ECONOMIC POLICY ADVISER

VacancyAnnouncement

Economic Policy Adviser

for

Support to the AfCFTA Programme

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a federally owned international cooperation enterprise for sustainable development with worldwide operations. The GIZ Office in Kigali covers GIZ’s portfolio in Rwanda and Burundi. GIZ Rwanda/Burundi implements projects on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the European Union and other commissioning authorities in the following priority areas: Sustainable Economic Development; Good Governance; Climate, Energy and Sustainable Urban Development; Digital Transformation and Digital Economy; and regional projects in the Great Lakes Region.

At the 10th Extraordinary Summit of the African Union held in Kigali, Rwanda in March 2018, the agreement on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was signed. As part of the AU’s 2063 Agenda, the AfCFTA is one of the AU’s flagship projects. Currently, the agreement, which came into force in May 2019, has been signed by 54 of the 55 African states and as of April 2022 ratified by 42 states. Rwanda was the first country to ratify all the agreement’s instruments.

The Republic of Rwanda like many African member states still need sufficient capacities to successfully realise the AfCFTA. The specific roles to be played by the government, private sector, and civil society are currently not fully supported with requisite knowledge and skills for each to implement the AfCFTA commitments. Although responsibilities have been defined in the framework agreement, the specific working methods still need to be established in Rwanda through the National Strategy for Implementation of the AfCFTA. This requires building the capacity of all key stakeholders in specific matters of trade in goods and services among others as well as awareness raising and strengthening the necessary institutional and legal frameworks for realising the AfCFTA at a National level.

The Programme Support to the AfCFTA addresses institutional challenges to support the negotiation and implementation of the AfCFTA. It works at the continental, regional and national levels to respond to the complex nature of the AfCFTA’s negotiation and implementation as well as to the heterogeneity of the AfCFTA’s State Parties. Rwanda is one of eight countries supported at the national level.

The AfCFTA Support Programme is searching for one candidate for the position of Economic Policy Adviser.

Candidate Profile

Location: Kigali

FixedTerm: Until 30th June 2026

Position: 1

MainTasksandResponsibilities

Responsibilities

Support the bilateral partners in Rwanda in fostering their role in implementing the AfCFTA through technical advisory services on the member state levelClose collaboration with AU Commission, the AfCFTA Secretariat, RECs as well as with the GIZ AfCFTA Support Programme Team (which the advisor is part of)Manage short-term experts to undertake subject-specific research into areas of concern to Member State representatives participating in technical meetings throughout the key project component topics of trade in services, goods as well as the digital protocol.Technical advice and project coordination on various aspects of trade integration, including trade in services, trade in goods, trade facilitation, and stakeholder involvement and possibly also industrialization, value chain and other emerging topics (e.g. AfCFTA Guided Trade Initiattive, etc.)Participate in the AfCFTA Team meetings and bilateral exchanges with AfCFTA advisors throughout the various project components and locationsWork with other GIZ projects and be familiar with GIZ internal procurement processes

Tasks

The trade policy advisor performs the following tasks

Support of the project and in particular the programme management in all areas of programme managementEnsures the implementation of assigned workstreams with minimal intervention of international advisors and programme managementActive support to the preparation of the operational plan for the Rwanda component; taking responsibility for assigned work packagesCoordinate the preparation of contracts, prepare Terms of Reference and other project documents with minimal need for interventionWork closely together with the technical advisors and head of components in following all steps and prepare all necessary documents for contractsCommunication with potential consultants and contractors as well as partnersFollow up all steps with GIZ HQ in Germany and Country Office of GIZCoordinate communication, public relations, preparation of fact sheets, including social media and websitesCollecting necessary information from technical staff to prepare fact sheets and project briefs.Coordinating inputs for communication documentsRepresent GIZ in technical discussion with partners and at conferences or eventsSupport in setting up a monitoring systemSupport to comply with data protection regulationsBe the liaison person with data protection unit in GIZ HQPrepare and follow up all necessary steps to comply with data protection rulesSupport for the introduction of digital tools in the projectGet familiar with all digital tools of GIZ and act as a mentor to all staffDocumentation and follow-up of meetings with local and international companiesJointly responsible with the partner institution for preparing, implementing and documenting training events, workshops, forums, team meetings and other project activitiesPerform other duties and tasks at the request of management

Required Qualifications, Competences and Experience

Qualifications and professional experience

Master’s degree or other University degree in public policy, economics or similar, with a specialisation related to the programme’s content (e.g. trade policy, economic policy, trade facilitation, regional integration, or similar)5 years of working experience in international trade, trade f…