Deadline: 20 August, 2022
Location: Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
The African Development Bank (AfDB) is seeking applications from eligible applicants for the post of Chief Agricultural Economist.
AfDB’s mission is to spur sustainable economic development and social progress in its regional member countries (RMCs), thus contributing to poverty reduction.
Responsibilities
- Provide oversight support to the management of the portfolio and the lending programme in Central Africa and represent the division in key coordinating meetings of the bank, taking a leading role in the sector dialogue of the region as required
- Lead the dialogue in the country(ies) of assignment (and, in particular, in the Republic of the Congo, Gabon and Democratic Republic of the Congo) on the Feed Africa strategy and its key flagship initiatives
- Provide direct guidance to local staff in Central Africa, particularly the local staff members based in Gabon and DRC
- Conduct field missions to identify, prepare, evaluate and/or oversee the implementation and monitoring of bank-financed projects, programmes and sector studies to support the Feed Africa strategy, follow procurement, disbursement and reporting procedures to ensure that they comply with bank’s rules and procedures
- Provide assistance to borrowers in understanding and implementing bank group policies and procedures as well as issues related to projects and programmes and resource
- Contribute in negotiating projects with representatives from regional member countries
- Provide technical input to the preparation of country strategy papers and portfolio reviews, with particular emphasis on the agriculture and rural development sector
- Facilitate, direct, as necessary, reviews of the agricultural sector, preparation of agricultural and rural development projects, mid-term reviews and missions, and processing of project completion procedures
- Participate in drafting terms of reference (ToRs) for studies proposed for bank financing and participate in the evaluation and processing of agricultural and rural development projects
- Prepare terms of reference and support the division directorate in selecting consultants for missions and oversee the technical aspects of their work
- Review procurement documents from regional member countries to ensure that they are in line with the bank group’s rules and procedures for procurement and make proposals for actions to be taken by the bank and relevant implementation entities
- Review feasibility studies and progress reports on projects and make proposals for actions to be taken by the bank and the executing agencies
- Provide technical advice to the disbursement division of the bank on the eligibility of project expenditures
- Oversee agricultural projects financed by the bank
- Supervise the recruitment and performance review of external auditors
- Perform other duties as assigned by supervisor
Requirements
- Master’s degree in Development, Agricultural Engineering (or a related discipline), with a specialisation in Agricultural Economics or Agro-Economics
- Seven years, minimum, of relevant experience, with particular expertise in designing and supporting project implementation in international financial institutions
- Experience in supporting private sector operations will be an added advantage
- Proven ability to implement country or sector level agriculture and capacity-building initiatives
- Good understanding of cross-cutting issues beyond agriculture and social development at sector/country level
- Good knowledge of strategy to deliver transformative projects that will significantly reduce poverty
- Good knowledge of key aid effectiveness issues especially harmonisation of donors’ practices and alignment to borrowers’ systems
- Demonstrated intellectual leadership and ability to integrate sector specific knowledge with broader operational strategy and research objectives
- Good networking skills and judgment which are required in the management of professional relationship with external partners working in Africa
- Ability to apply innovative approaches and change working methods while remaining effective in changing working conditions
- Ability to communicate and write effectively in French or English
- Competence in the use of standard Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint)
- Knowledge of SAP (desirable)
To apply and for more information, click here.
Photo source: Africa Rising
