Project Management Officer at the Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)

The Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (German Agency for International Cooperation) is an international enterprise owned by the German Federal government, operating in many fields across more than 130 countries.

In Nigeria, GIZ’s portfolio includes among others, a programme to support the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in its regional integration goals. The programme aims to strengthen sector-specific capacities in the areas of Peace and Security, Customs and Trade as weir as Strategic Management and Organizational Development in the ECOWAS Commission.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Project Management Officer

Vacancy No.: 057
Location: Abuja

Background

• As a service provider in the field of international cooperation for sustainable development and international education work, we are dedicated to shaping a future worth living around the world. GIZ has over 50 years of experience in a wide variety of areas, including economic development and employment promotion, energy and the environment, and peace and security. The diverse expertise of our federal enterprise is in demand around the globe – from the German Government, European Union institutions, the United Nations, the private sector and governments of other countries.
• We work with businesses, civil society actors and research institutions, fostering successful interaction between development policy and other policy fields and areas of activity. Our main commissioning party is the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
• The registered offices of GIZ are in Bonn and Eschborn. Our approximately 23,500 employees, almost 70 percent of whom are national personnel, work in a round 120 countries (July 2020) GIZ has worked in Nigeria since 1974. From 2004, GIZ has maintained a country office in the capital city Abuja. Currently 361 national and 66 international employees, 19 regional staff, 4 integrated specialists and 3 development workers are working in the country (June 2020).

The Programme
Germany has been supporting the ECOWAS Commission through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH since 2006. Commissioned and funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the current Programme, “Support to the ECOWAS Commission on Organisational Development” is aimed at strengthening the Commission in executing its core mandate of facilitating economic and political integration. The support is focussing on two areas:

• Unit 1: Strategic Management promotes the establishment of a Result-Based Management (RBM) guided by strategic orientation as fundamental management model at ECOWAS. In addition, the Unit supports the internal management directorates of ECOWAS.Furthermore, the project strengthens the strategic orientation of the ECOWAS Commission and the establishment of a regional monitoring and evaluation system for programmes implemented by ECOWAS.
• Unit 2: Institutional Support to ECOWAS supports ECOWAS on the preparation of a certification process that would allow ECOWAS to manage funds provided by the European Union in indirect management mode. This process is called Pillar Assessment. The support in this field targets the improvement of internal processes that are related to financial management, HR management, Ethics, etc.

Responsibilities
The project management officer must:

• Ensures that GIZ rules and regulations as well as standard procedures are complied with regarding all financial and administrative functions; in accordance with and;
• Ensures the smooth functioning of administrative processes to prepare, roll-out and document the project’s activities in Abuja/Nigeria and in other ECOWAS Member States.
• Liaises and follows up with GIZ Country Offices in Nigeriaand other West African countries to organise the project’s activities;
• Liaises and follows up with ECOWAS administrative staff for the organisation of joint activities;
• Prepares procurement requests and follows up based on requests of the project team;
• Assists the project team on demand to ensure proper project management;
• Ensures proper documentation and knowledge management of the project’s activities;
• Organises the monitoring and update of the project’s management online planning system;
• Assumes the function of a security focal point for the project.

The Project Management Officer Performs the Following Tasks:
Tasks:

Administrative Tasks:

• Organizes administration and logistics for meetings, workshops, trainings, conferences in Abuja.
• Coordinates and organizes rooms for meetings;
• Prepares procurement and contract requests on project level and liaises with the project’s procurement officer.
• Prepares procurement and contract requests on project level and liaises with the responsible country office outside Nigeria in line with GIZ rules and regulation and the specific SOP for each country office.
• Handles all communication with procurement focal points in ECOWAS projects and GIZ country offices.
• Supports in drafting and amending of contracts in English and French;
• Prepares and follows up on participant’s lists, handouts, facilitation materials etc. for meetings;
• Supports consultants and visitors on logistic and admin questions.

Knowledge Management and Documentation:

• Compiles information about contact persons and SOP’s in GIZ country offices across the ECOWAS region;
• Compiles supporting documentation for meetings;
• Prepares and organizes information materials for or meetings;
• Maintains and updates the ECOWAS Cluster’s data base for venues, vendors and consultants in Nigeria and across the region;
• Participates in internal and external (team) meetings and workshops and assists with documenting these e.g. by taking minutes;
• Maintains the filing system and management of the project files in DMS, shared drive and One Point.

Security Focal Point:

• Supports Security prevention measures for project staff as Security Focal Point of the ECOWAS OD project;
• Submits weekly travel monitoring to RMO;
• Submits the updated HRE plan to RMO quarterly;
• Informs Risk Management.

Other Duties/Additional Tasks:

• Treats information confidentially
• Maintains the annual Leave Plan of the project team and updates the leave schedule monthly;
• Supports foreign delegations and VIP visits;
• Coordinates equipment etc. required for meetings with the responsible person;
• Performs any other coordinating task between technical and administrative/finance staff of GIZ.
• Performs other duties and tasks at the request of management.

Required Qualifications, Competences and Experience

• University Degree in Business Administration, Social Sciences, Finance or any other related field. A Master’s Degree will be an added advantage.

Professional Competencies and Experience:

• A minimum of 4 years’ professional experience in a comparable position in an international environment.

Other Knowledge and Additional Competencies:

• Very good knowledge of English and French Language- Oral and written capacities. (This will be tested).
• Knowledge of German and/or Portuguese language would be an advantage;
• Strong intercultural management skills;
• Very good working knowledge of ICT technologies (related software, phone, email, the internet) and computer applications (e.g. MS Office);
• Willingness to upskill as required by the task to be performed – corresponding measures are agreed with management;
• Good organizational skills;
• A good team player who is willing to take on responsibility
• Innovative and possessing a positive attitude to change and results orientation.
• Prior experience with an international organization/NGO will be an added advantage.

Salary
According to GIZ salary scale for Band 4.

Application Closing Date
29th June, 2022.