Public Procurement and SME Participation Specialist – Management Consulting Services

About the role

The International Trade Centre (ITC) is recruiting an International Consultant to support the Making Trade Happen (MTH) programme, which strengthens export competitiveness in Jordan and its services trade. The consultant will review the eligibility, qualification and award criteria for management consulting companies participating in public tenders and propose improvements based on international best practice. The assignment is home-based, with no travel, and runs from 4 January 2027 to 15 March 2027.

Key responsibilities

• Review the existing eligibility, qualification and award criteria for public tenders in Jordan, focusing on management consulting services, and identify the main bottlenecks preventing small and medium-sized enterprises from taking part.
• Develop a technical note with practical recommendations for improving these criteria, drawing on best-practice examples from other countries and considering ways to replicate criteria used in other service sectors.
• Validate the draft with the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Supply and other national counterparts, incorporate their feedback and share the final technical note with a brief action plan.
• All deliverables must be submitted in English, approved by the ITC Hiring Manager and delivered within the project timeline.

Required profile

• Advanced university degree (Master's or equivalent) in public procurement, law, economics, public administration, business administration, public policy, management or a related field.
• At least 5 years of professional experience in public procurement, procurement policy, regulatory reform, public sector advisory or related fields.
• Demonstrated experience reviewing public procurement legislation, regulations, tendering procedures and eligibility, qualification and award criteria.
• Proven experience producing policy recommendations, technical notes, analytical reports or reform proposals.
• Experience in international development projects, technical assistance or capacity-building is an asset; experience in the MENA region, especially Jordan, is an advantage.
• Advanced spoken and written English; knowledge of Arabic is an asset.

Required skills

• Strong command of international public procurement standards and best practices.
• Excellent writing skills, able to explain technical topics to non-technical audiences.
• Additional training in SME development, regulatory reform, competition policy or public sector governance is an advantage.