Consultants - Infrastructure Project Preparation & Development Specialist (Energy/Power Sector) at the African Development Bank (AfDB)

African Development Bank (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: Consultant - Infrastructure Project Preparation & Development Specialist (Energy/Power Sector) - (NEPAD-IPPF)

Reference: Consultant/NEPAD-IPPF/16/03
Location: Cote d' Ivoire
Grade: N/A
Position N°: N/A

Objectives

• The NEPAD Infrastructure Project Preparation Facility (NEPAD-IPPF) is a multi-donor Trust Fund established in 2005 and hosted by the African Development Bank (AfDB) supported by a number of Development Partners.
• The mission of the NEPAD-IPPF is to pool resources to support the preparation of bankable regional infrastructure projects in line with the priorities of the Regional Member Countries (RMCs), the African Union Commission (AUC) and the NEPAD Planning and Coordination Agency (NPCA), Regional Economic Communities (RECs) as well as specialised Infrastructure Institutions such as Power Pools, River Basin Organizations and Corridor Authorities NEPAD-IPPF among others.
• Its focus is on the preparation and development of regional infrastructure projects in the key infrastructure sectors of Energy, Transport, ICT and Trans-boundary water to move these projects to financing and implementation to achieve the development outcomes of integration of the continent to accelerate socio-economic transformation and improve quality of lives.
• NEPAD-IPPF has just developed a new Strategic Business Plan (SBP) covering the five-year period, 2016-2020 and the successful implementation of this Strategy requires that the Facility has adequate capacity in terms of skills and competencies to effectively implement this Strategy to achieve set objectives and targets.

Duties and Responsibilities

• NEPAD-IPPF therefore requires the services of a Long-term Consultant - Infrastructure Project Preparation and Development Specialist (Energy).
• The Consultant should have practical, hands on experience in the preparation and development of projects and only candidates with the requisite qualifications and experience will be considered.
• The Consultant will work under the general supervision of the NEPAD-IPPF Division Manager or his/her Designee.

He/she will have the following key duties / responsibilities:

• Provide expert advice on issues related to project preparation and development for the energy/power sector including oil and gas including technical back-stopping of projects related to trans-boundary water;
• Undertake activities for energy projects related to the project cycle (including identification, preparation, appraisal, negotiations, launch, supervision, audit and completion) and ex-post reviews of NEPAD-IPPF operations focusing on the energy sector in Africa, involving the RMCs, RECs, development partners and other concerned parties;
• Carry out pro-active and effective management of the assigned project portfolio to ensure it achieves its objectives and targets and any issues affecting project delivery are identified and resolved in  a professional and timely manner in consultation with project stakeholders;
• Conduct analytical studies and analysis of the energy sector’s status in various regions of Africa to identify opportunities for NEPAD-IPPF involvement;
• Review evaluation reports of technical and financial tenders for the award of contracts for NEPAD-IPPF financed programmes / projects and provide guidance to Executing Agencies and beneficiaries in the timely implementation of NEPAD-IPPF project grants;
• Provide the required technical guidance in the design of regional projects that respond to the needs of RECs and other beneficiaries of NEPAD-IPPF grants, based on their priorities and selectivity and aligned to major continental initiatives and priorities such as PIDA, PICI and the AfDB’s new High 5’s;
• Participate in the preparation of sector assessments and other upstream analytical and diagnostic work to inform and improve the quality of NEPAD-IPPF interventions including the development of sound project pipelines and new quality at entry (QaE) requirements;
• Help to the strengthen coordination and dialogue and negotiations sessions with development partners, beneficiaries, project financiers and developers, and other stakeholders;
• Contribute to sector dialogue with RECs on planning, governance, reforms and policy in the energy/power sector and project development in general;
• Prepare briefs, technical papers and other reports on issues related to the work of NEPAD-IPPF and development issues in general as may be required from time to time;
• Contribute to the preparation of NEPAD-IPPF reports (Mid-year report, Management report, Work Plan…) and other relevant documentation for the NEPAD-IPPF decision-making structures such as the Oversight Committee (OC);
• Participate in conferences, workshops, and training seminars on issues related to project preparation and development and related issues as assigned; and
• Undertake any other task that may be assigned.

Selection Criteria
Including desirable skills, knowledge and experience

• A minimum of a Master’s degree or its equivalent in infrastructure with a focus on energy/power;
• A minimum of ten (10) years relevant professional experience in (i) planning, preparation and development of infrastructure projects; (ii) specific and sound knowledge of project cycle implementation principles (iii) demonstrable experience in task managing projects (iv) knowledge and experience with regional infrastructure projects in Africa;
• Relevant professional experience in project management and financing in the public sector and development finance institutions;
• Proven ability to interact competently with RECs and other regional and national organizations / institutions, donor agencies as well as private sector on issues relating to aid coordination, infrastructure strategies and project development;
• Proven ability to lead technical professional teams and utilize talent and expertise of team members in a productive way to achieve desired objectives;
• Proven experience in appraising and supervising projects;
• Good listening and communication skills with demonstrated ability to present and win support for ideas as well as make effective and timely decisions including capacity to initiate and manage innovations and change;
• Competence in the use of standard software applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, MS Projects);
• Competence in (or ability/willingness to become quickly familiar with) the use of various tools available and applied by the NEPAD-IPPF / AfDB such as SAP;
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English and/or French. A good working knowledge of the other language is an added advantage.

Application Closing Date
21st March, 2016.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidate should submit their applications, indicating the Vacancy Notice number “Consultant/NEPAD-IPPF/16/03” in the Subject line of their email to: The Division Manager, NEPAD-IPPF: [email protected]

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Note: No acknowledgement of e-mails will be made and candidates should not follow-up their applications.