Programme Officer, Trade Facilitation at Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)

ROLE OVERVIEW

• Under the supervision of the Principal Programme Officer, Trade Facilitation & Development, the incumbent shall be responsible for supporting the management and implementation of trade facilitation measures.

ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Support the coordination of ECOWAS Trade initiatives.
• Support the implementation of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement and Trade Facilitation related provisions of Agreement of AfCFTA.
• Contribute to the development of policy recommendations that enhance trade efficiency, reduce costs, and promote economic growth.
• Collaborate with relevant departments and partners to ensure coordinated and effective program implementation.
• Collect and analyze trade-related data to identify trends, challenges, and opportunities in cross-border trade and prepare reports and presentations to communicate findings and recommendations to stakeholders and decision-makers.
• Support the development and implementation of trade facilitation tools and instruments.
• Support the operationalization of Trade Facilitation Committees.
• Support the formulation of Trade Facilitation related strategies, policies, and measures.
• Research and prepare analytical and policy reports and studies.
• Perform any other task assigned by the supervisor.

ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in the Social Sciences, Economics, Business Administration, International Relations, International Diplomacy, Public Administration, Law, or Social Sciences or in a similar field from a university of recognized standing.
• Five (5) years of practical experience in the area of Trade Facilitation.
• Knowledge of trade facilitation principles and international trade regulations
• Knowledge of border procedures.
• Strong analytical skills and the ability to interpret and analyze trade-related data.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills for effective stakeholder engagement

AGE LIMIT

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

ECOWAS KEY COMPETENCIES

• Demonstrated ability to persuade/influence others to consider a certain point of view, adopt a new idea or implement new methods and practices.
• Ability to lead a small team of trainees/junior staff and instill a spirit of teamwork to engage employees and achieve a well-defined set of activities.
• Ability to resolve issues that occur with minimal direction and/or to recommend and explain solutions or alternatives for approval.
• Ability to utilize the ECOWAS Code of Ethics to manage self, others, information, and resources.
• Ability to mentor others and create feedback loops with supervisors, colleagues as well as temporary or contract employees to build strong working relationships and improve performance.
• Superior interpersonal skills with ability to keep a client informed of progress or setbacks in projects of relevance to timeline, quality, and quantity.
• Demonstrated ability to proactively interact with clients and build strong trusting relationships based on mutual respect and regular discussions.
• Ability to establish and sustain professional credibility with clients/stakeholders in a manner that anticipates their need, mitigates issues and that carefully balances professional obligations with the need to be sensitive and responsive to their needs.
• Ability to counsel, advise, consult, and guide others on matters pertaining to assigned client service responsibilities and established ECOWAS client service standards.
• Contribute to maintaining organizational unit’s performance goals and standards.
• Demonstrated respect, fairness, and ability to relate well with people from varied backgrounds, nationality, gender, ethnicity, race, and religion.
• Advanced understanding of diverse cultural views especially within west Africa, with sensitivity to group differences; ability to challenges bias and to practice tolerance and empathy.
• Ability to listen actively, consider people’s concerns and apply sound judgement, tact and diplomacy.
• Ability to work in a diverse and inclusive interactive environment that benefits from diverse strengths.
• Ability to encourage, empower, and advocate for people in an unbias and transparent manner.
• Knowledge of ECOWAS institutions and sectors (e.g. location, mandate, inter-relationships, programs, services, and occupations).
• Knowledge of ECOWAS internal operational requirements of programs, projects, services, and systems required to achieve work assignments and meet performance goals.
• Excellent knowledge of rules and procedures of ECOWAS associated assigned responsibilities and ability to explain these clearly to others.
• Knowledge of the ECOWAS culture, structures and performance issues and priorities impacting assigned responsibilities.
• Ability to study data/information from a variety of sources, identify anomalies, trends and issues, present findings, and make recommendations.
• Ability to break down problems or processes into key parts to identify and solve gaps in service, quality assurance, compliance, and performance targets.
• Knowledge of and ability to apply techniques to generate creative ideas and new approaches to meeting goals.
• Ability to use evidence and research to inform policies and programs and identify relevant and appropriate sources of information, including stakeholders, regional institutions and/or internal committees
• Demonstrated operational proficiency in the use of computer in communicating using tools like email, word processing, excel, power point, and social media sites; ability to produce complex spreadsheets, graphics, and charts to communicate trends, conclusions, observations, etc.
• Ability to makes sound use of graphics and tables to effectively present numerical data to write semi-complex technical reports/proposals and edit/check templates, letters, etc.
• Ability to convey information clearly and concisely and in a succinct and organized manner through both writing and verbal means, either with electronic or print media.
• Well-developed interpersonal skills with the ability to develop rapport, to make presentations, express opinions, and debate ideas with others in a constructive manner.
• Fluency in one of the three ECOWAS official languages (English, French & Portuguese)
• Ability to develop and implement an individual action plan for achieving specific work goals and identify, organize, and monitor tasks throughout to facilitate execution.
• Demonstrated ability to contribute and/or lead on projects as per accepted project management standards and techniques, to co-ordinate contributions by others and to set and meet deadlines.
• Demonstrated ability to organize work, set priorities, and work within timelines, giving attention to details, stakeholders, indicators, and risks.
• Demonstrated ability to identify, collect and assess indicators to monitor performance and to take proactive remedial action as required.