Principal Legal Counsel - Environment and Climate Change - GECL.1 at African Development Bank - AfDB

Objectives
The principal objective of the Office of the General Counsel and Legal Services Department (GECL) is to protect the interests of the Bank, from legal liability, and as necessary to provide requisite legal defense of the Bank in disputes. GECL also provides legal support, legal advice and services to the Boards of the Bank Group, to the President, Vice-Presidents and the operational, as well as financial and administrative departments of the Bank. GECL ensures that Bank Group activities and operations are in compliance with its constitutive instruments, policies, procedures, as well as the principles and norms of international public law and international organizations law.

The main activities of the Public Sector Operations, Policy and Governance Division (GECL.1) are to provide legal support, advice, and services in connection with public sector transactions, projects and programs financed by the African Development Bank (ADB), the African Development Fund (ADF) and other special vehicles such as trust funds and special funds (Together the “Bank Group”).

Duties and Responsibilities
The incumbent will perform specialized legal actions requiring some supervision and is responsible for the execution of Public sectors operations transactions, as well as public-private partnerships, partial risk guarantees, partial credit guarantees and any other Bank instruments. These include the following:

Public Sector Operations - Environment and Climate Change:

• Assist other legal counsel in conducting an environmental and climate change legal appraisal in order to determine the best financing structure for a concerned project, in compliance with the applicable rules and procedures of the Bank Group.
• Participate in all Management meetings as required, including Senior Management meetings, to review financing transactions from an environmental and climate change perspective.
• Negotiate or assist in the negotiations of the legal documentation with stakeholders and if necessary for the success of the transaction, make appropriate revisions to the standard financing documentation, in compliance with the applicable rules and procedures of the Bank Group.
• Draft financing, environmental and climate change documentation.
• Prepare draft Board Resolutions for approvals of transactions and other operational matters stating the salient terms of the transaction.
• Prepare financing documentation for execution.
• Prepare legal opinions.
• Attend Bank meetings and provide any legal clarification that may be required on the documents submitted for consideration.
• Provide legal assistance to special funds on the environment and climate change.
• Provide legal assistance on the Climate Change Action Plan and actions comprised therein.
• Advise existing and planned Bank investments in the area of environmental and climate change.
• Assist operational departments and Senior Management to ensure that actions to protect the environment and combat climate actions are fully integrated into ongoing and planned operations and activities, and are equally reflected in Country and Regional Strategy papers, and all other relevant Bank Group documents.
• Advise on the revision of policies and procedures relevant to environment and climate change matters, and draft the said documents.
• Perform any other task as requested by Management.

Project Supervision
Following the approval of the financing to a recipient and the execution of the documentation:

• Review all documentation provided to determine whether the conditions of the financing have been fulfilled.
• Provide legal support services through the term of the financing, including interpretation of the terms of the agreement, preparing legal opinions on reallocation of the funds, cancellation of the loans/grants and any other legal issues.

Qualifications/Requirements
Including desirable skills, knowledge and experience

• A minimum of Master’s degree in law, preferably in environmental law and admission to the Bar of one of the African Development Bank member countries; or
• A Bachelor’s degree with a relevant combination of academic qualification in law e.g. Juris Doctor (JD) and with admission to the Bar of one of the African Development Bank member countries.
• A minimum of 6 (six) years of relevant professional experience in environmental law and climate change, with an established law firm, legal department of a private or public entity, or an international financial institution, with proven administrative skills and experience in major international financial transactions.
• Proven competence in development law as well as Public International Law and law of international organizations will be an advantage.
• Demonstrated communication, team building, inter-personal, writing and analytical skills.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills in English and/or French. Working knowledge of the second language will be an advantage.
• Competence in the use of standard software such as MS Word, Power Point, Excel. Knowledge of SAP.