Vacancies

Senior Security and Justice Reform (Security) Advisor, ISSAT (100%)

Research Assistant, Operations (50%)

Senior Security and Justice Reform (Security) Advisor, ISSAT (100%)

Reporting to: Head of ISSAT
Location: Geneva, with requirement for extensive overseas travel
Deadline for Applications: 16 September 2010

Background: The post holder will form part of the core International Security Sector Advisory Team (ISSAT) at the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF). The ISSAT provides a deployable capacity to support its 20 members (which include 14 bilateral donors, the UN, EU and OECD Secretariat) in creating strategic, successful and sustainable Security and Justice Sector Reform interventions in conflict affected and development environment.  ISSAT is guided by the recognition that security, development and human rights are preconditions for sustainable peace. In its approach, ISSAT also draws upon the principles in the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, and the United Nations Secretary-General’s report on SSR (2008), and in particular the promotion of local ownership and national capacity building to ensure sustainable and legitimate security and justice reform.

This is a demanding and high profile implementation and representational role requiring overseas travel and with wide-ranging high-level departmental contacts within donor states, their staff overseas, international organisations and partner nations.  The ISSAT may operate in post-conflict contexts, so the post-holder will have to demonstrate an ability to work in difficult conditions.

Tasks & Responsibilities:
The post holder will:

• be one of the lead security sector advisor for the ISSAT team and its members, providing advice and guidance in the area of Security and Justice, particularly in the area of security reform, to both ISSAT’s core team and Expert Roster members;
• work closely with the Deputy Head and other senior advisors on mission preparation and make recommendations to the Head of ISSAT;
• lead or support overseas Security and Justice missions as directed by the Head of ISSAT, focusing on support to security and justice sector reform programme design, assessment and monitoring and evaluation missions; resulting in reports and practical recommendations for change and improvement of security and justice sector reform programmes;
• maintain effective liaison with partner and ISSAT Governing Board members and present findings from missions at conferences/seminars/training courses as required;
• extract lessons learned from engagements to feed into ISSAT and wider multilateral SSR policy development and implementation;
• structure and co-ordinate the delivery of standardised or tailored training programmes to meet donor, partner and ISSAT needs;
• contribute to ISSAT’s annual activity reports and other such periodic reports that may be required by the Head of ISSAT;
• maintain effective and productive relationships with other DCAF sections and other international Security and Justice actors;
• provide ‘out of hours’ roster coverage as required when other team members are deployed overseas to provide a first point of contact for dealing with unforeseen eventualities and emergencies;
• maintain the innovation of ISSAT activities through a substantive commitment to ongoing personal and professional training and development;
• effectively contribute to ongoing ISSAT development and evolution;
• undertake other tasks as may, from time to time, be required by the Head or Deputy Head of ISSAT.

Competencies: The post holder must be proactive and have demonstrated an ability to work as part of a multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary team.  For specified tasking, s/he must be prepared to act as the lead for particular programme activities. S/he must have experience working in politically sensitive situations and have strong diplomatic skills. S/he must have solid management experience, good communication (verbal and written), drafting and presentational skills and the ability to network and liaise effectively with a wide range of potential stakeholders at all levels both within governments and non-governmental and multinational organisations.  S/he must have outstanding organisational and planning skills and have the ability to analyse situations quickly and effectively, adapt to rapidly changing circumstances and produce workable solutions to meet customer requirements. SSR is a fast developing field and it will be necessary to retain currency in the latest thinking and developments.  It is important that the post holder has a strong knowledge of /engagement in SSR processes in sub-Saharan Africa or post-conflict contexts from other regions.

Qualifications: For this post, a Masters degree in law, international relations, political science, or a related field is required or equivalent practical experience. The post holder must have a minimum of 10 - 12 years of work experience in justice and security sector reform, including extensive field and management experience. Relevant experience includes designing and implementing security and justice reform processes or programmes, and structuring and delivering trainings. Knowledge of the UN approach to SSR and of latest developments in the fields of rule of law and justice reform, as well as familiarity with the OECD DAC Handbook on Security System Reform (OECD 2007) is highly desirable. The team’s operating language is English. In addition, fluency in French, Spanish or Portuguese is a significant advantage.

ISSAT is strongly committed to geographical and gender diversity.  Personnel from countries who have undergone/are undergoing an SSR process are strongly encouraged to apply

Candidates meeting the requirements are invited to email (to a.buchanan@dcaf.ch) or post their CV with a covering letter addressing the selection criteria to:

The Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF)
Ms. Aji Buchanan
P.O. Box 1360 Rue de Chantepoulet 11
1211 Genève 1 Switzerland

Please remember to state which position you are applying for.

The deadline for applications is 16 September 2010

Research Assistant, Operations (50%)

DCAF wishes to recruit a Research Assistant to assist project managers in implementing projects and activities to foster security sector reform primarily in the countries of South Eastern Europe. Have you got what it takes to:

• Undertake research on topics related to security sector reform, civil society aspects, and/or parliamentary affairs?
• Assist project managers in preparing training modules for workshops and seminars on diverse topics?
• Undertake language and content editing of different documents such as policy planning papers, project studies, donor reports etc?
• Assist project managers in implementing projects, including drafting of project proposals, implementation and documentation of project activities and preparation of information dissemination on project results?
• Assist project managers with certain organisational and administrative tasks?

Qualifications:

• Applicants should be DES/DEA or PhD candidates with background knowledge in international relations, political science, economics or law.
• Applicants should have an excellent level of English, both written and spoken.
• Prior research experience is essential.
• Prior editing experience is preferred.    
• Knowledge of issues related to security sector reform, civil society and/or parliamentary affairs is preferred.
• Knowledge of a South-Eastern European language would be considered an asset.
• Knowledge of/academic focus on the South-Eastern European region would be considered an asset.

If you answered yes to all the questions and if your qualifications fit the above list, then what are you waiting for, apply immediately!

Remuneration and working hours
The incumbent will be remunerated according to Swiss university standards. The weekly working time is 20 hours. The contract is for 12 months with a possibility of renewal.

Other conditions
Applicants should be registered at an institution of higher learning in the wider Geneva region.

Starting date: 1 October 2010 (indicative)

If you are interested, please send your C.V. and a short letter of motivation before the close of business on 31 August 2010 to Céline Cattaud (c.cattaud@dcaf.ch).

Only candidates invited for an interview will be contacted.