Unit for Africa, Caribbean and Pacific - Post A

The Directorate-General for External Policies (DG EXPO) is made up of four directorates: Committees, Regions (covering interparliamentary delegations), Resources and Democracy Support. 

Staff of DG EXPO form a European team of advisers supporting the European Parliament's President, Members and political bodies in their work on the EU's external policies. Colleagues in DG EXPO provide advice on matters of substance and procedure and liaise with other EU institutions and manage resources. The focus is on legislation, parliamentary oversight of the European Commission and Council, and support for parliamentary democracy. Most of the work is done in Brussels. 

The Unit for Africa, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP Unit) is a small, dedicated team, working on a variety of activities related to countries belonging to the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and South Africa.

The Unit provides geographic expertise to other bodies and office holders of Parliament and supports MEPs and seven (inter-) parliamentary delegations of the EP:

• The Delegation to the OACPS-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly (JPA);
• The Delegation to the Africa-EU Parliamentary Assembly (DAFR);
• The Delegation to the Caribbean-EU Parliamentary Assembly (DCAB);
• The Delegation to the Pacific-EU Parliamentary Assembly (DPAC);
• The Delegation to the CARIFORUM-EU Parliamentary Committee (DCAR)
• The Delegation for relations with the Pan-African Parliament (DPAP);
• The Delegation for relations with South Africa (D-ZA);

Our geographical scope includes all sub-Saharan countries of Africa, and the countries of the Caribbean and the Pacific within the OACPS.

The ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly is one of the joint institutions governing the Partnership with the OACPS, established in 2000 as a comprehensive  framework  for  development cooperation,  economic  and  trade relations and political dialogue. The Assembly has a unique way of working: it is the only international assembly in which elected representatives of various countries come together regularly with the aim of promoting cooperation between North and South. The JPA aims to monitor the progress of the partnership and its contribution to the social and economic development of OACPS, as well as trade relations.

Since November 2023, a new partnership agreement, the Samoa Agreement has replaced the Cotonou Agreement. In this context, our unit, together with our OACPS counterparts, organises once a year a  plenary session of the JPA, alternately in an OACPS country and an EU country. In addition, the Samoa Agreement will shift focus more towards the three regions. It provides for the setting up of three Regional Parliamentary Assemblies (RPRs) for Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. They also shall meet once a year, alternately in an OACPs country and an EU country. The first such meetings will be the Africa-EU Parliamentary Assembly scheduled to take place in Benin in early 2025 and the Pacific-EU Parliamentary Assembly foreseen for June 2025 in Brussels.

• Participating in events, meetings, workshops and conferences, following the discussions and helping with accreditation;
• Contributing to the drafting of resolutions, speaking point, chair’s notes, feedback notes, info packs, country briefings and letters;
• Occasionally translating documents (French or English);
• Conducting research for reports, speeches, Parliamentary correspondence etc.;
• Assisting with the preparation of outbound missions, meetings and/or events;
• Drafting summaries and minutes of relevant internal and external meetings;
• Everyday office work.

• Highly fluent in English. Very good command of French or Spanish are considered additional assets;
• Available for a fulltime traineeship in Brussels;
• Interested in the EU's role in international relations, the European Parliament and global affairs;
• Highly interested and knowledgeable about Africa and/or the Pacific and the Caribbean documented by relevant studies or work experience;
• Proactive and able to think outside the box and express your own thoughts/ideas;
• A self-starter, a keen and quick learner, good at analysing and summarising vast amounts of information;
• Someone who likes to and is good at drafting well-structured, clear and consistent texts.