Avis d’appel à manifestation d’intérêt pour le recrutement d’un Consultant en environnement favorable AFAWA, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT TO SUPPORT THE AFAWA ENABLING ENVIRONMENT

1. The Bank:

Established in 1964, the African Development Bank (the “Bank”) is the premier Pan-African development institution promoting economic growth and social progress across the continent. There are 81 member states, including 54 in Africa (Regional Member Countries). The Bank’s development agenda is delivering the financial and technical support for transformative projects that will significantly reduce poverty through inclusive and sustainable economic growth. In order to sharply focus the objectives of the Ten-Year Strategy (2013 – 2022) and ensure greater developmental impact, five major areas (High 5s) have been identified for scaling up, namely, light up and power Africa, feed Africa, industrialize Africa, integrate Africa and improve the quality of life for Africans.

2. The complex:

The Vice-Presidency for ‘Agriculture, Human, and Social Development’ is a Sector Complex focusing on two of the Bank’s Ten-Year Strategy High 5s priority of “Feed Africa” and “Improve Quality of Life for the People of Africa”. The complex objectives are (i) to develop, policy and strategy; (ii) provide deep sector expertise to the Regions by gathering pools of experienced individuals who can be consulted to provide sector expertise on complex transactions; develop new financing instruments; (iv) the Vice President will act as the spokesperson to represent the Bank with external stakeholders on aspects of “Feed Africa” and Improve Quality of Life for the People of Africa”.

3. The hiring department:

Within the Complex, the Gender, Women and Civil Society Department is designed to improve coherence and coordination across Complexes on Gender and Civil Society Organization issues. The Department ensures strategic priorities are reflected in resources allocation, enhances monitoring and management of performance, and strengthens the focus on results.

The Department also houses a number of special initiatives including the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) a flagship initiative of the Bank that aims to bridge the gender gap in access to finance and unleash women’s entrepreneurial capacity across the continent. AFAWA’s holistic approach focuses on 3 pillars: (a) access to finance, leveraging AfDB’s various instruments such as lines of credit, equity investments and risk sharing mechanisms, (b) technical

assistance, to financial institutions as well as women entrepreneurs, and (c) policy dialogue to reform the legal and regulatory frameworks affecting women businesses.

4. Background of the AFAWA initiative:

The AfDB started the implementation of the AFAWA initiative in 2021.Through this initiative, the Bank plans to unlock US $5 billion in new financing for women led and women-owned businesses across Africa by 2026. The Bank is doing this through the AFAWA guarantee for growth program in partnership with the Africa Guarantee Fund, where the African Development Bank is helping to de-risk women-led small and medium sized enterprises and incentivize financial institutions to increase lending to women. The Bank is also utilizing its traditional instruments of Lines of Credit, Trade Finance and Equity to ensure a carve out of 30% is allocated to women SMEs with partnering financial institutions on the continent.

The AFAWA initiative is also offering technical assistance/advisory to partner financial institutions to build their capacities to support women SME markets and tailor products and services more suitably to the types of businesses women run; and offer capacity building services for the women SMEs. To enhance the capacity of Women Entrepreneurship Enablers, in 2021, the Bank launched the first AFAWA Women Entrepreneurship Enablers call for proposals. USD 2.5 million in Grants is being provided to the top 10 women business associations, incubators, accelerators and such like organizations to strengthen their capacity in supporting women entrepreneurs alongside financial institutions and governments in 26 African countries. This program is expected to impact 16,000 women SMEs.

AFAWA is also ensuring a conducive overall business enabling environment for Women SMEs. The Bank is supporting policy dialogues to address women’s property rights, legal status, and access to productive resources and tools such as land, technology and finance, in order to increase women’s business participation and their economic, social and political empowerment. In addition, the Bank continues to engage with governments and regulators on expanding the modes of collateral beyond land in order to ease access to finance. To date, the African Development Bank has approved over USD 1 billion in financing on the continent for the purpose of on lending to Women SMEs. As part of its efforts to successfully roll out the implementation of projects related to access to finance and technical assistance in partnership with the Africa Guarantee Fund, Partnering Financial Institutions and Women Enablers, AFAWA seeks to recruit the services of medium-term individual consultants to support its portfolio of projects in the Central and Nigeria, East Africa, North and West Africa, and Southern Africa.

1. Qualifications and Experience The consultant should have:
   1. Master’s degree in Public Policy, Business, Economics or a related field;
   2. At least five (5) years of relevant, successful experience in supporting policy decisions in public institutions especially central banks and ministries of finance or in private institutions;

• • • Understanding of and experience in handling enabling environment programs related to financial inclusion for women and women entrepreneurs in Africa;

1. 1. Professional experience with proven competence in Financial Inclusion roadmap and strategy formulation and implementation is required;
   2. Relevant experience in planning and implementing technical assistance for policy reform and institutional capacity building in entrepreneurship, access to finance, access to markets and trade;
   3. Ability to perform successfully as a member of multiple project-related teams;

• • • Excellent communications and writing ability; Strong computer literacy skills;
    • Fluency in English is required and a good working knowledge of French is an advantage.

1. 1. Some work experience in the private sector and in a development project environment is desirable;
   2. Excellent Analytical Skills;
   3. Strong project management and organizational skills;

• • • Competence in the use of standard Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint) required; knowledge of SAP is desirable.
    • A national of the Bank’s Member Country.

The consultants will be home based with occasional travels to projects in different regions.

6. Technical and financial proposal

Shortlisted   candidates   will    be   invited   to   submit   a    technical   and   financial    proposal

for the assignment. An interview will be held with the candidates who obtained over 70% following assessment of their proposals. Final ranking will be based on 50% of the scores obtained following assessment of proposals, and 50% of the score obtained from the interview scores.

7. The eligibility criteria

The establishment of the shortlist and the selection procedure will comply with the Rules and Procedures for the Use of Consultants for Projects Financed by the African Development Bank Window, 2008 edition revised in 2012, which are available on the Bank’s website at: http://www.afdb.org

8. The Bank is under no obligation

The Bank is under no obligation to shortlist any individual who expresses interest. It should be noted that the interest shown by an Individual Consultant does not imply any obligation on the part of the Bank to include them on the shortlist.

9. The duration of the services

The duration of the services is estimated at 6 months, renewable and the start date is expected to be: 15 June 2023.

10. Location of Assignment

The Consultant will be based in the AfDB Regional Headquarters offices in Abidjan.

11. Expressions of interest

Expressions of interest in English must be submitted by e-mail, to the address mentioned below, no later than 19 May 2023 at 5 p.m. While applying, please mention « AFAWA Enabling environment Consultant « .

Interested international individual consultants should send applications at the below listed email addresses.

For the attention of: S.BALDE@AFDB.ORG

And copy to: E.KOUADIO@AFDB.ORG and R.SANON@AFDB.ORG