Consultant African Leaders for Nutrition (ALN) Coordinator at the African Development Bank Group

Location: Abidjan, Cote D'ivoire
Department: Agriculture and Agro-Industry (AHAI)
Duration of the Assignment: 1 year
Tentative Date of commencement: 15th November, 2019
 
Brief Description of the Assignment

• Provide senior technical leadership and strategic direction to the African Leaders for Nutrition (ALN) initiative with a view of enhancing the visibility of nutrition issues on the continent, and strengthening the political will and commitment to increase national-level investments in nutrition interventions.
• Department issuing the request: Agriculture and Agro-Industry Department (AHAI)
• Place of assignment: The consultant will be based at the Bank Headquarters in Abidjan

The Complex

• The Vice Presidency for ‘Agriculture, Human, and Social Development’ (AHVP) is a Sector Complex charged with the implementation of two of the Bank’s High 5 priorities of “Feed Africa” and “Improve Quality of Life for the People of Africa”
• The complex objectives are fourfold: to develop, policy and strategy; to 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 to develop new financing instruments
• The Vice President acts as the spokesperson to represent the Bank with external stakeholders on aspects of “Feed Africa” and “Improve Quality of Life for the People of Africa”.
• The complex has departments which implement its operational and strategic programs. They include Agriculture and Agro-Industry; Agricultural Finance and Rural Development; Gender, Women and Civil Society; Water Development and Sanitation; and Human Capital, Youth and Skills Development. Each department is led by a Director who supervises several Division Managers and Program Coordinators.  The Complex will drive the Bank’s bold vision and focus on “Feed Africa” and “Improve Quality of Life in Africa”.

Approach to Program Implementation:

• The African Leaders for Nutrition (ALN) secretariat is hosted by the African Development Bank at the Agriculture and Agro-Industry Department (AHAI) in the Agriculture Research, Production and Sustainability division (AHAI2)
• The ALN was established in recognition of the far-reaching and long-term effects of malnutrition on the continent’s human capital potential
• ALN aims to build and sustain high-level political leadership, commitment and accountability on the part of African Heads of States to invest resources in the fight against malnutrition.
• The ALN is a high-level platform for political engagement. The platform works to mobilize Nutrition Champions from amongst African Heads of States and Eminent Personalities and forge strong partnerships with other stakeholders working on the nutrition agenda at continental and global levels
• By working with these champions, the ALN is committed to increase the visibility and strengthen political will to address complex underlying problems confronting nutrition and encourage specific policy and financial commitments to ensure improved nutrition outcomes across Africa
• The political dialogue with Heads of States and Ministers of Finance is expected to accelerate progress toward the achievement of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP)/Malabo targets, the six World Health Assembly (WHA) nutrition targets, and the second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG2), through sustained and increased investment for nutrition.

Scope of Work:

• AHAI department is seeking the services of an experienced consultant to coordinate the ALN Secretariat.
• The specific responsibilities of the consultant will be as follows:
• Be the face of ALN Secretariat, by providing senior technical leadership and strategic direction to the ALN initiative with a view of enhancing the visibility of nutrition issues on the continent, and strengthening the political and commitment to increase national-level investments in nutrition programmes and activities; 
• Provide leadership on high-level advocacy activities in support of the ALN champions, and cultivate other African Leaders and Eminent Personalities who could be potential nutrition champions, as well as strategic stakeholder organizations and institutions;
• Establish and nurture partnerships at the regional and global level, to spearhead the work of the ALN;
• Ensure the day-to-day management and coordination of the work and staff of the ALN Secretariat, including contributing to the promotion of the multi-sectoral approach to the nutrition agenda within the Bank;
• Ensure the effective and timely management of the ALN work plan, including the proper follow- up of ALN activities, the implementation of guidance from the Steering Committee and other advisory bodies.

Expected Deliverables
Reporting to the ALN Steering Committee (ALN/SC) and the Division Manager, Agriculture and Agro-Industry Department (AHAI2) and working closely with internal and external stakeholders, the incumbent's role includes but not limited to:

• Support the ALN Secretariat through strategic management and coordination of the ALN Initiative and Work Plan, as well as the planning, coordination and communication activities
• The responsibilities include actively participating in
• management meetings for institutional planning, policy and strategy development, and follow up on implementation of the Advisory group and the Steering Committee decisions in liaison with key partner institutions, internal and external stakeholders and the Bank Group;
• Provide leadership and overall guidance to the staff of the ALN Secretariat who are variously responsible for communications, partnerships, monitoring and evaluation, programmatic support, country relations and finance and administration;
• Set overall strategy for the ALN, with guidance from the Division Manager AHAI2 and Senior Management of the Bank for strategic alignment with continental goals, country-level outreach, external relations, awareness building, and accountability agendas;
• Ensure that the Bank’s management is regularly briefed on the progress of the ALN and facilitate all aspects of dialogue and collaboration between the Bank and ALN stakeholders;
• Deliver against the outcomes set out in the ALN grant, including the development of a continent-wide nutrition scorecard and reporting on the economic impacts of nutrition at regular intervals;
• Design and execute high-profile engagements on nutrition at global, continental and country levels, including influencing agendas that maximize the visibility and overall engagement of ALN; 
• The Coordinator will fulfill any other responsibility linked to support leaders in a way that cultivates ALN champions, and leverages their influence through strategic engagements and highly visible advocacy and communication campaigns.

Methodology:

• The Consultant will be based in the in the Agriculture Research, Production and Sustainability division (AHAI2) under the supervision of the Manager
• She/He will work closely and directly with the division and where necessary will support project teams to improve the quality of operations and cross cutting initiatives
• She/He will coordinate the work of M&E Officer, the Communication and Partnership Officer in the ALN secretariat as well as other resources at her/his disposal.

Qualifications
The Bank is looking for an experienced consultant with the following characteristics and qualifications:

• Hold at least a Master's Degree in Public Policy, International Development, Social Sciences, Nutrition or Public Health or any other relevant Degree.
• Not less than fifteen (15) years of relevant professional experience in international development;
• Demonstrated experience in in coordination, information sharing, programme management, developing and nurturing partnerships with relevant organizations  such as UN Agencies, Private Sector, Governments’ Line Ministries, Research Organizations, Bilateral and Multilateral Agencies and Philanthropic Foundations;
• Familiarity with the multi-dimensional nature and effects of malnutrition and the importance of adopting a multi-sectoral and integrated development approach to nutrition interventions;
• Demonstrated experience in leading and managing coalitions, in strategic planning with a variety of stakeholders, and respond quickly to a wide variety of strategic opportunities through careful prioritization;
• Experience in advocacy, communications, and shaping  public debate on an issue through creative communications campaigns; convening coalitions for meaningful collective action and executing strategy in coordination with other groups;
• Proven experience in fund raising and resource mobilization
• Experience in using data for decision making through use of various tools (such as evidence-based reports, report cards, or trackers) for advocacy;
• Experience in managing teams and finances, including multiple subcontractors; 
• Prior experience working directly with government representatives at multiple levels and with the advocacy community on nutrition or a related issue;
• Ability to communicate and write effectively in French or English, with a good working knowledge of the other language; additional languages may also be valuable (Portuguese, Arabic);
• Competence in the use of standard Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Access, and PowerPoint).

Time Schedule for Deliverables and Reporting Requirements

• The period for this assignment is 12 calendar months with key timelines as shown below. (The duration of this contract is renewable once up to 12 months.):
• Commencement of Assignment: 15th November, 2019
• The Consultant shall report to the Manager, AHAI2. Day-to-day management of the consultancy shall be assured by a person designated by the Manager.