Caribbean Resettlement Deployment Initiative

UNHCR has issued a Call for Expression of Interest for its Resettlement Deployment Initiative. Few Caribbean countries offer local integration opportunities to refugees recognized by UNHCR and refugees and asylum-seekers continue to live in a situation of legal limbo. Resettlement remains the only available durable solution for many refugees in the Caribbean region and is an integral part of UNHCR’s response strategy to ensure appropriate protection.

UNHCR seeks an NGO partner to perform the following activities in the Caribbean:

Objective 1: Provide a dedicated and qualified pool of individuals available for deployment

Locations: USA

Expected outcome/ major activities:

• Maintain a list of a small group of qualified professional staff members that are available for deployment for 1-2 weeks at a time, often on short notice, to support UNHCR’s resettlement activities;

• Recommend eligible candidates for deployment according to standards agreed with UNHCR in a timely manner after UNHCR communicates the location and details of the deployment

• Strengthen resettlement processing by supporting UNHCR to train or otherwise prepare qualified individuals with the appropriate professional background, specific expertise and language proficiency, to draft RRFs and provide expert counselling on UNHCR resettlement

 • Organize and provide appropriate time for UNHCR to regularly advise, coach and train identified individuals to maintain a qualified deployment scheme

Objective 2: Provide direct operational support to UNHCR resettlement missions to the Caribbean region through deployment of qualified professionals

Locations: Trinidad and Tobago, Curacao, Dominican Republic and/or Aruba – and other Caribbean locations as required

Expected outcome/major activities:

• Travel on mission to the Caribbean region on a short-term basis to conduct full resettlement interviews with refugees. (In addition, some staff may occasionally be asked to conduct remote interviews for a very small number of refugees in countries where UNHCR does not normally travel to given budgetary constraints).

• Prepare and finalize a specified amount of high-quality Resettlement Registration Forms (RRFs) in compliance with operational standards for submission to resettlement countries

• Complete resettlement country immigration forms and provide resettlement counselling as necessary.

• Provide post-deployment narrative reports that will quantify work product and provide a brief qualitative assessment of mission activities to be compiled and shared with UNHCR on a regular basis to identify trends and improve resettlement processing