As part of the implementation of the regional storage strategy adopted in 2012 by ECOWAS, the European Commission granted €56 million in funding to ECOWAS for the implementation of the Support Project to Food Security Storage in West Africa (Convention N°ROC/FED /24-947).

The project is made up of 5 components whose implementation is organized as follows:

• The French Development Agency (AFD) ensures the fiduciary management of the activities of components 1, 2 and 3 which concern the support to storage levels, i.e. the constitution of the Regional Reserve (including the setting up of governance bodies and instruments and the purchase of cereals), the support to national storage systems and the support to local storage organizations with a budget of over EUR 28 million;
• the Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS) through its AGRHYMET Regional Center (CRA) is responsible for the implementation of component 4, which concerns ECOAGRIS (regional information system), at a cost of EUR 18 million;
• The Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) is responsible for the fiduciary management of Component 5 activities at a cost of EUR 4.8 million. The activities of this component, which is a strategic component of the project, concern the institutional building of RAAF, decision support and overall project coordination.

Within the framework of sustaining the achievements of the Project, project coordination is now assumed directly by the Executive Director of RAAF with the support of the Division in charge of Technical Operations.

Under Component 5, AECID and ECOWAS agreed to use the services of two Technical Assistants in support of (i) the Executive Director of RAAF to supervise certain tasks, and (ii) the Division in charge of Technical Operations of RAAF, one of whose tasks is the quality assurance of the Agency's products.

MISSIONS AND TASKS OF CONSULTANTS

The Technical Assistant will provide support to the Technical Operations Division of RAAF in the implementation of its missions in general and those relating to the supervision of the support project to food security storage in West Africa in particular.

General tasks:

• Support for the coordination of projects and programmes implemented by RAAF;
• Substantial contribution to the preparation of activity reports, including in all cases the systematization of data and the drafting of the first draft of the reports;
• Contribution to the preparation of the Steering Committees of the various projects and programmes;
• Contribution to the supervision and evaluation missions of projects implemented in the different countries;
• Substantial and significant contribution to the quality control of the periodic reports produced by the projects;
• Contribution to the preparation of information and communication materials;
• Contribution to the formulation of innovative programmes aimed at scaling up innovative actions on the ground; 
• Support for the capitalization of the results of pilot actions in the field and the preparation of notes/technical sheets on good practices and lessons learned;
• Carrying out any other mission that may be requested by RAAF.

Specific tasks relating to the Support Project to Food Security Storage in West Africa

• Support to RAAF Technical Operations Division (TOD) for the quality review of documents;
• Main and substantial support to the technical unit for the coordination of the preparation of periodic implementation reports of the Project and quality control;
• Ensure rigorous monitoring of the implementation of the Annual Work Plan and Budget as well as the Procurement Plan;
• Provide direct support to the managers of the Regional Food Security Reserve Division (RFSRD) for the implementation of the activities of the different components;
• Facilitate communication between the RFSR and the TOD of RAAF and prepare elements of communication with the Executive Directorate and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources of the ECOWAS Commission on the Stocks Project;
• Ensure the archiving of all project documentation and the sharing of key information.

Management and Supervision of Services

The Technical Assistant shall report to and be supervised by the Head of the Technical Operations Division of RAAF. Close collaboration will be established with the Regional Food Security Reserve Division and the Administration and Finance Division.

 Mission location

The service will be provided at the headquarters of the ECOWAS Regional Agency for Agriculture and Food based in Lomé in the Togolese Republic. However, travel is expected within the ECOWAS geographical area.

Qualifications / Experiences

The Technical Assistant will be required to meet the following qualifications and competencies:

• Hold a graduate degree in the fields of agro-economics, socio-economics, agro-sylvo-pastoral and fisheries development, food and nutritional security, communication, administration or any other related discipline; 
• Have a strong experience in organizing large international events (conferences, fora, seminars/workshops, etc.);
• Have at least 10 years' experience in the areas concerned by the project (food security, reserves, food crisis prevention and management mechanisms, food trade, regional integration, etc.);
• Leadership and strong capacity in report writing, communication/visibility materials, etc.;
• Have a real mastery of office software: Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint);
• Have a perfect command of both spoken and written English and French. Knowledge of Portuguese would be an additional asset.

Duration of Mission

The Technical Assistant will be given an initial contract of six (6) months which may be renewed based on performance for a period not exceeding 25 November 2020.  

Applications file

The application package is made up of:

• A letter of expression of interest, including availability time;
• A recent curriculum vitae detailing professional experience and similar assignments;
• Three professional references (first and last names, current functions, functions at the time of collaboration with the Consultant, email and telephone contacts);
• Certified copy of the highest diploma;
• Copy of the certificates of work or service rendered, listed in the curriculum vitae.
• Incomplete application will not be considered.

Submission of applications

Interested candidates should send their applications to the following address, not later than 15 February 2020 by 5 PM GMT:

Regional Agency for Agriculture and Food (RAAF)

83, Rue de la Pâture, Lomé-Togo (sealed envelope « Consultant to support the Executive Director of RAAF to supervise the Support Project to Food Security Storage in West Africa and lead the organization of the International Conference on Security Stocks».

procurement@araa.org

With object: « Consultant to support the Executive Director of RAAF to supervise the Support Project to Food Security Storage in West Africa and lead the organization of the International Conference on Security Stocks

NB: Applications which are not marked « Consultant to support the Executive Director of RAAF to supervise the Support Project to Food Security Storage in West Africa and lead the organization of the International Conference on Security Stocks» will not be considered.

Selection method

A Consultant will be selected according to the qualification-based selection method as defined in the ECOWAS procurement Code. An interview session may be organized with a short list of consultants.