Principal Research Economist at African Development Bank - AfDB

The Complex

• The core mandate of the Vice Presidency (ECVP) is to lead the Bank Group on prioritizing the generation, analysis, dissemination, brokering and implementation of relevant knowledge solutions in all High-5 operational priorities and the cross-cutting themes of its Ten-Year Strategy.
• Such solutions must be a clear response to priority development challenges facing regional member countries (RMCs), individually or collectively and need to involve RMCs in both the planning and implementation of the solutions.
• The solutions include:
  • Research on major development issues facing Africa and their relation to global economic governance and other major global public goods
  • Country diagnostics and future perspectives
  • Policy dialogue and advisory services
  • Economic, sector, and thematic knowledge work
  • Improving national and sub-regional statistical systems
  • Preparation, design and support to implementation of public financial management and Governance operations
  • Capacity development for policy formulation and implementation;
  • Technical assistance and advice related to RMCs’ management of natural resources
  • Knowledge dissemination and development of national, regional, and inter regional knowledge networks.

The Hiring Department / Division

• The Macroeconomics Policy, Forecasting and Research Department (ECMR) is dedicated to research on major development issues facing Africa and their relation to global economic governance and other major global public goods.
• It provides economic research intelligence to support the Bank’s operational effectiveness in the regional member countries through rigorous micro-and macro-economic policy analyses, policy dialogue and technical assistance implemented in collaboration with other Departments in the Economic Governance and Knowledge Management Vice Presidency (ECVP) Complex, and other Sector Complexes of the Bank Group to enhance the operational effectiveness of the Bank in achieving the High 5s.
• The activities of the Department are structured around the Macroeconomic Policy, Debt Sustainability and Forecasting on one side, and the Microeconomics, Institutional and Development Impact, on the other.
• The Microeconomic, Institutional and Development Impact Division (ECMR.2) focuses on microeconomic research designed to improve the effectiveness of the Bank’s Operations.
• The Division leads the Bank’s assessments of development additionalities of projects and provision of knowledge solutions to improve the development effectiveness of infrastructure development, private sector development, industrial organizations, governance, competitiveness & investment climate, agriculture, institutions, and regional integration to across all the Bank’s High 5s priorities. ECMR.2 is the institutional anchor for the ex-ante Additionality and Development Outcomes Assessment (ADOA) and Impact Evaluation (IE) of the Bank’s operations.
• Thus, it is a key element of the Bank Results Framework and the primary tool for mainstreaming Development Outcomes in the Bank’s operations.
• The Division works in close collaboration with the Sector Complexes of the Bank Group including Agriculture and Human Development (AHVP); Power, Energy, Climate Change, and Green Growth (PEVP); Industrialization and Private Sector Development (PIVP); Regional Integration and Trade (RDVP) and the Natural Resources and Investment Centre (ECNR), among others.

The Position

• The Principal Research Economist is part of the ECMR.2 team and is expected to perform both ADOA assessments of the Bank’s lending operations as well as research activities related to the Bank’s High5 agenda.

Key Functions
Under the supervision of the Microeconomic, Institutional and Development Impact Division Manager, the Principal Research Economist will:
Perform Ex-ante Additionality and Development Outcome Assessments of Bank’s lending operations:

• Lead and provide inputs for the delivery of ex-ante Additionality and Development Outcome Assessments of the African Development Bank Non-sovereign and Regional lending Operations and any other type of operation as required by the management.
• Contribute to any revisions to the Additionality and Development Outcome Assessment framework on the basis of lessons learnt from implementation experience and other Development Finance institutions as well as Industry best standards.
• Lead and participate in the division’s research activities supporting the Bank’s High 5s (High priority areas: Light Up and Power Africa (Energy), Feed Africa (Agriculture and Nutrition), Industrialize Africa (Industrialization), Integrate Africa (Regional Integration) and Improve quality of live for Africans (Sustainable socio-economic development)). This includes also strengthening knowledge generation in the area of inclusive and green growth

Provide inputs into the production of the Bank’s flagship publications:

• Lead and contribute to the preparation of flagship reports or assigned chapters, write assigned sections and follow up (peer reviews) until final publication.
• Assist and lead on the dissemination of the findings of these flagships.

Provide technical and analytical input into the work of Operations Complexes:

• Provide input into Country Strategy Papers.
• Lead or participate in Economic Sector Work produced by sector complexes.
• Participate in the peer review process of project documents, policy documents, including documents submitted to the Operations Committee and the Board of Directors.

Contribute to the Bank’s “Working Papers Series " and the Bank’s "African Development Review":

• Publish research papers and review submitted articles to the African Development Review and Working Paper Series.
• Provide inputs in collaborative research and knowledge management activities carried out jointly with regional and international organizations, research and capacity building institutions in Africa, development research centers and universities.
• Participate in review meetings, internal Task forces and Working Groups and represent the Bank in external ones.
• Oversee the work of more junior staff and mentor them as needed.
• Perform other duties as may be assigned by the Supervisor or Management.

Competencies (Skills, Experience and Knowledge)

• Have at least a Master's Degree in Economics, Finance or relevant field; A PhD would be an added advantage.
• Have a minimum of six (6) years of professional experience combining research and strong operational involvement in the design and Evaluation of operations relevant to the High 5s areas including the following: infrastructure, energy, agriculture, private sector development, industrial organizations and social sectors, project analysis and/or monitoring and evaluation.
• Proven ability in leading and producing development policy research and analysis of economic conditions that are of relevance for the High 5s (Bank priority areas) with a strong publication record in international peer review journals, working papers, book chapters, reports.
• Good knowledge and background in the use of statistical and econometric methods in project evaluation, finance and development economics research.
• Ability to understand and identify development outcomes expected from real sector projects.
• Demonstrated skills in writing and preparing policy documents and briefs and speeches for decision-making.
• Communicate and write effectively in English or French, with a good working knowledge of the other language.
• Good communication skills and a proven ability to work in teams and on multiple projects in parallel until tight deadlines.
• Competence in the use of leading econometrics software packages and in Microsoft Suites (Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Access).