Vacancy Announcement 

Protection Specialist for The Skills Development and Economic Transformation (SD4T) Programme – EU cofinanced component “Improved self-reliance and self-determination of refugees and host population in Kirehe District”

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a federally owned international cooperation enterprise for sustainable development with worldwide operations. The GIZ Office in Kigali covers GIZ’s portfolio in Rwanda and Burundi. GIZ Rwanda/Burundi implements projects on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the European Union and other commissioning authorities in the following priority areas: Sustainable Economic Development, Good Governance, Climate and Energy, Digitalization, Extractive Governance and Peace and Security in the Great Lakes Region.

General Context of the Multi-Donor Action “Improved self-reliance and self-determination of refugees and host population in Kirehe District”

Rwanda has been hosting refugees for several decades. As of January 2023, Rwanda provided refuge to 126,919 individuals, with 60% originating from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and 40% from Burundi. Most refugees (91%), reside in five refugee camps: Mahama, Kigeme, Mugombwa, Kiziba and Nyabiheke. As of February 2023, Mahama camp hosted 58,248 refugees, making it the country’s largest. It was established in 2015 in response to the humanitarian crisis caused by thousands of Burundians fleeing violence in their country. The camp is situated in Kirehe District. The Ministry in charge of Emergency Management (MINEMA) administers the camp and is responsible for security and protection of the refugees in coordination with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The protracted refugee situation and the country’s overall economic situation put pressure on the host country Rwanda, which is exacerbated by diminishing humanitarian funds. Mahama refugee camp and its neighbouring communities in Kirehe District are particularly affected due to the size of the camp and the relocation of refugees from other camps. The Government of Rwanda (GoR) is therefore stepping up its efforts for local inclusion and graduation of refugees out of humanitarian aid. The goal is to achieve the vision laid out in the joint MINEMA-UNHCR strategy on Economic Inclusion of Refugees and Host Communities 2021-2024 to enable all refugees and members of the host community to become self-reliant by 2030.

Objectives of the Multi-Donor Action

The Multi-Donor Action “Dutere Intambwe – Improved self-reliance and self-determination of refugees and host population in Kirehe District, Rwanda” is jointly co-financed by the European Union (EU) under the EU Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). It is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) as part of the project “Skills Development for Economic Transformation” (SD4T). The overall objective of the Action is “to contribute to provide a regional multi-sectoral response for durable solutions to the Burundian refugee crisis in five countries of the Great Lakes region”. The specific objectives (SO) of the Action are: 1) Enhanced protection of Burundian refugees (women and men in all their diversity) in Kirehe District, Rwanda and 2) Strengthened the resilience, empowerment and self-reliance of refugees (women and men in all their diversity) and communities hosting refugees.

Main activities under the protection component will focus on strengthening legal and psycho-social support and conflict resolution mechanisms for refugees, especially women, and vulnerable groups in surrounding communities. Access to information about their rights, legal protection, and access to justice will empower the Action’s beneficiaries to assert their rights, challenge any forms of exploitation or discrimination and enhance their overall protection. In addition, measures promoting self-esteem will support especially women and vulnerable groups in managing challenges, making informed choices, and thereby contributing to their empowerment. This will furthermore contribute to their self-reliance and ability to actively participate in society, access (labour) opportunities, and to advocate for their rights.

It is with this background that GIZ Rwanda is currently looking for a Protection Specialist for Multi-Donor Action “Dutere Intambwe – Improved self-reliance and self-determination of refugees and host population in Kirehe District, Rwanda”.

Location: Kirehe District

Fixed Term: 01.02.2024-31.08.2026

Position: Protection Specialist

The Protection Specialist will perform the following responsibilities and tasks:

A. Responsibilities

The Protection Specialist will be responsible for:

• Coordinating the implementation of protection measures, such as legal aid and psycho-social support in Kirehe / Mahama-Camp
• Ensuring effective synergies between interventions on protection and interventions on economic inclusion in Kirehe / Mahama-Camp, as well as linkages with the Programme office in Kigali 

The expert will perform the following tasks in close cooperation with the respective partners:

B. Tasks

Coordinate the implementation of protection measures, such as legal aid and psycho-social support

• Assist with the implementation of activities to improve and expand existing offers of legal aid and psycho-social support services and conflict resolution mechanisms (including in collaboration with short term experts), such as:
• Identify Capacity Development (CD) needs of CSOs working in and around Mahama-Camp
• Together with the CSOs and the target group (e.g., refugee-led organizations; young or female refugees, vulnerable groups in neighboring communities, persons living with disabilities) develop needs-based interventions with regards to legal aid, mental health, and self-determination
• Develop a map of protection and support services (incl. legal advice e.g. on labour rights) and referral system to be used by educational or training centres; cooperatives, chambers etc.
• Implement awareness raising activities to make protection services (incl. legal advice) known.
• Network and establish contacts with CSOs and other partner organisations active in the field of protection
• Strengthen the coordination and cooperation with organisations providing legal support and make it accessible to refugees.
• Match short term experts with defined CD measures and identified needs, and coordinate their assignments 

Ensuring effective synergies between interventions on protection and interventions on economic inclusion in Kirehe / Mahama-Camp, as well as linkages with the Programme office in Kigali

• Ensure alignment and synergies with the activities implemented on economic inclusion in close collaboration with the Economic inclusion expert
• Ensure visibility of and communication on implemented activities in the area of protection, in close collaboration with the Communication Specialist in the Kigali Office (e.g. contribute to progress reports, factsheets, news articles)

C. Required Qualifications, Competences and Experience 

1. Qualifications and Professional experience 

• 5 years’ experience in the field of refugee protection (e.g. legal aid, mental health and psycho-social support)
• Bachelor’s degree in Public Health, Psychology, Law or other relevant academic fields
• Experience working with organizations active in the field of refugee protection in Rwanda and knowledge on partner landscape in and around Mahama Camp in Rwanda
• High level of cultural sensitivity for the diverse backgrounds and needs of the refugees and host communities
• Experience working with international organizations would be an added advantage. 

2. Others 

• Willingness to work and reside in Kirehe district with regular travels within the district and Mahama Camp as well as to Kigali
• Willingness to always abide by the principles and regulations of GIZ while implementing the different activities and representing the SD4T programme within the different partner institutions
• Ability to work independently and coordinate all the planned activities in accordance with the programme’s operational plan and the needs of the different partner institutions
• Knowledge on the use of MS Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams etc.)
• The candidate must be very conversant and fluent with both Kinyarwanda and English. French is an added advantage.