Director, Regional Integration Coordination Office at African Development Bank - AfDB

Position: 50092552
Location: Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire
Position Grade: EL5

The Complex

• Within the Regional Development, Integration, and Business Delivery Complex, the Bank has five (5) Regional Development and Business Delivery Offices, one in each region of Africa: North, South, East, West, and Central.
• The Regional Development and Business Delivery Offices are headed by Director Generals.
• The Regional Development, Integration, and Business Delivery Complex also includes a dedicated directorate for Nigeria, a department for Transition States, and a Regional Integration Coordination Office.
• One of the key mandates of the Regional Development, Integration, and Business Delivery Complex is the implementation of the Regional Integration Strategic Framework.
• The Regional Integration Strategic Framework is the Bank’s overarching strategy to support the operationalization of Integrate Africa, Agenda 2063, and the African Continental Free Trade Area.
• It aims to accelerate the free flow of goods, services, people, and capital across Africa.
• The Regional Integration Strategic Framework is underpinned by large-scale investments in regional infrastructure, especially energy, transport, water, and information and communications technology.

The Hiring Department

• As the custodian of Integrate Africa, the Regional Integration Coordination Office helps ensure strategic, programmatic, and operational coherence, as well as the efficient and transparent allocation of resources.
• The department helps mainstream regional integration into Bank strategies and operations.
• It monitors the performance of the regional integration portfolio, generates lessons-learned through periodic reviews, and provides strategic, policy, and operational insights to senior management to improve performance.   
• Externally, and in close collaboration with the Joint Secretariat Support Office, the department coordinates high-level policy dialogue with the African Union Commission, the Regional Economic Communities, and the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area  to drive investments and promote reforms that accelerate the implementation of Agenda 2063, Integrate Africa, and the African Continental Free Trade Area.
• The Regional Integration Coordination Office also pioneers the design, publication, and maintenance of flagship analytical products and advocacy tools such as the Africa Visa Openness Index and the Africa Regional Integration Index.

The Position

• The position of Director, Regional Integration Coordination Office reports to the Vice President of the Regional Development, Integration, and Business Delivery Complex. The position is key to the attainment of the Bank’s Integrate Africa objectives.
• The Director Regional Integration Coordination Office is responsible for all aspects of planning and execution of the work program of the department.
• The incumbent works closely with the Director Generals, the Deputy Director Generals, the Director the Joint Secretariat Support Office, and the Country Managers  to coordinate policy dialogue with the African Union and the the Regional Economic Communities and design and implement a robust pipeline of regional operations and regional public goods.
• Moreover, he/she is responsible for managing quality, risks, results, institutional initiatives, and compliance with Bank policies and procedures.
• The Director provides thought leadership on regional integration within the Bank and in engagement with external stakeholders.
• He/She is expected to demonstrate deep sector expertise across several functional areas especially policy dialogue, regional infrastructure, trade and investment promotion.

Key Functions
Under the general guidance and supervision of the Vice President of  the Regional Development, Integration, and Business Delivery Complex, the Director, Regional Integration Coordination Office will perform the following duties and responsibilities:

• Supervises the design, implementation, and monitoring of the Regional Integration Strategic Framework  and the Regional Integration Strategy Papers  in close collaboration with the Director Generals , the Deputy Director Generals, Director the Joint Secretariat Support Office, and Country Managers;
• Oversees the efficient management of a dedicated regional envelope for the financing of regional operations in low-income countries; 
• Collaborates with the Director Generals, the Deputy Director Generals, Country Managers , and Sector Directors to develop a robust pipeline of regional operations and regional public goods;
• Initiates, builds, nurtures, and strengthens existing partnerships and coalitions within and outside the Bank, especially with the African Union Commission, the Regional Economic Communities, the African Continental Free Trade Area, and development partners operating in the regional integration space;
• Mobilizes co-financing to help plug financing gaps in regional infrastructure, especially transport, water, information and communications technology, and energy;
• Provides strategic, policy, and operational advice to senior management to improve the performance of the Bank’s regional integration portfolio;
• Initiates programs to accelerate the implementation of critical African Union flagship programs and initiatives such as the African Continental Free Trade Area, the Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa , or the Single African Air Transport Market ;
• Represents the Bank in regional and global forums and performs high-level engagement and dialogue with senior government officials to promote reforms and support the implementation of Agenda 2063, the High Fives, and the African Continental Free Trade Area;
• Supervises the design, implementation, and maintenance of flagship regional integration knowledge products that are operationally relevant, help drive policy reforms, and cement the Bank’s position as a knowledge-broker on regional integration;
• Supervises the effective delivery of the department’s budget and ensures timely submission of periodic reports in accordance with Bank rules and regulations.

Competencies (Qualifications, Experience & Skills)

• A minimum of a Master’s Degree in Economics, International Relations/Trade, Law, Social or any other related international development fields;
• A minimum of ten (10) years’ relevant experience at increasingly senior levels and in multilateral organizations. Experience in regional integration, regional policy dialogue, infrastructure finance, and project management is highly desired;
• Demonstrated leadership, teamwork, and communications skills and ability to manage highly diverse teams;
• Solid understanding of Africa’s regional integration architecture, especially the workings of the African Union, the Regional Economic Communities, and the African Continental Free Trade Area;
• Strong capacity to analyse actions from the perspectives of stakeholders, and to translate strategic thinking into compelling action plans;
• Demonstrated ability to take prudent business risks and make effective, timely and well-determined decisions;
• Competence in the use of Bank standard software applications (SAP, Microsoft Office, Collaboration Suites);
• Ability to plan and manage staff to achieve high quality results and encourage innovation in an open team-based environment, inspiring trust and influencing and resolving differences across organizational boundaries;
• Ability to communicate effectively (written and oral) in English or French, preferably with a working knowledge of the other language.