Project description

This project consists of a fee-based Drawdown Facility through which the contractor will implement multiple short-term assignments requested by the EU Delegation in Egypt. The facility will operate as a flexible tool supporting the full project cycle of EU-funded bilateral cooperation, including identification, formulation, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, audits and visibility. Assignments will be implemented in various sectors such as green transition, economic resilience, governance reforms, trade and investment, human development and mobility, in line with the Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership, Partnership Priorities 2021-2027 and the Agenda for the Mediterranean. This Drawdown Facility shall also serve as an implementation support mechanism for selected institutional modernisation, capacity-building, and digital transformation priorities of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Expatriates (MoFAIC). Assignments contributing to this objective will be implemented upon request of the EU Delegation, in close coordination with MoFAIC and its relevant departments, and shall remain fully consistent with NDICI–Global Europe priorities and EU procedures. The contractor will manage the facility, propose experts, organise missions and ensure quality control and reporting.

Job description

The Team Leader will have overall responsibility for the management, coordination and quality assurance of the Drawdown Facility. He/she will act as the main interlocutor of the Contracting Authority and will ensure that all assignments implemented under this contract effectively support EU–Egypt bilateral cooperation priorities, including assignments contributing to MoFAIC’s institutional modernization, capacity-building and digital transformation agenda.

The Team Leader’s tasks shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

Strategic and Operational Management

• Provide overall leadership and direction for the implementation of the contract;
• Serve as primary contact point for the EU Delegation to Egypt regarding all technical and administrative matters;
• Advise the contracting authority on the optimal use of the facility in line with the Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership and programming documents;
• Prepare and regularly update the Facility work plans and ensure their execution.

Coordination of Drawdown Assignments

• Oversee the identification, planning and implementation of individual assignments requested by the project manager;
• Analyse each request and propose the most suitable expertise, methodology and timing;
• Ensure complementarity and synergies among assignments and with other EU or donor-funded actions;
• Supervise the work of all mobilised experts and validate their outputs before submission.

Quality Control and Assurance

• Establish and manage an internal system for technical quality assurance;
• Review all reports, studies, and deliverables prepared under the facility;
• Ensure that deliverables meet EU standards and respond to the needs expressed in the drawdown requests;
• Guarantee timely submission of high-quality outputs.

Financial and Administrative Oversight

• Ensure sound financial management of the contract, including monitoring of expert inputs and incidental expenditure;
• Validate invoices and financial reports prior to their submission to the EU Delegation;
• Ensure compliance with EU contractual procedures and the general conditions;
• Manage risk mitigation and problem-solving measures related to contract implementation.

Capacity Building and Policy Dialogue Support

• Provide direct technical advice to the EU Delegation and senior Egyptian counterparts;
• Facilitate workshops, steering committees and coordination meetings when required;
• Contribute to strengthening the institutional capacities of beneficiary entities involved in EU cooperation;
• Support the promotion and coordination of EU instruments such as TAIEX, blending and guarantees.

Communication and Visibility

• Ensure compliance with the latest EU Communication and Visibility Requirements;
• Supervise preparation of communication materials and reports on visibility actions;
• Promote knowledge sharing and capitalisation of good practices through capacity4dev.eu.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting

• Design and supervise the monitoring system of the facility;
• Contribute to the definition and tracking of performance indicators;
• Prepare Inception, Interim and Final Reports;
• Ensure that lessons learned and recommendations are properly documented.

The Team Leader will ensure that cross-cutting priorities, notably gender equality, environmental sustainability and digitalisation, are mainstreamed in all activities and deliverables under his/her supervision.

In addition to the tasks already defined in these ToRs, the Team Leader shall:

• Ensure that drawdown assignments responding to MoFAIC-related requests are coherently integrated into the overall Facility work plan and implemented in line with EU procedures and quality standards;
• Oversee the mobilisation and coordination of expertise related to diplomatic training, digital diplomacy, IT modernization, and administrative and financial reform, where required;
• Ensure effective coordination with MoFAIC counterparts and relevant departments for assignments supporting the implementation of MoFAIC priorities aforementioned.

Qualifications

Qualifications and skills

• Master’s degree in economics, public administration, international relations, development studies or a related field relevant to institutional reform and capacity building; or, in its absence, a Bachelor’s degree with at least four additional years of relevant professional experience;
• Excellent command of English (C1 level). Knowledge of Arabic will be considered a strong asset;
• Proven leadership, diplomatic, communication, presentation and facilitation skills.

General professional experience

• At least 7 years of professional experience in the field of international cooperation and/or public sector reforms;
• Minimum 5 years of experience as team leader in EU-funded technical assistance projects.

Specific professional experience

• Significant experience in the development of terms of assignments, mobilisation and management of experts, and in the management of incidental expenditures,
• Demonstrated experience in Egypt or in the MENA region;
• Proven knowledge of EU external action instruments and procedures (PRAG, NDICI, EFSD+, blending);
• Experience with capacity-building programmes, training systems, or institutional reform in public administrations, including ministries or diplomatic institutions, will be considered a strong asset.

Contact person

  Karen Reschenberg