Assistant Human Rights Officer United Nations

Mission and objectives

The United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office (UNRCO) leads the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) and facilitates and coordinates the work of all UN agencies in Zambia to achieve agreed results in support of Government’s development priorities. The Resident Coordinator’s (RC) system aims to bring together the different UN agencies to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of operational activities at the country level. The UNRCO houses expertise in key areas, including human rights. The UN System in Zambia (herewith called UN Zambia) comprises 20 resident and non-resident agencies namely: FAO, IFAD, ILO, IOM, OHCHR, UNAIDS, UNCDF, UNCTAD, UNDP, UNECA, UNESCO, UNFPA, UN-HABITAT, UNHCR, UNICEF, UNIDO, UNODC, UNOPS, WFP and WHO.

Context

The Resident Coordinator’s Office and United Nations Country Team in Zambia hosts a Human Rights Advisor who serves as an additional capacity specialized in human rights with the role of coordination, support and provision of enabling services, ensuring the provision of optimal support to Government, and other partners including national human rights institutions and civil society, in the achievement of the 2030 Agenda. The primary role of Human Rights Advisor (HRA) is to support the UNRC and the UNCT in promoting all human rights (civil, cultural, economic, political and social including the Right to Development) as a common UN value and upholding international norms and standards through: advocacy and awareness-raising; technical support to integrate human rights into programmes and activities; support for the active engagement with the work of the human rights mechanisms (Universal Periodic Review, Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures); support to building and strengthening national capacities and institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights. The Assistant Human Rights Officer will support the work of the Human Rights Advisor as articulated above, specifically the implementation of the human rights sections of the RCO/UNCT work plan and OHCHR’s country programme and work plan for Zambia.

Task description

Under the direct supervision of the Senior Human Rights Advisor, and overall supervision of the Resident Coordinator, the Assistant Human Rights Officer will undertake the following tasks:

• Provide support to the implementation of the RCO/UNCT and OHCHR country program and human rights work plans, including follow-ups on the implementation of decisions rendered by policymaking organs;
• Assist in monitoring progress of various thematic phenomena through research, compilation, analysis, and reporting of information from Government, IGOs, UN agencies, funds, and programmes, as well as NGOs and individuals, and other sources;
• Assist with in-country outreach, capacity-building, and development and/or strengthening of human rights networks, preparation and participation in missions, drafting of mission reports and follow-ups on implementation of recommendations
• Prepare correspondence with Government, IGOs, UN agencies, funds and pro-grammes, as well as NGOs and individuals and other interlocutors;
• Draft presentations as necessary;
• Assist in drafting reports, including High Commissioner reports to inter-governmental bodies; • Liaise with the Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSA) and other OHCHR thematic and geographic desk officers on human rights mechanisms;
• Liaise with representatives of Government, IGOs, UN agencies, funds, and programmes, as well as NGOs and individuals in connection with the assignment;
• Participate in UNCT meetings relating to the assignment;
• Performs any other duties as assigned.