The Danish Embassy in Pretoria is looking for a new Trade Advisor

The Royal Danish Embassy in Pretoria is looking for an experienced and dynamic new Senior Trade Advisor at the Embassy.

The Senior Trade Advisor will be working in the Commercial Department of the embassy and report to the Head of Trade at the Embassy. The Trade-team is responsible for assisting Danish companies on the South African market and attracting private sector investments into South Africa. Currently the Trade-team has a very strong engagement in food & agriculture, water & environment and renewable energy sources/energy efficiency. Trade is a team comprising the team leader, four trade advisors and an intern.

Our new colleague will have a focus on developing projects within the water sector, introducing state-of-the-art Danish solutions to South African public and industrial players. The Senior Trade Advisor on Water will be coordinating the commercial effort closely with the Strategic Sector Cooperation team of the embassy.

Main tasks and responsibilities

You will be assigned to work with trade activities in South- and Southern Africa and knowledge share with other embassies in the Sub-Saharan region. A robust work experience in relevant industries and a good network among South African public and private stakeholders is a strong advantage.

You will be working on a consultancy basis for Danish companies. A high level of independency, personal initiative, feeling of responsibility and drive is therefore needed to succeed in the position. You are responsible for identifying market possibilities and projects and to secure engagement in these from Danish companies. The projects you implement should deliver strong value to the involved companies. You will be evaluated on the number and quality of projects within the water sector that you create. It is therefore important that your approach to work is structured and that you possess strong skills within sales and services as well as some degree of technical understanding of the water sector.

Required qualifications and experience

• A Master's degree in Economics, Business, Finance, Engineering or similar.
• Min. 3 years of relevant working experience, i.e. from relevant industries or in other private sector entities focusing on business development and trade promotion.
• Knowledge of Denmark and Danish companies is an advantage.
• Knowledge about the South African market and its economic development. 
• Experience dealing with public tenders and decision making in public supply companies.
• Willingness to travel abroad and locally - on a potentially frequent basis
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and be able to work independently, efficiently and be able to take initiatives.
• Applicants must also be able to work as part of a team, have strong analytical, problem-solving and networking skills, results-orientation, pro-activeness and work well under pressure.
• You must have SA nationality or hold a valid residence and working permit.
• Valid driver’s license.
• Excellent writing ability and verbal communication skills in English.
• The applicant must have a clean criminal record and obtain a Police Clearance Certificate from your residing country; the Danish Ministry will also perform a background check.  

We offer

• An exciting, inter-cultural and dynamic work environment with a wide range of diverse tasks;
• Great opportunities for further development of your professional and personal competences;
• A large degree of self-dependence;
• An informal workspace, where we care about each other’s well-being.

Employment conditions

• You will be offered permanent employment based on relevant legally binding labour market rules of South Africa.
• 3 month probation period.
• Your standard working hours will be 37 hours per week.
• You will be entitled to up to 25 working days of paid holiday per full calendar year.
• You will receive a competitive base salary. Additional allowances might be agreed based on your qualifications, relevant experience and proven work-related results in accordance with the Danish Embassy’s salary policy.
• As part of your salary, you will be covered by health insurance covering standard level sickness expenses with the Embassy paying 80% of the insurance premium including a shared UIF contribution.

Application and recruitment process

To apply for the position, please submit your application (motivational letter, CV, proof of relevant education, recommendations and 2-3 references) to [email protected] no later than July 25^th 2025.

The Embassy attaches great importance to equal opportunities for all and therefore welcomes applications from all qualified persons regardless of race, sex, religion, age or disability.

Selected candidates will be invited for interviews that are expected to take place in early August. Only candidates called for interview can expect to receive a reply to their application.

Questions

For any questions regarding the position, please contact Head of Trade, Jens Thomsen at [email protected].

About us

The Danish Embassy is part of the Danish Foreign Service. The Embassy handles bilateral relations between Denmark and South Africa. The Embassy also covers 8 other countries in the region. The Embassy employs more than app. 40 staff members, is headed by Ambassador Karin Poulsen and comprises - apart from the Trade-team - of an Operations and Sustainability team, a Strategic Sector Cooperation team, a Political Team and a Consular Team.