Senior Project Officer

The Council of Europe Office in Chisinau supports the Republic of Moldova in fulfilling its membership commitments by advancing the Council's mission in the country. Our work focuses on protecting human rights, supporting democracy, and strengthening the rule of law through co-operation projects and programmes.

The Council of Europe Youth Department elaborates guidelines, programmes and legal instruments for the development of coherent and effective youth policies at local, national and European levels. The Department organises and/or supports educational activities, develops educational materials, conducts research about young people, supports youth-led non-governmental organisations, and mainstreams a youth perspective within national sectoral policies. 

As part of the Youth Department team at the Council of Europe Office in Chisinau, you will implement the project “Youth for democracy and human rights in the Republic of Moldova”. This 40-month project, which started in September 2025, aims to strengthen democracy and human rights in the Republic of Moldova by fostering youth participation in decision-making processes, and youth work, and by strengthening youth centres as platforms of civic activity and democratic participation.

As a Senior Project Officer, you will:

• plan, co-ordinate, design and implement project activities in line with the Council of Europe’s procedures and Project Management Methodology (PMM), with a concern for quality, efficiency, accuracy, and confidentiality, and in close co-ordination with the Project Manager and under the supervision of the Head of the Education, Training and Co-operation Division;
• ensure close financial monitoring and budget follow-up in line with the logframe and workplans, as well as the implementation of project related procurement procedures and verify the purchase files, draft contracts, deliverables, and payment documents, in accordance with the Council of Europe regulations and procedures; 
• assist and organise the work of short-term consultants, including ensuring follow-up and quality of progress and final submissions; 
• co-ordinate and supervise the work of project staff and experts in individual activities/outputs of the work plan; 
• in co-ordination with the Project Manager, ensure the preparation and drafting of documents in line with quality and style requirements of the Council of Europe (e.g. progres, annual and mission reports, terms of reference for different contractual engagements, briefings, speaking notes, official speeches, relevant meeting documentation and minutes, etc.), including editing documents prepared by non-native speakers (in English / Romanian); 
• establish and maintain close working contacts with relevant project partners and local stakeholders, international organisations and national youth structures and youth civil society organisation, including national platforms and councils; 
• participate in and contribute to meetings between the Council of Europe representatives, experts and national authorities/counterparts/beneficiaries concerning the project and ensure that decisions taken at these meetings are carried out; 
• contribute to the assessment of results and achievements and advise the headquarters-based team about risks and problems encountered; suggest new priorities and adjustments as necessary; 
• support the headquarters-based staff and short-term consultants in the context of tasks and missions in the field; 
• ensure that decisions, final deliverables, project documents and correspondence are properly documented and filed, and assist in preparing the files and information for the internal and external evaluations and audit; 
• contribute to raising the visibility of the project by drafting web news items and press releases and by disseminating information; 
• undertake official journeys in connection with project activities and participate in meetings, seminars, working groups etc. related to the project activities; 
• assist in drafting new project proposals and activities; 
• contribute to the efficient functioning of the Council of Europe Office in Chisinau, and regularly inform the Office management about the implementation of the project and co-ordinate the work within the broader framework of the overall activities of the Office; 
• monitor developments at national level (legal, policy, institutional levels) in the areas covered by the project, and keep the Office management as well as the Project team in the headquarters regularly informed of the results achieved, additional needs, risks, and opportunities for further interventions; 
• ensure effective management and co-ordination of the work of the local project assistant;
• promote Council of Europe values internally and externally.

You must:

• hold a completed full course of general secondary education and appropriate professional qualifications (e.g. social sciences, education, or youth work related studies, etc.);
• have a minimum of 3 years of relevant professional and/or combination of relevant voluntary experience in contributing to the development and implementation of assistance and co-operation projects in the area of participatory youth work and policies at national or international level, democratic citizenship and human rights education, ideally in a management role;
• have an excellent knowledge of Romanian (first language level) and a very good knowledge of English (one of the two Council of Europe’s official languages);
• be a citizen of the host country or one of the 46 member States of the Council of Europe and fulfil the conditions for appointment to the civil service of that state;
• be currently present in the Republic of Moldova;
• have discharged any obligation concerning national service (military, civil or comparable);
• not be the parent, child, stepchild or grandchild of a serving staff member of the Council of Europe;
• be under the age of 65 years.

Your application must demonstrate to what extent you have the competencies listed below. To help you doing so, feel free to consult our competency framework.

• Operational - Planning and work organisation
• Operational - Analysis and problem solving
• Operational - Results orientation
• Operational - Concern for quality
• Interpersonal - Relationship building

• Professional and technical expertise:

• proven experience in project management and implementation in the framework of international or European technical co-operation programmes in particular in the fields of citizenship and human rights education with young people, participatory youth work and policies;
• sound knowledge of the situation of the youth sector in the country;
• excellent drafting skills;
• knowledge of project management tools (project management methodologies, logframes, risk monitoring, etc.);
• experience in working with both authorities and youth and civil society structures at national, regional and/or local levels;
• sound computer skills and experience in using standard office application tools (word processing, presentation software, outlook, internet/intranet publications).

• Managerial - Organisational and contextual awareness
• Operational - Creativity and innovation
• Interpersonal - Initiative

• Professional and technical expertise:

• higher education degree in relevant field (e.g social sciences, education, or youth work related studies);
• knowledge of relevant Council of Europe Youth Sector standards and policy setting documents.

This job vacancy is for a local external recruitment based on temporary contracts. Employment is limited to 31 December of the current year and may be extended. You can consult the conditions of employment (salaries, allowances, pension scheme, social insurance etc.) on the webpage What we offer.

For more information on how we recruit, you can consult the page Our recruitment process. This recruitment is carried out in accordance with Rule No. 1234 laying down the conditions of recruitment and employment of locally recruited staff members working in Council of Europe Duty Stations located outside of France. 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). When applying, make sure your motivation shows how your competencies make your profile the best for the role.

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 talents@coe.int, 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 talents@coe.int.