Resettlement Expert Level 1 – South Africa National Hire At Church World Service

Position Title: Resettlement Expert Level 1

Reports To: ARDU Supervisor

Division: Immigration & Refugee Program+ (IRP+)

Department: Programs, African Regional Deployment Unit (ARDU)

Job Location: Pretoria, South Africa

Grade Level: Grade 5, Officers, National

Introduction: Church World Service (CWS) is a not-for-profit, faith-based organization transforming communities around the globe through just and sustainable solutions to hunger, poverty, displacement and disaster. CWS does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, gender identity, genetic information, age, disability or veteran status in employment or in the provision of services.

Primary Purpose:

This is a full-time position within ARDU which strategically utilizes CWS RSC deployments to UNHCR offices with the goal of increasing referrals and managing cases in the pipeline for the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) in Africa. The primary function of the Resettlement Expert Level 1 is to support the goals of ARDU through temporary deployments to UNHCR offices throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Tasks to be completed while on deployment will be determined in the Terms of Reference (TOR) for each deployment and will include activities that support refugee resettlement, including interviewing and writing resettlement referrals to the USRAP.

Essential Duties:

1. Travels on deployments to UNHCR offices on short notice, including to refugee camps;
2. Conducts resettlement interviews with identified cases in line with UNHCR Resettlement Guidelines and country-specific Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs);
3. Makes assessments and contributes towards identifying resettlement cases, including case verification, and completing the UNHCR Resettlement Registration Form (RRF) for the identified cases in line with ARDU SOPs and guidelines;
4. Conducts Level 3 Registration (L-3 Reg.) interviews for the collection of applicants’ bio-data information for the UNHCR Resettlement Registration Form (RRF) Sections 1, 2 and 3;
5. Participates in file reviews and compiles interview lists for UNHCR Profiling exercises. Conducts profiling interviews of UNHCR identified caseloads in line with UNHCR guidelines;
6. Conducts resettlement interviews and completes RRFs for review;
7. Verifies existing refugee registration data and ensures timely updates of all case files and database records per UNHCR guidelines;
8. Process cases that have been deferred by CWS RSC Africa based on case changes or concerns;
9. Completes and updates all case files and database records per UNHCR Resettlement Guidelines;
10. In the field, undertakes additional work related duties as agreed upon by the ARDU Management in consultation with both the UNHCR Supervisor and ARDU deployee;
11. Maintains current knowledge of refugee situations and the population served in sub-Saharan Africa;
12. Responsible for ensuring that ARDU staff resources such as Country of Origin Information, current practices and approaches in RRF Writing and Deferral processing are updated;
13. Available whilst on deployment to answer any specific technical questions raised by UNHCR or CWS RSC Africa colleagues regarding USRAP processing;
14. Actively participates as a member of the UNHCR team and complies with UNHCR’s security requirements;
15. Submits regular reports to ARDU Management in line with deployment goals and objectives and communicates challenges related to casework, logistics and relationship with partners to ARDU Management in a timely manner;
16. Contributes to the development of deployment training topics, procedures and implementation;
17. Undertakes additional assigned duties while in the field or at the CWS RSC Africa office to support ARDU and RSC Africa, including administrative tasks;
18. Any other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

Experience:

• Four (4) years of work experience is required;
• Six (6) months related experience is required, including in a developing country in a relevant work area (e.g. assisting refugees in a resettlement context, casework, preparing refugee resettlement referrals, etc.);
• Previous or current experience with ARDU or other deployment schemes preferred.

Skills:

• Demonstrated knowledge of UNHCR/ USRAP and resettlement processes;
• Knowledge of international legal framework governing refugees, human rights/ human rights law required;
• Excellent interviewing and counseling skills;
• Excellent drafting, writing and analytical skills;
• Written and spoken fluency in English;
• Secondary language skills, such as French, Arabic and other African regional languages (other than Kiswahili) is required;
• Previous assessment/ monitoring and evaluation skills preferred;
• Strong interpersonal and diplomacy skills;
• Strong computer skills, in particular with Microsoft Office applications;
• Excellent organizational and time management skills.

Education & Certifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree in a related field of study (preferable focus in international affairs, law, refugee law, human rights or social work) or four (4) years of work experience in lieu of a Bachelor’s degree is required;
• Master’s Degree in a related field of study preferred (preferable focus in international affairs, law, refugee law, human rights or social work).

Abilities:

• Manage large and diverse workload under pressure with competing priorities;
• Maintain the integrity of official records;
• Analyse and solve complex problems and make sound decisions;
• Work with minimal supervision;
• Maintain a high performance standard with attention to detail;
• Work independently and contribute to overall operations of RSC Africa;
• Actively participate in the implementation of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP).

Important Requirements:

• Strong English communication skills, both written and oral;
• Ability to work in a multi-cultural environment required;
• Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and willingness to support CWS’ Platform on Racial Justice as a CWS employee required.

Special Requirements:

• COVID Vaccination is strongly recommended for all successful candidates.
• The candidate should be of good health, willing and able to travel extensively in often difficult conditions, and have a high degree of flexibility. Must have proof of Yellow Fever vaccination before traveling for RSC Africa.
• This position is based in South Africa
• This position requires use of laptops at all times, competence in Microsoft office packages is required.
• This position may require travel in sub-Saharan Africa on short notice and under sometimes difficult conditions to meet the demands of a dynamic operational program.
• Driver’s License Code 08.
• Background check, which includes references and an educational criminal check is required before the start of employment for International applicants.
• A valid passport and the ability to maintain a valid passport throughout the entire appointment is required, which includes having enough passport pages for travel.
• Internationals – International applicants must be legally eligible to work and obtain a work permit in SOUTH AFRICA OR A valid U.S. passport and the ability to maintain a valid U.S. passport throughout the entire appointment is required, which includes having enough passport pages for travel.
• Physical: This position requires bending, squatting, crawling, climbing, kneeling, sitting, standing, walking, pushing/pulling, handling objects (manual dexterity), reaching above shoulder level, using fine finger movements and lifting/carrying heavy loads.
• Environmental: Incumbents in this position will be exposed to excessive noise, marked changes in temperature and/or humidity, dust and infectious diseases, harsh weather climates, long work hours, bumpy roads, extended travel, excessive sun exposure, and non-ventilated spaces.
• Full time.
• All employees should be prepared to work from the CWS office within their location of hire. Remote work arrangements may vary depending on location and the governing rulings regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.