Youth Employment and Skills Development Officer, AHHD0 at African Development Bank - AfDB

Reference: ADB / 20 / 124
Location: Niamey, Niger
Grade: PL5
Position N°: 50051251

The Complex

• The Vice Presidency for ‘Agriculture, Human, and Social Development’ is a Sector Complex focusing on the Bank’s Ten-Year Strategy, High 5s priorities of “Feed Africa” and “Improve Quality of Life for the People of Africa”.

The Complex Objectives are:

• To develop policy and strategy;
• Provide deep sector expertise to the Regions by gathering pools of experienced individuals who can be consulted to provide sector expertise on complex transactions; and
• Develop new financing instruments. The Vice President will act as the spokesperson to represent the Bank with external stakeholders on aspects of “Feed Africa” and Improve Quality of Life for the People.

The Hiring Department / Division:

• The Human Capital, Youth and Skills Development Department, within the Agriculture, Human and Social Development Complex, spearheads the achievement of the High 5s on “Improving the Quality of Life of People in Africa” and contributes to the other High 5s.
• The Department also leads on the implementation of the Bank-wide Jobs for Youth in Africa Strategy. The Department has two divisions (i) Education, Human Capital and Employment Division, which focuses on scaling-up of Bank’s support to higher education and skills development; and (ii) Public Health, Security and Nutrition Division, which focuses on strengthening health systems, social protection and nutrition for human wellbeing.
• In the regions, Human capital, Youth and Skills development Department has a Regional Division which covers West and Central countries. This Regional Division focuses on Pipeline development, Lending delivery, and Portfolio management for all social sector (Education, Health, Social Protection, Youth Employment) in West and Central countries. It also develops Coordination, Client Relations and Partnerships in these countries.

The Position

• The African Development Bank Country Office in Niger (CONE) has been established to strengthen dialogue between the Bank and the government, development partners, the private sector, and the civil society, in the design of its development policy and programs, as well as on implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the poverty reduction, skills development and youth employment strategies.
• CONE also seeks to assist the operational functions of the Bank Group in launching and follow up of projects and programs in Niger and other countries in West and Central African Region with a view to enhancing portfolio quality, identification, promotion of participatory approach, and regional integration.

Duties and Responsibilities
Under the supervision of the Regional Manager - West and Central regions, and working in consultation with the Niger Country Office Country Manager and other Divisions and Task Managers at Headquarters, the incumbent’s duties and responsibilities include:

• Propose and plan, on an annual and tri-annual basis, human capital, youth and skills development lending and technical assistance programs in Niger and other Regional Member Countries (RMC) (including needs for co-financing with other institutions, countries and the private sector);
• Act as the link between the Bank and the Governments of RMCs for operational activities pertaining to the youth skills development, entrepreneurship and SME development;
• Conduct technical and sectoral studies and analysis in preparation of Bank Group lending for youth employment and employability;
• Provide technical assistance and policy advice to Regional Member Countries on skills and jobs for youth and,
• Identify, prepare, appraise and assist in the implementation of Bank operations on skills development and youth employment projects.
•  Collect background information and undertake analytical work in the social sectors, namely education, skills development and youth employment, gender, population and poverty-related aspects, with a view to determining the level of priority in the country’s development program, and advise the Country Managers and the Management of the Bank on policy issues in the sector;
• Contribute to the preparation of Country Strategy Papers (CSP) and Portfolio Review reports (PRRs), with particular emphasis on Human Capital, Youth and Skills Development;
• Participate in the identification, preparation, appraisal and portfolio management of Bank operations on Human Capital, Youth and Skills Development;
• Supervise the implementation of Human Capital, Youth and Skills Development operations financed by the Bank Group in the West and Central regions;
• Participate in various Social Sector Working Group activities and related donor-coordination meeting such as Poverty Reduction Budget Support (PRBS), key country processes and initiatives, including budget, public expenditure reviews, and poverty reduction strategy; workshops and seminars on social aspects, skills development and youth employment; all with a view to inform and advise the Country Managers and the Management of the Bank on appropriate measures to take;
• Assist in the Preparation of Project Completion Reports.

Selection Criteria

• A minimum of a Master's degree or its university equivalent in one of the following Social Science disciplines: Education, Skills Development, Youth Employment, Gender, Population, Social Protection; or Poverty Reduction; Economics or Planning; or Business Administration.
• A minimum of five (5) years of relevant experience in planning, administration or project management of social development initiatives.
• Strong research/analytical skills in one of the following areas: skills development and youth employment development policy
  formulation, project management, or donors’ coordination, with ability to strategically and rapidly analyse and integrate diverse information from varied sources into conclusions and recommendation.
• In-depth knowledge of social, political and development issues in Africa.
• Solid experience in project cycle management (identification, preparation, appraisal, supervision and completion);
• Ability to understand complex problems in education, skills development, youth employment, gender, population and poverty-related aspects, to identify key issues and recommend pragmatic solutions;
• Good knowledge of the education, skills development, youth employment, gender, population and poverty-related aspects and human development issues in the country;
• Strong understanding of multi-sector approaches and gaps in education, skills development, youth employment, gender, population and poverty-related aspects and social development
• Demonstrable knowledge of analysis and formulation of policies in sectors.
• Knowledge of the practices of major bilateral and multilateral agencies, development partners in the country will be an asset.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English and/or French; with a working knowledge of the other language.
• Competence in the use of standard MS Office software (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Project). Knowledge of SAP would be an advantage.