BACKGROUND

The International Trade Centre (ITC) has a unique mandate in the United Nations system to promote increased competitiveness of Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in developing, transition and least developed countries and assisting them to better use trade as a platform for growth, development, and employment creation. As such, ITC supports the improvement of the business environment and facilitates better management of border operations, including to reduce the time and cost of cross-border trade for SMEs and small traders through transparency, predictability, and increased efficiency of cross-border formalities.

Among other interventions funded by the Migration-Multi Partner Trust Fund in West Africa, ITC lead in partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the Republic of The Gambia the implementation of a Joint Programme “Addressing the drivers and causes of migration-related vulnerabilities among border communities along the Trans-Gambia transport corridor”.

This programme successfully conducted a Rapid Appraisal of informal cross-border trade and alternative livelihoods opportunities which laid out key recommendations to facilitate the establishment of an environment conducive to the development of cross-border communities, including through the provision of new innovative services to promote inclusive cross-border trade.

One of those recommendations suggest supporting small scale cross-border traders (SSCBT) and border communities through the establishment of a Trade Information and Border Assistance Office (TIBAO) in Farafenni, in the North Bank Region (NBR) managed by the Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA) and established with the support of ITC. Embedded within the one-stop-shop entrepreneurship Development Centre (OSSEC), the TIBAO will be administered by GIEPA staff with the help of a Manual and other materials aimed at addressing the challenges faced by SSCBT in completing border formalities due to the language barrier, and a lack of understanding and/or capacity.

In this context, ITC recruits one National Consultant to support the development of a TIBAO training manual tailored to The Gambia and support the finalization and development of cross-border trade guides including “step-by-step” cross-border trade guides on selected product-groups in the Republic of The Gambia.

REQUIREMENTS

SKILLS

• Excellent knowledge of trade facilitation measures, cross border trade in general, and small-scale cross border trade related issues.

• Excellent analytical, communication and writing skills.

• Ability to network with officials from the public and private sector.

• Ability to multi-task and meet tight deadlines.

• Very organized and meticulous with a great sense of detail.

• Ability to work independently under limited supervision.

EXPERIENCE

• Minimum of 5 years of relevant working experience with Customs Authorities and/or managing cross border trade formalities as a private sector actor or border regulatory agency officers in The Gambia.

• Previous experience in trade facilitation projects – especially related to small scale cross-border trade – is highly desirable.

• Previous experience in trading goods across the borders of The Gambia and Senegal (and if possible, Guinea, Mali, and Guinea-Bissau) will be considered a strong asset.

EDUCATION

• Master’s Degree or higher in Business Administration, logistics, international business, international trade, economics, international trade law or related fields is required.

LANGUAGE

• Excellent proficiency in English is mandatory.

• Proficiency in French and/or any other local languages is an advantage.