The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) is one of the world’s leading humanitarian NGOs, working in over 40 countries to provide appropriate assistance and protection to refugees, asylum seekers, internally displaced persons, returnees, people on the move, and vulnerable local populations/host communities. DRC is currently seeking a highly qualified Protection Specialist based in Caracas, Capital District.
About the job:
DRC is managing its operations in Venezuela, under the direction of the country office in Caracas and four field offices located in the states of Sucre, Apure, La Guaira, and Zulia. DRC Venezuela is implementing activities such as protection monitoring, legal assistance, individual protection assistance for people with disabilities, information sessions for proof of identity (PoC), prevention of human trafficking, rehabilitation of health infrastructure, and food security.
Role Overview : Under the supervision of the Country Protection Manager, the Protection Specialist contributes to the development and implementation of the DRC’s sector strategy in Venezuela. They are responsible for supporting the delivery of protection services and ensuring quality at the DRC’s operational bases in Venezuela, working closely with Protection Managers in the field. While contributing to the DRC’s overall protection strategy to ensure coordination across different activities, the specific technical focus of this role encompasses protection monitoring, case management, individual protection assistance, community-based protection, and legal assistance. The Protection Specialist will also support the Country Protection Manager in representation, advocacy, capacity building, and coordination with other key stakeholders. This includes continuously sharing protection risk analyses—derived from monitoring—with UN agencies and non-governmental organizations to ensure that humanitarian actors in Venezuela—beyond specialized protection agencies—integrate protection analysis into their interventions.
To this end, the Protection Specialist will support the harmonization and implementation of tools, guidelines and standard operating procedures (SOPs), strengthen referral pathways and ensure the application of standardized methods for analysis and reporting — both for donors and for internal purposes — in collaboration with the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) team.
Main responsibilities
Technical support (30%)
- Provide regular technical support and guidance to Protection Managers at the bases, in order to strengthen the capacity of protection teams to provide high-quality services —including protection management (PM), case management (CM), individual protection assessment (IPA), community-based protection (CBP) and legal assistance (LA)—, while ensuring that there are supervisory and coaching structures at the field level that guarantee adequate supervision by Protection Managers (see: capacity development);
- Conduct regular field visits to monitor the quality of implementation, provide technical advice and carry out specific needs assessments that serve as a basis for capacity building for protection personnel (with special emphasis on protection management, case management and individual protection assessment).
- To support the overall information management needs of the protection program by monitoring and visualizing data (using tools such as Power BI), ensuring the consistency and integrity of the information, as well as the constant availability of data analysis for decision-making.
- informed decisions and project design (particularly in the areas of protection management, case management, individual protection assessment and community-based protection);
- Contribute to the establishment and periodic updating of the MEAL (monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning) plan, which includes: (a) ensuring adequate monitoring of indicators and quality (both quantitative and qualitative) and (b) working closely with the MEAL team to implement accountability mechanisms;
- Staying abreast of developments affecting the protection environment in Venezuela and providing regular, ongoing analysis of key issues.
Capacity building (20%)
- In collaboration with the Country Protection Management, develop programmatic tools and guidance notes to support and strengthen the quality of activities, as well as lead the support, mentoring and training efforts necessary for their implementation;
- In coordination with the Protection Managers, assess the training and development needs within the Protection team, provide technical input for the development of capacity-building plans —which will be implemented with the support of the Protection Management at the country level—, which includes the creation and/or delivery of training materials intended to further develop the skills of the Protection personnel;
- In collaboration with the MEAL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning) team and with the support of the Country Protection Management, develop monitoring tools to track learning activities;
- Identify gaps that will help guide the overall strengthening of capacities and the professionalization of DRC staff.
Strategy and programmatic development (20%)
- In close coordination with the Country Protection Management, the Protection Specialist contributes to the development and implementation of the DRC’s sectoral strategy in Venezuela.
- It supports the development of guidelines to integrate the protection approach into other key DRC intervention sectors.
- In coordination with the Base Managers and the Protection Managers, contributes to the program strategy and the establishment of logical frameworks and sectoral goals, under the guidance of the Protection Management at the country level.
- Participates, when requested, in the proposal development process, contributing on-site context analysis, sectoral technical analysis, information on beneficiaries, and technical feedback on the conceptual proposal.
- In close coordination with the Protection Management at the country level, it supports the design of advocacy actions at the national, regional and global levels.
- In collaboration with the Country Protection Management, develop programmatic tools and guidance notes to support and strengthen the quality of activities, as well as lead the support, mentoring and training efforts necessary for their implementation;
- In coordination with the Protection Managers, assess the training and development needs within the Protection team, provide technical input for the development of capacity-building plans —which will be implemented with the support of the Protection Management at the country level—, which includes the creation and/or delivery of training materials intended to further develop the skills of the Protection personnel;
- In collaboration with the MEAL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning) team and with the support of the Country Protection Management, develop monitoring tools to track learning activities;
- Identify gaps that will help guide the overall strengthening of capacities and the professionalization of DRC staff.
Representation and technical support to the Protection Cluster (30%)
- In collaboration with the Protection Coordinator, ensure the active participation, contribution and representation of the DRC in the Protection Cluster, in the assigned Areas of Responsibility (AoR) or in other relevant bodies, including working groups and other protection-related meetings.
- To provide input to the Protection Cluster at the national level and other relevant spaces by sharing the findings of the DRC’s Protection Monitoring (PM), ensuring that protection analysis guides the design of humanitarian responses.
- Support the Protection Cluster in capacity-building activities aimed at its partners.
- Contribute to the Protection Cluster at the national level and other relevant spaces by sharing the findings of the DRC Protection Monitoring, ensuring that protection analysis guides the design of humanitarian responses.
- Support the Protection Cluster in capacity-building activities for its partners.
Experience and technical skills:
- Demonstrated experience of at least 3 years in international protection and protection program management, including protection monitoring, case management, community-based protection and protection of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in conflict-affected countries;
- Experience in providing technical guidance, as well as in developing and delivering participatory training or capacity-building activities;
- Solid knowledge of International Humanitarian Law, International Human Rights Law and international standards relating to the protection of internally displaced persons (IDPs);
- Experience in report writing, data/information analysis, and monitoring and evaluation (M&E);
- Strong skills in information management, including, among other aspects, the creation of databases and the use of server-based information gathering tools;
- Proven analytical and communication skills, representation, negotiation, advocacy and diplomacy;
- Profile with strategic thinking and the ability to quickly understand the context of the conflict, the human rights situation and the political environment of the country where the program is being developed;
- Experience working and living in multicultural environments, as well as traveling to conflict zones;
- Extensive experience in report writing and project development; excellent writing skills in Spanish. Fluency in English is a significant advantage.
Education :
- University or master’s degree related to humanitarian work, preferably in law, social work, gender studies, social sciences or psychology.
Languages:
- Spanish required.
- English preferred.
We offer:
- The opportunity to belong to one of the best NGOs worldwide.
- Access to over 1,000 free online training courses and certificates.
- Contract duration: subject to budget availability.
- Salary: Band G.
- HCM insurance fully covered by the organization.
DRC Core Competencies:
- Achieving excellence : focusing on achieving results and ensuring efficient processes.
- Collaboration: involve relevant parties and encourage feedback.
- Taking the initiative : taking ownership and initiative while seeking innovation.
- Communicate: listen and speak effectively and honestly.
- Demonstration of integrity :
Application process: All applicants must upload a cover letter (max. 1 page) and an updated CV ( max. 2 pages, no supporting documents ) in Spanish to the DRC job platform. Applications submitted by email will not be considered.
Application deadline : Sunday, November 22 at 11:59 pm Local Time. Please note that applications will be reviewed continuously and interviews will be scheduled as soon as a suitable candidate is identified. DRC reserves the right to close the vacancy before the deadline once a suitable candidate is identified.
Approximate start date: November 2026