Project Assistant

INTRODUCTION

The World Customs Organization (WCO) is an independent intergovernmental body, established in 1952 as the Customs Co-operation Council (CCC), whose mission is to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of Customs services across the globe. The WCO represents 183 Customs administrations that collectively process approximately 98% of world trade. As the global centre of Customs expertise, the WCO is the only international organization with competence in Customs matters.

As a forum for dialogue and exchange of experiences between national Customs delegates, the WCO offers its Members a range of Conventions and other international instruments, as well as technical assistance and training services provided either directly by the Secretariat, or with its participation. The Secretariat also actively supports its Members in their endeavours to modernize and build capacity within their national Customs administrations.

OVERVIEW

Revenue losses caused by evasion of duties on goods unlawfully imported into a country are financially damaging to the governments, the legitimate industry and the taxpayer. Members lose significant amounts of money in revenue as a result of Customs-related commercial fraud. The risk of revenue losses in the Customs context is usually related to commercial fraud activities and revenue leakage through smuggling of highly taxed goods.

Fraudsters take advantage of any kind of opportunity to execute a variety of fraudulent schemes, causing significant damage in reducing government revenues and by doing so also inhibit economic competitiveness of compliant traders. So, the need for combating commercial fraud becomes more and more acute.

This issue is not only an area of concern for the developing countries, as it also affects developed countries. The COVID crisis made it even clearer, Customs-related commercial fraud needs to be addressed, especially after the considerable financial burdens on state budgets caused by the fight against the pandemic.

In the efforts to improve effectiveness for Members in the fight against commercial fraud mechanisms, the WCO Secretariat has made further steps on the outcomes of the 7th Working Group on Revenue Compliance and Fraud (WGRCF) meeting. The WCO Secretariat has developed a draft strategy to identify and tackle commercial fraud, in a “living document” concept and as such reflecting and adapting to new developments in this area in the future.

PROJECT BACKGROUND

The WCO addresses the issue of commercial fraud within the framework of its Revenue Programme to improve effectiveness for Members in the fight against commercial fraud mechanisms. This Trendspotter Study is essentially an information assessment that uses multiple social research methods to explore Customs-related commercial fraud.

Good practices, emerging trends, and modi operandi submitted by the RILOs and WCO Members will be part of the Trendspotter Study among information and intelligence obtained from other sources.

In the framework of the Trendspotter Study an expert group will be set up and meetings will be organized. The current Trendspotter Project (hereinafter referred to as the “Project TRENDSPOTTER” or the “Project”) is designed to cover the development and creation of the Trendspotter Study in the area of Customs-related commercial fraud.

OBJECTIVES

The Project’s objectives are envisioned to be achieved mainly through:

• Gathering and structuring data;
• Conducting review of literature, contributions and data sources;
• Organizing expert meetings and events; and
• Developing and reviewing a report.

MAIN ACCOUNTABILITIES

Within the Compliance and Facilitation Directorate (Enforcement and Compliance Sub-Directorate), and under the supervision of the Revenue Programme Manager, the Project Assistant for the Project TRENDSPOTTER will focus on the following key activities:

• Drafting letters in support of meetings, surveys and reporting;
• Creating online-surveys and compiling statistics on the survey outcomes;
• Maintaining statistical records and tracking of the same through established Project’s templates;
• Communicating regularly with the appropriate parties in support of the Project’s mission e.g. with regard to meeting invitations, sharing reports and requesting contributions to the project work;
• Drafting summaries of the Project’s progress and Power Point presentations in support of the same;
• Coordinating the logistics of the Project’s activities;
• Any other related duties as may by assigned by the supervisor.

EDUCATION

A university degree in a relevant field of study will be advantageous.

EXPERIENCE

• A minimum of 3 years of experience in providing administrative and logistical support in a programme/project context is required;
• Preference will be given to candidates familiar with the functioning of international organizations; and
• Experience in law enforcement-related projects is an advantage.

LANGUAGES

• Strong command of English language, both written and spoken, is a must; and
• Ability to speak and write French at a high level is a plus.

COMPETENCIES

• Excellent organizational skills;
• Ability to work in an international and multicultural environment;
• Ability to adhere to tight deadlines;
• In-depth knowledge of MS office (mainly Word, Excel and PowerPoint); and
• Ability to adapt to the administrative and financial tools used by the WCO.

CONTRACT AND CONDITIONS

• Staff Member under short-term contract of nine (9) months;
• Probationary period: three (3) months;
• Full-time employment (37 hours and 40 minutes weekly), at the WCO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium;
• 30 days of annual paid leave;
• Salary commensurate to experience and up to 3,000 EUR/month all-inclusive (remuneration exempted from income tax in Belgium); and
• Compulsory WCO health insurance deducted from the salary (around 67 EUR/month).

This position is subject to the Manual for Short-Term Contractors. The successful applicant shall not acquire the right subsequently to occupy a permanent post within the WCO. The successful applicant will not be affiliated to any retirement fund or pension scheme taken by the WCO.

APPLICATION AND RECRUITMENT PROCESS

The onus is on the applicant to demonstrate how he/she meets each of the essential qualifications and requirements. Applicants are encouraged to detail concrete achievements in their CVs and/or in their cover letters as well as include references.

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for an assessment which may include a written test and/or an interview. All short-listed candidates may be requested to provide copies of their original diploma, certificates and proof of relevant experience. Pre-selected candidates may also be subject to reference checks to confirm the information provided in the application.

Interested candidates should submit their application for review no later than Monday, 10 January 2022, including a CV and motivation letter by email to:

Interested candidates may submit a request for additional information via e-mail, providing full name and contact details.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to criteria of the position and the WCO applicable rules.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The WCO values commitment to the principles of integrity, transparency and accountability as well as values diversity among its staff members. Applications from qualified women and men will receive equal treatment and due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting nationals from WCO Members on as wide a geographical basis as possible. Please note that the WCO Headquarters is a non-smoking environment.

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