Protection Officer

Job Title: Protection Officer

Location: Belgium (GT)

Duration: One-Year fixed-term contract (renewable subject to funding)

Starting date: 04 th January 2027

Line manager: Programmes Coordinator

About PI

Protection International (PI) is an International NGO that contributes to the improvement of the protection of human rights defenders (HRDs) throughout the world. PI provides tools to develop HRDs’ capacities to manage their own security as they struggle against impunity and work in favour of human rights and democracy in their respective countries or regions. PI seeks to contribute to a situation where HRDs are recognised as legitimate actors for social change and to an environment where they can exercise their right to defend universally accepted human rights.

Protection International has its global office in Brussels but primarily works where the protection of HRDs is needed. PI has long-term presence in several countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Join the Global Movement for Human Rights

Protection International (PI) is looking for a mission-driven Protection Officer to join our Global Team in Brussels. If you are passionate about the protection of human rights defenders and civil society organisations and have experience in capacity building, protection and security management, we want to hear from you

The Role

The Protection Officer will work within Protect-EU -Protecting Civic Space & Human Rights Defenders in Europe, an EU-funded project aimed at strengthening the protection of human rights defenders (HRDs) and civil society organisations (CSOs) across Europe.

The Protection Officer will support the implementation of PI’s activities under Work Package 3 (Protection, Capacity Building & Resilience of Civil Society Actors), with a particular focus on capacity building. The role will coordinate the preparation, logistics, facilitation and monitoring of in-person workshops, as well as the management of e-learning activities.

In collaboration with relevant team members, the Protection Officer will also contribute to Work Package 2 (Monitoring, Documentation & Early Warning), supporting civic space analysis and contributing relevant information to PI’s FOCUS Observatory.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Technical Execution of WP3: E-learning Administration & Facilitation (Deliverable D3.4)

• With the support of the Programme Coordinator, identify, select and invite participants.
• Manage the end-to-end administration of PI’s e-learning platform, safely processing training requests from CSOs and enrolling participants in the appropriate language modules.
• Design, organize, and facilitate 10 webinars on various HRD protection topics aimed at reaching at least 50 CSOs and HRDs identified as lowrisk.
• Monitor participant progress, follow up with inactive users, and verify the successful completion of mandatory modules (Risk Analysis, Protection Responses, and Security Management).
• Conduct introductory and closing sessions to explain course structures, gather actionable feedback, provide first-line technical support, and issue completion certificates in compliance with PI standards.

2. Technical Execution of WP3: In-person Capacity Building (Deliverable D3.2)

• With the support of the Programme Coordinator, identify, select and invite participants; to this end, review and implement the Needs Assessment Survey tool.
• Lead the methodological preparation, secure logistics, and technical facilitation of 10 in-person capacity building workshops targeting at least 5 CSOs identified as high-risk across the EU.
• Ensure all strengthening-capacity activities integrate participatory protection methodologies, adapting content to the intersectional vulnerabilities of the participants
• Systematize training data, participant lists (strictly anonymized), and training agendas.

3. Transversal Support to WP2: FOCUS Observatory (Civic Space Monitoring)

• Assist in tracking structural trends, public policies, and administrative measures affecting civic space in EU Member States, directly contributing to the FOCUS Observatory.
• Safely channel qualitative findings and contextual intelligence gathered during WP3 training sessions into WP2
• Work in close synergy with WP2 analysts to ensure timely policy alerts and the maintenance of a live database documenting laws and measures impacting HRDs and CSOs.

Who You Are

• Relevant university degree in social sciences (political science, law, sociology, international relations, communications).
• Relevant professional training courses (Human Rights Defenders, humanitarian and development sector, management, etc.) (preferred).
• Minimum 3 years of similar experience and proven track record on protection a