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Background

International IDEA and the European Commission’s Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development (DG DEVCO), have entered into an agreement to implement a new EU-funded global project entitled “INTER PARES|Parliaments in Partnership - EU Global Project to Strengthen the Capacity of Parliaments”. INTER PARES aims to strengthen representative and inclusive democracy through support for the effective functioning of parliaments in partner countries, by enhancing their legislative, oversight, representative, budgetary and administrative functions. It focuses both on elected Members of Parliament (MPs), particularly in their capacity as members of parliamentary committees and on the staff of parliaments' secretariats. One of the outputs of the INTER PARES Project is the development of e- learning tools on specific themes and publication of action-related knowledge products through the AGORA Portal.

From its launch in 2010, the AGORA Portal for Parliamentary Development played a leading role in the parliamentary development community as a knowledge and learning hub for parliamentarians, parliamentary staff and development partners. While the Portal remains online, a lack of core funding has left it dormant since early 2018. A 2019 review of the Portal (commissioned by the European Commission and International IDEA) and consultations organized with various Portal Partners showed that there was great interest in revitalizing the AGORA Portal. The Portal has been revitalized since mid-2020 with the support of a part-time consultant manager.

In 2021 the AGORA Board agreed that the next stage of AGORA’s development will be coordination of a revitalized Parliamentary Development Community of Practice (CoP). A concept note has been developed that outlines the strategy for a self-sustaining CoP to be organizationally anchored through AGORA. The CoP will have the objectives of 1) enhancing inter-organizational dialogue and innovation in parliamentary development, 2) raising the profile of parliamentary development within the international development and democratic development communities, 3) enlarging the parliamentary development community particularly to engage actors such as parliaments themselves, parliamentary monitoring organizations, and engaged scholars. The CoP will organize through a combination of online and in-person events. The first activities to be carried out in Q4 2021 and Q1 2022 will involve a series of online dialogues focused on key themes in parliamentary development. The AGORA portal manager will have a key role in facilitating and supporting these events and the future development of the CoP, including ensuring the successful technical hosting of the events, acting as secretariat for the CoP working group, liaising with all engaged actors and leading communications activities for the events and the CoP initiative.

The AGORA Portal Manager will continue to be responsible for AGORA’s overall knowledge management. The tasks of the manager include management of the network and coordination for the Portal and its sub-portals. The key functions of the role can be outlined as follows:

Key Functions

Under the supervision of the INTER PARES Head of programme and/or his delegate, the AGORA portal manager will:

• Ensure the AGORA Portal and its sub-Portals are fully functional and updated;
• Liaise with the Website Manager to ensure a secure, bug-free Portal for optimal user experience, and to develop new features and functionalities when requested;
• Ensure the Portal complies with data protection regulations (GDPR);
• Upload resources and e-learning upon request from partners;
• Organize regular consultations with partners to ensure the Portal meets partners expectations;
• Report quarterly to Board Members on the performance of the Portal (using detailed analytics to monitor and measure performance);
• Organize bi-monthly/quarterly Board Meetings and act as secretary to the Board including maintaining the necessary documentation (meeting agendas, minutes, etc.);
• Facilitate the development of the AGORA CoP through acting as the secretariat for the CoP as well as enabling the portal to act as the technical and communications hub for the CoP;
• In consultation with partners develop a communications strategy for the CoP;
• Identify any risks related to the AGORA Portal management and the CoP and take measures to mitigate those.

Expected Outputs

• The AGORA Portal remains updated, with gradual development of language sections in French, Spanish, Arabic, and Portuguese;
• Acts as facilitator and secretariat for the development of the AGORA CoP;
• Enables AGORA to act as the technical and communications hub for the AGORA CoP;
• New resources are uploaded regularly on the Portal, in close consultation with AGORA partners;
• The sharing of detailed reports on the Portal’s performance quarterly with Board Members and Partners;
• AGORA CoP communications strategy for 2022 is developed and being carried out;
• Quarterly AGORA Board Meetings and regular CoP working group meetings organized and relevant documentation maintained and archived.

Reporting

• A summary (one to two pages) progress report to be submitted with monthly invoice and time sheets to the INTER PARES Head of Programme/his delegate.

Duration of Assignment and Duty Station

The contract is estimated to start mid-September 2021 and will run until 31 December 2022. This consultancy will be a part-time engagement, estimated at 11 days per month, and is home- based.

Management and Organisation

The contractor will report to the INTER PARES Head of Programme or his delegate. S/he will be expected to work from his own office. International IDEA will only provide office space for meetings and consultations.

No additional reimbursable costs have been agreed as part of this consultancy. If the contractor needs to incur any expenditure in relation to the role this will be agreed in advance and reimbursed upon submission of valid receipts.

Qualifications and Experience

Level and type of formal education required:

• Advanced university degree in political science, law, international relations, public administration or other related disciplines.

Professional Experience:

• A minimum of two years of experience in international development, working with International Organizations, Civil Society Organizations or Foundations;
• A minimum of two years of experience in knowledge management, preferably web portal management;
• Demonstrated experience in governance and parliamentary strengthening programmes.

Functional Competencies:

• Ability to work independently in a multi-cultural and multi-task environment;
• Excellent communication and drafting skills together with good organisational and filing skills, great attention to detail.

Work Relationships:

• Works closely with the INTER PARES Project Team in Brussels and the AGORA Board;
• Extensive exposure to the international and multicultural environment, including high- level external contacts.

Language Skills:

• Excellent level of written and oral English required;
• Good working knowledge of French and Spanish;
• Knowledge of Arabic, Russian, and/or Portuguese considered an asset.

Computer Skills:

• Advanced knowledge of computer applications/packages (operating systems, word processing, spreadsheet software, Power-Point, Dreamweaver, etc.);
• Advanced knowledge of website development (CMS: Drupal);
• Ability to design forms and use databases. Good knowledge of electronic calendar planning tools.

Independence of Work:

• Self-starter with the ability to bring creative and innovative ideas and with a passion for results;
• Under the guidance and supervision of the INTER PARES Head of Programme and/or his delegate, the incumbent should be able to work with a high degree of independence.

Application Information

If you are interested in expressing your interest in the above consultancy assignment, please submit the following documents:

• A copy of your most recent CV;
• A motivation letter of no more than one page, outlining why you are interested in the role, why you are qualified for it, and when you would be able to start;
• Note of your daily fee rate in euros;
• The names of two references one of which should be a former employer/supervisor.

Please submit the above documents as follows:

• Submit the documents to the email address: infointerpares@idea.int;
• Put the title - “AGORA Portal Manager Consultancy” and your name and surname in the subject of the Email;
• Deadline for submissions is August 30th 2021, 23:59 (CET).

Note shortlisted candidates may be required to undergo an interview. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

this job offer is not open for applications