The Institutional Partnerships Unit supports the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities in developing and maintaining co-operation with key institutional partners, such as associations of local and regional authorities, international and regional organisations. The team is responsible for organising Chamber of Regions sessions and Congress plenary sessions, as well as coordinating external relations activities in the field of local and regional democracy.

As a Programme Manager, you will:

• provide professional support for organising and following up on thematic co-operation activities in areas of mutual interest with Congress institutional partners. These partners include the European Committee of the Regions of the EU, the Assembly of European Regions, the Council of European Municipalities and Regions, the United Cities and Local Governments, the Association of Local Democracy Agencies (ALDA-European Association for Local Democracy), United Nations agencies, and other relevant organisations;
• support the organisation of the Chamber of Regions sessions, Bureau meetings, and Congress plenary sessions. This involves identifying, inviting, and liaising with guest speakers for selected debates, drafting concept notes, preparing questions for MediaBox interviews/news releases, and other necessary documents. Coordinate with the Table Office as required;
• carry out specific assignments related to the organisation and coordination of co-operation activities with Congress institutional partners in the fields of local and regional democracy and self-government. This includes proposing cooperation synergies, conducting research on specific events or conferences, supporting mission organisation, attending events, and other related tasks;
• draft background documents, reports, speeches, briefing notes, and other documents to support the above activities;
• monitor developments in the field of local and regional democracy and self-government. Conduct research on issues related to these activities;
• evaluate activities and propose improvements to working methods as necessary;
• contribute to enhancing the visibility and communication of external relations activities, including updating the website and preparing relevant documents;
• ensure coordination with relevant Council of Europe bodies and experts;
• undertake missions related to the above activities.

You must:

• have the support of the member State seconding you to the Council of Europe;
• hold a higher education degree or qualification equivalent to a master’s degree () in international relations; political science, human rights law;
• have at least 5 years of relevant professional experience acquired in the field of international relations, project management, multilevel governance, or related;
• excellent knowledge of English; knowledge of French would be an advantage;
• be a citizen of one of the member States of the Council of Europe.

• Managerial - Organisational and contextual awareness
• Operational - Planning and work organisation
• Operational - Results orientation
• Interpersonal - Initiative

* Professional and technical expertise:

• ability to take initiative and master assignments with a high degree of autonomy and acute political awareness and sensitivity;
• excellent oral and written communication skills, with proven ability to provide high quality, clear and concise presentations, documents, reports and recommendations.

• Interpersonal - Service orientation
• Interpersonal - Teamwork and co-operation

This vacancy is for a secondment, ruled by Article 23 of . You can consult the conditions of secondment to the Council of Europe (days of leave, allowances etc.) on the webpage . This secondment does not foresee any allowances or travel expenses from the Organisation.

This secondment should start as soon as possible.

For more information on how we recruit, you can consult the page Our recruitment process of our Career's website. The deadline for applications is indicated in the General information section of this vacancy notice (see above) and is fixed at 23:59:59 (CET/CEST). Only applicants who meet the conditions of the Committee of Ministers’ Resolution CM/Res(2012)2) and who best meet the abovementioned criteria will be considered for selection and for the next stage.

As an equal opportunity employer, the Council of Europe welcomes applications from all suitably qualified people, irrespective of sex, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic or social origin, disability, religion or belief. Under its equal opportunity policy, the Council of Europe is aiming to achieve gender parity in staff employed in each category and grade. At the time of appointment, preference between suitable people shall be given to the person of the gender which is under-represented in the relevant grades within the category to which the vacancy belongs.

Applicants with specific needs are encouraged to request reasonable accommodations at any stage during the recruitment process. Please contact us at , we will ensure that your request is handled.

The information published on the CoE’s careers website regarding working conditions is correct at the time of publication of the vacancy notice. Any changes to these conditions during the recruitment process will be updated on our Portal and will apply at the time of the job offer. Our career's website is not intended to be exhaustive and may not address all questions you would have. Should you have remaining questions, please contact us at .