Chief Financial Sector Strategy Officer, PIFD0 at African Development Bank - AfDB

Reference: ADB/20/083
Location: Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire
Grade: PL3
Position N°: 50093718

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 primary role of the Financial Sector Development (FSD) Department is to help the Regional Member Countries (RMCs) increase the reach, depth, and breadth of their financial systems, while safeguarding financial stability. The Department has four long-term objectives: (i) development of a vibrant private sector through an inclusive access by households and enterprises to financial services; (ii) strengthening markets participants; (iii) developing efficient capital markets, and (iv) deepening regional financial integration.
• Paired with other Industrialization, infrastructure and Private Sector complex departments, the FSD Department is responsible for implementing the Bank Group’s Financial Sector Development Policy and Strategy 2014-2019 (FSDPS) towards vibrant, innovative, robust and competitive financial systems, both national and regional, and in both the public and private sector levels of RMCs.
• FSD plays a transversal role across the Bank’s five strategic priorities, applying its financial deepening and access tool kit to the High Five (H5) agenda. Fundamentally, the scalability and policy momentum inherent in the H5 agenda create an important opportunity for expanded relevance of the FSD core skill-set: flexible financing instruments and delivery frameworks for financial inclusion, smart resource mobilization and capital markets development. FSD leverages partnerships to bring about greater developmental impact in financial sector development.

The Position
Under the supervision of the Director, Financial Sector Development Department, the Chief Financial Sector Strategy Officer will contribute to the following functions:

• Strategy Development: Lead the periodic drafting, design, review, and approval process of the Bank’s Financial Sector Development Strategy and provide sector inputs into country, regional and other sector strategies as required
• Financial Sector Research and Support:  Conduct research and prepare draft papers for management on strategic themes relating financial sector operations and produce briefing papers and reports for management as requested.
• Coordinate the Department’s Non-lending work programme including the Sector Policy dialogue at country level: guide the design and implementation of the department’s non lending work programme including policy dialogues, identification of resources and preparation of funding requests as may be required
• Coordination and Engagement: Coordinate and engage with internal and external stakeholders to ensure a good understanding of the department’s strategy and activities.

Duties and Responsibilities
Under the supervision of the Director, the Chief Financial Sector Strategy Officer will perform the following duties:

Strategy Development:

• Support external and internal evaluations of Bank financial and other relevant sector strategies with a view to incorporating key findings into future financial sector strategies;
• Liaise and coordinate with internal and external stakeholders to ensure their understanding and buy in to the financial sector strategy and alignment of strategy with the Bank’s overall strategy;
• Disseminate financial sector strategy internally and externally;
• Lead the drafting, design, review, and approval process of the Financial Sector Development Strategy and subsequent revisions, and
• Contribute to drafting of other country / sector strategies and policies on behalf of the Financial Sector Department as may be required.

Financial Sector Research and Support:

• Conduct research and draft papers for management on financial sector themes including briefing papers and reports on AfDB initiatives, policies and programs of member countries and other development partners, and
• Provide analytical support to PIFD Management on country and sector programs, approaches of other Development Finance Institutions, various aspects of Policy/Strategy documents, private sector operations (PSO), and overall performance in member countries;

Coordinate the Department’s Non-lending work Programme and initiate the Sector Policy dialogue at country level:

• Guide the design and implementation of the department’s non-lending work programme including the   initiation of policy dialogue at country level, identification of resources and preparation of funding requests as may be required;
• Provide guidance in the processing and administration of technical assistance (TA) projects for which Financial Sector Development is responsible.
• Create and lead the PIFD knowledge hub that will be a one-stop reference point for the department.

Coordination and Engagement:

• Coordinate and engage with clients, other MDBs/IFIs and private sector operators to establish and maintain collaboration and free flow of information.
• Coordinate and engage with staff from other Departments, including, but not limited to, Private Sector Department, Strategy Department, Office of the General Counsel, Risk Management Department, Independent Evaluation Department, to ensure comprehensive and consistent response to issues raised related to Financial Sector Strategy and Policy.

Other:

• Assist in preparing presentations and speaking notes as required.
• Represent the department in internal and external meetings, including high-level events, conferences, policy dialogues etc. as required.

Selection Criteria

• At least a Master's degree or equivalent in Economics, Management, Public Administration, or related fields; preferably with advanced training.   
• A minimum of seven (7) years of relevant post-graduate professional experience in public policy or DFIs
• Working knowledge of AfDB procedures and policies in a wide range of areas including project processing, project administration, and general administration.
• Specific knowledge on NSO is required
• Ability to research, analyze, and check data from external and internal sources, reconcile or explain inconsistencies and perform statistical calculations.
• Ability to conduct analyses of operational and procedural issues and make recommendations to improve the effectiveness of the department's operational work.
• Strong analytical thinking with the ability to analyze relationships among several parts of a problem or situation; break down a complex task into manageable parts in a systematic way; recognize several likely causes of events or several consequences of actions; and anticipate obstacles and think ahead about next steps.
• Strong planning and organizing skills to handle many tasks with deadlines.
• Financial economic policy: Demonstrates broad knowledge of economic policy development; demonstrates strong analytical skills and writing ability to help identify and assess policy issues in support of policy dialogue;
• Communication: Provides clear and concise oral and written communication; presents oral information with clarity and appropriate style and adapts language and style to suit the requirements of a particular audience.
• Problem-solving: Applies business knowledge to the resolution of problems and identifies solutions to the benefit of the client (internal and external) and the organization.
• Team working and relations: Works with others to maximize the effectiveness of the team as a whole, sharing the knowledge and workload. Develops strong working relationships with colleagues and contributes to creation of a positive team environment Ability to work and cooperate with others from diverse backgrounds.
• Sector representation: Demonstrates ability to coordinate, participate in, and act as a catalyst for, strategic cross-sector dialogues within the networks, across countries, among Bank colleagues and other development institutions, governments and other organizations.
• Capacity to conduct independent research and analyses, identify problems, propose solutions, and make recommendations to Management
• Mentor and develop junior staff
• 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 MS office applications (Word, Excel, Access, and PowerPoint).