Call for Francophone PFM and Revenue Experts – Public Finance Resource Centre

This is a call for experts to meet anticipated future need to resource interventions in francophone Africa. Locations are to be determined, but roles are likely to be hybrid, with a combination of remote work and in-country deployments.

Background

The UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO)-funded Public Finance Resource Centre (PFRC) is a key element of the UK Centre of Expertise for Public Finance. The PFRC helps countries access technical expertise as part of HMG’s broader offer of assistance to developing countries. It provides access to world class expertise enabling the FCDO to respond quickly and flexibly to deliver high quality technical advice on tax, public financial management and broader macro-fiscal and debt management support in response to demands identified by FCDO Posts.

The Desired Outcomes Of The PFRC Are

• More effective and equitable tax policy and administration
• More effective public financial management
• Transparent and open procurement processes
• Improved transparency and accountability in public expenditure.

Recipients Of Support Are

• Partner country governments (e.g. Ministries of Finance and their agents, Public Procurement Agencies, Revenue Authorities and Supreme Audit Institutions) including subnational government entities
• FCDO Posts (e.g. for political economy analysis and scoping studies)
• Regional organisations working on tax and public financial management.

Adam Smith International (ASI) is the Managing Supplier for PFRC. It directly implements all short-duration interventions (those lasting less than six months) and runs competitions to select sub-contractors to deliver medium and longer-term interventions.

The PFRC programme budget is likely to fall within the range of £24 million to £65 million over a period of seven years (2024-30) depending on demand and funding availability.

About The Role

ASI is building a roster of French-speaking PFM and revenue experts with experience working in francophone countries, to support ongoing and future technical assistance assignments under PFRC interventions in those countries.

Role

We anticipate a requirement for Francophone Consultants capable of delivering high-quality technical assistance to government bodies and FCDO Posts to strengthen public financial management, tax policy, and administration in Francophone countries - particularly in West Africa (e.g., Senegal, Benin, Guinea, Côte D’Ivoire). This may include assignments related to:

• Debt management and reporting
• Open budgeting and public expenditure transparency
• Political economy analysis and scoping studies
• Social protection
• Payroll management
• Tax data and administration
• PFM and revenue legislation
• Public procurement
• Public financial management performance assessment, including Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) assessments
• Public financial management strategies
• Tax policy.

Required Expertise

The specific expertise required for a given role will be determined as the need arises. However, we anticipate a requirement for consultants who offer:

• Strong written and spoken communication skills in French and English; proficiency in additional languages relevant to program locations is desirable
• A minimum of five years’ relevant professional experience
• Demonstrated technical expertise in PFM and/or revenue reform-for example, tax policy and administration, audit, fiscal decentralisation, debt management, open budgeting, or social protection
• A strong academic background, ideally including a Master’s degree, in a relevant field (e.g. governance, development, social policy or economics)
• A strong track record of successfully delivering technical assistance and capacity building in developing and conflict afflicted country contexts
• Experience working on donor-funded programs, particularly FCDO-funded ones
• Ability to conduct institutional assessments, develop training programs, and deliver high-quality technical reports
• Excellent stakeholder engagement skills, with the ability to work effectively with government counterparts, multilateral organizations, and other relevant institutions.

Candidates meeting the above criteria will be added to our talent pool and will be considered for opportunities as they arise. ASI encourages applications from candidates of all social backgrounds, ethnicities, genders, abilities, and orientations. Qualified female applicants and persons with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply. We offer flexible working arrangements, please write to us to discuss further.

Ways of Working

Experts are expected to adhere to the following values and obligations:

• At all times work collaboratively and openly with other members of the programme team, proactively providing guidance, advice and sharing experiences to solve problems, overcome challenges and manage risks together.
• Free and open sharing of information gained from the client, beneficiaries, or other international projects with other members of the team.
• Respect for the confidentiality of the team’s discussions, assessments, decisions and plans or agreements with the Client.
• Adhere to decisions taken by the programme’s leadership and taking collective responsibility for implementing those decisions and communicating them to counterparts or other external parties.
• Ensure they have an accurate understanding of policies and decisions made by the Contracting Authority that relate to the programme and respecting and adhering to those policies.
• Careful coordination with other team members of communications and meetings with the Contracting Authority to ensure coherence of technical advice and an efficient use of the client’s time.
• Constant monitoring of risks to programme delivery and achievement of deliverables/objectives, as well as the reputation of ASI and the Client, and swift referral of those risks to the Senior Programme Manager.
• Comply with ASI’s operational and logistical procedures.
• Comply with ASI’s Duty of Care and security procedures designed to ensure safety of personnel and notify the Senior Programme Manager of any incidence that threatens the security of personnel or assets of the project.
• Understand and strictly adhere to ASI’s Code of Conduct.

Heard Enough? Ready to Apply?

We are keen to hear from you. Please submit a CV with detailed information on past experiences. Due to the high volume of applications, only shortlisted applicants will be contacted and provided with further details. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.