BackgroundThe Danish Refugee Council (DRC) has ...

BackgroundThe Danish Refugee Council (DRC) has been operational in Sri Lanka since 1998, with offices throughout the north-east, a small representative office in Colombo and a staff of more than 100 national staff and 9 international staff. DRC implements an integrated protection and assistance program that currently includes emergency food, shelter and watsan, protection monitoring, legal aid and documentation, camp management, community mobilisation, peer group support, training and awareness raising, advocacy, livelihood and community infrastructure activities in Vavuniya, Trincomalee, Mannar and Jaffna districts. All activities are implemented with the overall objective of promoting and supporting durable solutions and in close cooperation with IDP, returnee and host communities, government authorities and other humanitarian agencies. Donors for protection activities include Danida, EC, UNHCR, SIDA and ECHO.Purpose of the PositionThe Protection Programme Manager has overall responsibility for the management, development and strategic focus of DRC’s protection activities and ensures a rights-based approach and mainstreaming of protection principles throughout of the entire DRC programme.Main Areas of Responsibility• Contribute to the development of a rights-based programme strategy and policies for DRC in Sri Lanka• Manage the development and implementation and ensure the quality of DRC’s protection activities in Sri Lanka • Provide regular technical supervision, advice and training to all protection and other DRC staff• Co-ordinate closely with authorities, donors, humanitarian agencies, civil society groups to ensure a participatory, transparent and coordinated approach• Oversee financial management and donor compliance for relevant projects• Develop and carry out advocacy initiatives in close cooperation with the Country Representative and DRC Headquarters• Management and organisation of the every day work of the Representative Office in ColomboDutiesIn the implementation of these activities s/he will work closely with other members of the management team. The PM duties include, but are not limited to the following:Development of a rights-based programme strategy and policies• Supporting the Country Representative to ensure that DRC’s country strategy, policies and project documents reflect protection priorities and a rights-based approach • Analyse the humanitarian, political, legal social context to identify causes of protection problems and design appropriate interventions for DRCProgram development, implementation and quality assurance • Providing technical input into protection methodology, data collection and information management,  and selection and monitoring of local implementing partners • Ensuring the implementation of protection activities within the overall context of DRC Sri Lanka Programme • Developing DRC’s methodologies for implementing, monitoring and evaluating protection activities • Assisting the Country Representative to develop DRC’s donor base for protection-related activities• Drafting of new proposals for protection activitiesTechnical Supervision, Advice and Training• Maintain updated knowledge and resources related to international laws and protection best practices• Planning and facilitating training for DRC and partner staff on protection principles and programming, Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement• Motivate all DRC staff to apply protection principles in their work and develop guidelines as necessaryFinancial Management and Donor Compliance• Cooperating effectively with donor representatives, in Colombo and in the field (where relevant)• Working closely with the DRC Finance and Administrative staff to ensure that donor requirements for financial reporting, procurement and other administrative procedures are met• Managing the protection project budgets or budget lines on a day-to-day basis, including planning projected spending and requesting appropriate budget revisions• Submitting narrative reports on project activities as required by donorsAdvocacy • Develop an advocacy strategy that reflects field based information priorities• Identify and strengthen advocacy partnerships and networks• Contribute to the development of advocacy related documents and briefings• Liaise closely with DRC HQ Program Coordinator and Policy Unit to contribute to international advocacy initiativesManagement of Colombo Office• Every day supervision of 5 administrative and financial staff• Deputise for Country Representative in his/her absenceRequirements• At least 7 years of protection experience in international displacement related settings, including in complex emergency• At least 4 years of protection management experience in international setting• Relevant educational background in the field of law, international development, social science or similar• Significant, proven knowledge of international human rights law, particularly related to displacement• Strong interpersonal, communication, analytical, negotiation and advocacy skills• Fluency in written and spoken EnglishParticular attention is paid to the applicant’s ability to blend into a team of national and international managers and deliver results in a participatory manner under tight deadlines.ReferenceThe Programme Manager refers overall to the Sri Lanka Country Representative.ConditionsDuty station: Colombo, Family duty station.  Commencement:  December 2009 / January 2010, depending on issuance of Sri Lankan visa. Due to visa regulation, applicants who have worked in Sri Lanka for more than 15 months will not be considered for this position.Contract: 12 months with the possibility of extension subject to funding. Salary and conditions are in accordance with the Danish Refugee Council “Terms of Employment for Expatriates” (available at www.drc.dk under Vacancies). The Emergency Protection Coordinator will be employed at level B2. Further informationQuestions on overall duties and conditions can be directed to Sri Lanka Country Representative, Rob Drouen.Please note that applications are not to be sent to the above contact. Applications sent directly to Mr. Drouen will not be considered. We only accept applications sent via our on-line application system, see www.drc.dk under Vacancies/Current vacancies/ Protection Programme Manager – Sri Lanka.For general information about DRC, please refer to www.drc.dk. Application and CVOnly motivated applications that address the stipulated duties and meet the required qualifications, in English and sent together with a CV, will be considered. CV-only applications will not be considered. We only accept applications sent via our online-application form on www.drc.dk under Vacancies/Current vacancies/Programme Manager Protection – Sri Lanka. Please forward application, in English and marked “Protection Programme Manager – Sri Lanka”, no later than 18. October 2009.Problems with on-line application?Please contact Anne Oxholm,, if you experience problems with your on-line application.About DRCDRC is a private, independent, humanitarian organization working on all aspects of the refugee cause in more than thirty countries throughout the world. The aim of DRC is to protect refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) against persecution and to promote durable solutions to the problems of forced migration, on the basis of humanitarian principles and human rights. DRC works in accordance with the UN Conventions on Refugees and the Code of Conduct for the ICRC and NGOs in Disaster Relief.The protection and assistance to conflict affected population is provided within a long-term, regional and rights-based approach in order to constitute a coherent and effective response to the challenges posed by today’s conflicts. Assistance consists of relief and other humanitarian aid, rehabilitation, support to return and repatriation as well as promotion of long-term solutions to displacement and its causes. In addition, support and capacity building of local and national authorities and NGOs form an integral part of DRC’s work.