CAREER OPPORTUNITY

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is the

implementing agency of the Federal Republic of Germany for technical and international
cooperation. It offers flexible, sustainable and effective solutions in political, economic and
social change processes. Most of the work of GIZ is commissioned by the German Federal
Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). GIZ also operates on behalf of
other German ministries as well as public and private bodies in Germany and abroad. These
include the European Commission, the United Nations, the World Bank and governments of
other countries. In the Water and Energy portfolio of GIZ, the EU is an important
commissioning partner.
The GIZ Project “Strengthening Institutions for Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation in
Zambia (SIWaS)” is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and
Development (BMZ). The overall objective of the project is to support national institutions,
commercial utilities, and local authorities in implementing national targets for the improvement
of urban water supply and sanitation services in a coordinated manner. The projects lead
partner is the Ministry of Water Development and Sanitation and the 5 outputs of the SIWaS
project are as follows:
• Output 1: Strengthening the organizational capacity of MWDS to coordinate and
manage the water sector.
• Output 2: Developing tools to regulate Commercial Utilities through the National
Water Supply and Sanitation Council (NWASCO).
• Output 3: Strengthening the organisational, technical, and financial capacities of
partner Commercial Utilities (CU’s).
• Output 4: Establishing foundations for better coordinated services in rural water
supply and sanitation.
• Output 5: Establishing foundations for improved management of industrial
wastewater in Lusaka and for decentralised sanitation.
Access to water supply and sanitation services remains low in Zambia especially in rural and
peri-urban areas which is detrimental to the economy, health and well-being of the
population. These low access rates have remained almost stagnant over the past fifteen
years, despite Zambia aiming for universal access to safe and affordable water and
sanitation services by 2030. The Government is rolling out several investment programmes
like NRWSSP, NUWSSP and the ZWIP to change the trend in investments of infrastructure
in both urban and rural areas. On the side of service provision, Zambia has decentralized
and professionalised services by setting up commercial utilities as private companies owned
by the local authorities while ensuring appropriate regulation by NWASCO and oversight by
the ministry. However, the commercialisation of the utility services over the last 20 years has
not fully achieved its objectives of having fully cost recovery of the services in urban areas
with user tariffs. The current governance framework and consistent under-performance in
relation to sector benchmarks like NRW or staff efficiency requires urgent action to change
the trajectory of the sector. Similarly, the services in rural areas require structural changes,
capacity building and investments to considerably improve services. Therefore, the
Government and its cooperating partners like the German Government, the EU and others,

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are providing renewed efforts with dedicated investments in infrastructure and technical
assistance (ref. to GIZ SIWAS) to address the challenges.
In this context, GIZ is therefore seeking a suitable candidate to fill the following position:
Utility Advisor (based in Kitwe)

REF: SIWaS_UA_Kitwe
Main tasks and responsibilities:
The Utility advisor carries out the following duties and responsibilities in close collaboration
with the Commercial Utility and Local Authority:

• Provide technical and organizational advice to the Commercial Utilities on

improvement of 3 out of 9 key performance indicators set by the regulator (e.g., staff
efficiency, cost coverage collection efficiency and non-revenue water)
• Provide technical advice on the implementation of measures to reduce commercial
water losses caused e.g. by illegal water connections, inefficient billing and tariff
collection practices.
• Provide technical, financial and organizational advice to the management level of CUs,
e.g. on controlling, development of long-term financial forecasts, including cash flow
projections and tariff scenarios.
• Provide Governance advice and training of members of the supervisory boards of CUs
on the performance of their supervisory function and aspects related to gender
transformation.
• Provide technical and organizational advice for the development and implementation
of management systems for the sanitation value chain in urban low-income areas (i.e.
latrine emptying, transport and environmentally sound treatment of faecal sludge) in
cooperation with CUs and local authorities in partner provinces.
• Support the CU in establishment and implementation of methods to improve CU
energy efficiency, such as energy audits, energy saving plans and utilization of solar
energy in line with the recommendations provided in the Water Utility Platform
• Support towards the development and implementation of joint action plans between
the CU and local authorities to improve Water Supply and Sanitation (WSS) .
• Support to the CU and Local Government to develop an approach for a gender
responsive rural WSS system for 1000 households which is then made available for
replication by responsible stakeholders
• Support towards the implementation of the hybrid management model of small piped
water schemes in line with the future national guidelines
• Support towards the preparation of project proposals in line with the Integrated
Development Plans (IDPs) to improve gender responsive Water Supply and Sanitation
for rural households for submission to potential financing institutions
• Support the local government on the establishment of a digital inventory for rural WSS
in selected districts
• Support coordination with the GIZ Decentralisation for Development Programme
• Contract management: prepare tenders/calls and manage consulting contracts and
working closely with assigned long and short term consultants

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 • Keep the Project Manager regularly informed about activities and progress in the
respective CUs and local authorities

Qualifications and Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in an area relevant to the project’s objectives such as
Engineering, Economics, social/political science, or related fields.

Professional experience

• At least 7 years practical working experiences in working on water supply and

sanitation services in particular with Commercial Utilities and Local Governments
• Very good and proven knowledge and understanding of the Zambian Water Sector
• Proven working experience with existing networks in water supply and sanitation,
international development projects, NGOs, government institutions and/or local
authorities.
• Evidence of managing contracts, events and processes independently.

Other knowledge, additional competences

• Strong advisory skills and conceptual competences
• Zambia national or person with residence or work permit in Zambia
• Fluent written and oral knowledge of English.
• Excellent writing and communication skills.
• Self-motivated, organized and pro-active team player and ability to work
independently.
• Must be highly adaptable, flexible and able to work under pressure
• Experience with gender-sensitive, gender-transformative approaches is an asset
• Strong commitment to the projects mandate and team spirit

The successful candidate will be expected to start employment with GIZ, on a fixed term
contract.

Application deadline: 11.02.2024

Please understand that we can only accept and process applications via our E-recruiting
system (Link). Applications should meet the following criteria:
• Cover letter quoting the reference: SIWaS_UA_Kitwe must be uploaded using font
type Arial, size 11. In the first paragraph, please outline your motivation for applying
for the position. In the second paragraph, outline your experience in the position.
• CVs must be submitted in PDF not exceeding three (3) pages. Do not indicate your
marital status, religion, political affiliation or insert your photo.
• Certificates, qualifications, etc. must not be attached to the application.
• Traceable references of previous engagements must be provided.

GIZ is a signatory of the Diversity Charter. Recognition, appreciation and inclusion of diversity
in the company are important to us. All employees shall be valued - regardless of gender and
gender identity, nationality, ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, social background or age.

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GIZ would like to increase the proportion of employees with disability. People with disabilities
are strongly encouraged to apply.