Principal Officer, Policy

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is a 12-member regional group mandated to promote economic integration, social cohesion, and political stability across West Africa. As a premier Intergovernmental Organization (IGO), ECOWAS operates through a robust institutional framework, led by the Commission and the Community Parliament, to harmonize policies, foster a "borderless" region, and uphold democratic governance for over 400 million citizens. 

Under the supervision of the Director, Policy and Research, the incumbent shall manage all issues related to Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) policies – development, coordination, analysis, review and consultations with stakeholders. He/she shall support the ongoing policy work of the Financial Action Task Force and ensure that all adopted policies and frameworks are always made available to GIABA member States for possible adoption. He/she will act as the custodian of all AML/CFT policies on behalf of GIABA.  In addition, he/she shall act as the chief monitoring officer of emerging money laundering and terrorist financing (ML/TF) risks in GIABA member States and the ECOWAS region, providing member States with briefs and updates on emerging ML/TF risks on a continuous basis.

ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Establish and maintain a robust ML/TF risk monitoring system for GIABA.
• Engage member States to collect relevant data, as required, to maintain an effective ML/TF risk monitoring system.
• Carry out policy analysis and review.
• Establish and maintain a network of Country Data Officers for the continuous operation of the ML/TF risk monitoring database.
• Continuously obtain, review and process relevant information and reports to feed into the risk monitoring database.
• Prepare and disseminate ML/TF risk advise, bulletins and reports on a regular basis.
• Engage member States and their institutions, Self-regulatory bodies and organisations and other stakeholders to dialogue on Risks, trends, and methods of ML/TF.
• Organize capacity building activities to support member States in the conduct of national risk assessment.
• Establish and maintain a Policy dialogue forum with the private sector.
• Participate and provide policy advice and risk analysis support in the conduct of mutual evaluations.
• Coordinate the preparation and submission of Annual Activity reports by member States.
• On an annual basis, provide a summary of AML/CFT activity report for each year to the GIABA Plenary in collaboration with member States.
• Conduct strategic reviews on Mutual Evaluations from time to time to highlight policy implications.
• Actively participate in the development of GIABA’s strategy document.
• Contribute to the development of the Directorate’s annual work plan.
• Perform any other task assigned by the supervisor.

 

• Master’s degree (or equivalent) in Economics, Public Policy, Political Science, Public Administration, or a similar field from a recognized University.
• 10 years of progressively responsible experience in AML/CFT including 5 years of relevant international work experience and/or 5 years at a supervisory level.
• Knowledge of policies and mechanisms in the areas on AML/CFT within the ECOWAS system.
• Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of the relevant aspects of anti-money laundering (ML) and countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) and in the establishment of a risk monitoring system.
• Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of the coordination and conduct of national money laundering (ML) and terrorism financing (TF) risk assessment and development of an action plan to mitigate identified risks.
• Knowledge of terminological and reference research techniques with the ability to use all sources of reference and information and to conduct complex research in the area of ML/TF.

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