Advisor (Project Coordinator Digital Sovereignty)

Advisor (Project Coordinator Digital Sovereignty)

Cluster or office-GIZ African Union

Contract duration-31/07/2027

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a global service provider in the field of international cooperation for sustainable development dedicated to shaping a future worth living around the world. As a public-benefit federal enterprise, GIZ supports the German Government – in particular the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) – and many public and private sector clients in achieving their objectives in international cooperation in around 120 countries.

Since 2004, GIZ has been a reliable and trusted partner of the African Union (AU) to enhance inclusive growth and sustainable development on the African continent in line with the AU’s Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want. With more than 250 staff, GIZ African Union cooperates with the AU Commission, as well as the AU’s specialised institutions and agencies, such as the Development Agency AUDA-NEPAD, at continental, regional and national level in more than 40 member states. Key areas of engagement include Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention, Governance, Sustainable Economic Growth, Health and Social Development, as well as Just Transition.

The Digital Sovereignty project supports African governments in reducing dependencies on foreign vendors of digital solutions. It seeks global experiences (from EU, India, Brazil, and elsewhere) of countries that have successfully become digitally more independent e.g. through procurement of open source in the public sector, through domestic payment infrastructures, through cloud architectures that are not subjected to foreign jurisdictions. These experiences shall be integrated in African regional frameworks of the African Union, as well as national level digital sovereignty strategy development and implementation

The Project Coordinator for Digital Sovereignty in Africa will be part of the core project team.

Key responsibilities include:

·         Supporting the project director in facilitating effective collaboration among the project team, set up and prepare meetings, sharing knowledge among team members, following up on tasks and deliverables

·         Building and populating an online knowledge platform with news and examples for promoting digital sovereignty worldwide, for the target group of digital policy makers, egovernment procurement officers and other digital experts

·         Identifying interview partners, managing and preparing interviews for a podcast on digital sovereignty

·         Planning and managing events together with government and private sector stakeholders from AU member states

·         Prepare and manage contracts with experts and other service providers for the project

·         Contribute to communications products such as fact sheets, social media posts

Completed university degree (bachelor or master); specializations in fields such as international relations, public administration, communications, business management and especially digital transformation are an asset

•           Excellent command of English, with the ability to communicate complex technical issues clearly and convincingly, both in writing and orally

•           Minimum of 5 years of relevant work experience (e.g. in fields like digital policy, in eGovernment, in international organizations, in procurement of digital solutions, in project management, in communications)

•           Good understanding of digital transformation issues. Specific knowledge on digital public infrastructures, public procurement of IT, cloud computing, and geopolitical digital policy debates are assets.

•           Strong analytical, planning, organizational, communication and social skills

•           Ability to work efficiently and effectively with diverse teams and stakeholders in an international context

•           Proactive and reliable team player who actively takes initiative and supports shared objectives

•           High level of computer proficiency (Microsoft Office; advanced in AI prompting; Internet, Social Media, Knowledge Platforms)