Principal Highway Transport Officer at African Development Bank - AfDB

Reference: ADB/17/431
Location: Côte d’Ivoire
Grade: PL4
Position N°: 50093740

The Complex

• The Vice-Presidency for Private Sector, Infrastructure and Industrialization is central to the Bank’s mission of developing the private sector, improving infrastructure and accelerating industrialization.
• The complex main functions are to (i) strengthen the enabling environment for private sector [and financial sector] development conducive to inclusive growth and sustainable development, (ii) support the development of reliable and sustainable infrastructure, including cities and urban development, and (iii) place renewed emphasis on industrial and trade performance in support of structural transformation across Africa.
• The Complex leverages knowledge, co-financing, and partnerships to attract private capital and work with governments on delivering the Bank’s development agenda.

The Hiring Department

• The role of the Infrastructure and Urban Development Directorate is to foster infrastructure and urban development in Africa through appropriate policies and strategies as well as projects and programs interventions which the Bank might finance on national, regional or continent-wide basis.

The Position

• The Principal Highway Transport Officer will lead the development of policies, strategies and project and programs related to roads and highways development initiatives supported by the Bank in regional member countries.

The Purpose of the Job

• To act as the Bank's principal expert on Roads and Highways development with particular emphasis on policy, institutional development, project development, Public Private Partnerships (PPP), financing and regulation.
• To strengthen and maintain the Bank's understanding of the roads and highway subsector and its role in the development of the continent
• To advise on policy, institutional and regulatory reforms, and future investments in the subsector by the Bank and its regional member countries.
• To lead the identification, preparation, appraisal, and implementation supervision of roads and highways projects and programs.

Duties and Responsibilities
Under the general guidance and supervision of the Division Manager, the Principal Highway Transport Officer will perform the following duties and responsibilities:

Roads and Highways Policy, strategy, business plan:

• Devise, maintain and revise the roads and highways development business plan of the Bank in consultation with internal stakeholders and taking account of long-term trends in transport and logistics and the development of the continent;
• Ensure the appropriate implementation of the business plan through communication and advice to all relevant stakeholders in the Bank, particularly operations functions, and define a monitoring framework;
• Identify and develop any necessary policies to underpin the business plan;
• Consult as necessary with external partners and Regional and non-Regional Member Countries on the form and efficacy of the business plan.

Roads and Highways Knowledge:

• Manage a team to develop and maintain the Bank's expertise on roads and highways to support the development goals of the Bank and the continent;
• Devise the Bank's contribution to key roads and highways development themes and represent the Bank at global, regional and national conferences and workshops on roads and highway;
• Coordinate and work alongside key partners, such as other Multilateral Development Banks, the International Road Federation, and the African Transport Policy Program (SSATP) to design roads and highways programs and solutions for the economic and social development of Africa;
• Publish major studies and reports on roads and highways, taking into account the comparative advantage that the Bank can bring to bear to any specific subject or theme. Convene associated workshops and learning events to disseminate best practices across Africa;
• Develop and maintain, in collaboration with partners, a detailed database of statistics, publications, and economic models relating to roads and highways transport and services in Africa;
• Identify appropriate roads and highways training for internal and external stakeholders.

Roads and Highways Projects and Programs:

• Act as a focal point for advice to Regional Member Countries on roads and highways issues and lead policy dialogue with governments in advancing policy, regulatory and institutional reforms in the road sector;
• Lead the development of technical assistance programs to provide cutting edge advice on roads and highways development, private sector participation, highways concessions and foster public and private partnerships;
• Lead the origination and financial structuring of roads and highways projects in regional member countries in collaboration and with the support of operations staff based in the regions and ensuring the optimum use of all the Bank's financing instruments;
• Advise and support operational staff based in the regions on roads and highways projects implementation and ensure appropriate coordination of actions in supporting clients during the project procurement, execution and monitoring phase.

Selection Criteria
Including desirable skills, knowledge and experience:

• Hold at least a Master's Degree or its equivalent in Civil Engineering, Transportation/Traffic Engineering, Highway Engineering, or related discipline
• Dual qualification in Transportation Engineering and Business, Finance, or Management is desirable.
• Have a minimum of six (6) years of experience in highway infrastructure development in the public or private sector with proven experience in at least two key aspects including planning, design, construction, financing, regulation.
• Public and/or private sector experience involving Public Private Partnerships for ports development, concessions, or privatization.
• Having private sector experience will be an added advantage.
• Develop and deliver innovative solutions to clients - Proactively addresses clients’ needs.
• Collaborate within teams and across functional boundaries, provides own perspective and willingly receives diverse perspectives.
• Ability to make sense of complexity, interpret a wide range of information and make smart decisions.
• Effective consultation and advisory skills coupled with a client orientation to ensure relevancy.
• Range of inter-personal skills and an ability to vary their use according to the audience.
• Create, apply and share knowledge across the Bank to strengthen solutions for internal and/or external clients.
• Thorough knowledge of roads and highways development, Institutions and regulations.
• Foundational knowledge of road and highway transport services and trucking industry business models with ability to apply/recommend operationally relevant solutions and lessons for clients.
• Knowledge and experience in development and understanding of policy making process; project and program design, execution, monitoring and evaluation.
• Policy dialogue skills - Ability to identify and assess critical policy issues and actively dialogue with governments and/or other stakeholders to develop solutions.
• Ability to lead a team of specialists and to take forward projects, often in collaboration with other partners.
• Attention to detail to create quality output and to set standards for the team.
• Mentoring to develop skills within the team and to improve the quality of output and outcomes.
• Ability to assess cost/benefits of alternative options, select optimum solution and allocate budget and resources to achieve results.
• Ability to articulate clear objectives, set ambitious but achievable targets and monitor execution and results.
• Ability to communicate effectively (written and oral) in English or French, preferably with a working knowledge of the other.
• Competence in the use of Bank standard software (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint).
• Knowledge of SAP, HDM4, and broad knowledge of capabilities and limitations of roads and highway engineering software packages is desirable.