83461228 Senior Expert, Support to the AfCFTA Secretariat Trade in Services Division

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is one of the flagship projects of the African Union Agenda 2063 and is expected to be a key driver for Africa to realise continental structural transformation and industrialisation, as envisaged in Agenda 2063’s shared roadmap for inclusive and sustainable growth for Africa.

The Agreement establishing the AfCFTA was signed by forty-four (44) African countries on 21 March 2018 in Kigali, Rwanda, and entered into force on 30 May 2019, following the required number of 22 ratifications. On 1 January 2021, trading under the AfCFTA was launched. As of November 2023, the AfCFTA Agreement has been signed by fifty-four (54) African countries and ratified by forty-seven (47) countries.

Trade in services negotiations are governed by the Protocol on Trade in Services (TiS) one of the legal instruments of the AfCFTA Agreement. The Protocol adopts a hybrid approach to liberalization, with commitments being undertaken by State Parties through Schedules of Specific Commitments on the one hand, and broad regulatory frameworks for cooperation on the other hand.

At the 31st Ordinary Session, the African Union Summit adopted five (5) priority services sectors (Business Services; Communication Services; Financial Services; Transport Services and Tourism and Travel-related Services, including their subsectors, with negotiations on the seven (7) additional sectors to begin afterwards. The 1st meeting of the AfCFTA Committee on TiS in January 2021 adopted a Workplan to comply with the Decision of the 13th Extraordinary Summit, with regard to the conclusion of outstanding work on TiS. Considering the substantial workload, the Committee on TiS has fast-tracked the finalisation of the negotiations of Schedules of Specific Commitments (SSCs) in the five priority sectors with twenty-two (22) schedules having been adopted at the African Union Extraordinary Assembly in November 2022.

The negotiations on the schedules and the concurrent work on the development of the regulatory frameworks are still ongoing. In this regard, to facilitate the negotiations under TiS and prepare for implementation of the Protocol, the Directorate of Trade in Services, Investment, Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and Digital Trade, AfCFTA Secretariat is seeking technical support through a Senior Expert on Trade in Services to support its work.

Further Details of the assignment can be found in the terms of reference. Please request all tender documents by email from [email protected] mentioning “83461228_Senior Expert Trade in Services” on the subject email.

Period of assignment: 29 Apr 2024 – 15 Dec 2024 for 150 working days.

Qualifications of the expert (Team Leader in the technical assessment grid)

• Education/training (2.1.1): At least a Master’s degree or its equivalent in International Trade Law and/or Policy, Social Policy and Development, Economics, International Development, International Relations, Business Administration, Regional Integration and negotiations or related field; or bachelor’s degree in the above areas with 8 years working experience in addition to the general experience required by this project.
• Language (2.1.2):
• Fluency in English (Corresponding to C1 in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages).
• Knowledge of another AU language (French, Portuguese, Arabic, Swahili) is an added advantage.
• General professional experience (2.1.3): 8 years of professional experience in trade law and policy, economic policy or related domain with relevance for this assignment
• 5 years of relevant professional experience in Trade in Services negotiations and related issues and/or regional trade agreements, business development, private sector engagement, entrepreneurship and related issues.
• 5 years of professional experience in drafting reports, technical notes, conducting analyses preferably on Trade in Services related issues.
• 5 years of professional experience in imparting training in the relevant fields.
• Proficiency in one of the African Union working languages (Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish or Swahili). Knowledge of one or several other working languages would be an added advantage.
• Excellent management and interpersonal skills, high flexibility and capacity to work under pressure.
• Ability to work in a multi-cultural and multi-national environment.
• Specific professional experience (2.1.4):
• 6 years of professional experience in negotiations of trade agreements, particularly Trade in Services in Africa.
• Experience and in-depth knowledge of Trade in Services issues globally and in the context of Africa.
• Proven knowledge of research on Trade in Services and trade related issues.
• Familiarity with and experience in African Union policy frameworks, institutions, and processes relevant to the trade and industry agenda; and
• Experience of working in the African region is preferable.
• Leadership/management experience (2.1.5): 5 years professional experience as Team Leader or Manager of a company providing consultancy services
• Regional experience (2.1.6): African regional experience is preferred.
• Development Cooperation (DC) experience (2.1.7): Knowledge of working with DC.
• Other (2.1.8): not applicable