Project Officer

"This position is contingent upon the availability of funding"

Background/IRC Summary: 

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. At work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity, and hope to millions uprooted and struggling to endure. The IRC leads the way from harm to home.

The IRC had worked in Pakistan since 1980 when hundreds of thousands of refugees crossed the border from Afghanistan in the wake of the Soviet invasion. The IRC continued to support Afghan refugees and their host communities; it responded to the 2005 earthquake, the flood in 2010, COVID-19, the Flood of 2020, and the displacement caused by humanitarian crises, including Afghan Migration.  Currently, the IRC is responding the protection and other basic needs of Afghan refugees and their hosts communities mainly in KP and Balochistan through multi sectoral approach.

The IRC protection program in Pakistan seeks to safeguard the rights and well-being of those affected by conflict and natural disasters. The IRC approach to protection aims to increase the impact of its interventions and contribute to the safety and power of the most vulnerable populations in crisis situations, as committed under safety and power outcome areas in SAP 2025. IRC Pakistan’s programming regarding Safety had/has a wide-ranging focus, from safety within homes and schools to safety within the community, especially focusing on displaced women, girls, and children.

With this intervention, the IRC aims to reach primarily the at-risk population of Afghan nationals, including ACC holders, with a specific focus on those taking refuge in the identified districts of Punjab (Lahore, Rawalpindi, Attock) and Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT). The IRC will focus on individuals and groups at higher risk of protection within this population due to their demographic profile, legal status, and other vulnerabilities and work on reducing protection risk through strengthen community-based protection, case management and enhancing social cohesion among host and refugee communities. 

Scope of Work:

• Establishing community protection committees.
• Mapping protection services in the area and identifying gaps in service provision.
• Conduct protection monitoring to identify the needs and vulnerabilities of host and Afghan communities.
• Collaborating with local authorities, humanitarian organizations, and community leaders to validate data and ensure accurate population representation.
• Identifying and documenting key protection concerns, including risks related to gender-based violence, child protection, and access to essential services.
• Liaising with district authorities such as the Commissionerate for Afghan Refugees (CCAR), Social Welfare Department (SWD), and the Protection Cluster to ensure alignment with governmental and humanitarian priorities.
• Providing regular updates and briefings to the team and partners on progress and findings.
• Supporting the development of referral pathways to improve access to protection services for the Afghan refugee population
• Compiling data and information for donor reporting and other project documents, ensuring timely submission.
• Development of work plans and spending plans, tracking of activity against indicators and action points, and use of information from meal and partner reports.
• Track project deliverables and supervise project performance in the assigned topics and/or geographic areas.
• Inform the supervisor/management of any critical issues as they arise.
• Frequent travel to project intervention areas to monitor program implementation and provide technical assistance.
• Represent the team at meetings, conferences, and workshops as needed.
• Provide updates, reports, and critical analysis of the field and report to the Team lead.
• Coordinate with relevant departments to ensure effective support to the field.

Key Relationships:

Position Reports to: Project Manager

Position directly supervises: Social Mobilizer.

Position works with: Project Managers, Reporting & Coordination officer and the MEAL team

Job Requirements:

• Education: Master’s degree in social sciences or any related discipline.
• Experience: At least 2 years of experience working in relief and development projects working in diverse teams.
• Experience in developing and implementing projects focused on community-based protection and experience working with vulnerable groups. 
• Demonstrated Skills and Competencies:
• The ability to speak using sufficient, structured, and accurate vocabulary in formal conversation.
• Computer skills, including M/S office
• The ability to use the language to satisfy professional needs.
• Ability to read and write at a normal speed and with almost complete comprehension of a variety of materials, unfamiliar subjects, styles, and forms pertinent to job needs.

Language Skills: Fluent, professional-level speaking, reading, and writing in English, Urdu, and Pashto.

Working Environment: Works well in and promotes teamwork, flexible and able to handle pressure well 

Travel: Willingness and capacity to work and travel to project field areas

Gender Equality and Diversity:

IRC recognizes that gender equality is fundamental to the achievement of our organizational mission. As such, IRC is committed to the promotion of gender equality in all aspects of our operations and programs. Our organizational policies, procedures, and actions demonstrate this commitment. Women, minorities, persons with disability (PWD), and transgender candidates are highly encouraged to apply.

The IRC Core Values and Commitments.

• The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way - Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity Anti-Retaliation, and Combating Trafficking in Persons.
• IRC is committed to ensuring that IRC staff is suitable to work with children and have the knowledge they need to uphold and abide by the IRC’s Child Safeguarding Policy.
• Level of interaction with children: Less frequent direct contact with children
• IRC recognizes that gender equality is fundamental to the achievement of our organizational mission. As such, IRC is committed to the promotion of gender equality in all aspects of our operations and programs. Our organizational policies, procedures, and actions demonstrate this commitment.

Women candidates and differently abled persons are highly encouraged to apply