Community Outreach Senior Legal Officer

Saint Andrew’s Refugee Services, Cairo

Call for Applications: Community Outreach Senior Legal Officer

Founded in 1979, StARS is a refugee service provider in central Cairo that works to enhance the quality of life for refugees and vulnerable migrants through five broad program areas: education, psychosocial, legal, community outreach and unaccompanied youth and children support services. We provide high-quality services meeting the unaddressed needs of refugees, and we provide a safe and inclusive space for displaced people to come together as a community. We work for refugees, with refugees, to make rights recognition a reality.

StARS’ Mission: Driven by a commitment to solidarity and human dignity, StARS works both as displaced people and for displaced people to support the resilience and leadership of individuals and communities in their pursuit of an enhanced quality of life.

StARS’ Vision: StARS envisions a future where displaced people and the societies they join stand in solidarity, recognizing the strength and leadership of refugees. In this world, the displaced thrive with dignity, claiming their rights and enriching our shared human experience.

Standard of Professional Conduct: StARS and all its staff must adhere to the values and principles outlined in StARS’ Code of Conduct, Child Safeguarding Policy, and PSEAH policy.

Commitment to Gender, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion: StARS is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, respectful, and safe work environment where all persons are treated fairly, with dignity and respect. StARS expressly prohibits and will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, retaliation, or bullying in any work setting. We aim to increase the representation of women, people that are from country and communities we serve, and people who identify as races and ethnicities that are under-represented in global power structures.

We serve people from many places, including Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iraq, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

To learn more please visit our website: www.stars-egypt.org or our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/standrewsrefugeeservices?fref=ts

Community Outreach Department.

The Community Outreach Department serves many purposes in maintaining contacts with both individual community members as well as the diverse array of Refugee-Led Organizations in the Greater Cairo area to improve refugee services in Egypt overall. The Community Outreach team is the main and central body for any new contact or visit, with staff members fully knowledgeable of the services provided by StARS to represent the organization as a whole. The Community Outreach Department also improves coordination between StARS programs, especially when striking relationships with the same organization. The Community Outreach Department collects vital data on each Refugee-Led Organizations in the community and, in collaboration with the Refugee-Led Organizations and other StARS programs, determines what actions should be taken to meet the Refugee-Led Organization’s needs.

The Refugee-Led Organizations Development Project

StARS’ Community Outreach Department works closely with Refugee-Led Organizations from all major refugee communities to enhance their self-reliance and develop their capacity to deliver direct services to vulnerable members of their communities. Through the Refugee-Led Organization Development Project, Community Outreach Department implements a new, innovative, and unique initiative, which has the potential to positively change the landscape for the majority of refugees and vulnerable migrants not just in Cairo, but potentially in urban refugee settings in other areas in the world. Over the course of three years, Community Outreach Department works intensively with 20 Refugee-Led Organizations in Greater Cairo to build strong structures, enhance the long-term sustainability of the organizations, and improve management and the skills of individuals serving the displaced population.

Role

Under the supervision of the Deputy Director of Community Outreach Department and the Director of Refugee Legal Aid Program, the Community Outreach Senior Legal Officer is responsible for outreach to refugee communities regarding the work of St Andrew’s Refugee Services, and specifically Refugee Legal Aid Program’s work on issues relating to Protection, Refugee Status Determination, and Resettlement. The Community Outreach Senior Legal Officer will be charged with expanding Refugee Legal Aid Program’s work in Community Outreach, as well as coordinating with other StARS programs as part of the StARS Community Outreach Team. The Community Outreach Senior Legal Officer is a member of a team of approximately ten Outreach staff and 25 legal staff, and reports to the Deputy Director of Community Outreach Department and the Director of Refugee Legal Aid Program.

Responsibilities

All duties are carried out under the supervision of the Deputy Director of Community Outreach Department and the Director of Refugee Legal Aid Program

Outreach and Programmatic

• To build and maintain strong relationships with refugee communities in Cairo.
• To attend and contribute to Outreach meetings, Refugee Legal Aid Program meetings, and other staff meetings.
• To help community members, leaders, and individuals, families, and groups understand StARS’ services and its role.
• To work closely with the Deputy Director of Community Outreach Department to improve the understanding of and disseminate the information about the legal services available for refugees in Cairo among refugee communities and Refugee-Led Organizations.
• To communicate with refugee communities, other service providers, and UNHCR to facilitate the provision of accurate information and advice leading to the fulfillment of refugee rights.
• To provide reporting data to the Deputy Director of Community Outreach Department and the Monitoring and Evaluation Officer periodically and per request to accurately report work to senior management, funders, and others.
• To build and maintain relationships with psychosocial and education staff, and StARS operational partners, particularly in relation to coordinating outreach to communities.
• To provide regular feedback to the Deputy Director of Community Outreach Department on visits, meetings, workshops, and trainings for refugee communities.
• To work closely with the Deputy Director of Community Outreach Department to improve the understanding of refugee rights-related issues among refugee communities and Refugee-Led Organizations.
• To promote partnerships and cross referral pathway between Refugee Legal Aid Program and Refugee-Led Organizations and Initiatives.

Legal

• To maintain good working knowledge of Refugee Legal Aid Program procedures and intervention criteria in protection, Refugee Status Determination, and resettlement matters.
• To maintain good working knowledge of UNHCR guidelines, processes, and procedures.
• To develop, prepare, and facilitate workshops and training sessions for refugee communities.
• To adhere to the StARS Policies and Procedures Manual, and the StARS Code of Conduct.
• To ensure timely processing and assessment of referrals from Refugee-Led Organizations to Refugee Legal Aid Program requesting legal support in UNHCR registration, access to domestic legal services, Refugee Status Determination representation, and/or protection and resettlement processing

Policy and Advocacy

• Undergo probation and regular performance appraisals.
• To meet twice a month with the Director of Refugee Legal Aid Program regarding case management and self-care.
• To attend internal and external Community Outreach meetings as appropriate.

Communication and Reporting

• To communicate regularly with the Deputy Director of Community Outreach Department and the Director of Refugee Legal Aid Program, reporting on all major issues and developments in the field and within Refugee Legal Aid Program.
• To submit activity reports as requested.
• To promote information sharing within Outreach team on all issues affecting refugee communities in Cairo.
• To maintain strong communication and effective coordination with Community Outreach Coordinators and utilize their key understanding of target communities and regularly exchange information with them.
• To ensure that Refugee Legal Aid Program’s approach to working with Refugee-Led Organizations is in line with the StARS overall strategy for community outreach.
• Maintain strong communication with key Refugee-Led Organization staff, keeping in mind necessary cultural sensitivity.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications and Experience

The ideal candidate will be energetic, articulate, and comfortable interacting with diverse segments of society. She or he will have demonstrated a firm commitment to human rights and refugee issues.

Essential Qualifications

• English being the official language of UNHCR Cairo and StARS, the Complementary Pathways Senior Legal Officer must be fluent in oral and written English.
• Fluency in Arabic or a refugee language is an advantage.
• Master’s degree in a related field (international development, international law, development studies, Middle East Studies) OR a qualified lawyer in any jurisdiction (J.D., LLB or equivalent) OR a minimum of one year of experience in representing refugees in the resettlement or Refugee Status Determination Program processes OR two years’ experience providing direct representation to indigent people in any setting.
• Excellent legal research and drafting skills.
• Knowledge of UNHCR guidelines and procedures, especially resettlement criteria.
• Knowledge and experience working on complementary pathways.
• Knowledge of the general protection situation and vulnerabilities of refugees in Egypt.
• A demonstrated commitment to and sensitivity toward vulnerable or displaced people.
• Ability to live and work in a fluid security environment.
• Proven experience drafting client affidavits and legal arguments.
• Ability to exercise sound legal judgment, well organized, self-motivated, and reliable.
• Demonstrated compassion for refugees and displaced people.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a team as well as individually.
• A positive attitude and sensitive manner when dealing with clients including a range of interviewing skills for dealing with challenging scenarios, particularly in advocating for survivors of violence, trafficking, torture, and SGBV.

Desirable Characteristics

• Experience designing and conducting training sessions for non-technical audiences.
• Managerial experience or familiarity with volunteer oversight.
• Life and work experience in the Middle East or Egypt or with an urban refugee population.

Working Hours: The Community Outreach Senior Legal Officer is expected to be at work for 40 hours per week, between the hours of 9am and 5pm, from Sunday to Thursday. Longer hours, evening and weekend work are sometimes necessary. Work will be conducted both in StARS premises and also in refugee communities and centers.

Reporting to: Deputy Director of Community Outreach Department

StARS salaries are standardized per position according to a pay scale and are not negotiable based on the individual experiences and qualifications of the candidate. StARS salaries are competitive with the local market. Position salary will be discussed at the shortlisting and interview stage.

This position is subject to a three-month probationary period, at which time the employee’s performance will be reviewed and probation may be extended.

Closing date for applications: 24 April 2025

Anticipated Starting date: May 2025

To apply: Please send your Cover Letter and CV and brief legal writing sample to applications@stars-egypt.org using the subject line “Community Outreach Senior Legal Officer”. All applications should provide contact information for two professional/academic reference (referees will only be contacted after interviews).

Note: Only short-listed applicants will be contacted for an interview.

Qualifications and Experience

The ideal candidate will be energetic, articulate, and comfortable interacting with diverse segments of society. She or he will have demonstrated a firm commitment to human rights and refugee issues.

Essential Qualifications

• English being the official language of UNHCR Cairo and StARS, the Complementary Pathways Senior Legal Officer must be fluent in oral and written English.
• Fluency in Arabic or a refugee language is an advantage.
• Master’s degree in a related field (international development, international law, development studies, Middle East Studies) OR a qualified lawyer in any jurisdiction (J.D., LLB or equivalent) OR a minimum of one year of experience in representing refugees in the resettlement or Refugee Status Determination Program processes OR two years’ experience providing direct representation to indigent people in any setting.
• Excellent legal research and drafting skills.
• Knowledge of UNHCR guidelines and procedures, especially resettlement criteria.
• Knowledge and experience working on complementary pathways.
• Knowledge of the general protection situation and vulnerabilities of refugees in Egypt.
• A demonstrated commitment to and sensitivity toward vulnerable or displaced people.
• Ability to live and work in a fluid security environment.
• Proven experience drafting client affidavits and legal arguments.
• Ability to exercise sound legal judgment, well organized, self-motivated, and reliable.
• Demonstrated compassion for refugees and displaced people.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a team as well as individually.
• A positive attitude and sensitive manner when dealing with clients including a range of interviewing skills for dealing with challenging scenarios, particularly in advocating for survivors of violence, trafficking, torture, and SGBV.

Desirable Characteristics

• Experience designing and conducting training sessions for non-technical audiences.
• Managerial experience or familiarity with volunteer oversight.
• Life and work experience in the Middle East or Egypt or with an urban refugee population.