World Vision International (WVI) began emergency relief operations in Afghanistan in 2001 by addressing the urgent needs of children and families affected by natural disasters and decades of conflict. More than a decade later, World Vision Afghanistan’s (WVA) programs have expanded to development sectors such as health, nutrition, WASH, child protection, and education, empowering women to engage in civil and social change through interfaith partnership.

WVA targets the most vulnerable in its interventions; including children, women, Internally Displace Persons (IDPs), and returnee refugees, as well as the most impoverished and marginalized families. These priorities have been chosen to contribute to our Goal of: “Improved survival and well-being of Afghan girls and boys, building the foundations for a better future for Afghan children and their communities.” 

Our work is well established in Herat, Badghis, Ghor, and Faryab provinces in the western region of Afghanistan. We work closely with all levels of society including children, parents, teachers, village councils, religious leaders, ministries, provincial departments, and other national and international agencies.

Job Porpuse

The Child Protection and Safeguarding Coordinator is responsible for carrying out and supporting activities under specific child protection projects within World Vision Afghanistan (WVA) and leading WVA’s safeguarding unit. The position has the dual role of providing technical leadership and oversight to World Vision Afghanistan’s safeguarding units, ensuring the relevant strategies and approaches to safeguarding are integrated into the wider humanitarian response. S/he will provide technical support and guidance to the WVA national office to develop, implement, monitor, evaluate, and document its safeguarding strategy and programs.

The post holder will be involved in emergency response and recovery as well as development programs in the child protection sector, including delivering child protection services for children and their families, working with the community to strengthen capacity to protect children, and coordinating with actors from CP and other sectors to ensure effective programming. S/he will be leading capacity building, raising awareness in the community, and streamlining safeguarding in the sectoral interventions. The role also requires ensuing WVAs compliance with WVI safeguarding requirements and continuously monitoring implementations and compliance. The coordinator will support the team of caseworkers, community mobilizers, and other relevant child protection staff to implement activities for children, adolescents, caregivers, and community members according to the design and work plan of each project. S/he will also work with the project manager(s) and the protection and education sector lead to undertake any CP-related tasks beyond the scope of the existing projects.

The Child Protection and Safeguarding Coordinator will be based in Herat, with possible travel to other provinces upon the request of his or her line manager.

Major Responsibilities 

Project Planning and Implementation

• Support the rollout of safeguarding policies, plans, and procedures in alignment with the WV Afghanistan National Strategy. 

• In coordination with the project manager or supervisor, work with the child protection staff and other departments to develop work plans and follow up with team members regularly to ensure that activities are on track.
• Plan and conduct regular field visits to support the implementation of child protection project activities and monitor and ensure WV response is aligned with the organization's safeguarding policies and procedures.
• Mobilize and coordinate with relevant departments and relevant actors, ensuring that activities are implemented following the organization's safeguarding policies.
• Work with the project managers to ensure the child protection program is implemented in ways responsive to communities, partners, and children's needs in line with WV’s principles, values, and strategic plan.
• Coordinate safeguarding incident reporting and investigation, closely working with the senior leadership, WV regional offices, and global offices.
• Facilitate the linkage with other sector teams to strengthen child protection and safeguarding incident reporting, prevention, response, and safeguarding measures.
• Support the project managers in preparing a detailed implementation plan, budget, and procurement plans based on the project timeframe.
• Work with the project manager/supervisor and GAM to identify appropriate partners for the implementation of the child protection response in WVA’s operations areas.
• Support community mobilization to increase understanding of children's protection needs and safeguarding messages and strengthen existing community-based structures to prevent, identify, and respond to CP violations.
• Undertake an ongoing review of project implementation, report challenges to the project manager or supervisor, and make adjustments to project design and implementation as necessary.
• Maintain the highest standards of confidentiality and ensure safeguarding concerns are reported and followed up.
• Support data collection in WV or inter-agency assessments to ensure child protection and safeguarding-related information is adequately captured and reflected in the assessment process and final reports.
• Work with the Protection and Education Sector Lead and DM&E to develop assessment, monitoring, and evaluation tools to measure child protection and safeguarding issues, risks, progress, and impact; Build staff capacity through the use of protection tools (i.e., safety audits).
• Actively monitor child protection activities at field level, ensuring the quality of WVA’s projects and flagging concerns to the project manager or supervisor, as well as the Protection and Education Sector Lead.
• Input into the development of M&E and indicator tracking plans for child protection grant(s), and support the development of additional M&E tools as necessary to monitor project progress.
• Work with child protection staff and MEAL to document project progress and results using the specific MEAL tools for the project(s).
• Analyze child protection information and share trends and patterns of protection risks internally and externally, as appropriate, to improve program response and for advocacy.
• Work with the MEAL team to strengthen accountability mechanisms that facilitate boys, girls, and other marginalized groups to report their feedback and complaints.
• Ensure that safeguarding risks are identified and monitored, and support the well-functioning of the safeguarding mechanism.
• Lead discussions with communities and beneficiaries on project design and review, as agreed with the project manager or supervisor.
• Provide field-level information to support CP-related research, case studies, learning reviews, and publications for WVA.
• Provide support to project staff, ensuring that all staff implement child protection activities in line with inter-agency standards and guidelines.

Knowledge Management & Capacity Building

• Support the Project Manager/Supervisor to recruit child protection frontline workers include reviewing JD, circulating the job advertisements, etc.).
• Support to organize and manage the capacity building plans for frontline workers and facilitate staff access to technical resources and appropriate learning opportunities related to safeguarding and child protection.
• Facilitate the process of compiling good practices from project experience for better results and cross-teams’ learning.
• Contribute in the set-up and maintenance of a knowledge management system for child protection.
• Support the Project Manager/Supervisor to develop or update training or other guidance materials on CP for field staff based on learning needs and priorities.
• Organize and facilitate training on Protection Mainstreaming, Child Protection and safeguarding for WV staff and other actors upon the request of the Protection and Education Sector Lead or the Project Manager/Supervisor.
• Identify and propose trainings for the team related to child protection and best practices.
• Attend internal and external training on CP and related topics to enhance knowledge on different thematic areas and programming approaches.

Networking & External Engagement

• Develop and maintain effective working relationships with key stakeholders at local level, including UNICEF, Provincial CPAN, and other protection actors.
• Represent WV in relevant protection/child protection coordination forums (CP AoR, MHPSS WG, PSEA, protection, GBV AOR) as requested from time to time.
• Establish strong relationship with community structures and faith networks to facilitate the project acceptance and stakeholder’s contribution and ownership.

Safeguarding

• Act as the Safeguarding Focal Point in Herat Office in coordination with the National Safeguarding and GESI Coordinator.
• Support the reporting and referrals of safeguarding incidents and provide information to the National Safeguarding and GESI Coordinator to update the referral tracker monthly.
• Participate in the investigation of safeguarding incidents and contribute to compile the investigation reports as requested.
• Support to organize orientations for new and existing WV staff and affiliated personnel, as well as to raise awareness of community members on safeguarding policy and procedures. 
• Support to develop training and IEC materials on safeguarding, PSEA and other relevant topics.

Other

• Adhere to WV Child and Adult Safeguarding policy and standards.
• Adhere to WV accountability standards.
• To be aware and prepared to implement WV Afghanistan Humanitarian and Emergency Affairs plan under the context of (child protection) interventions

Required Professional Experience

• Minimum 2 years of experience working on protection or child protection programmes in humanitarian settings
• Proven experience as a trainer and in organizing training on child protection and relevant topics for participants of diverse background
• Experience in setting up and implementing local level safeguarding mechanisms
• Ability and willingness to maintain a regular presence at project sites (remote / field sites) and to work during irregular working hours and in insecure environments.

Required Education, training, license, registration, and certification

• Bachelor degree in community development, psychology, social work, sociology, and other social sciences relevant.
• Certification or other recognized courses on Protection, Child Protection, Gender-based Violence, International Humanitarian Law or other relevant subjects.  
• Excellent written English, with fluency in speaking English.
• Must have basic level computer skills
• Commitment to and understanding of WV’s aims, values and principles
• Knowledge of child protection principles and programming approaches
• Knowledge of international child rights frameworks and understanding of Afghanistan child protection system and legal frameworks
• Excellent understanding of main disaster risks and child protection issues which communities are facing in Afghanistan, especially in a humanitarian context
• Demonstrate knowledge and awareness of inter-agency Child Protection in Humanitarian Action tools, guidelines and other resources
• Strong interpersonal, communication, and negotiation skills – self-motivated individuals, able to take initiative and propose solutions, resilient, positive, and able to work independently
• Ability to work as a team player and coach frontline staff in child protection skills, community participation and accountability

Preferred Knowledge and Qualifications

• Master’s degree in community development, psychology, social work, sociology, and other social sciences relevant.
• Prior experience in implements UNICEF, AHF, BHA and other major donor projects and understanding of donor compliance
• Prior experience in fragile contexts and humanitarian response.

The application closing date is 16-Jul-2025. Qualified applicants can apply for the position by filling in the online application form in WV Career portal. applicants can also attach their CV and cover letter in the online system. Please note that only the applications received through the online portal will be considered for this position.

Applicants can login to WV online application system by copying and pasting the following link into their browsers:

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