Head of Technical Assistance & Capacity Building

CTG overview:

• CTG staff and support humanitarian projects in fragile and conflict-affected countries around the world, providing a rapid and cost-effective service for development and humanitarian missions. With past performance in 17 countries – from the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and Asia, we have placed more than 20,000 staff all over the world since operations began in 2006.
• CTG recruits, deploys and manages the right people with the right skills to implement humanitarian and development projects, from cleaners to obstetricians, and mechanics to infection specialists, we’re skilled in emergency response to crises such as the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Key to successful project delivery is the ability to mobilise at speed; CTG can source and deploy anyone, anywhere, in less than 2 weeks and have done so in 48 hours on a number of occasions.
• Through our efficient and agile HR, logistical and operational services, CTG saves multilateral organisations time and money. We handle all our clients’ HR related issues, so they are free to focus on their core services.
• Visit www.ctg.org to find out more

Overview of position:

• The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat is the sole organization in the continent, legally established & mandated to handle the rules of trade between African countries. At the core is the implementation of the agreement establishing the AfCFTA (thereafter “AfCFTA Agreement”), negotiated, signed & ratified by the state parties. The goal is to ensure that trade is conducted smoothly, predictably & as freely as possible across the continent. The AfCFTA Secretariat, which is headquartered in Accra – Ghana at the Africa Trade House, was established in February 2020 following the election of its 1st Secretary General.
• The AfCFTA agreement was signed at an extraordinary session of the assembly of the African Union (AU) in Kigali, Rwanda on 21 March 2018. The agreement sets out a continental system of trade rules; acts as a platform for negotiating trade protocols, facilitates the settlement of disputes between state parties & monitors the implementation of the AfCFTA agreement. Furthermore, the AfCFTA agreement is a framework agreement, with comprehensive coverage of trade in goods, trade in services, investment, competition policy, intellectual property rights, women, youth in trade & digital trade as well as rules & procedures for the settlement of disputes.
• The AfCFTA Secretariat is part of the institutional structure of the AfCFTA for the implementation, administration, facilitation, M&E processes of the agreement. Monitoring & reviewing trade policies of African countries vis a vis the AfCFTA agreement enables the state parties & the customs unions to better understand each other’s trade policies & ensure compliance with their obligations under the AfCFTA agreement.
• It is against this background that the AfCFTA Secretariat seeks to engage the services of a Technical Assistance & Capacity Building Advisor to support the development of mechanisms for creating transparency in the trade policies, practices of the state parties & the customs union.

Role objectives:
The Technical Assistance & Capacity Building Advisor to support the development of mechanisms for creating transparency in the trade policies, practices of the state parties & the customs union will work directly under the supervision of the Chief of Staff on the following tasks, among others:

• Identify needs for capacity building actions through needs collection & analysis.
• Design technical assistance & capacity building strategy for institutional development.
• Coordinate the organization, delivery of technical assistance & capacity building actions.
• Monitoring, reviewing progress in the implementation of technical assistance & capacity building activities, including design of evaluation frameworks.
• To coordinate collaboration with AU pan African university rectorate on higher studies.
• Determine (& keep under review), M&E of the standards, performance of the academy & the application of designated funding.
• Develop an AfCFTA trade policy curriculum.
• Perform any other duties as may be required from time to time.

Project reporting:

• This assignment will be carried out under the supervision of the Chief of Staff in the Office of the Secretary General.
• Interested consultants must provide information indicating that they are qualified to provide the services.
• The eligibility criteria, establishment of a shortlist & selection procedure shall be in conformity with our clients procurement rules & procedures.

Key competencies:

• Master’s Degree in Economics, International Trade or Trade Law, Development Economics, International Relations.
• 12 years of experience in the area of trade policies, trade negotiations & implementation at national, regional or multilateral level.
• Practical experience in trade policy formulation, negotiation, implementation at the national & regional level.
• Experience in formulating development strategies & policies.
• Excellent public speaking & presentation skills.
• Good understanding of the internal procedures of the AfCFTA Secretariat as well as regional integration, trade & economic growth.
• Experience working on AU, RECs & other multilateral institutions on the continent.
• Capacity to communicate fluently with different stakeholders (civil society, govt. authorities, local communities, project staff).
• Full command of MS applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) & common internet applications will be required.
• Proficiency in one of the AfCFTA working languages (French, English, Portuguese, Arabic).
• Fluency in another AfCFTA working language(s) is an added advantage.
• Demonstrates integrity by modelling the Secretariat’s values & ethical standards.
• Promotes the vision, mission & strategic goals of Secretariat.
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality, age sensitivity & adaptability.
• Treats all people fairly without favouritism.
• Fulfils all obligations to gender sensitivity & zero tolerance for sexual harassment.

Team management:

• This role has no team management responsibility

Further information:

• Qualified female candidates are encouraged to apply for this role.
• The consultant will be based in Accra, with travels to the member states.
• The duration of the assignment will be 240 days.