Protocol Officer at ECOWAS Parliament

ECOWAS Parliament was established by the ECOWAS Revised Treaty of 24 July 1993 as one of the Institutions of the Community. The Parliament is the House of Representatives of the peoples of the Community. It is composed of 115 Representatives from the 15 Member States of ECOWAS: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Protocol Officer

Location: Abuja
Grade: P1/P2/P3
Status: Permanent
Directorate: Office of the Secretary General
Division: Protocol Division
Line Supervisor: Protocol Officer P3/P4

Role Overview

Under the supervision of the Protocol Officer , the incumbent shall assist in providing protocol services and ensuring the smooth delivery of services to the Parliament.

Role and Responsibilities

Contribute in providing protocol services and advice to the organization and its constituents.
Maintain up-to-date information on partner institutions within the Diplomatic Community, such as Governments, missions, delegations, governmental and non-governmental bodies.
Receive, evaluate and process requests for diplomatic privileges and immunities and provide related information and advice.
Request visas and changes in visa status from the host country;
Facilitate the organization of official ceremonies, such as official visits, the signing of protocol agreements, and official social functions, such as receptions and luncheons.
Performs other tasks as may be assigned by the supervisor.

Academic QualificatIons and Experience

Bachelor’s Degree in the Humanities, Arts, Public Relations or in a similar field from a recognized university.
2 years of work in the specific area of protocol relevant to job function, organizing events/meetings and conference support in a multi-lateral setting, and/or experience in international travel arrangements, procedures and processes or a related area ;
Knowledge of accepted norms, rules and customs of international diplomatic protocol, including practices developed within ECOWAS System or similar international organization;
Knowledge of diplomatic and liaison services protocol in a governmental or international organization

Age Limit:

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

ECOWAS Key Competencies:

Ability to motivate self and/or others to engage in and successfully complete tasks at hand;
Demonstrated experience leading conversations that will either provide participants with new information, ideas or awareness or elicit feedback;
Ability to positively influence co-workers when faced with challenges and work problems to help trigger solutions and build confidence;
Ability to respect chain of command in an appropriate manner;
Ability to lead in the management of own career and performance and to seek assistance/coaching when required.
Well-developed client service skills including a positive attitude, creative thinking skills, good work ethic, teamwork experience, time management skills, flexibility;
Ability to take initiative to resolve problems and improve quality and/or quantity of work by identifying alternative solutions and discussing appropriateness/approach with supervisor;
Strong desire to help others and capacity to empathize to generate mutual understanding;
Ability to work as part of a team in supporting and addressing the needs of clients and stakeholders;
Ability to multitask and to meet client service/stakeholder management standards and objectives of pertinence to assigned responsibilities.
Ability to perceive the moods and feelings of others from various cultural backgrounds, and to understand interests, needs, and perspectives so as to prevent/address misunderstandings and complaints;
Well-developed ability to relate well with people from varied backgrounds and sound understanding of diverse cultural differences especially within west Africa;
Ability to listen attentively to people’s ideas, requests and concerns and to understand and internalize the need for diversity management in every day workplace practices;
Ability and responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work;
Ability to factor in diversity when providing services, responding to requests, recognizing and releasing preconceived notions and stereotypical views of certain groups and individuals.
Basic understanding of the ECOWAS organization mandate and its functions;
Ability to explain the ECOWAS programs and projects relevant to tasks and demonstrated understanding of data used by the department/institution/agency, including knowing where data resides in the system, the ability to see how the data in the system interrelates and how data entries and changes may impact data in other parts of the system.
Knowledge of ECOWAS routine procedures and practices as it relates to assigned responsibilities;
Ability to apply ECOWAS standards in emailing, reporting, correspondence, etc. and to accept and implement changes as directed.
Excellent numeracy skills with the ability to collect, collate, classify and summarize data systematically.
Demonstrated ability to assist in conducting primary and secondary research activities in accordance with instructions and/or best practices in research techniques (e.g. interviews, tests, desk research);
Ability to identify inconsistencies in reasoning and to articulate findings clearly;
Ability to use creativity and initiative in the generation of alternative solutions to a problem;
Ability to gather, analyze and arrange information in a logical sequence.
Ability to provide useful feedback when asked and to use feedback constructively when given;
Demonstrated ability to use computers with superior word-processing skills and proficiency in the use of data base (e.g. access), spreadsheets (e.g. excel), inter/intranet, email and social media;
Tact, diplomacy and well-developed interpersonal skills;
Ability to write accurate, clear and well-organized text;
Proficiency in information communication technologies(ICT);
Fluency in oral and written expressions in one of the ECOWAS official languages of the Community (English, French & Portuguese). Knowledge of an additional one will be an added advantage.
Well established time management skills with the ability to make well considered/reasoned decisions regarding own work and to follow them through;
Ability to use action planning skills, set priorities, develop work goals and identify the steps needed to achieve goals of relevance to own work area;
Ability to work well and meet objectives of tasks when under pressure or when exposed to uncertainties, challenges and/or changing work environments;
Ability to understand and contribute to team/work unit goals and plans as well as to collective decision-making.