Manager, Water Coordination and Partnerships Division - AHWS1 at African Development Bank - AfDB

Reference: ADB/17/108/2
Location: Côte d’Ivoire
Grade: PL2
Position N°: 50092415

The Complex

• The Vice Presidency for ‘Agriculture, Human, and Social Development’ is a Sector Complex focusing on 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 pool of experienced individuals who can be consulted to provide sector expertise on complex transactions; (iii) develop new financing instruments; (iv) the Vice President will act as the spoke person to represent the Bank with external stakeholders on aspects of “Feed Africa” and “Improve Quality of Life for the People of Africa”.

The Hiring Department

• The Water Development and Sanitation Department is responsible for the coordination of the Bank's water development and sanitation-related activities to enhance synergies and contribute to achievement of all High 5s (Feed Africa, Industrialize Africa, water-related Power and Light Africa, Integrate Africa, and Improve the Quality of Life).
• Through its two Divisions: Water Coordination and Partnerships, and Water Security and Sanitation, and the African Water Facility, the Department supports regional hubs in the development and promotion of new knowledge, approaches and tools for green and inclusive water resources development and management, and for improved sanitation.
• In so doing, the Department leads the scaling-up of the Bank's contribution to Africa's efforts to attain water security and sanitation for sustainable socio-economic transformation.

The Position

• The Manager, Water Coordination and Partnerships Division reports to the Director, Water Development and Sanitation.
• He/She is responsible for providing for providing leadership and supervising the personnel and activities of the Division, and for supporting the related initiatives and trust funds under The Water Development and Sanitation Department.

The main work objectives are to:

• Lead the Division's, and the Department's contribution to the Bank's resources mobilization efforts for pertinent sectors by fostering strategic partnerships for leveraging funding and knowledge; through the development and implementation of innovative financing mechanisms; and through promotion of private sector engagement in water development and sanitation as a source of financing, technology and management systems that improve efficiency of service provision;
• Foster effective coordination of water-related activities in the Bank and beyond - including serving Serve as the focal person of the Water Coordination Committee secretariat to coordinate all water related activities undertaken by the Bank, for internal as well as external contributions; Facilitate multi-sector collaboration around water; and support the sharing of information and knowledge on developments in the water sector within the Bank, on the continent and globally;
• Contribute to the development and review of water development and sanitation sector policies and strategies; and promote their implementation in relevant Bank operations identified, developed and executed through the regional hubs;
• Develop and disseminate knowledge and provide technical guidance and expertise to various Bank units and complexes, directly and in collaboration with various initiatives and trust funds within the Department, namely the Rural Water and Sanitation Initiative, the African Water Facility and the Multi Donor Water Partnership Program; and strengthen the sector monitoring and evaluation  function to maximize the Bank's contribution to Africa's development in water and sanitation.

Duties and Responsibilities

• The Manager, Water Coordination and Partnerships Division, under the oversight of the Director, Water Development and Sanitation, plans, organizes, supervises and directs the work to ensure an efficient and effective delivery of results assigned to the Division.

The Manager performs the following:

Managing and Supervising the Division:

• Leads, supervises and carries out the strategic direction of the Water Coordination and Partnerships Division; evaluates their performance; and promotes and organizes team work among the staff of the Division to achieve the objectives of the Division and the Department;
• Determines and manages the human and financial resource requirements of the Division; participates in the selection of staff, provides management support to the staff and facilitates their full performance in technical work; identifies the staff's training and career development needs; prepares their periodic performance evaluations and resolves staff disputes/complaints;
• Prepares and leads the implementation of the work program of the Division, determining priorities and allocating resources for the timely delivery of outputs; fosters teamwork and communication among staff in the Division and across organizational boundaries; manages the activities undertaken; and, ensures that the key performance indicators set for the Division are met;
• Oversees programmatic/administrative tasks necessary for the functioning of the Division, including preparation of budgets, reporting on performance; recruits staff, taking due account institutional values; manages, guides, develops and trains staff under his/her supervision;
• Participates in and/or chairs meetings for the Division, the Department, Inter-Departmental Working Groups, Water Coordination Committee, donor and partner meetings related to the health and water initiatives and trust funds under Water Coordination and Partnerships Division, as well as other meetings related to the work of the Division;
• Controls the professional quality of the documents produced by the staff of the Division;
• Fosters an environment that stimulates and rewards innovation, creativity and accountability for results, and motivate staff to contribute to delivering significant developmental impact for Africa's growth.

Coordination and Collaboration within the Bank for Water Security:

• Leads the Secretariat for the water coordination body of the Bank (Water Coordination Committee) to ensure efficient coordination of the water-related activities to foster multi-sector collaboration around water and maximize synergies towards water security and sustainable social economic development;
• Fosters an integrated approach to the design and implementation of water-related activities including providing guidance on knowledge development and management on water resources in general and the Bank's water-related operations in particular, and informing on decision-making for project development and implementation of multi-objective water-related projects;
• Promotes coherence of the Bank's action in water development and sanitation across regions and collaboration to ensure synergies between the water development and sanitation and other water- related complexes of the Bank;
• In collaboration with Resource Mobilization and Partnerships and the Syndication and Financial Technical Services departments, supports regional hubs and Regional Member Countries (RMCs) in mobilizing resources through providing advisory services for innovative financing approaches and crowding in private sector, facilitating co-financing arrangements with other development partners for large scale investments, providing technical support in accessing climate related finance and project preparation facilities;
• Leads the preparation of annual work plan and budget of the department's activities related to water resources development and management.

Strategic Partnerships, Networking and Sector Knowledge:

• Advises the Director on issues related to water development and sanitation and defends before the Board papers originating from the Department;
• Contributes to forging strong strategic partnerships with multilateral and bilateral organizations and regional organizations to leverage resources and support business development in regional hubs in the area of water, sanitation and public health, and to supporting the Vice President’s role as the Bank's spokesperson to external audiences;
• Develops and maintains cooperation and co-financing relations with the other development agencies and organizations; may lead important and sensitive missions to the member countries and partner organizations and agencies; may represent the Bank Group in major international conferences and meetings especially on water development and sanitation;
• Supervises the development, and recommends implementation, of innovative financing mechanisms, as well as technical and management approaches to promote access to water development and sanitation across regional member countries, including through public-private partnerships, and improvement of the overall governance of these sectors;
• Leads or contributes to Economic Sector Works in countries and regions that help to inform and improve the design of new operations for greater impacts;
• Organizes and or represents the Bank at high level strategic meetings and conferences on water security, sanitation and hygiene;
• Coordinates cross-departments' inputs for Bank-wide participation in regional and worldwide water- related events and conferences.

Sector Policies and Strategies; and Sector Monitoring and Evaluation:

• Provides expertise and leadership in the development and review of Bank Group's policies, rules, regulations, norms and standards especially related to water and sanitation to ensure that all relevant issues are adequately addressed, and solutions and options are provided from an integrated perspective;
• Promotes an integrated approach to the preparation of water-related sections of Country Strategy Papers and Regional Integration Strategy Papers; as well as country and regional development programs and projects as a support to regional hubs;
• Monitors the implementation of the Bank's water policy;
• Advises on / promotes implementation of relevant sector policies and strategies within the Bank;
• Oversees the monitoring and evaluation function of the Department;
• Performs other duties as assigned by the supervisor.

Selection Criteria
Including desirable skills, knowledge and experience:

• Hold at least a Master's degree or its equivalent in either Water Resources Engineering, Sanitary Engineering, Water Supply, Economics, Social Sciences or closely related disciplines;
• Have a minimum of eight (8) years of extensive and progressive experience in an internationally recognized financial or development Institution, three (3) years of which should be at a managerial level;
• Experience in water or sanitation sector development and policy support in developing countries
• Including in Africa. Good knowledge of private sector contribution to water development; and innovative financing mechanisms;
• Recognized sector expert with deep knowledge of integrated water resources development in Africa, with a focus on research and policy, particularly related to water or sanitation; and ability to analyze and evaluate critical matters pertaining to a broad spectrum of environmental health, water and sanitation issues and provide policy advice;
• Experience in planning, organizing, managing and coordinating the activities of similar units; in forging effective partnerships, and in supervising Division's staff, organizing teams, and providing managerial support;
• Experience in delivering high quality operational products and services (economic analyses, research advice, sector studies and reviews);
• Client oriented with good managerial skills in an multicultural environment
• Knowledge of operational policies, rules, procedures and practices of the Bank or comparable institution;
• Ability to communicate effectively (written and oral) in English or French, with a working knowledge of the other;
• Competence in the use of standard Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint); knowledge of SAP is desirable.