2 UNHCR Vacancies - Protection Associate Positions (RGV, TX and Tucson, AZ)

Kindly find below the details for the following vacancies with UNHCR’s U.S. border team: 

 These positions are open to applicants through Friday, 14 May 2021, until 6:00PM ESTThe UNHCR global jobs portal automatically closes at midnight local time in Geneva, Switzerland on the closing date. Given the time difference, the closing time is 6 PM Eastern Standard Time. Please carefully double-check the time difference to ensure that your application is accepted. Applications that are not received in the online system cannot be considered. 

UNHCR is planning a modest expansion of staffing to strengthen cross-border operations, technical assistance and engagement with relevant government entities and civil society, all with a view to improving access and quality of protection enjoyed by asylum-seekers at the US-Mexico border. As part of the small border deployment team, UNHCR is recruiting for two Protection Associate positions (Individual Contractor - UNOPS), one to be based in the Rio Grande Valley, Texas USA, and another to be based in Tucson, Arizona, USA. Other members of the team are based in San Diego and El Paso. 

The successful candidate for each post will provide support with a wide range of activities, including building and maintaining effective and collaborative relationships with relevant federal, state and local governmental authorities, civil society stakeholders and UNHCR field teams in northern Mexico. They will work closely on facilitating daily protection operations in partnership with UNHCR Mexico colleagues; engage cooperatively with US federal agency counterparts and municipal/city/local government counterparts in the border region to find solutions to day-to-day challenges; coordinate with border shelters, humanitarian NGOs, legal service providers, members of local welcoming committees, and other important stakeholders to identify and respond to needs and strengthen humanitarian response; work to expand legal support and legal empowerment for asylum-seekers at the border; and support with internal reporting activities. While the majority of time and effort of the Protection Associates will be focused on activities in their respective assigned location (RGV or Tucson), travel to other border sectors in Texas, Arizona or in other southern border states may be required. While some cross-border travel is anticipated, all cross-border movement would be undertaken in strict adherence with UN staff security guidelines. The RGV position reports to the Protection Officer based in El Paso, Texas, and the Tucson position reports to the Senior Protection Officer in San Diego. 

To apply for these positions, please visit the careers page on UNHCR’s website, then click on “vacancies” on the top right-hand side of the screen. You can then search for the position using the job opening number listed above or by filtering for UNHCR positions in the United States. 

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