Part-time Coordinator for West Africa Project, Standards at Swedish Standards Institute

Background
The project Capacity Building in International Standard Setting will run until December 2017. It is a joint program between the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) and Swedish Standards Institute (SIS) funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). SIS is the contracting party with Sida.

The proposed project aims at strengthening the capacity of the ECOWAS region to influence and make use of the ISO system. Throughout this process, synergies with African regional standardisation will be sought. As a basis for the project, a couple of ISO standardisation processes will be used as case studies to build the capacity strengthening around. As many of the involved countries do presently not have much involvement in ISO, it will be an important element for further capacity building. One of the key methodologies when doing this is to focus on the need to effectively involve relevant stakeholders to achieve a larger influence.

The project will be coordinated jointly by ARSO, ECOWAS and SIS. The successful candidate would act as the ECOWAS coordinator on a part time basis (around 80 %) under a consultancy agreement.

Job Details

• In order to implement the project, a Coordinator position is being instituted.
• The main responsibilities of the Coordinator will be to facilitate regional activities and follow up on national activities.
• Tasks and responsibilities are described below but might change over time.
• The coordinator has to be an ECOWAS citizen.
• The coordinator will be based at the ECOWAS Commission.

Detailed Task Description and Deliverables

• The position entails considerable responsibility for the independent delivery of outcomes.
• The position is of operative nature and will entail both a considerable administrative workload and strategic analysis.
• The coordinator will, thus, need to be able and willing to do both.
• In coordination with SIS and ARSO, the coordinator will be carrying out coordination required to fulfil ECOWAS commitment to the project.

The incumbent will be expected to:

• Report to the ECOWAS Director in charge of Quality and SIS Project Manager;
• Liaise with stakeholders to support initiatives in support of project outcomes;
• Ensure project deadlines are met;
• Coordinate the planning and implementation of project activities;
• Assess possibilities of enhancing project activities and outcomes;
• Ensure donor and SIS regulations pertaining to risk analysis, internal governance and control are enforced throughout project activities;
• Ensure compliance with in-house and donor reporting requirements;
• Day to day administrative tasks required to implement the project;
• Draft and prepare documentation for reporting to Sida;
• Facilitate contact with consultants for the project;
• Follow and monitor developments on the national level that relates to the project outcomes;
• Screen and assess contracts and invoices related to the implementation of the project;
• Monitor budget expenditure and assist with budget allocations;
• Ensure project funds are allocated responsibly and in support of project outcomes;
• Any type of corruption or misappropriation of funds by the coordinator will lead to the immediate cancellation of the contract without any compensation from the project. The coordinator will, however, be responsible for repaying any funds misappropriated;
• Any other task assigned by the project manager, the Director in charge of Quality at the ECOWAS Commission to fulfil the assignment.

Required Competencies
Core Values:

• Integrity
• Professionalism
• Respect for diversity

Core Competencies:

• Results orientation and accountability
• Planning and organizing
• Communication and trust
• Team orientation
• Client orientation
• Organizational development and innovation

Managerial Competencies (as applicable):

• Strategy and direction
• Managing performance
• Judgement and decision making

Minimum Requirements

• University degree in Management, Engineering or any related field
• Documented experience in administrating donor funded projects
• Good knowledge in Logical Framework Approach and Results Based Management
• Documented experience in monitoring and evaluating donor funded projects
• Documented experience of administering financial transactions (invoices, payments etc). This includes being able to identify and manage any irregularities and cooperating in any auditing aspect of the project.
• Experience in working with private as well as public sector organizations in West Africa Good organizational and management skills
• Experience in Standardization activities in African countries, particularly West Africa A good working knowledge and experience in International Standards Development Process (e.g. ISO, IEC):
  • Good IT knowledge (in particular Microsoft excel and the office package).
  • Experience and willingness in carrying out more administrative tasks.

The following experiences are also advantageous but not a must:

• Good knowledge of quality in general and a practical experience in the areas of conformity assessment (analysis and testing, inspection or certification) and accreditation. Practical experience in ASHAM procedures,
• Practical experience in the implementation of International Standards
• Practical experience in application of ECOSHAM procedures

Languages:

• Good knowledge of written and spoken English Knowledge in French is a major advantage.