Principal Resource Mobilization & Partnerships Officer at the African Development Bank Group (AfDB)

African Development Bank Group (AfDB) – Established in 1964, the African Development Bank is the premier pan-African development institution, promoting economic growth and social progress across the continent. There are 80 member states, including 54 in Africa (Regional Member Countries). The Bank’s development agenda is delivering the financial and technical support for transformative projects that will significantly reduce poverty through inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Principal Resource Mobilization & Partnerships Officer

Reference: ADB/19/101
Location: Côte d’Ivoire
Position N°: 50070053
Grade: PL4

The Complex

The Vice Presidency for Finance oversees the financial management of the Bank Group. This encompasses the Bank Group’s treasury activities including borrowings from the capital markets and investment activities; controllership functions including financial reporting and loan administration; strategic resource mobilization and the strengthening of the non-statutory financial resources and instruments; the overall asset/liability management for the Bank Group.

The Hiring Department/Division:

As part of the Finance Complex, the Resource Mobilization and Partnerships Department has fiduciary responsibility for strategic concessionary resource mobilization, as well as donor relationship management and reporting, with the aim to complement and leverage the financial resources and instruments of the African Development Bank Group. The department is comprised of two divisions whose primary, joint role is to increase the pool and types of funding available to the Bank’s regional member countries, particularly for transformative projects in line with the Bank’s Ten-year strategy and High Five priorities. The Division 2:
Leads the institution’s partnership with emerging shareholder countries (e.g. China, Korea, India, Brazil) and their bilateral aid agencies; and multilateral bodies including the European Union, the United Nations and African Union;
Leads the strategic negotiations for the setting up financial vehicles and institutional frameworks necessary for the institution to accept external resources, including all co-financing facilities and trust funds financed by external partners;
Oversees fiduciary management of the institution’s bilateral and thematic trust funds; that is, mobilize, allocate and monitor non-statutory capital ensuring compliance with the African Development Bank Group’s rules and the commitments taken upon the replenishment negotiations, as applicable;
Monitors and manages relationships with existing and new partners, including non-sovereign partnerships such as with corporates and philanthropic foundations (e.g. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation); serving as the secretariat for the review committee for new partnerships (i.e. Standing Committee on Partnerships);
Identifies innovative ways to partner with non-traditional donors and leverage new resource mobilization tools and approaches (e.g. crowdsourcing, block chain) to evaluate their potential applicability and viability for the institution;
Researches and positions the institution to respond to emerging thematic resource mobilization trends
Assists other organizational units of the Bank Group to identify resources for their initiatives (i.e. Jobs for Youth Program);
Houses innovative financial products and risk mitigation instruments which catalyze private capital to finance development in Africa (e.g. Private Sector Credit Enhancement Facility) under a blended finance approach.
Reports globally on the use of resources placed in trust at the African Development Bank Group to management and to outside parties, as required;
Develops and disseminates to internal and external audiences trainings, capacity building, guidance papers and policy documents on resource mobilization at the African Development Bank (e.g. member to MDB Roundtable on Trust Funds and Co-Financing, Business Opportunity Seminars).

The Position

The Principal Resource Mobilization & Partnerships Officer (PL-4) plays a central role in the department and division. The selected individual would contribute directly to engaging, managing, monitoring, evaluating and reporting on both institutional relationships with external partners and financial commitments, with a focus on delivering impact and results to donors and senior management.
The successful candidate would be directly implicated in mobilizing and deploying the Bank Group’s resources, by contributing to the planning, conceptualization, elaboration and operationalization of key Bank Group key resource mobilization and partnerships processes, programs and projects.

Duties and Responsibilities
Under the supervision and guidance of the Division Manager, the Principal Resource Mobilization and Partnerships Officer will:

Facilitate the coordination and collaboration between Bank Group business units and external partners and/or sovereign donors as assigned;
Contribute to the conceptualization, elaboration and presentation of negotiation documents relevant to the successful fundraising of new resources;
Task manage specific resource mobilization efforts including but not limited to statutory and/or non-statutory replenishments, co-financing, fundraising for trust funds, fundraising for special initiatives and launching of any other innovative partnership mechanisms with the Bank Group’s sovereign and non-sovereign partners;
Serve as a Fund Manager, overseeing the administration and monitoring of existing and new resource vehicles (trust funds), particularly their disbursement, and grant-level project implementation so as to ensure organizational compliance with donors’ financial and programmatic reporting requirements with a focus on impact and results for Africa’s development;
Serve as the external focal point for assigned donors and initiatives, responding to ad hoc queries and ensuring the highest level of visibility for the partner and the uses to which resources placed in trust have been applied;
Consistently monitor and evaluate grant-level activities of donor-funded programs and review activity progress reports, project completion reports, audit reports and other evaluation outputs from operational departments; and financial statements from the accounting department to assess corrective actions if required, and submission of documents for review by the respective donor(s), as needed;
Provide internal stakeholders with technical advice and information on the priorities and availability of development partner and donor funding to strengthen opportunities for fundraising of targeted Bank Group initiatives
Contribute to key processes for the strengthening of the operational environment for resource mobilization including updating and or developing related implementation procedures and operational guidelines for receipt and use of funding or new financial instruments;
Assist in the organization of regular internal and external outreach events for the benefit of staff and other stakeholders to explain the activities of the different funds, facilities and instruments of the Bank Group;
Participate in and contribute to key partnerships meetings and conferences (including those with other Multilateral Development Banks and international philanthropic organizations) to seek new resource mobilization and partnership opportunities for the Bank Group;
Contribute to the conceptualization, elaboration and presentation of Bank Group resource mobilization and negotiation documents; elaborate policy and strategy papers relevant to resource mobilization and/or negotiation process;
Contribute to the development of white papers and other reports to address emerging fundraising innovations (i.e. crowdsourcing; social impact bonds; blended finance) and the evolving positioning of the Bank Group within the evolving global aid architecture;
Serve as an advisor on documentation presented for review to various relevant internal committees including Operations Committee (OPSCOM) and Standing Committee on Partnerships (SCP);
Assist in elaborating the Division’s objectives, work programs and their execution while ensuring that deadlines are met and that outputs meet the highest technical standard.

Selection Criteria
Including desirable skills, knowledge and experience:

Hold at least a Master’s Degree (or its equivalent) from recognized/accredited university in either: Social Sciences (Law, Public Policy, International Affairs, Economics, Politics, Diplomacy, etc.), Economics and Finance, Other relevant fields
Have a minimum of six (6) years of relevant and work experience in resource mobilization and/or partnerships, preferably within a (i) public financial institution and/or non-profit sector; or (ii) private sector, with a clear and established operational track record of achieving results;
Strong grasp and understanding of key trends in international development finance (e.g. knowledge of ODA approaches and policies of major international donors as part of OECD-DAC, as well as emerging donors; bilateral and multilateral agency fundraising and partnership trends in the short-, medium-, and long-term) and an ability to identify the strategic fit of new partners, products and services in the global marketplace and what these may imply for the Bank Group’s fundraising efforts at any given time;
Mature relationship manager with ability to balance the needs and requests of external donors against the policy environment of a multilateral development bank;
General knowledge of the Bank Group’s shareholders, various financial vehicles and facilities, capitalization ambitions, and volume of its lending activities;
Proven consultation and diplomacy skills, with track record of effectively contributing to the conclusion of complex negotiations with public and private institutions; proven ability to persuade, influence and win over a skeptical audience; and tailor arguments to all levels of stakeholders;
Strong professional network within the international development community;
Evidence of operational effectiveness in the execution of discrete tasks (e.g. demonstrable ability to meet fundraising targets);
Determined and client oriented problem solver, willing to be flexible and use innovation & creativity in the face of challenges;
Ability to communicate effectively (written and oral) in English and/or French, preferably with a working knowledge of the other language; Ability to demonstrate cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Competence in the use of standard software (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint); knowledge of SAP and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software a plus.
Team player, with an ability to manage and supervise junior and/or support staff or consultants, as required.