Country Advisory and Economics Manager - North, West and Central Africa at International Finance Corporation (IFC)

International Finance Corporation (IFC) a sister organization of the World Bank and member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in developing countries. The Bank Group has set two goals for the world to achieve by 2030: end extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity in every country.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Country Advisory and Economics Manager - North, West and Central Africa

Job ID.: req23914
Location: Lagos
Employment Type: Full Time
Sector: Economics
Grade: GH
Term Duration: 4 years 0 months
Recruitment Type: International Recruitment
Required Language(s): English
Preferred Language(s): French or Arabic

Job Description

• We are seeking a Country Advisory and Economics Manager for the Africa/North, West and Central Africa region. The Manager will lead a team of economics, strategy, and operational staff responsible for:
  • Producing both regional and country-level economic assessments to support IFC’s strategy and operations;
  • Collaborating with regional and industry colleagues to produce analytical products such as Country Private Sector Diagnostics (CPSDs) and IFC Country Strategies;
  • Significantly contributing to WBG products such as Systematic Country Diagnostics (SCD), Country Climate and Development Reports (CCDR), and IBRD/IDA lending operations; and
  • Putting IFC’s country strategy and diagnostic recommendations into practice through Advisory projects that engage with governments, regulators, civil society, development partners and other relevant stakeholders to reform markets and sectors and address key bottlenecks to private sector development.
• The Manager will be a motivated and dynamic professional, with excellent analytical skills and relevant policy and industry experience.
• S/he will have expertise in private sector development, applied research, and analytical products with an extensive history of hands-on interaction with government clients and public sector stakeholders.
• The Manager will be based in Dakar or Lagos, reporting to the Regional Director, and will be a member of the Africa Regional Management Team.
• The role will entail close collaboration with units across the Africa region, as well as with global industry departments, the Economics and Private Sector Development Vice-Presidency, IBRD/IDA, MIGA, and external organizations.

Duties and Accountabilities
Beyond standard Managerial responsibilities, the role entails three primary functions: strategic and economic analysis, operational delivery, and operational support.

Strategic and Economic Analysis:

• Support the Regional Management Team in formulating country and regional strategies to maximize IFC's impact and address development challenges.
• Support Regional Directors and Country Mangers in WBG processes such as Systematic Country Diagnostics and Country Partnership Frameworks, in close cooperation with the relevant industry and IBRD/IDA and MIGA teams.
• Coordinate the production of new Country Strategies and Business Plans to establish a strategic direction for IFC’s program at the country level.
• Liaise with IBRD/IDA and IMF to leverage their knowledge and support in delivering IFC’s work program.
• Inform Regional Management Team and IFC Senior Management on major risks to the IFC program and portfolio in the region based on economic analysis and information gathered.
• Lead the team of regional economists as they produce/contribute to analytical reports and policy notes on main economic issues pertaining to the region—at the macro level and sectoral level, including but not limited to the Country Private Sector Diagnostics and Country Climate and Development Reports.

Operational Delivery:

• Lead the team to operationalize key strategic and diagnostic recommendations through the design and implementation of government-facing Advisory Services projects that support reform implementation and investment facilitation in line with IFC’s strategic priorities.
• Ensure a high quality of the unit’s operations through a focus on project design (development results, project reviews, lessons learned) throughout an individual project cycle and across the unit’s portfolio of operations, with a focus on achieving high development effectiveness.
• Ensure proactive monitoring of the operational portfolio’s funding needs, which includes engagement with regional partnership team; engage with development partners on performance/challenges; ensure quality donor reporting that meets donor expectations.

Operational Support:

• Engage throughout the project cycle to support other operational teams in developing their projects by providing advice on macro-economic trends, country and regional context and risks.
• Work closely with the Economics and Private Sector Vice Presidency as well as IBRD/IDA to coordinate advice to teams on development impact, creating markets and working within the World Bank Group to maximize the Cascade approach (i.e., working with governments and IBRD/IDA to first seek private sector solutions to address development challenges and reserve public financing for projects only when other options are suboptimal). 
• Work closely with IBRD/IDA country economists and contribute to the design of lending operations.
• Support teams at Board meetings and meetings with Executive Directors to provide advice on country and regional context and strategic fit.

Managerial Responsibilities:

• Lead and manage the unit and ensure the team is high-performing, well-motivated and committed to the advancement of IFC’s strategic goals.
• Mentor and develop staff and promote opportunities for rotation and continued learning. 
• Be part of, and actively contribute to Regional Management Team. 
• Staff projects with the appropriate resources to deploy the most appropriate technical expertise and provide exceptional client service, while keeping in mind career and training development needs of staff.
• Manage, oversee, and optimize IFC’s internal and external funding mix and budget to efficiently deliver operations in the region, including through engagement in budgetary discussions and processes with regional, global and partnership teams.

Selection Criteria

• PhD or Master's in Economics or related field and at least 12 years of experience in economics, economic development, private sector development, or related fields.
• Strong grounding in economics from academic and/or practical experience.
• Deep familiarity/experience in IFC, IDA/IBRD, MIGA or other financial institutions focused on the private sector, especially in developing countries.
• Extensive hands-on experience of working with government clients and public sector stakeholders, including regulators.
• Demonstrated ability to influence the policy dialogue and lead the development agenda at the country or regional level.
• Familiarity with the WBG operational products and instruments; first-hand experience of having worked on joint projects with IBRD/IDA will be an advantage.  
• Ability to engage and collaborate closely with IBRD/IDA and IMF on policy and economic issues pertaining to the countries in the regions.
• Strong analytical, strategy formulation, and conceptual abilities.
• Demonstrated ability to think strategically, develop innovative solutions, challenge the status quo and make sound decisions to build IFC business.
• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing, as well as cultivate an active network of relationships inside and outside the organization and to represent IFC publicly as needed.
• Demonstrated interpersonal skills, proven ability to work effectively as a team leader, build high performing teams and manage and recruit talent.
• Ability to manage competing and sometimes unanticipated priorities, and tight deadlines.
• World Bank Group-wide managerial selection criteria including courage of your convictions, leading the team for impact, influencing across boundaries, fostering openness to new ideas, building talent for the future.

Application Closing Date
4th September, 2023 (11:59pm UTC).