REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST FOR AN INDIVIDUAL POLICY AND STRATEGY CONSULTANT

African Development Bank

Strategy and Operational Policies Department (SNSP)

Rue Joseph Anoma, 01 BP 1387 Abidjan 01 Cote d’Ivoire

Brief Description of the Assignment : Under the overall supervision of the Director, the main responsibility of the Consultant will be to provide analytical inputs to the design, review, revision, and consolidation of strategies and policies at the country/region, sector, and also at the institutional levels. The Consultant’s assignment may be modified for other related tasks so long as they are consistent with his/her qualification and experience.

Department issuing the request : SNSP

Place of assignment : 

Duration of the assignment :

Tentative Date of commencement :

Deadline for applications : October 3, 2019 at 17:00 GMT See below

Detailed Terms of reference for the assignment :

Applications to be submitted by email only to : Months October 15, 2019

a.niyubahwe@afdb.org; a.c.traore@afdb.org; h.majoul@afdb.org interested consultants are invited to submit a CV and Cover Letter.

Any questions and requests for clarifications may be sent to: a.niyubahwe@afdb.org

Terms of Reference

Background

The Bank

Established in 1964, the African Development Bank (AfDB) is the premier pan-African development institution, promoting economic growth and social progress across the continent. With 80 Member countries, including 54 in Africa (Regional Member Countries), the Bank’s development agenda is to deliver financial and technical support to transformative projects in Africa that will support the Bank’s twin objectives of inclusive and sustainable economic growth. In order to sharpen the objectives of the Bank Group’s Strategy 2013 – 2022, and ensure greater developmental impact, five major operational areas (i.e High 5s) have been identified. The High 5s include “Light Up and Power Africa”, “Feed Africa”, “Industrialize Africa”, “Integrate Africa”, and “Improving the quality of life for the people of Africa”.

The Department

The Strategy and Operational Policies Department (SNSP) within the Senior Vice-Presidency complex of the Bank is responsible for developing the corporate vision and the strategic perspectives for the Bank through formulating, revising and providing advice on operational policies and procedures. SNSP works across the institution, helping to ensure strategic and policy focus in decision-making, and improving alignment of resources with strategic priorities. SNSP is also mandated to contribute to the development of new ideas and concepts for corporate initiatives and also to advise the Bank on innovation and institutional efficiency-related matters. As part of its corporate assignments, SNSP provides regular inputs to the Bank review processes through the Senior Management Coordination Committee (SMCC) and the Bank’s Operations Committee (OpsCom).

Recent refinements in the Bank’s strategic direction and organizational restructuring (including in particular the adoption of the High 5s, the elaboration of a new Development and Business Delivery Model, and the re-engineering of the Bank Group’s existing business processes, organizational culture, policies and procedures) have made necessary the Bank to revise/review some of its operational policies, strategies and guidelines to make them reflective of these new developments.

Accordingly, and as part of its 2019-2021 Work Program, SNSP has committed to the completion of a number of deliverables including but not limited to: (i) sector and thematic strategies, policies and guidelines – for e.g. the Bank’s new Transport Sector Policy, revised Non-Concessional Debt Accumulation Policy, and the People Strategy; (ii) outreach activities and trainings; and (iii) operational studies and research papers.

To this effect, SNSP is seeking individual consultancy services to support its work in the formulation, revising and advising on the Bank Group operational policies and strategies. The Consultant is expected to work closely with staff in SNSP and other Bank departments to deliver high quality Bank operational documents.

Scope of the Assignment

Under the general supervision of the Director, the Consultant will carry out the following activities :

• Provide technical and analytical support to the Director and Manager on the formulation and the review of the policies and strategies, and ensure their alignment with both the strategic planning orientations, the Bank’ Long-Term Strategy (2013-2022) and the High 5s priority areas ;

• Provide analytical inputs to the formulation of the new Transport Sector Policy, the Non-Concessional Debt Accumulation Policy, the People Strategy and the Gender Strategy ;

• Provide support to the preparation of creditworthiness assessments of the Bank’s Regional Member Countries (RMCs) as part of the 2020 work program ;

• Update the graduation projection scenarios and calendar for the African Development Fund (ADF) eligible RMCs, and prepare the quarterly review of the African Development Bank (ADB) sovereign approvals to ADF countries ;

• Provide support to the preparation of the upcoming dissemination workshops of the Policy on Non-sovereign Operations in the Bank’s Headquarters and in five RMCs ;

• Review and provide technical support on emerging matters and any operational documents generated from other Bank departments and units ;

• Provide inputs to the review of documents and operational activities through the SMCC, OpsCom, Credit Risk Committee (CRC), as well as other relevant platforms ;

• Contribute to internal innovation activities led by SNSP (g., Innopitch, the Bank’s innovation platform, etc.) ;

• Represent SNSP on Inter-departmental Initiatives/Projects/Tasks, as well as on country and regional support initiatives and projects.

Expected Deliverables :

The following key deliverables are expected for this assignment :

• Technical and analytical support provided to SNSP with respect to the development and the review of key Bank Group’s operational policies, strategies and guidelines, including the Transport Sector Policy, the revised Non-Concessional Debt Accumulation Policy, the People Strategy and the Gender Strategy ;
• Completion of the creditworthiness assessment notes and Countries special risk assessment notes for selected RMCs ;
• High-quality analytical notes on the Bank Group’s operations documents ;
• Successful completion of the NSO Policy Dissemination Workshops.

Qualifications and Experience :

SNSP is looking for a proactive candidate who is committed and driven to deliver high-quality outputs.

The key selection criteria for the position include the following :

• Citizenship of a Member Country (regional or non-regional) of the Bank ;
• Master’s degree in economics, international development, development economics, international relations, or related development fields and a broad knowledge of issues around socio-economic development in Africa ;
• A minimum of 6 years of relevant experience; combination of proven knowledge of policy issues around economic development and operational experience, with solid analytical skills; good understanding of the main economic development concepts and the specificities of Regional Members Countries (RMCs); previous experience working in an International Organization would be an asset ;
• Strong ability to identify, analyze and synthesize conclusions into recommendations on strategy and policy-related documents, for country regional, operational and sector departments ;
• Previous exposure to the Bank’s existing processes and instruments in connection with the delivery of the Bank’s Long-Term Strategy (2013-2022), the High 5s Agenda, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) ;
• Experience in preparing country risk assessment notes.
• Experience working for, interacting with a regional member country’s government ;
• Demonstrated strong analytical skills, dynamism, results-orientation and problem-solving capability ;
• Superior client relationship management skills and capacity to deliver high-quality work within tight deadlines ;
• Ability to support interaction with a wide range of target audiences and build and maintain successful relations with key stakeholders ;
• Proven ability to take initiative, innovate, and adapt while responding to competing demands on multiple projects ;
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English or French, with a good working knowledge of the other language ;
• Proven ability to collaborate within teams and across departments, applying a practical approach to problem solving ;
• Competence in the use of standard MS Office applications (Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint), and good knowledge of operational management systems.

Duration and Location of the Assignment :

The consultant is expected to start on 15^th October 2019, with a contract duration of 12 calendar months, with possible extension. The consultant shall report to the task manager and the Director, SNSP. Day-to-day management of the consultancy shall be assured by the task manager. The consultancy will be based in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire and will require full-time presence in the Bank’s offices. Field missions might occasionally be required.

Remuneration :

Remuneration will be commensurate with experience, in line with the Bank’s compensation guidelines. The consultancy fees will be paid on a monthly lump sum base. In addition, for candidates who need to travel to take up this assignment, a round trip economy class air-tickets with the shortest route will be provided. The candidate will be responsible for obtaining personal health insurance at his or her own cost. The coverage should include all medical expenses, including those resulting from illness or injury incurred during the duration of the assignment.

Eligibility Criteria :

The position is open to nationals of one of the Member Countries of the AfDB. Interested applicants are requested to send an updated Curriculum Vitae (CV) and a Cover Letter. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and may be asked to participate in a skills assessment exercise.

Application and Evaluation Process :

Interested candidates are required to express their interest by submitting their CVs and Cover Letter detailing their qualifications and experiences to the email addresses provided on the Cover Page by October 3, 2019 at 17:00 GMT. The prospective consultants’ expression of interest will be evaluated based on the following criteria and weights:

Only consultants who will score more than 70% will be short-listed and invited to submit a financial proposal.