Researcher & GIS Officer

International Peace Information Service (IPIS) is an independent research institute based in Antwerp (Belgium), providing governmental and non-governmental actors with information, analysis and police advice to build sustainable peace and development in Sub-Saharan Africa. The research is centred around four programmes: Natural Resources, Business & Human Rights, Arms Trade & Security and Conflict Mapping.

IPIS is recruiting a Researcher & GIS Officer, starting as soon as possible

This is a 90% FTE permanent contract. The recruitment will also serve to establish a small recruitment base for additional hirings for long and short term contracts. Therefore, eligible candidates are highly encouraged to participate.

Job description: Based in the IPIS office in Antwerp, you will carry out research projects and capacity enhancement activities on issues related to peace, development and human rights. You will disseminate structured information and analysis through written publications, presentations, and maps. You will specifically execute research projects related to the (ir)responsible sourcing of natural resources, often in close collaboration with partner organizations in sub-Saharan Africa.

In addition to this, you will be part of the IPIS GIS team, assisting other researchers in collecting, interpreting, and visualising data in multiple projects. You will contribute to the management of IPIS’ geographic databases, support other researchers in interpreting data and produce statistics, visualisations, web- and printed maps. You will help conceive and optimise the data workflow of the various projects IPIS is involved in.

Deliverables:

• Deliver structured information and analysis based on desk and field research
• Develop and deliver capacity enhancement projects with partner organizations in sub-Saharan Africa
• Secure project funding to ensure the continuity of IPIS’ research projects
• Perform administrative tasks as needed, such as project management and reporting

Requirements:

• Master’s degree with a preference for social sciences, social geography, development economics or related fields
• A minimum of 3 years of relevant professional experience
• Experience in developing and delivering training and other interactive information sessions
• Knowledge and experience of issues pertaining natural resources governance, mineral supply chains, conflict and development in fragile contexts is an asset
• Good verbal and written command of English and French
• Field experience in sub-Saharan Africa is desirable and willingness to travel to the region to conduct field research is essential
• Excellent communication skills
• Demonstrated ability to show initiative and work both independently and as part of a team
• Attention to detail and excellent organizational skills
• Willingness to engage with a wide range of stakeholders, including NGOs, academic researchers, policy makers, and business actors
• Permit to work in the European Union

Technical skills:

• Demonstrated experience in data treatment and analysis using GIS software (e.g. QGIS).
• Experience in managing rounds of data collection using PostgreSQL, PostGIS or similar; experience with Open Data portals or (OGC) standards for data sharing is an asset.
• Knowledge of programming languages for performing and automating data analysis (e.g. R, Python) is highly desirable; experience with Jupyter Notebooks and Git is an asset.
• Publication tools using InDesign or similar are an asset.
• Web map programming: CSS, HTML, JavaScript libraries such as Leaflet, Mapbox JS and Mapbox GL JS, D3.js or similar are an asset.
• Mobile Data Collection: experience with ODK, KoBo or similar is an asset.

Salary: The salary is competitive to the Belgian NGO sector.