“Recruitment of a Technical Consultant to Harmonize the Budgeting Process and Practices in ECOWAS Member States”

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
(CONSULTANCY SERVICES – RECRUITMENT OF AN INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT)
Reference No. 9-ECW/MSMS/DAGS/06-07/ne

1. The ECOWAS Commission intends to apply a portion of its 2023 budgeted funds for the “Recruitment of a Technical Consultant to Harmonize the Budgeting Process and Practices in ECOWAS Member States”.

2. Within the context of the ECOWAS Single Currency Programme, ECOWAS Commission is
coordinating the implementation of a Roadmap of activities leading to the creation of a credible and
sustainable Monetary Union in the ECOWAS region. The roadmap, which was adopted by the
ECOWAS Convergence Council (consisting of Ministers of Finance and Governors of Central Banks
in ECOWAS) in June 2021, comprises several activities to be implemented before the end of the
Convergence period in 2026.

3. One of the major activities in the roadmap is the harmonization of public finance frameworks. In this
regard, ECOWAS Commission identified harmonization in five areas of public finance, namely:
(1) Public Accounting Framework, (2) Public Debt Management, (3) Public Procurement, (4) Legal
Framework of Public Finance and (5) Public Budgeting Process. The main objective of this
Consultancy is for the Technical Consultant to undertake a comprehensive harmonization of the
public budget process and practices in ECOWAS.

4. The duration of the assignment shall be for a period of 180 days from start date.

5. Scope and Tasks: The services to be provided by the Consultants (“the Services”) shall take into
consideration the following duties and responsibilities:  To collate all existing reports on the harmonization of public budget process and practices in ECOWAS and identify the missing gaps;  To propose the process of harmonization using the UEMOA documents on public budget process and practices, others Member States documents on public budget process and international best
practices, as working documents;  To develop a draft policy on budgeting consisting, among others, of regulation on public budget
process and practice in ECOWAS;  To document the best practices, and lessons learnt during the period under review.

6. The ECOWAS Commission invites eligible Consultants (“Consultants”) to express their interest in
providing the services. Interested Consultants who are citizens of ECOWAS Member States shall
provide information showing that they have the qualifications and experience to provide the
requested services. The applicants are to meet the criteria set out below:
Qualifications:  Shall possess at least a bachelor’s degree either in Economics, Management/Business
Administration; or equivalent qualification from a recognized/reputable institution with Post
Graduate Studies in a field relevant to the assignment.
Experience:
i. Shall demonstrate experience as a Specialist in Public Budget with a minimum of eight (8) years’
experience working in the field of public budget process and practices.
ii. Shall demonstrate providing at least one (1) similar service with similar Regional Organisations, or
National and International NGOs.
iii. Previous experience with the ECOWAS Commission will be an advantage.
iv. Experience in report writing is required as producing reports is an integral part of the assignment.

Language:
 Fluency in one ECOWAS Official language is required (English, French, Portuguese). Knowledge
of another ECOWAS official language will be an advantage.

(NB: The ECOWAS Commission would like to draw the attention of interested consultants to Article
117 of the revised ECOWAS Procurement Code on “Fraud and Corruption”, which provides
information on fraudulent or corrupt practices in competition or contract execution. Furthermore,
candidates are invited to take cognisance of the specific information on conflict of interest related to
this consultancy service, under Article 118 of the revised ECOWAS Procurement Code).

7. The selection of the Consultants will be made following the criteria for the Selection of Individual
Consultants set out in the Guidelines for Consultants. Interested Consultants may obtain more
information by contacting the Procurement Division at the email below during working hours, i.e.,
Monday to Friday, from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm (GMT +1). Email: sbangoura@ecowas.int ; with copies
to: pdadzie@ecowas.int; ikkamara@ecowas.int ; neremie@ecowas.int

8. Expressions of interest (1 original and 3 copies) must be submitted in sealed envelopes marked
“Recruitment of a Technical Consultant to Harmonize the Budgeting Process and Practices in
ECOWAS Member States”, (Do Not Open unless in the presence of the Opening Committee)
no later than Tuesday, 1st August 2023 at 11:00 a.m. (GMT+1, Nigerian time) to the following
address:
Department of Internal Services, Procurement Division,
1st Floor, ECOWAS Commission Headquarters,
Plot 101, Yakubu Gowon Crescent,
Asokoro District, Abuja, NIGERIA
Please note that electronic submissions are also ACCEPTED and should be sent to the email
addresses mentioned above in paragraph 7.

Commissioner for Internal Services