Armenia-Local Expert: Country Needs Assessment on Sanctions Compliance

The Center for Strategy and Development (CSD) is seeking a Local Expert in Armenia to prepare a Country Needs Assessment on Sanctions Compliance in Armenia. The assessment will identify sanctions compliance capabilities and gaps in the public and private sectors and set out prioritised recommendations and training needs.

Background

CSD works on strategic trade control, border security, sanctions compliance and institutional capacity building. Since 2015, CSD has delivered programs for public authorities, financial institutions, logistics companies and academia in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova and Uzbekistan.

International sanctions frameworks, including UN Security Council sanctions and the autonomous regimes of the EU, the UK and the U.S., increasingly depend on compliance by businesses and authorities outside the sanctioning jurisdictions. Sanctions on dual-use goods and secondary sanctions mean that a bank, freight forwarder or trader can lose correspondent relationships, contracts or market access over transactions it did not recognise as problematic. Meeting these expectations requires a sound legal and institutional framework, clear guidance from competent authorities, and practical compliance tools in the private sector.

Objective

To produce an evidence-based Country Needs Assessment Document for Armenia (up to 25 pages, excluding annexes), covering at a minimum:

• Legal and institutional framework: implementation of UN Security Council sanctions, the national approach to EU, UK and U.S. measures, export control and dual-use licensing, customs enforcement, and AML/CFT and counter-proliferation financing
• Public sector capacity: mandates, practice and coordination of customs, export control, financial supervision, the financial intelligence unit and other relevant authorities
• Private sector capacity: compliance practice, tools and training needs in the most exposed sectors, such as banks, logistics and freight forwarding, customs brokers, and traders of dual-use and industrial goods
• Academic and training capacity: existing university courses and professional training on sanctions and export controls
• Gap analysis and recommendations: comparison against international standards and good practice, with practical recommendations by stakeholder group

Tasks

• Inception: take part in the online kick-off workshop and submit an inception note (up to 3 pages) with a work plan, stakeholder map, proposed sectors and interviewees, and main sources
• Desk research: review the legal and regulatory framework, official guidance, statistics and published research
• Interviews: conduct at least 5 semi-structured interviews across public authorities, the financial sector, the logistics and trade sector, and academia or civil society, and submit a preliminary findings brief (up to 2 pages)
• Drafting: prepare a complete first draft in English, following the agreed template
• Revision: address comments from the International Expert and CSD over two review rounds and submit the final English version
• Regional expert training: present the country findings at the one-day regional expert training (Q3 2027)

Outputs

• Inception note
• Preliminary findings brief
• First, revised and final English versions of the document, with annexes listing interviewed institutions (anonymised where required) and sources
• Reviewed Armenian version
• Presentation for the regional expert training

All outputs are submitted electronically to the CSD Project Coordinator, using project templates.

Profile of the Expert

• Master's degree in law, economics, finance, international relations, public policy, or a related field
• Proven experience in qualitative research, including interviews with government and private sector representatives, and good knowledge of the relevant legal and institutional framework of Armenia
• Track record of research reports or policy papers, at least one in English
• Fluency in Armenian and excellent written English. Working knowledge of Russian is an asset.
• Established professional network in the public and private sectors of Armenia

Remuneration and General Conditions

• Remuneration: a daily fee in U.S. dollars, inclusive of all applicable taxes, paid for days delivered against approved outputs
• Independence: the Local Expert must be free from conflicts of interest. Current employment by, or contracts with, an institution within the scope of the assessment must be disclosed in the application
• Confidentiality and data security: all information obtained is confidential. The Local Expert will obtain informed consent from respondents and respect requests for anonymity
• Ownership and publication: all outputs are the property of CSD and may not be published or distributed without CSD's prior written approval. Authorship credit will be agreed with CSD; the Local Expert may ask not to be named

Selection Criteria

Applications will be assessed on technical expertise (40%), research and writing experience (30%), professional network and languages (15%), and financial offer (15%). Shortlisted candidates may be invited to an interview.

How to Apply

Please submit the following to info@csdinternational.com with the reference NA-Local Expert-Armenia in the subject line by 15 December 2026:

• CV
• Cover letter (up to 2 pages)
• One writing sample in English (up to 20 pages)
• Proposed daily fee in U.S. dollars
• Two professional references

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.