Principal Board Affairs Officer and Committee Secretary - Code at World Bank

Reference: ADB/19/146
Location: Abidjan, Cote D'ivoire
Grade: PL4
Position N°: 50068481

The Complex

• The President, plans, supervises and manages the business of the Bank Group. Under the direction of the Boards of Directors, the President conducts the business of the Bank and the African Development Fund and manages operations and activities in accordance with the Agreements establishing the African Development Bank and the African Development Fund.
• The President supervises several Departments and Units including Office of the President; Independent Development Evaluation Department; Integrity and Anti-Corruption Department; Compliance Review and Mediation Unit; Secretariat to the Sanctions Appeals Board; Administrative Tribunal; Office of the Auditor General; Group Risk Management Directorate; General Counsel and Legal Services Department; Communication and External Relations Department; Staff Integrity and Ethics Office and Office of the Secretary General & General Secretariat.

The Hiring Department

• The role of the Banks' Office of the Secretary General and the General Secretariat is to facilitate the delivery of the objectives of the Bank’s Ten Year Strategy, High 5s, and Development and Business Delivery Model by enhancing the decision-making process of the governance organs and forging better working relationships with the shareholders and host countries of the Bank. The Secretary General and the General Secretariat is comprised of:
  • The Immediate Office of the Secretary General which has the additional responsibility of managing the Records Management, Archives and Disclosure and Access to Information Section, the Corporate Governance Policy and Shareholder Relations Section and the Conference and Meetings Section;
  • A Board Affairs and Proceedings Division; and 
  • A Protocol, Privileges and Immunities Division.

The Position

• The overall objective for this job is to provide secretariat services for the Boards of Governors, the Boards of Directors and the Committee Operations and Development Effectiveness (CODE), including Drafting, Revising and Translating of reports of meetings while ensuring proper arrangement of Board of Directors and Governors meetings and their subsidiary organs are well conducted.

Duties and Responsibilities
Under the supervision and guidance of the Chief Board Affairs & Advisory Services Officer, the Principal Board Affairs Officer and Committee Secretary will:

• Contribute to the effectiveness and efficiency of the Boards of Directors and Boards of Governors and the CODE Committee by enhancing the decision-making process;
• Assist the CODE Chair in preparing and conducting the Committee meetings and advise on any relevant matters ;
• Prepare background papers, analyses and recommendations to be used by Committee Chairperson and members;
• Coordinate the activities of the CODE Committee and manage the relationship between Senior Management and members;
• Cover Committee meetings, analyse and determine the thrust of the discussions/deliberations and then synthesize, compose the main decisions and conclusions reached;
• Contribute to strengthening the effectiveness of Committee through research and submission of documents on issues under consideration;
• Populate the Board Dashboard and follow up on Committee recommendations;
• Ensure the coverage of relevant Boards of Governors meetings; analyse and determine the thrust of the discussions/deliberations and then synthesize, draft the main decisions and conclusions reached;
• Translate, when and as necessary, in the other working language of the Bank the synthesis and reports drafted.
• Carry out any other assignment required by service exigency

Selection Criteria

• Hold at least a Master’s degree or its equivalent in Communication, Economics, International Relations, Development Studies, Development Finance, Social Science and other related disciplines;
• Have a minimum of  six years (6) years of relevant professional experience in similar organizations with sound analytical aptitudes;
• Strong and proven translation skills with sound financial knowledge;
• Ability for work long and unusual hours to meet short deadlines since the timeliness of these documents is of crucial importance;
• Having private sector experience will be an added advantage;
• High analytical and drafting skills; excellent skills in presenting written and verbal communication;
• Have the capacity to identify and meet the clients' needs within the framework of the established rules on the processing of reports prepared, and to identify appropriate solutions as well as alternatives when necessary;
• Have the ability to work quickly and under pressure; attention to details, resourcefulness;
• Competence in the use of standard software used in the Bank as well as translation software or machine aided translation;
• Capacity for multi-skilling and multi-tasking, Excellent interpersonal skills, strong communication skills;
• Ability for team work in a multicultural and diversified environment and a balanced judgment;
• Proof of discretion, tactfulness and flexibility, taking account of the clients served: the Board of Governors, Plenipotentiaries, the Board of Directors, and Senior Management;
• Competence in translation and writings, good at summarizing and synthetizing;
• Ability to communicate effectively (written and oral) in English or French, preferably with a working knowledge of the other;
• Competence in the use of standard Microsoft Office Suite applications (Word, Excel, Access and Power Point); knowledge of SAP (or other integrated document management system or quantitative and qualitative data analysis packages) is an added advantage