Consultant, EU Defence Procurement

The Basel Institute on Governance is a hands-on centre of competence dedicated to promoting good governance and countering corruption for a more peaceful, just and sustainable world. Established in 2003 in Basel, Switzerland, the Institute works with partners worldwide to advance knowledge, practice and policy on anti-corruption, asset recovery and business integrity. With field operations worldwide, it has some 150 staff covering 32 nationalities.

The Basel Institute is an Associated Institute of the University of Basel.

The Basel Institute has been implementing diverse programming in Ukraine, developing its collaboration with multiple state agencies as well as state-owned and private corporate entities, with the support of Switzerland and Norway.

Engagement:
Supporting the development of integrity systems in the defence sector at state-owned and private corporate entities

The European Union has recently launched instruments such as the SAFE (Support to Defence Industry through Common Procurement Act) mechanism and the European Defence Fund (EDF) to strengthen joint defence procurement and industrial collaboration. For Ukrainian defence manufacturers, participation in these initiatives requires meeting a set of procurement, compliance and governance standards applied by EU institutions and member states.

The Basel Institute is conducting research and developing practical tools to help Ukrainian companies understand and meet these requirements.

Assignment

To support this effort, the Basel Institute is seeking the services of a highly motivated technical expert with a deep subject-matter expertise and knowledge in the defence procurement of the EU and EU member states. The assignment includes analysis of the EU member states’ regulatory frameworks and practical insights into how procurement compliance and due diligence requirements are applied in practice, and consultations with European and Ukrainian stakeholders.

The Consultant will advise the Basel Institute’s team, as well as the partner entities directly, on strengthening their compliance systems and implementing compliance safeguards in a manner consistent with the EU and EU member states’ legal requirements and broader legal coherence, while taking into account the compliance approaches applied in practice by potential European business counterparts of partner entities.

Activities and timeline

The relationship is envisioned as a framework agreement, which allows for the design of distinct task orders in line with beneficiary needs. The initial agreement will be for one year, with an estimated 30 days of effort, to be specified in task orders.

Reporting

For each task order, the Consultant will report to the Senior Specialist, Corruption Prevention.

The Consultant should have:

• Advanced degree in Law, Political Science, International Relations, Defence Studies or a related field
• Proven knowledge of EU procurement directives and how these are implemented at the member state level
• A minimum of 5–7 years of professional experience in EU defence procurement, government contracting or defence industry compliance
• Familiarity with compliance and integrity requirements relevant to the defence sector, including anti-corruption, due diligence, sanctions, export controls, ESG and cybersecurity
• Demonstrated experience advising governments, defence companies or international organisations on procurement or compliance
• Strong analytical and reporting skills, with ability to translate complex procurement rules into clear, actionable guidance
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills, including experience in multi-stakeholder consultations
• Fluency in English (written and spoken) is required; knowledge of Ukrainian is an asset.

Interested applicants should submit an expression of interest of not more than two pages, outlining: (i) their relevant experience for the assignment, with a special focus on European defence procurement; and (ii) any clarifications they would wish to seek from the Basel Institute prior to executing the assignment.

Expert CVs should be provided separately and limited to two pages each.

Please submit applications to proposal no later than 18:00 CET on 16 March 2026. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.