A friend sent me this summary. Have a look and check any that match your skills and interest. See the link at the bottom to see the full list of vacancies.
A friend sent me the below list of volunteer placements in the Caribbean, South & Central America, and Africa. English, French and Spanish speaking applicants welcome. Why not check out the placements?
It has been a busy summer, and a sad autumn. Just two weeks ago my younger brother Earl Shears passed away with cancer. He never travelled for international development work but was a very active community member in Beaver Bank, Nova Scotia and was always interested in my travels and activities abroad. Rest in peace, Earl. You will be missed.
Some weeks ago, CUSO International sent me a fund-raising message which I try to respond to on an annual basis especially since the Government of Canada matches the donation many times. You might want to check with your favourite international charity to see if your government provides similar support to non-governmental organizations.
With the mailout, CUSO International shared an infographic which nicely summarises some of its work including numbers of volunteers, e-volunteers, and countries of assignment including by the way northern Canada. See the infographic below.
Do any of the locations tickle your fancy? Why not check out the CUSO International website to see what placement opportunities are currently available or are in the pipeline. If working physically abroad isn’t practical for you, remember you might be able to e-volunteer or see your donation to CUSO multiplied many times.
Find a Consulting Assignment with Short-Listed Firms
My previous post introduced readers to the Asian Development Bank, its organization, Bank activities and different ways to engage with the ADB. My focus last time was how consultants could find and apply for consulting assignments in their areas of expertise and the ADB’s area of need. I hope you were able to take some time to explore the agency’s elaborate web site and find assignments of interest.
Did you join the ADB consultant database? If you did, I would like to hear about your effort. You can add a comment at the bottom of this post. It does take time to get all your details added, but once done, it’s relatively easy to apply for a consulting assignment by sending in your EOI.
However, now let us move on to another way of getting that consulting assignment – by checking with short-listed firms, that is firms that are short-listed on a particular project which may require them to find outside consultants. And that could be you!
Click this link to take you to the page titled: Shortlisted Firms
Notice that the tab highlighted in the picture below is “Ongoing Requests for Proposals” so the list of projects shown are all those currently seeking Expressions of Interest from firms. You can filter the list by making country or sector selections to narrow your search. This page is a bit clunky in responding but eventually your filtered list will appear. To see the short-listed firms for a particular project, simply click the corresponding button in the right-hand column.
Depending on your selection, you will then see a screen like the one below that shows those firms that are short-listed for the project. The example below is not complete because the whole list was cut off but the illustration reveals the type of useful information provided. Details such as company name, contact person and position, contact information including phone, fax and email. The example below shows firms from Ireland, France, Singapore and Germany.
What next?
If you are interested in such a project and have the required qualifications and experience, you could write to one or more of the firms listed to inform them of your interest. Make sure you attach to your email a copy of your CV including contact information. Also, stress in your email how your background would be helpful in the upcoming project.
Now the firm may already have some consultants penciled in, but often project start up is delayed and sometimes a firm needs to replace a consultant. Even if this is not the case, your CV is now with this firm and can be added to their consultant database.
You can also mention in your email that you would be interested in future similar projects should they arrive.
NOTE: Although it is a good idea to share your CV with different firms, be careful not to be included on a proposed project team by different firms. The ADB frowns on such situations and can disqualify both firms if they see the same consultant in both bids.
Expand your search
Another strategy is to search for short-listed firms on projects that are now closed to EOIs. If your field is say, education, you can filter using that category, and others. To do this, just follow the above procedure but select the TAB “All Selections” as shown below.
Depending on your filters, you should get a longer list of short-listed firms that work in your area of expertise and in the country where you would like to work. (Just click “Reset” after each search to start again.)
Accessing the information through the website is free and you may want to try several filter combinations to check, for example, what companies in your country are bidding on projects, what companies are most active in a particular sector or country, and so on.
ADB provides a list of awarded contracts
You can explore which companies were awarded contracts. Why not continue your explorations and determine how to find this information on the ADB site yourself. Good luck.
Weekly Notice of Consulting Opportunities
Weekly notifications on consulting opportunities are available for registered users of the Consultant Management System (CMS).
PS. Don’t forget to check out my recently published memoir “Overseas Adventures – From Afghanistan to Zambia and Points In-Between”. It is available from AMAZON in many countries and from my website: www.northstarskillsfordevelopment.ca
If you have trouble finding the book, email me directly. aeshears@northstarskillsfordevelopment.ca
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank established on 19 December 1966, and headquartered in the city of Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. The bank also maintains 31 field offices around the worldto promote social and economic development in Asia. The bank admits the members of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP, formerly the Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East or ECAFE) and non-regional developed countries. Canada is a member. From 31 members at its establishment, ADB now has 68 members.
The ADB was modeled closely on the World Bank.
The ADB funds multiple projects in Asia and the Pacific and I had the privilege of working on such a project in Sri Lanka, as a consultant with GOPA, a German consulting firm. The bank advertises consulting opportunities for both individuals and companies. Most of these requests for individual consultants are for nationals, for example, in Viet Nam, the project would seek Vietnamese nationals. But there is often a sprinkling of requests for international consultants. My project was in technical, vocational education and training (TVET) which falls under the umbrella of “Education” in the categories of projects the ADB supports.
To learn more about the bank, its mission and activities, I recommend that you visit its main website which contains links to its structure, projects, partners, financing and more.
There are many ways to engage with the ADB. Check the tab “Work with Us” on the ADB Main page, and the following screen appears. Click on an item to explore your particular interest.
My post today focuses on opportunities for individuals who would like to explore assignments as a consultant working on ADB projects.
Consultants
If you click “Consultants” on the above page, the system takes you to a list of frequently asked questions. Select “How can I become adb consultant” and you are taken to a page with a ream of useful information.
ADB engages individual consultants and consulting entities (firms, universities, NGOs, etc.) for a wide range of assignments. Individuals wishing to consult for ADB must meet all of the following criteria:
There is plenty to study in the links posted above and I invite you to explore them on your own.
Reality Check
My experience applying to the ADB as an individual Canadian consultant has not been encouraging. The selection process is rigorous and my sense (unproven) is the staff who select consultants develop a cadre of favorites into which it is hard to enter. My work in Sri Lanka was conducted as part of a consulting firm’s bid and for many new consultants contacting companies short-listed for ADB assignments, may be a better alternative.
My next post will provide some advice on pursuing this option.
PLEASE SEND ANY COMMENTS ON THIS POST TO: aeshears@northstarskillsfordevelopment.ca
Recently, the editor for my book wondered if I had done a book trailer.
“Book trailer?” I asked. Before then I hadn’t heard the term. Rebecca said “It’s similar to a movie trailer but instead of a movie the trailer promotes a book”.
Well, it didn’t take long to find on Google lots of information about book trailers – what they are, how they’re made, what to put in and keep out.
Well, I have no shortage of photos and even some video clips so I said to myself, “Why not?”
Years ago, I was the audiovisual department head at Holland College in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island and we produced scores of training videos for other departments at the college. In those days we used 3/4 inch U-Matic tape and equipment for production. How times have changed!
These days cameras and editing equipment are digital and most of us have basic video production gear on our laptops. Among the multitude of applications on my computer I came across one recently added by Microsoft called Clipchamp. That’s the program I used yesterday to produce my first book trailer, one of many for different audiences, I hope.
Drum roll, please.
See video below.
Send any comments on this video to: aeshears@northstarskillsfordevelopment.ca
Thinking about the next series of topics for my BLOG, I decided to highlight some additional international volunteer agencies. The first agency described in this new series is the Peace Corps which by coincidence is celebrating 60 years of service in 2022.
Peace Corps has a wonderfully rich website which among other things describes two main volunteering options including 2-year, regular assignments, and shorter specialised stints. You must be an American citizen to apply and usually require a relevant degree but in some cases persons with 5 years of relevant experience will also be considered. When I checked the Peace Corps website on December 27, 2002 there were a number of vacancies advertised in different categories, and in different parts of the world including Africa, Central America and the Western Pacific among others.
By clicking on these different sectors, the different vacancies are revealed with descriptions of the location, the job itself, living conditions, essential and desired qualifications. Reading some of the vacancy descriptions reminded me that such assignments are often challenging and not suitable for everyone but for those with the right background, attitude and flexibility, these assignments can be very rewarding from both personal and professional perspectives.
The application process can take several months but there are a series of recruiters available in the US to answer questions and help applicants through the application process.
Even if you are not an American citizen, you may find the descriptions of countries and the work that Peace Corps volunteers are doing abroad to be of interest. If you are a US citizen, “…and ready to change the world”, you can follow the three steps listed on their Home Page.
After a long wait, this interesting set of stories will be released in December 2022.
My memoir is now available however, the book launch is delayed while I work on assignments for the ILO in Jordan and Lebanon; also my book designer in Malawi had power outages as he did a book redesign.
But long story short, the memoir is available in soft cover or as an ebook in epub or mobi format. There is also a pdf version for those who like to read on their computer.
The book launch details are not yet available but will include both a physical launch in Halifax and an online one with my friends organized from the Eastern townships of Quebec. The latter will have an international audience.
My website now has a storefront and shopping cart where you can order whatever version of the memoir you like. The store front and shopping cart are available now – simply click on the left hand button in the menu above – Overseas Adventures.
I will also put the memoir on Amazon and/or other online stores but that will be in the New Year.
Send your suggestions to: aeshears@northstarskillsfordevelopment.ca
You can win a free advanced copy if you are among the first five to reply.
The cost of the soft cover version will be CAD 20 plus shipping. The ebook and pdf versions will be CAD 7.99 – cheap at the price.
The United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) launched its competency framework in April 2015.
What is the UNESCO Competency Framework? The UNESCO Competency Framework provides an inventory of expected behaviors, skills, and attitudes that lead to successful performance. The UNESCO Competency Framework has three components:
• Core Values that are the shared principles and beliefs that unite all staff and should guide us in our actions;
• Core competencies that are a set of related knowledge, skills, and abilities that result in essential behaviors expected from those working for the Organization;
• Managerial competencies that apply to staff with management responsibilities at P-4 level and above.
UNESCO uses the competency framework for a variety of functions including job profiling, recruitment, performance management, and promoting learning and career development. If you are looking to apply for a job with UNESCO, it is to your advantage to review their competency framework which is available online here:
The core values, core competencies, and managerial competencies are listed below for your convenience.
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Core Values
• Commitment to the Organization • Integrity • Respect for Diversity • Professionalism
Core Competencies
• Accountability • Communication • Teamwork • Innovation • Results focus • Planning and organizing • Knowledge sharing and continuous improvement
Managerial Competencies (for Level P4 positions and above)
• Driving and managing change • Strategic thinking • Making quality decisions • Building partnerships • Leading and empowering others • Managing performance
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My last long-term assignment (4 years) was with UNESCO in Malawi as Team Leader on the European Union-funded Skills and Technical Education Project (STEP). We used the elements of the framework when developing job descriptions for new staff and consultants, for performance reviews of the staff, and applied it as well to plan our own professional development.
The STEP Malawi website is still operating and has a wealth of resources available.
Become a Volunteer – You can do what I did and apply to a volunteer agency such as CUSO, VSO, Peace Corps, WUSC, or UN volunteers. This option is one of the easiest if you have the interest, relevant skills and you’re available. The agency you apply to will have done most of the work. They already have a number of countries they work in and have listed positions available with descriptions of who you would be working with, the job, qualifications and experience needed, and duration of the assignment. The duration maybe for just a few months to a couple of years, and these days there are options to e-volunteer.
Explore Options with Your Social Service Club – Rotary’s motto is “service above self” and its chapters focus mostly on local social issues. However, some chapters organize fund-raising and short, overseas placements for their members or sponsored young people. A friend of mine used this facility to provide services to projects as far afield as India and Guyana. This initial experience led to longer-term roles on international projects funded by the Canadian government and other funding agencies.
Register as a Consultant with International Recruiting Agencies – There are numerous agencies out there who develop and maintain databases of consultants sorted by specialty, country experience, and availability – short-term and long-term. Here are just a few of these agencies – Assortis, DevelopmentAid, and DEVEX. Some are free, some cost.
Use Your Social Media Links like LinkedIn – LinkedIn is one network used by professionals to share their experiences, favourite websites, and events. It provides an opportunity for individuals to add their resumes and interests and puts you out there. You can post stories, promote conferences or advertise vacancies. Some companies who are looking for consultants for upcoming projects will scan LinkedIn to identify possible candidates. I have been contacted a couple of times through LinkedIn for overseas assignments. The best thing is it’s free!
Explore Opportunities at Your Educational Institution for a Study Abroad Term – If you are a student at an educational institution, check if your institution has an option to do one or more terms of study abroad. Although not technically international development, such an experience does let you get a taste of living abroad, experiencing different cultures, and adding “international experience” to your resume.
