ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES

·       Communicate clearly the President’s and Commissioner’s vision to staff, explaining how the Directorate’s activities align with them and how the Director expects the Directorate to carry out set tasks on it.

·       Provide a unified central legal service for ECOWAS including all its organs and institutions.

·       Ensure that decision-making processes are compliant with ECOWAS legal frameworks, as well as providing and ensuring consistency in interpretation of legal instruments, such as the statutes, treaties, agreements, regulations and rules, resolutions and other legal text adopted by or under the auspices of the organization.

·       Provide legal advice on cooperation with international organisations and international judicial, and legal services also for special political missions, peacekeeping operations and other field missions on matters such as diplomatic privileges and immunities and the legal status of the organisation.

·       Collaborate with the other Directors in the Institution to ensure that the work is harmonized with that of other Directorates as needed.

·       Maintain a network of peer technical specialists and decision-makers in Member States, which is needed to ensure the smooth introduction of ECOWAS programmes.

·       Plan annual goals, objectives, directorate activities and ensures budget is tied to the Commission’s overall plans; measures and monitors goal achievement; negotiates suitable adjustments to goals and budgets.

·       Implement performance-based budgeting within the Directorate.

·       Organize the Directorate in an efficient way with clear reporting lines, minimal bureaucracy and optimal delegation of responsibilities and authority.

·       Work with other Directorates to ensure efficient and effective services such as recruitment, promotions, and related matters.

·       Set standards of work and creates mechanisms to monitor staff output and ensure that standards are maintained, and deadlines are met without compromising the quality of work.

·       Actively engage in the development of staff to ensure skills are built to match plans, goals and existing structures.

·       Create a productive working atmosphere within the Directorate to encourage staff participation.

·       Direct technical guidance on program design or implementation in an area where he or she has high-level technical expertise.

·       Represents ECOWAS in professional meetings or working groups; make speeches, negotiate agreements, mediate disputes.

·       Lead or participate in technical missions to develop projects and programs.

·       Advise the President, Vice President and Commissioners on issues relating to his or her area of technical expertise.

·       Work with the Parliamentary Committees at the ECOWAS Parliament.

·       Provide   guidelines for, or direct, the conduct of research and preparation of opinions, studies, reports, and correspondence on legal issues relating to the functions, structure, and activities of the Organization.  Such issues may bear upon constitutional, international, public, private and administrative law.

·       Examine precedents and carry out research on complex, highly specialized or sensitive issues, which may have a major impact on the Organization or its work.

·       Provide advice and assistance in resolving procedural and substantive questions at meetings, conferences, and committees, in particular to the main organs of the organization.

·       Supervise and coordinate the drafting of legal instruments, such as contracts and agreements, internal rules and regulations and other legislative material.

·       Undertake consultations and participate in negotiations with high-level representatives of Member States or other organizations.

·       Represent the Organization in conferences and at meetings of other organizations and bodies.

·       Review and revise draft letters, agreements, and other texts of a sensitive nature, which have been passed to the office for review and comments.

·       Coordinate the preparation and review of briefs for representing the Organization in proceedings before courts of law, administrative tribunals, and any other judicial body.

·       Represent the office at specialized meetings and on internal bodies, boards, or committees on issues of importance to the organization.

·       Initiate and participate in meetings with senior officers and legal advisers of other agencies on matters of common concern.

·       Perform any other tasks as assigned by the Supervisor.

ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

·       Master’s degree (or equivalent) in Law from a recognized University.

·       12 years progressively responsible experience in Law, including Legal analysis, research and writing with experience as a lawyer in the legal office of an Intergovernmental Organization or Government with at least five (5) years at a supervisory level.

·       At least 5 years’ experience

• Demonstrated in-depth knowledge and understanding of the political, social, and economic environment and their impact on the implementation of ECOWAS mandate.
• Extensive knowledge of all relevant rules and regulations, policies, procedures, and operations of ECOWAS, as well as applicable jurisprudence.
• Knowledge of the substantive role of ECOWAS on the rule of law in general and of ECOWAS interventions on specific areas/themes related to the rule of law.a