Participate as a member of duty travel teams relating to project implementation, as required.
• Perform other duties as may be assigned.

Essential Minimum Qualifications and Professional Experience Required:
• Bachelor’s degree in International Relations or Law or Political Science or Social Science (or other related field) is required.
• Minimum 2 years of relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Desired Candidate Profile
The ideal candidate should demonstrate:
• Good technical knowledge about construction in Ukraine linked with understanding of Ukrainian Construction legislation;
• Excellent communication skills, with a proactive and flexible approach to problem-solving;
• Capable to use MS Office applications (Word, Excel, Power Point, Outlook etc.) with strong confidence in Excel;
• Capacity to deal with multi-task environment and efficiently contribute to the multi-national team’s work.
• Knowledge of English and Ukrainian languages is required.
• Knowledge and previous experience in the humanitarian sector is highly desirable

Conditions:
The appointment is for an initial period of six (6) months and is a full-time position with official working hours from Monday to Friday (40 hours per week).

Application Process:
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and may be required to complete a written test. A mandatory competency-based interview for all shortlisted candidates will be conducted as part of the selection process.

 

Standard Job Description

Required Languages

Ukrainian

,

English

,

Desired Languages

,

,

Additional Qualifications

Skills

Education

Certifications

Other information

This position doesn't require a functional clearance

Remote

No