Sweden: Research Assistant to Sahel-West Africa Programme

Feb 7, 2023 | Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
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The Sahel-West Africa Programme is hiring a Research Assistant to support and assist the researchers and programme director in all aspects of the work related to the programme. The RA will contribute to the implementation of projects and research of the Sahel and West Africa programme.

Context

SIPRI is an independent international institute whose core mission is to undertake research and activities on security, conflict, and peace. SIPRI is an equal-opportunity employer and strongly encourages women and non-European candidates to apply.

Research Assistant position

The primary responsibility of the Research Assistant (RA) in the SWAP is to work collaboratively with the Sahel and West Africa team in all aspects of the programme’s work and activities (qualitative and quantitative research design, desk research and publications; design, planning and implementation of activities; liaison with partner organisations; programme’s visibility). While this position focuses primarily on the implementation of the quantitative methodology of the projects, the tasks assigned will enable the RA to develop further research skills.

Tasks and responsibilities:

• Contributing to desk research, reporting, writing concept notes and research proposals as part of the team's fundraising efforts.
• Assisting researchers in designing samples, data analytics and visualisation (SPSS, STATA, SAS, R, GIS, etc.).

Assisting in the research design of the team’s projects while contributing to questionnaire design/coding, survey management, the development and maintenance of the programme’s database.

• Monitoring of the situation in the Sahel region on academic review and social media.
• Contributing to data collection and field research, controlling data quality to perception surveys.
• Assisting in the implementation of projects and liaising with partners in the region.
• Contributing to the drafting and dissemination of the programme’s reports and high-quality research and findings through research papers, policy briefs, and other outlets where appropriate.
• Assisting in the organisation of events.
• Taking part in the collective life of the Institute.

Qualifications and experience

When starting in the post, the Research Assistant should possess, as a minimum, the following qualifications and skills:

• A university degree /degree in disciplines and topics relevant to this position (political sciences, international relations, social sciences, public policy). Coursework in data analytics, data management or data sciences would be an asset.
• Proficient in using Microsoft Excel/Stata/R/Tableau/GIS.
• Experience in quantitative data collection and data collection tools such as Kobo Toolbox would be an asset.
• Experience working in, or on, the region relevant to the team’s projects.
• Experience working in an international environment, preferably with African civil society organisations, universities, and research centres.
• Experience in generating maps and infographics design would be an asset.
• Fluency, both spoken and written, in English and French.

Contract period

The contract period can initially last up to two years with the possibility of extension. The post is full-time. The post requires that the candidate becomes a resident in Stockholm, Sweden when employment starts. The salary package will be negotiated individually.

How to apply

Interested candidates should submit the following:

• A one-page cover letter in English and French detailing your qualifications and specifying why you are applying for this position.
• A CV in English including your degrees, work experience, publications, language skills and contact details for two referees.
• Short-listed candidates will be invited to undertake a written assessment exercise.

SIPRI is an equal-opportunity employer and is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture.

To be considered in the recruitment process, the application must be made via the form in the vacancies section of SIPRI’s website and not through any other external job sites.

Please observe that you must apply via SIPRI’s electronic application system, access the form via the ‘apply’ button at the end of this page.

The closing date for applications is 3^rd March 2023 CET.

For enquiries regarding the position, please contact: Virginie Baudais, Director of the Sahel and West Africa Programme (Virginie.baudais@sipri.org).

The trade union contacts at SIPRI are Noah Bell for ST (noah.bell@sipri.org) and Frederic Daudon for SACO (frederic.daudon@sipri.org).