National Programme Officer, Legislative Support (NP1)

Background:

The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (the Mission) continues to play a vital role in strengthening the country’s ability to foster a sustainable and stable security environment, to strengthen Bosnia and Herzegovina’s governance, and to encourage its consolidation as a democratic society. The Mission supports political and education reform and works to promote and protect human rights of all citizens of BiH.

Should you be selected for the position, you will be based in Head Office, within the Democratic Governance Section of the Human Dimension Department. Under the overall supervision of the National Chief of Democratic Governance, you will be responsible for implementation of the Department’s Democratic Governance project at the state level. This includes the identification, design and implementation of appropriate project activities in conjunction with relevant partners at the state level. You will have particular responsibility to design initiatives aiming to strengthen good governance in the BiH Parliamentary work and legislative processes; alter negative political dynamics, where and when deemed relevant; promote stability, conflict prevention and social cohesion. You will monitor, analyse, report and advise regarding relevant developments and trends in the field of good governance in the parliamentary work and legislative support in BiH Parliament  The key focus is on increasing engagement, commitment and accountability of elected parliamentary representatives and leaders; improving the quality, efficiency and openness of the legislative processes; improving the quality and range of services provided to elected representative bodies by respective secretariats or services; and strengthening inter-institutional co-operation. You will also design and implement initiatives to strengthen and support citizens communication and co-operation with the parliaments/assemblies and elected representatives, and citizens overall participation in the legislative processes and parliamentary work. You will co-ordinate activities closely with the supervisor, Head Office and Democratic Governance Project Staff to ensure that there is synergy between different initiatives undertaken at the Democratic Governance Section level and at the level of the Human Dimension Department.

Tasks and Responsibilities:

The successful candidate will be tasked with the following duties:

1.    Implementation of the Democratic Governance project through the design and delivery of activities in order to achieve project’s objectives, which are related to improvement of the good governance in the parliamentary work and legislative processes at the state level. This will, in particular, relate to increasing engagement, commitment and accountability of elected parliamentary representatives and leaders; improving the quality, efficiency and openness of the legislative processes; improving the quality and range of services provided to elected representative bodies by respective secretariats or services; and strengthening inter-institutional co-operation.  Furthermore, the responsibility includes design and implementation of initiatives to strengthen and support citizens interaction with the parliaments / assemblies and elected representatives, and citizens overall participation in the legislative processes and parliamentary work;

2.    Assessing relevant political, policy and governance information, gathered thorough monitoring relevant developments and processes; and through direct contacts with the counterparts.  Providing information and advice to the Supervisor and HDD Management on all governance, democratic development, parliamentary work and legislative process matters relevant to the implementation and future planning of the Mission’s Democratic Governance portfolio, through routine reporting, spot reports, periodic assessment reports and thematic assessments;

3.    Contributing to the development of strategies aiming at ensuring sustainability of good governance and democratic development achievements within the target parliaments and assemblies. This includes active monitoring, regular assessments, development and implementation of project initiatives based on identified needs;

4.    Ensuring that political, policy and administrative issues which might present obstacles to project implementation are addressed, either through direct intervention and/or by bringing such issues to the attention of the Supervisor;

5.    Co-ordinating, in close consultations with the supervisor, with international and national organisations supporting improvement of the good governance in the parliamentary work and legislative processes at the state level, in order to prevent duplication and to gain maximum benefit from related initiatives, through regular meetings and monitoring of activities;

6.    Performing other duties as assigned.

For more detailed information on the structure and work of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina, please see: https://www.osce.org/mission-to-bosnia-and-herzegovina.

Necessary Qualifications:

• First-level university degree in political or social sciences, public policy, law or humanities;
• Minimum two (2) years of professional experience, preferably in project management, parliamentary or legislative support, local governance development, public administration;
• Thorough knowledge of political structures in Bosnia and Herzegovina; competencies, functions and legal environment of governments and parliaments / assemblies at the state level;
• Understanding of the role of civil society in the democratic system; familiarity with the main mechanisms of citizens’ participation in public affairs; and general understanding of trends and issues of civil society activism in BiH;
• Computer literate with practical experience using Microsoft applications;
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English and local languages;
• Holding a valid driving license.

Remuneration Package:

Monthly remuneration, subject to social security deductions is 3,228.92 BAM/month. Social benefits will include participation in the Cigna health insurance scheme and the OSCE Provident Fund.

Appointments are normally made at step 1 of the applicable OSCE salary scale. At the discretion of the appointing authority a higher step may be approved up to a maximum of step 3 subject to specific conditions.

This position is open to citizens and permanent residents of Bosnia and Herzegovina only. 

If you wish to apply for this position, please use the OSCE's online application link found under https://jobs.osce.org/vacancies. Please note that offline applications submitted via email, fax, or mail will not be considered.

Only those candidates who are selected to participate in the subsequent stages of recruitment will be contacted.

The OSCE retains the discretion to re-advertise/re-post the vacancy, to cancel the recruitment, to offer an appointment at a lower grade or to offer an appointment with a modified job description or for a different duration.

The OSCE is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all religious, ethnic and social backgrounds to apply to become a part of the Organization.

Candidates should be aware that OSCE officials shall conduct themselves at all times in a manner befitting the status of an international civil servant. This includes avoiding any action which may adversely reflect on the integrity, independence and impartiality of their position and function as officials of the OSCE. The OSCE is committed to applying the highest ethical standards in carrying out its mandate. For more information on the values set out in OSCE Competency Model, please see https://jobs.osce.org/resources/document/our-competency-model.

Please be aware that the OSCE does not request payment at any stage of the application and review process.