DUTY STATION:                 Sarajevo

GRADE:                                8/9

CONTRACT TYPE:            National

PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF POSITION:

Tax reform and public budgets are a crucial area of the OHR’s development agenda and are vital components in furthering the Dayton Peace Accord objective of creating a sustainable single economic space in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). In addition, a major effort involving senior political officials has been launched to address the issue of BiH’s massive internal debt. The selected candidate will be responsible for preparing policy analysis and recommendations on issues related to tax reform, public budgets and statistics in BiH, and act as the primary OHR coordinator for the working group on internal debt. The Advisor will also be responsible for establishing and maintaining relations with national officials, representatives of International Financial Institutions, and the donors’ community, and will prepare all correspondence and reporting related to these issues.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Research and Analysis

·         Conducting original research and analysis on tax policy issues, with a specific emphasis on tax harmonization within the various constituent parts of BiH;

·         Analyzing public budgets in BiH (State, Entities, Cantons and BD), and coming up with recommendations for better public governance;

·         Providing background analysis for senior OHR officials in matters related to efforts to address the BiH internal debt;

·         Following budget adoption and their subsequent execution (State, Entities, Cantons and BD);

·         Performing analysis of revenue collection at all levels and its allocation;

·         Assessing and reviewing budget or public finance-oriented laws;

·         Following the implementation of the Treasury structures in BiH.

Strategy Development and Advising

·         Developing, in conjunction with other donors, a medium-term tax reform and budget reform strategy designed to improve allocation efficiency, equity and transparency;

·         Developing medium-term fiscal strategies for the Entities, Cantons and municipalities aimed at improving their fiscal sustainability;

·         Developing short term strategy on Statistics legislation adoption and its subsequent implementation monitoring;

Liaison and Coordination

·         Engaging in tax policy dialogue with relevant tax administrations at various levels of government. In this context, seeking to provide comprehensive dissemination of analytical work undertaken in BiH, and of tax practices in modern market economies;

·         Acting as OHR coordinator for ongoing deliberations concerning internal debt;

·         Engaging in budget and fiscal policy dialogue with counterparts in Governments and seeking to provide with advice on modern budget practices, as well as enforcement of transparency and accountability concept;

·         Interacting as and when necessary with members of private business communities and employee groups on tax policy issues;

·         To monitor and prepare relevant correspondence concerning the Statistics legislation in BiH, the Entities Statistics institutes and BiH statistics Agency.

Other

·         Any and all other related duties required for the completion of their work as may be assigned to the incumbent of the position.

·         Economic Advisor on Tax Policy will be the alternate for this specific job when the incumbent is away. As well, incumbent will act as backup for the Economic Advisor on Tax Policy in case of absence.

PROFESSIONAL REQUIREMENTS / QUALIFICATIONS:          

·         University degree in economics, ideally with a strong emphasis on tax policy and contemporary tax theory;

·         At least three years of professional work experience in an academic or government environment dealing with tax and budgetary issues;

·         Thorough knowledge of taxation and budget systems in transition economies;

·         Thorough understanding of the political, social, and economic landscape in BiH;

·         Excellent oral and written English;

·         Excellent computer skills;

·         Sound communication skills and a strong rapport with donors and domestic authorities.

Any personnel with the above qualifications should provide (in English) a CV with a one-page cover letter and references to the following: