Associate Protection Officer

Host entity: UNHCR

Volunteer type: International

Areas of expertise: Humanitarian affairs, protection

Application deadline: 07/09/2026

Mission and objectives

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (the UN Refugee Agency, also known as UNHCR) is an intergovernmental organization with a mandate to protect refugees and stateless persons worldwide. Since 1950, the agency has helped tens of millions of people restart their lives. Today, a staff of more than 15,000 people in 130 countries continues to help and protect millions of refugees, returnees, internally displaced and stateless people. UNHCR provides lifesaving assistance, protection, shelter, food, clean water, education and medical care to some of the world’s most vulnerable. UNHCR also provides assistance to refugees who want to return home when it is safe to do so and helps integrate refugees within their local host country or resettle to a third country when returning home is no longer an option. Non-governmental organization (NGO) partners work with UNHCR around the globe to assist and protect refugees and internally displaced people.

Assignment context

Mexico faces complex displacement dynamics as a country of origin, destination, and return, while also confronting increasing internal displacement driven by violence and insecurity. Despite fluctuations in mixed movements, asylum applications remain at historically high levels, placing sustained pressure on national systems and humanitarian actors. At the same time, UNHCR Mexico is operating under significant financial constraints, which have reduced staffing capacities and limited operational reach at a time of growing needs. In this context, the UN Volunteer assignment is essential to sustaining core protection activities, particularly in Mexico City, which serves as a key operational and coordination hub for UNHCR’s response. Based in Mexico City, the UN Volunteer will support the delivery of protection services, including the identification and analysis of protection risks, provision of counselling and referrals, and strengthening coordination with government counterparts, civil society, and other partners. The assignment will also contribute to ensuring access to asylum procedures and services for refugees, asylum-seekers, returnees, and internally displaced persons. Through these functions, the role supports the safeguarding of fundamental rights and contributes to the effective implementation of UNHCR’s protection mandate in Mexico. This request aligns with the Letter of Commitment between JICA and the Mexican Agency for International Development Cooperation (AMEXCID), witnessed by UNHCR during President Tanaka’s visit to Mexico in 2025, and reflects commitments under the Humanitarian–Development–Peace Nexus as reaffirmed at the Global Refugee Forum 2023

Task description

Under the supervision of the Senior Protection Officer, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:

•Support the implementation of UNHCR’s protection strategy in Mexico City, contributing to the delivery of core protection activities in line with UNHCR policies, and Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) principles.
•Contribute to protection monitoring and analysis by collecting, verifying, and synthesizing information on protection risks, trends, and profiles of asylum-seekers, refugees, return-ees, and internally displaced persons, and by producing analytical briefs to inform opera-tional responses.
•Support individual protection case management, including identification, registration sup-port, documentation, follow-up, and safe, confidential, and accountable referrals related to legal assistance, gender-based violence (GBV), child protection, detention, and risks of refoulement, in line with established Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
•Provide guidance and support to persons of concern on access to asylum procedures and available services, ensuring a rights-based and protection-sensitive approach.
•Strengthen coordination with government counterparts, implementing partners, shelters, civil society organizations, and service providers to enhance access to protection ser-vices and effective referral pathways.
•Contribute to community-based protection approaches, including participation in assess-ments, community consultations, and outreach activities, ensuring accountability to af-fected populations (AAP) and meaningful engagement of communities.
•Support the monitoring of partner activities and follow-up on protection indicators and deliverables, in coordination with the Protection team.
•Assist in the preparation of reports, briefing notes, situation updates, and donor inputs on protection trends and activities.
•Promote the mainstreaming of protection across UNHCR interventions and coordination mechanisms.
•Support UNHCR engagement with relevant stakeholders, including Japanese partners, as required.
•Perform other related protection duties as required in support of operational priorities.

Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to:

•Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for in-stance in events that mark International Volunteer Day).
•Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country.
•Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities.
•Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publica-tions/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc.
•Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers.
•Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering, or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible.

Skills and experience

•Experience in community-based interventions and/or development cooperation pro-jects is required.
•Experience working with or within private sector entities, UN agencies, or non-governmental organizations is considered an asset.-Working experience in •Humanitarian sector would be an asset.
•A strong interest in issues surrounding migrants and refugees is required. Study or work experience in related fields, including support for vulnerable populations, humanitarian as-sistance, and human rights, is highly desirable.
•Previous experience as a volunteer and/or exposure to different cultural environments (e.g. studies, volunteer work, internships, or professional experience) is highly desirable.
•Experience working with community-based programmes, civil society organizations, or development and/or humanitarian projects.
•Understanding of displacement dynamics, protection risks, and drivers of violence in Latin America and Mexico is considered an asset.
•Strong interpersonal, communication, and networking skills, with the ability to engage ef-fectively with diverse stakeholders.
•Ability to work in a team in a multicultural environment and commitment to humanitarian principles and service delivery.
•Flexibility, adaptability, and willingness to learn and take initiative in a dynamic operational context.
•Demonstrated respect for diversity and inclusion, with sensitivity to cultural differences and protection considerations.
•Solid computer skills, including proficiency in Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint); familiarity with data management tools or social media is an asset.

Competencies and values

☒ Accountability
☒ Adaptability and Flexibility
☒ Building Trust
☒ Client Orientation
☒ Creativity
☒ Ethics and Values
☒ Integrity
☒ Judgement and Decision-making
☒ Planning and Organizing
☒ Professionalism
☒ Self-Management

Living conditions

Mexico City (CDMX) is the capital of the United Mexican States. It is a Category A, family duty station with well-developed infrastructure, services, and amenities.
•Health: Mexico City offers high-quality healthcare with numerous internationally ac-credited hospitals and specialized medical facilities.
•Education: A wide range of government and private schools are available. Most pri-vate institutions offer bilingual (English–Spanish) curricula, and there are several inter-national schools following U.S., British, German, French, and Japanese systems.
•Housing: Apartments and houses are readily available, both furnished and unfur-nished. Real estate agents are widely used. All international staff must obtain UN se-curity clearance of their residences prior to signing any lease. Due to seismic activity, certain areas of the city are restricted for residential selection.
•Climate and Seismic Activity: Mexico City enjoys a generally pleasant, temperate climate, although sudden weather changes are common. Heavy rains may cause local-ized flooding during the rainy season. The city lies within the Circum-Pacific Seismic Belt, one of the most active seismic regions in the world. Earthquakes are frequent and can occasionally cause infrastructure damage; staff are advised to familiarize them-selves with emergency and preparedness procedures upon arrival.
•Currency and Exchange: The official currency is the Mexican Peso (MXN). U.S. Dol-lars, Euros, and traveller’s cheques can be exchanged at authorized currency ex-change offices.
•Communications: Internet and telecommunications services are reliable and widely available. Contracts are required for household and office connections.
•Transportation: Public transportation is extensive and includes buses and a subway system. For taxis, staff are strongly encouraged to use registered “taxis de sitio” or re-liable ride-hailing services such as Uber.
•Security: Mexico City is classified as Security Risk Management (SRM) Area: Mex-ico - Central. There are no recent records of direct threats against UNHCR personnel or operations in Mexico City. However, as in other large metropolitan areas with high population density, common crime remains a relevant concern, particularly in the form of theft, pickpocketing, fraud, and extortion.

Full eligibility requirements, conditions of service and application instructions are available on the official UNV platform.