European Partnership for Democracy is looking for a Programmes Officer (French-speaking)

About EPD

The European Partnership for Democracy (EPD) is a non-profit organisation supporting democracy worldwide. It is a unique partnership comprising European democracy support organisations present in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. EPD works inside and outside Europe as democracy is a universal aspiration and the contemporary challenges and opportunities for democracy are global in scope. More information about EPD is available at www.epd.eu.

Background

We are looking for a Programmes Officer to join our EPD team in Brussels. The Programmes Officer will assume project management responsibilities in the context of two EU-financed electoral support projects implemented in Burundi and in Liberia. Both projects aim to strengthen electoral processes and to provide support to key stakeholders, such as citizen observer groups as well as electoral management bodies, among others.

Accountabilities and key relationships

The Programmes Officer will be based in Brussels and will report to the Head of Programmes (based in Germany). The Programmes Officer will work in close cooperation with other project staff in EPD. Close cooperation with assigned project experts (including those based in the target countries) and team members of project consortium members will be necessary.

Duties and responsibilities

Project management

• Assuming primary responsibility for the planning, implementation and follow-up of project activities, for assigned projects, ensuring the delivery of outputs and contributing to the achievement of project outcomes;

• Drafting narrative reports and supporting/reviewing financial reports in compliance with EPD’s and funders’ requirements, drawing to the attention of Head of Programmes any issues arising from those reports;

• Ensuring overall compliance of assigned projects with EPD’s and funder’s procedures;

• Conducting visits to the project countries, for assigned projects;

• Maintaining appropriate records on EPD’s activities and projects and providing relevant input for EPD’s social media and website.

Partner management

• Being the first point of contact on administrative and substantive matters with funders and EPD’s partner organisations; resolving issues raised within the limits of authority of the role and referring as necessary to other relevant EPD staff;

• Ensuring that EPD’s partner organisations are provided with instructions to enable them to fulfil their operational and reporting responsibilities in accordance with contract procedures for assigned projects;

• Liaising with EPD’s partner organisations to ensure the quality and timely implementation of their interventions, and monitor their costs against their budgets;

• Reviewing EPD’s partner organisation’s narrative reports to ensure activities and outputs are delivered as planned;

• Reviewing EPD’s partner organisation’s financial reports to assess accuracy of presentation and compliance, verifying project expenditure and supporting documents and liaising with partners on clarifications if necessary;

• Maintaining strong working relationships with EPD’s consultants.

Other tasks

• Contributing to the conceptualisation and development of EPD’s programmatic approach on electoral support (AHEAD);

• Supporting in the organisation of the EPD Elections Working Group;

• Contributing to programme and project funding bids, or elements of them, in conjunction with the Head of Programmes, as well as EPD member organisations;

• Participating as a member of EPD’s core team in the wider development of the organisation, sharing common tasks as required from time to time.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in political science, international development, social sciences, or a relevant field is required;

• Minimum of 3 years of experience in project management, preferably within international development or democracy support contexts;

• Demonstrated experience in electoral support activities is required;

• Experience in fragile contexts, including in African countries is an asset;

• Demonstrated experience with monitoring, evaluation, and learning processes is an asset;

• Excellent written and spoken English and French is required.

Conditions and benefits

• A starting salary between EUR 2,000.00 and EUR 3,500.00 gross (Grade 4 of the EPD Salary Scale) with the precise figure dependant on experience;

• An initial two-year contract (a part-time contract is negotiable);

• Lunch vouchers of a unit value of EUR 8.00 (personal contribution by the employee of EUR 1.09) will be granted for each day actually worked;

• A monthly public transportation card in Brussels will be reimbursed (EUR 49.00);

• In compliance with EPD’s teleworking policy, staff will be granted a monthly teleworking allowance of EUR 129.48 and an additional monthly contribution of EUR 20.00 for the professional use of their private internet connection;

• A hospitalisation group insurance;

• Enrolment in the EPD group pension scheme; in which the employer and the employee contribute 2% each;

• All staff are fully involved in all aspects of our work and given considerable responsibility and independence; they are part of an international team that supports them in acquiring skills to work in an international organisation and hands-on knowledge of how major international actors inter-relate, at EU and global levels;

• Candidates must have permission to work in the EU. They should be based in Brussels or move to Brussels for the expected start date.

Application procedure

Interested applicants should send a CV and the completed application form, together in one document to jobs@epd.eu by Monday, 25 July 2024 (23:59 CET). Please submit your application with the following email title: "LAST NAME - FIRST NAME - Programmes Officer Application". Interviews will take place in late July and/or early August 2024. Candidates selected for an interview will be asked to complete a written exercise of approximately 45 minutes (online or in presence). The expected start date is in August 2024.