PPO, Electoral Assistance at Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)

Role Overview

• Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Director of Political Affairs, the incumbent main tasks and responsibilities will be to oversee the Division in line with the provisions of ECOWAS extant Protocols and Decisions, in particular, the 1999 Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management, Peacekeeping and Regional Security, the Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance and the 2008 ECOWAS Conflict Prevention Framework in providing electoral assistance to Member States.

Role and Responsibilities

• Facilitate and coordinate pre-election fact-finding Missions and deployment of Election Observation Missions.
• Serve as the Focal Point for the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions (ECONEC).
• Facilitate capacity building on election management.
• In close collaboration with Member States Electoral Management Bodies and other stakeholders, develop frameworks and instruments to facilitate the conduct of free, fair, and transparent elections in the region.
• Advise the Director of Political Affairs and Regional Cooperation in search of financial support for ECOWAS electoral activities.
• Hold regular contact with donors and other organisations as required.
• Analyse electoral events in the region to provide early warning advice to the Director for Political Affairs and Regional Cooperation.
• Provide periodic analytical reports on electoral matters in the region.
• Prepare policy papers and talking points for senior ECOWAS officials as required.
• Carry out, with the Director of Political Affairs, administrative functions relating to the staffing, planning, and budget of electoral operations, including selecting staff assigned to electoral missions.

Academic Qualifications and Experience

• Minimum of master’s degree (or equivalent) in Political Science, International Relations, Social Science, Law, Public Administration, or a related field from a university of recognized standing.
• At least ten (10) years of progressively responsible experience in international relations, development, or electoral management work at national and international levels, with knowledge and experience in West Africa and/or operations and five (5) years at a supervisory level.
• Experience in formulation of operational planning and budgeting of electoral operations.t
• Knowledge of the governance challenges in West Africa as well as the Commissions’ rules and procedures and the ability to evaluate international political situations with bequeathing skills in bilateral and multilateral negotiations.
• Knowledge of the work of intergovernmental bodies, the work of ECOWAS, and its related bodies concerned with electoral, political, economic, social, peace and security, and related matters with a technical ability to identify problems and propose policy options.

AGE LIMIT

• Be below 50 years old. This provision does not apply to internal candidates.

ECOWAS KEY COMPETENCIES

• Ability to lead in assigned programmes and projects by providing the necessary managerial and operational expertise required to fulfil the organization’s mandate (e.g. establish networks and benchmarks).
• Ability to lead by example and organize teamwork to encourage cooperation to achieve targeted results; champion and build momentum for change and bring about employee engagement; develop and implement internal controls for a pilot program to manage potential barriers to implementation.
• Excellent self-management skills, demonstrating ethics and integrity and displaying due regard for internal controls of rules, delegations, and transparency.
• Ability to bring together complementary skills/expertise, assess individual contributions and recognize/address accomplishments and shortcomings in a manner that brings continued success to the organization.
• Knowledge of program management at the level usually acquired from a certification in program management (e.g. Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) or Program Management Professional PgMP).
• Ability to research benchmarks and trends to bring about the best recommendations for the development and improvement of programs/projects that will best serve the community/organization.
• Well-developed networking and interpersonal skills to seek feedback, information, and data from a network of professionals from multiple countries/sectors/organizations and to identify and prioritize the most critical community requirements.
• Ability to manage and coordinate client management initiatives (e.g. feedback loops, surveys, studies, needs assessments) and make recommendations.
• Ability to develop and implement best practices in client services (e.g. dashboards, incentive management, feedback mechanisms).
• Ability to develop and implement stakeholder management plans, programs, and initiatives to obtain buy-in on new initiatives, better understand dissenting views, obtain resources, and increase perceptions of success.
• Diplomacy, tact, and respect of other people from varied backgrounds, understanding diverse cultural views, especially within West Africa, with the ability to convert diversity into opportunities to improve program/operational outcomes.
• Ability to create a diverse and inclusive interactive environment that benefits from diverse strengths, bringing together innovative practices.
• Ability to remain objective in appraisals, evaluations and in managing conflict regardless of cultural differences, positions, gender issues or opinions, and encourages staff to overcome cultural and gender barriers and background differences.
• Ability to serve the interests of culturally diverse multinational teams/organizations/communities and some disabled groups without prejudice, bias, or sympathy for a select group.
• Solid understanding of the ECOWAS organizational structure, associated dynamics and expectations required to collaborate, participate, contribute, and lead effectively.
• Applied knowledge of the community mandate, strategic plan/priorities, and the economic, political, and social state/trends of member states, especially concerning their scope of work.
• Knowledge of ECOWAS best practices, program management approaches and research techniques to lead and/or contribute to developing or assessing programs, projects, or initiatives.
• Superior knowledge of the rules and procedures of ECOWAS to appropriately interpret and apply directive text, provide technical advice, coach others, and assess performance.
• Ability to analyse a situation by using indicators to assess the costs, benefits, risks, and chances for success in making decisions.
• Ability to gather information from different sources to identify the cause of problems, consequences of alternative causes of action, potential obstacles, and ways to avoid the problem in the future.
• Ability to break down very complex situations/information into simple terms to explain recommendations and conclusions to solve problems or improve operations/programs/projects.
• Ability to develop new insights into situations, apply innovative solutions to problems and to design new methods of addressing issues or disconnects where established methods and procedures are inapplicable or no longer effective.
• Proficiency in oral and written French and English languages.
• Ability to communicate with impact, clearly and concisely in a succinct and organized manner, conveying credibility & confidence when making presentations, setting expectations, and explaining complex issues.
• Ability to listen intently and correctly interpret messages from others and respond appropriately.
• Accomplished technical writing skills (e.g. proposals, terms of reference, program assessments, blueprints, business processes) with well-developed editing.
• Ability to give honest feedback, provide recognition, address shortcomings, and motivate direct reports to work at peak performance.
• Fluency in one of the three ECOWAS official languages (English, French & Portuguese).
• Superior organizational and project/program management skills with significant experience identifying timelines, targets, costs, and resources necessary to deliver operational/program/project outputs.
• Ability to set practical goals and targets for self, others, and the work unit and adjust work or project priorities in response to changing circumstances.
• Ability to identify gaps affecting the achievement of program/project expectations and to design and implement intervention plans required to build the desired capacity (e.g. training, structural realignment, partnerships, reallocation of resources.
• Ability to implement rigorous monitoring and evaluation practices and to set regular reporting schedules relevant to key outputs (e.g. management indicators, project milestones, program results, processing targets).
• Ability to plan, organize, and control resources, procedures, and protocols to achieve specific goals.