We are

The European External Action Service (EEAS), which supports the work of the High Representative in defining and implementing an effective and coherent foreign policy of the European Union. The EEAS supports his tasks of conducting the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy and chairing the Foreign Affairs Council. It also supports the High Representative in his capacity of Vice President of the Commission. The EEAS works in close cooperation with Member States, the Council and relevant services of the European Commission.

MENA.1 is responsible for regional affairs pertaining to the cooperation and dialogue with the MENA region, which includes North of Africa, Middle East and Arabian Peninsula and Iraq.

Translating the clear EEAS objective to help foster regional integration and multilateralism, the Division primarily is organizing regular official meetings as defined in relevant agreements with the League of Arab States, the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. The Division furthermore coordinates EEAS’ role as co-chair of the Union for the Mediterranean. It also coordinates the implementation of regional policies, such as the 2021 Joint Communication on a Renewed Partnership with the Southern Neighbourhood, the “New Agenda for the Mediterranean”. The division also oversees the relevant aspects of the implementation of the 2022 Joint Communication on “an EU Strategic Partnership with the Gulf” and acts as the EEAS’ focal point of other regional organisations such as the Anna Lindh Foundation.

Within the MENA Directorate, MENA.1 acts as focal point for programming issues for the GLOBAL.GI.5 Division (Financing Instruments and international cooperation) and is itself responsible for all regional programming, in close coordination with the other MENA Divisions and the European Commission.

We propose

The position of policy officer, contract agent FGIV as per article 3b of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Union (CEOS)[1].

Place of employment: EEAS Headquarters, Brussels, Belgium

Post available:  1 September 2024

We look for

Under the authority of the Head of Division, the selected candidate will work closely with the other desks and MENA Divisions as well as relevant stakeholders in EU Delegations, EU services and national and international interlocutors

1.  to promote European Union relations with the Arab League achieving the following objectives:

• advance the institutional relations of the EU with the Arab League by contributing to the strengthening of the political, economic, trade and cooperation aspects of the relationship within the framework of agreed cooperation arrangements.
• contribute to the formulation and implementation of EU policy towards the Arab League, ensuring the safeguard of EU values and interests and the coordination, whenever possible, of joint positions on regional or global issues of mutual interest.

2. Act as a MD MENA’s focal point for a number of horizontal and thematic issues of relevance for the overall region, such as the trade, security, climate change, digitalisation etc and any other relevant issue where a regional approach will be needed for MD MENA.

We are looking for a motivated colleague whose main tasks and responsibilities will include, but not be limited to:

• Monitoring and analysing relevant political, institutional economic and societal developments and their implications for EU relations with the Arab League.
• Preparation of briefings, policy documents, speeches, statements, responses to parliamentary questions and other written outputs in the assigned area of competence.
• Preparation and follow-up of meetings at all levels.
• Inter-service coordination in order to ensure consistency of EU policies in relation to the Arab League.
• As MD MENA focal point for some horizontal and thematic issues, coordinate with relevant colleagues in the EEAS, Commission etc., prepare inputs to briefing request, inter-service consultations, concept notes etc. and attend relevant meetings related to relevant horizontal and thematic issues. As MD MENA focal point for some horizontal issues and thematic issues, provide regional analysis on relevant issues in coordination with all MENA divisions.

Legal basis

The vacancy is to be filled in accordance with the conditions stipulated under the CEOS, in particular Article 82 thereof.

Subject to having passed the CAST exam, the successful candidate will be offered a contract agent position (Function group IV), on the basis of a contract with an initial duration of one year that may be successively renewed for a maximum duration of 6 years.

Eligibility criteria

Candidates for this contract agent IV post should:

• - (i) have passed a valid EPSO CAST in FG IV;

or

• - (ii) be registered in the EPSO Permanent Contract Agent Selection Tool (CAST) for FG IV (https://epso.europa.eu/en/job-opportunities/open-for-application). In that case, while the registration will render the candidate eligible for the selection procedure, the recruitment of a candidate on this vacant post will be subject to their successfully passing the CAST exam that this candidate will be called to attend.
• have completed university studies of at least three years attested by a diploma;
• have the capacity to work in languages of CFSP and external relations necessary for the performance of their duties. Knowledge of other EU languages would be an asset;
• be a national of one of the Member States of the European Union and enjoy full rights as a citizen.

SELECTION CRITERIA:

Candidates should:

– have an excellent ability to maintain diplomatic relations and to ensure representation, communication in a complex, multicultural environment;

– have an excellent capacity to create constructive working relations with national authorities, international organisations and EU Member States;

– have strong drafting, communication and analytical skills combined with sound judgement;

– have excellent knowledge of external relations, internal policies and functioning of the Union;

– have knowledge and/or proven experience in the key areas of cooperation with the MENA region;

• Have a good understanding of the political situation in the region

Furthermore, the following would be considered as assets:

– experience of working in an Embassy, a Delegation (or equivalent in an international organisation);

– experience of working in a team in multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural environment;

– experience in dealing with MENA countries

Specific conditions of employment

The signature of the contract will be subject to prior favourable opinion of the Medical Service.

The requested level of security clearance for this post is: SECRET UE/EU SECRET. A description of the EU classified information levels is available under Article 2 of the Decision ADMIN(2017) 10 on the security rules of the EEAS[2].

The selected candidate should hold, or be in the position to obtain, a valid Personnel Security Clearance (PSC)[3] issued by the competent authority of the Member State concerned.

Candidates who do not already have a valid PSC will be required to go through the security clearance vetting procedure of their Member State to obtain this clearance in accordance with national laws and regulations and with the procedure laid down in the Decision ADMIN(2019)7 on Security Clearance Requirements and Procedures for the EEAS of 08 March 2019 and in Annex A I of the Decision ADMIN(2017) 10 on the security rules of the EEAS[4]. Until the PSC is issued by the competent authority of the Member State concerned, the selected candidate will not be authorised to access EUCI at the level of CONFIDENTIEL UE/EU CONFIDENTIAL or above, or to participate in any meetings or workflow where EUCI is processed.

Please note that the necessary procedure for obtaining a PSC can be initiated on request of the employer only, and not by the individual candidate.

In case of failure to obtain or renew the required PSC, the AACC may take the appropriate measures in accordance with Article 3(3) of the Decision ADMIN(2019) 7 on Security Clearance Requirements and Procedures for the EEAS of 08 March 2019.

Equal Opportunities

The EEAS is committed to an equal opportunities policy for all its employees and applicants for employment. As an employer, the EEAS is committed to promoting gender equality and to preventing discrimination on any grounds. It actively welcomes applications from all qualified candidates from diverse backgrounds and from the broadest possible geographical basis amongst the EU Member States. We aim at a service, which is truly representative of society, where each staff member feels respected, is able to give their best and can develop their full potential.

Candidates with disabilities are invited to contact CONTRACTAGENTS-HQ@eeas.europa.eu in order to accommodate any special needs and provide assistance to ensure the possibility to pass the selection procedure in equality of opportunities with other candidates.  If a candidate with a disability is selected for a vacant post, the EEAS is committed to providing reasonable accommodation in accordance with Art 1d.4 of the Staff Regulations.

Application and selection procedure[5]
Please send your CV and cover letter (with your EPSO CAST number), in English or in French via email, with reference to the Vacancy number in the Subject field, to:

MENA-1@eeas.europa.eu

Deadline for sending application: 23/08/2024 at 12.00 (CET).

Candidates shall draft their CV using the Europass CV , which can be found at the following internet address: http://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/en/documents/curriculum-vitae.

Late applications will not be accepted.

The selection panel will make a pre-selection on the basis of the qualifications and professional experience described in the CV and motivational letter, and will produce a shortlist of eligible candidates who best meet the selection criteria for the post. Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be informed about the outcome of the pre-selection phase.

The candidates who have been preselected will be invited for an interview by a selection panel.

The selection panel may decide, in addition to the interview, to organise written tests, either for all pre-selected candidates or to the best ranked ones, after the interview. The content of such written tests will be defined by the selection panel and may include, but not be limited to, multiple choice questions, open questions and/or topics for a short essay.

Pre-selected candidates shall be invited to sit the CAST exam before or after the interview stage by the selection panel (in accordance with the eligibility criteria set out above).The panel will recommend a shortlist of candidates for a final decision by the Authority Authorised to Conclude Contracts of Employment (AACC). The AACC may decide to interview the candidates on the final shortlist before taking this decision.

If, exceptionally, on the date of recruitment, the successful candidate has not yet had the opportunity to pass the tests necessary to obtain the CAST, the latter will be engaged on condition that he obtains the CAST within six months of taking up his duties. Failure to obtain the required CAST will give the EEAS the right to terminate the employment contract.

It is recalled, that the selection procedure may be terminated at any stage in the interest of the service.

In the interest of the service, after identifying the candidate that best fulfils the requirement of the post as set out in the vacancy notice, the AACC may also establish a reserve list of candidates. These candidates shall be informed that the reserve list shall remain valid for a period of one year from when it is established and that it may be used to fill the same post or an equivalent post in the EEAS having the same job profile.

[1]    Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Union (SR) and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Union (CEOS). https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:01962R0031-20140501&from=EN

[2]    OJ C 126, 10 April 2018, p.1.

[3]    The ‘Personnel Security Clearance’ is defined under point 2 of Annex A I of the Decision ADMIN(2017) 10 on the security rules of the EEAS as “a statement by a competent authority of a Member State which is made following completion of a security investigation conducted by the competent authorities of a Member State and which certifies that an individual may, provided his ‘need-to-know’ has been determined, be granted access to EUCI up to a specified level (CONFIDENTIEL UE/EU CONFIDENTIAL or above) until a specified date; the individual thus described is said to be ‘security cleared’.”

[4]    OJ C 126, 10 April 2018, p.1.

[5]    Your personal data will be processed in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2018/1725, as implemented by ADMIN(2019) 8 Decision of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. The privacy statement is available on the Europa website: (https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/eeas-privacy-statement-data-protection-notice-purpose-processing-personal-data-related-public_en) and on the EEAS Intranet:(https://intranet.eeas.europa.eu/page/eeas-work/data-protection/privacy-statements-dp-notices)