Interpreter (English) at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is a regional group of fifteen West African countries. Founded on 28 May 1975, with the signing of the Treaty of Lagos, its mission is to promote economic integration across the region.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Interpreter (English)

Location: Dakar, Senegal
Employment Type: Full Time
Institution: GIABA
Grade: P5
Directorate: Administration & Finance (pooling services with EGDC)
Division: Language Unit
Line Supervisor: Revisor

Role Overview

• Under the supervision of the Revisor, the incumbent shall in accordance with professional standards, provide interpretation services for meetings and events of the GIABA, ensuring high linguistic and terminological quality and applications.
• She/he shall facilitate the setting up and updating of the terminology database and compilation of glossaries.

Role and Responsibilities

• Services all meetings as assigned by Language Coordinator and Management.
• Provides interpretation in relevant language combination, (simultaneous, consecutive, whispering, liaison) of speeches or statements.
• Routinely assigned to sensitive meetings.
• Language Combination: English A, French C, or Portuguese C. (Any proven B language in either of the other two working languages of the Community will be an advantage).
• Functions as language team leader when assigned to a given meeting.
• Assists the Head of Language Division, as appropriate, in the screening, training and conduct of examination for prospective interpreters.
• Participates in the establishment of terminology database, a compilation of glossaries, etc.
• Performs other related duties as required.

Academic Qualifications and Experience

• Master's Degree in Conference Interpretation from a recognized university or Institute.
• 10 years of experience in Interpretation (four of which should have been as a staff Interpreter)
• Exhibits highest standards of split-second accuracy, consistency and faithfulness to the style and nuances of the original and source languages.
• Demonstrated understating of how to “weigh” Interpretation teams.
• Ability to maintain highest standard of confidentiality.
• Knowledge of terminological and reference research techniques with ability to use wide variety of information.
• Demonstrated professional competence and mastery of subject matter.
• Seeks to develop oneself professionally and personally and keep abreast of new developments in own occupation/profession
• Demonstrated comprehension of every imaginable accent, in addition to coping with issues of speed and style.
• Ability to find proper cultural equivalents and take cultural context into account, thorough knowledge of both language and culture is thus required.
• Demonstrated capacity to uphold team coherence and booth manners.
• A perfect command of the target language and an excellent knowledge of the source language.
• Good knowledge of the third language of ECOWAS is an advantage.

Age Limit:

• Be below 50 years old. This provision does not apply to internal candidates.

ECOWAS Key Competencies:

• Ability to lead in assigned programmes and projects by providing the necessary managerial and operational expertise required for the fulfilment of the organisation’s mandate.
• Ability to lead by example and organise teamwork to encourage cooperation to achieve targeted results, champion and build momentum for change and to bring about employee engagement; develops and implement internal controls for a pilot program to manage potential barriers to implementation.
• Ability to respect the chain of command in an appropriate manner.
• Excellent self-management skills, demonstrating ethics and integrity, confidentiality and displaying due regard for internal controls of rules, delegations and transparency.
• Ability to bring together complementary skills/expertise, assess individual contributions and recognize/address accomplishments and shortcomings in a manner that brings continued success to the organization.
• Knowledge of program management at the level usually acquired from a certification in program management.
• Ability to research benchmarks and trends to bring about the best recommendations for the development and improvement of programs/projects that will best serve the community /organisation.
• Well-developed networking and interpersonal skills to seek feedback, information and data from a network of professionals from multiple countries/sectors/organizations and to identify and prioritize the most critical community requirements.
• Ability to manage and coordinate client management initiatives and make recommendations.
• Ability to develop and implement best practices in client services.
• Ability to develop and implement stakeholder management plans, programs and initiatives to obtain buyin on new initiatives, to better understand dissenting views, to obtain resources and to increase perceptions of success.
• Ability to be diplomatic, tactful and respectful of other people from varied backgrounds, understanding diverse cultural views especially within West Africa with the ability to convert diversity into opportunities to improve program/operational outcomes.
• Ability to create a diverse and inclusive interactive environment that benefits from diverse strengths bringing together innovative practices.
• Ability to remain objective in managing conflict regardless of cultural differences /positions, and gender differences, and encourage other staff to overcome cultural and gender bias and differences.
• Ability and responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.
• Ability to serve the interest of culturally diverse multinational teams/organisations/communities and persons with disability without prejudice and bias.
• Understanding of the ECOWAS organizational structure, associated dynamics and expectations as required to collaborate, participate, contribute and lead effectively.
• Knowledge of the ECOWAS mandate, strategic plan/priorities as well as the economic, political and social situation and trends in member states, as pertains to own scope of work.
• Knowledge of ECOWAS best practices, programme management approaches and research techniques to lead and/or contribute to the development or assessment of programs, projects or initiatives.
• Knowledge of the ECOWAS rules and procedures in order to appropriately interpret and apply directive text, provide technical advice, coach others and assess performance
• Ability to analyse a situation by using indicators to assess the costs, benefits, risks, and chances for success, in making decisions.
• Ability to pull together information from different sources to identify the cause of problems, consequences of alternative causes of action, potential obstacles and ways to avoid the problem in the future.
• Ability to break down very complex situations/information into simple terms to explain recommendations and conclusions aimed at solving problems or improving operations /programmes/projects.
• Ability to develop new insights into situations, apply innovative solutions to problems and to design new methods of addressing issues or disconnects where established methods and procedures are inapplicable or no longer effective.
• Ability to communicate with impact, clearly and concisely in a succinct and organized manner conveying credibility & confidence when making presentations, setting expectations and explaining complex issues.
• Ability to listen intently and correctly interpret messages from others and respond appropriately.
• Accomplished technical writing and editing skills.
• Exhibit active listening skills to encourage stronger communication amongst team members, to show care and make them feel valued and to drive employee engagement in all institutions and agencies.
• Ability to give constructive feedback, provide recognition, address shortcomings and motivate direct reports to work at peak performance.
• Proficiency in information communication technologies (ICT).
• Fluency in oral and written expressions in one of the ECOWAS official languages of the Community (English,
• French & Portuguese). Knowledge of an additional one will be an added advantage.
• Organsational and project/programme management skills with significant experience identifying timelines, targets, costs and resources necessary to deliver on operational/programme/project ability to set effective
• goals and targets for self, others, and the work unit and adjusting work or project priorities in response to changing circumstances.
• Ability to use the participatory approach in project planning and identify gaps affecting the achievement of program/project expectations and to design and implement intervention plans required to build the desired task.
• Ability to implement rigorous monitoring and evaluation practices and to set in place regular reporting schedules relevant to key outputs.
• Ability to plan, organize, control resources, and to comply with policies, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals.

Salary
USD91,153.46 Annually.

Application Closing Date
15th August, 2024.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should download the Job Application Form, fill it and send it as an attachment with their CVs and Motivation Letter to: [email protected] using the Job Title as the subject of the mail.

Click here to download the application form (Docx.)

Special Notice

• Only applications sent through the indicated address in the advertisement will be considered.
• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for the interviews.
• Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise and a competency-based interview.