Protection Assistant

UNHCR is mandated to lead and coordinate international action to protect refugees, asylum-seekers, stateless persons and other persons of concern, and to seek durable solutions to their displacement. In Thailand, where there is no national asylum framework, UNHCR works with partners to provide protection services, community-based protection, advocacy, and capacity-building to support persons who are stateless and refugees and asylum-seekers.

Thailand is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention/1967 Protocol and does not have a domestic asylum system. As a result, urban refugees and asylum-seekers are considered illegal migrants and face heightened risks of arrest, detention, and limited access to basic services. In this context, UNHCR Thailand provides protection services through coordination with partners, community-based protection initiatives, capacity-building, and advocacy. Due to funding and staffing constraints, the Outreach team prioritizes critical protection interventions, community outreach through the refugee-led initiatives, and strengthened communication with refugee communities. The UN Associate Volunteer will support these efforts by contributing to community-based protection activities, data and referral management, partnership building, and communication with communities, while gaining hands-on professional experience in a humanitarian protection setting.

Under the direct supervision of the Associate Protection Officer, and with day-to-day guidance form the Senior Protection Assistant, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks : - Contribute to the organization and implementation of community-based protection activities, including logistical and material support to the Outreach Volunteer (OV) programme. - Contribute to Communication with Communities activities, including preparation of basic information materials and support to feedback and referral mechanisms. - Assist in maintaining accurate and up-to-date case information in UNHCR systems, in line with data protection and confidentiality principles. - Support advocacy and capacity-building initiatives by assisting with background research, briefing notes, and meeting documentation. - Contribute to the identification and documentation of emerging protection trends and needs. - Support in reviewing and processing of emails received through the protection email channel from persons of concern, including identifying protection-related issues and referring them to the relevant units. - Supports country-of-origin information research. - Perform other related support tasks as assigned by the supervisor.