Project Assistant

1 Background information

The EU-Vietnam Strategic Dialogue Facility (SDF) is a three-year program that aims to support Vietnam's development through the implementation of activities in areas covered by the EU-Vietnam Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA). This EU-funded €2.9 Million project started in February 2013 and it is expected to continue until December 2016 (subject to the EUD’s approval).

The Facility’s is aiming at strengthening EU-Vietnam relations through political dialogue and exchange of expertise. The Facility, together with a wide range of Vietnamese partners from academia, civil society and government, supports the exchange of best practices and experiences on issues of mutual interest to Vietnam and the EU, under the Partnership Cooperation Agreement (PCA) which was signed in 2012.

It funds policy-oriented research and studies and organizes conferences, high-level meetings and trainings with European and international experts. The facility covers a broad range of supported areas, ranging from governance and human rights to environment and climate change, migration, public administration reform or transnational crime.

The project activities are coordinated by the EU Delegation to Vietnam and implemented by a group of European partners-led by SOFRECO (France) and supported by IOM (International Organization for Migration, Vietnam), and the Danish Institute for Human Rights-in close contact with key Vietnamese partners.

The European partners are the service provider to the EU Delegation and a Technical Assistance Team (TAT), consisting of a Project Director and a Project Coordinator plus 3 local support staff, has been deployed in Hanoi to support the facility planning and implementation

The project office of the TAT is based in Hanoi, while activities and actions will also be carried out in other parts of Vietnam.

2 Position information?

Position title:     Project Assistant
Reporting to:     Project Director of the SDF Technical Assistance Team (TAT)
Contract date:    As soon as possible- from 1 December 2015 to 30 September or 31 December 2016 (subject to EUD’s approval)
Work station:    Hanoi; travel to project sites may be required

The position is meant to complement the work of the Project Director (PD) and Project Coordinator (PC), by providing support on a daily basis and by independently carrying out tasks and working under tight deadlines and within as a team. The main task of the position is to assist the PD and PC in the day-to-day running and operation of the project and to actively observe and ensure the quality of the project administration and financial management of the project activities under supervision of the PD and PC. Liaising with Vietnamese counterparts, ensuring the effective communication and interaction between the Technical Assistance Team, the Vietnamese and European partners and external service providers will also be key a feature of the position.

Areas of responsibilities/tasks:

• Contribute to administrative tasks and other project activities, by providing assistance in the project management, support and report directly to the Project Director.
• Preparing minutes of the meetings between the Project Director and  Vietnamese stakeholders/partners
• Support the implementation of the EU Fellowship programme with organizing meetings with selected candidates, including preparing travel arrangement, visa, health insurance, draft programme for each fellow, draft design for certificate, etc.
• Support the international short-term experts, in particular assist in preparing and collecting time-sheets; preparing working schedule, accommodation, domestic travel and support on visa for them to travel to Viet Nam
• Assist in organization of large-scale public events (training seminars, workshops, conferences etc.) and meetings, in particular assist in the logistical arrangements, travel arrangement for participants, preparing hand-outs and materials and preparing tentative list of participants
• Support the production of high-quality visibility material (i.e. brochures, leaf-let, note-books, hand-outs) for dissemination to key stakeholders, beneficiaries and participants in the facility-events
• Implement and oversee all actions for each Facility-event, in close coordination with the Project Director and the EU Delegation, including ensuring full functioning of the venue for the event  
• Support data in the Expenditure Verification Report and preparation of bank-transfer slips as requested by the Project Coordinator and Project Officer
• In charge of collecting and delivering materials/documents between the Project and the EUD and purchase office-items
• Support the design of backdrops and A4-covers for hand-out of each event
• Support logistics planning at SDF-events, including organizing timelines, pre-checking venues, managing speakers and panel-lists and related protocols, preparing hand-outs and other supporting materials and evaluating event effectiveness
• Preparing documents (annexes) to Progress Reports and Annual Work Plan
• Organize meetings with Vietnamese partners at the office as requested by the Project Director
• Undertake daily office work and provide support for other project activities as requested by the Project Director

3 Profile/Requirements

Qualifications and skills:

• At minimum a university degree at BA-level in International Relations, Economics, Political Science, Communication, Journalism, Public Relations or similar field
• Preferably 1-2 years of experience working within a multilateral or international organizations, the private sector or governmental bodies
• Fluency in English; Vietnamese as native speaker
• Good computer skills on MS Word, PowerPoint, Excel, e-mail applications and other relevant software programme
• Demonstrated strong ability to write and communicate orally in English, including good drafting skills
• Proven ability to rapidly produce quality outputs and to work under tight deadlines
• Excellent communication, inter-personal and social skills with a strong sense of flexibility and responsibility
• A creative thinker with great written and verbal communication skills, who works well in groups
• Ability to work effectively in multi-disciplinary teams and also independently

Specific experience requirements:

• Experience of interacting and networking with Vietnamese Government agencies, organizations or similar agencies is a strong asset
• Knowledge of the European Union and EU Member States’ activities in Vietnam as well as experience of working in EU-projects/programmes or projects of other international development partners is an asset

In line with the provisions of the UN/EU Cost Norms (2012) for recruitment of project personnel, the EU-Vietnam Strategic Dialogue Facility offers a competitive remuneration package commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Interested persons should send a full set of English CV with certificate of degree; listing at least two references and a one page cover-letter no later than 1 December 2015 to:

EU-Vietnam Strategic Dialogue Facility (SDF).
Suite 705 - Office Building
142 Le Duan Street, Hanoi
Tel:  (+84-4)  35162696 Fax:  (+84-4)  35162695
Email: [email protected]

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for interview.