The Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat

PIFS is an Employer of Choice in the region, aiming to recruit and employ staff based on merit and organisational needs, and ensures that employment selection upholds its values and commitment to Forum membership, gender balance and building a diverse and inclusive organisation. PIFS is committed to achieving gender balance and being fully representative of our member countries.  Our workforce is currently over 50% female, and we have representatives from twelve of the eighteen Forum member countries. 

To achieve greater workforce representation from our member countries we strongly encourage applicants from the following countries to apply: Federated States of Micronesia, French Polynesia, Nauru, Niue, New Caledonia and Palau

The Opportunity

The Forum Secretariat invites suitably experienced and qualified individuals to apply for the position of Legal Officer. The role is to support the work in close collaboration with the Office of the Pacific Ocean Commissioner (OPOC) UN Ocean Issues Adviser and the Senior Ocean Analyst on BBNJ in terms and to help setting up plans to roll out the Implementation of the BBNJ instrument at the regional and national levels. Responsibilities include, but not limited to:

• Coordination of POA Stakeholders as a collective and coordinated approach to support Members with the implementation of the BBNJ instrument; Liaise and consult with Member States individually or collectively to identifying their needs on BBNJ, including working with experts on the conduct of Capacity needs assessment for countries.
• Develop and coordinate the delivery of activities to meet the BBNJ related needs of Member States, such as workshops at the national sub-regional and regional levels; Draft models of instruments of ratification and support Members in completing and depositing their instruments in consultation with the UN Secretariat.
• Conduct review of legislations and provide legal advice at the national and regional levels with regards to implementation of the BBNJ instrument; Support Members who are Members of the Agreement in their preparations leading up to the Conference of Parties Meeting
• Report on project implementation; and Other related tasks that may arise in the course of the position term.

Applicants should have a Law degree (preferably postgraduate level or LLM) from a recognized institution with minimum of five (5) years of experience in the field of law of the sea. Demonstrated experience and knowledge in the legal systems of Forum Members, of the 18 Forum Island Countries.

Candidates with awareness of regional and international legal issues relevant to the role of the OPOC and demonstrated experience and knowledge and an awareness of regional and international legal issues relevant to the role of the Forum Secretariat.

The Benefits

The position carries a competitive and attractive remuneration and benefits package including medical and life insurance, education, and housing allowance. The position is placed at our Officer level with a starting base salary range from
SDR 27,907 to 31,486 per annum equivalent to (FJD 83,554 to 94,269) at Band 9 to 10 on our salary scale. Amounts are based on 1 July foreign exchange rate, but your final salary will be dependent on foreign exchange rates at the time of payment.

Interested applicants are encouraged to apply through our website: www.forumsec.org where an information package containing the position description and full remuneration details is available. Candidates must include in either their application or Curriculum Vitae the full contact details of three referees. For non-Fijian nationals, this salary may be tax-free. To be eligible for this position, the applicant must be a national of a Forum member country*. Applicants must be willing to travel periodically via economy class.

Deadline for applications is at 5pm (Fiji time), Friday 29 September 2023.

*Member States of the Pacific Islands Forum: Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.