Senior Fragility and Resilience 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: Senior Fragility and Resilience Officer

Position Number: 50079242
Location: Abuja
Position Grade: LP5

The Complex

• Within the Regional Development, Integration and Business Delivery Complex (RDVP), the Bank has five (5) Regional Development, Integration and Business Delivery (RDIBD) Directorates, one in each region of Africa: North, South, East, West, and Central.
• Each Regional Directorate is headed by a Director General (DG) and is staffed with the relevant sectoral functions and administrative capabilities for rapid delivery of services to client countries.
• The Regional Directorates provide overall strategic direction to country offices within the regions and are responsible for the Bank’s operations, business development, project management and overall effective delivery of the Bank’s High 5s of ‘Light up and Power Africa,’ ‘Feed Africa,’ ‘Industrialize Africa,’ ‘Integrate Africa,’ ‘Improve the Quality of Life for the People of Africa.

The Hiring Department

• The Transition States Coordination Office (RDTS) is responsible for leading and implementing African Development Bank Group (the Bank) 2022-26 Strategy for Addressing Fragility and Building Resilience in its Regional Member Countries.
• It coordinates the Bank’s work on fragility, including activities of all fragility and resilience professionals stationed in the various Regional Hubs or Country Offices.
• Over the past decade, Africa has seen enormous growth and transformation that has expanded opportunities and improved living conditions for millions of people. More than two-thirds of African countries have strengthened their quality of governance, improved basic services, and expanded economic opportunities.
• Yet, there are significant risks that this momentum could be undermined by important pressures - continuing patterns of insecurity, conflict, exclusion and poverty, unemployment, high migration, rapid urbanization, climate change and poor management of natural resources—that threaten to overwhelm existing institutional capacities for managing political, economic, social and environmental challenges.
• These pressures are making every single African country more vulnerable. RDTS aims to place the Bank at the center of Africa’s efforts to pave the way for a more resilient and inclusive development trajectory.
• A major part of RDTS’ activities involves the identification of the main drivers of fragility, including security, economic, social, political, regional, and environmental dimensions, and how the Bank’s programs and projects can contribute to equity and inclusive development.
• Central to RDTS engagement is the systematic application of a fragility lens to identify, respond to and prevent fragility and to build resilience and focus the Bank’s engagement in the areas where it can have the biggest impact.

The Position

• Under the supervision of Lead Coordinator/ Regional Fragility Coordinator for West Africa, the Fragility and Resilience Officer will support the operationalization of the Bank’s 2022-26 Strategy for addressing fragility and building resilience in Nigeria.

The incumbent is expected to:

• Undertake fragility and resilience related analytical and knowledge work on the country and its neighborhood
• Support political economy analysis for the country in particular for sub-national hotspots and cross-border areas
• Mainstream the analytical findings into the Bank’s operations, strategies, and policies in the country
• Facilitate dialogue at the national and regional levels to identify operational entry points for building resilience in Nigeria
• Support capacity building on fragility and resilience issues for people, communities, and institutions in the various parts of the country,
• Contribute to partnerships and resource mobilization initiatives.

Key Functions
Under the supervision of the Lead Coordinator/ Regional Fragility Coordinator, the Fragility and Resilience Officer is expected to perform the following duties:

• Carry out regular and periodic analytical and research work on drivers of fragility and sources of resilience in Nigeria for internal decision-making and programming (e.g. situation briefs, country overviews, and resilience assessments) and/or for publication/dissemination within or outside the Bank.
• Conduct/contribute to fragility and resilience assessments of the Bank’s projects, programs, policies, and strategic documents (e.g. Country Strategy Papers) in the context of Nigeria, or in other connected contexts, at the request of the Lead Coordinator/Regional Fragility Coordinator.
• Carry out economic policy and strategic analysis in Nigeria using the application of a resilience lens.
• Contribute to the department’s research work related to resilience and dissemination of knowledge products such as discussion/research papers and publications.
• Conduct/participate in the advisory work carried out by RDTS.
• Contribute to the development and constant improvement of the Bank’s tools and methodologies for economic growth diagnostic and forecast (trend analysis) using the resilience perspective.
• Contribute to the analyses and support the work of the department in addressing spillover effects of fragility and/or conflict in the country.
• Actively support the dissemination and implementation of the Bank’s strategy for addressing fragility and building resilience in Africa.
• Provide quality enhancement services (as commentator or peer reviewer) to analytical work of the department as well as provide technical inputs to relevant reports and publications initiated by other units of the Bank.
• Build partnerships in Nigeria with a view to supporting the operationalization of the Bank’s Strategy for Addressing Fragility and Building Resilience.
• Attend/represent the Bank in external events (conferences, seminars, workshops) related to fragility and resilience.
• Attend and contribute to the activities of the Bank’s engagement in Nigeria.
• Perform any other assignments and tasks as requested by the Lead Coordinator/ Regional Fragility Coordinator and/or the Director of RDTS.

Competencies (Skills, Experience and Knowledge)

• A minimum of a Master's Degree in Development Economics, Macroeconomics, Public Finance, Public Sector Accounting, or Auditing.
• Minimum of five (5) years of experience in public policy, economic policy, governance, and private sector development, as well as experience in development policy and operations as well as project management, preferably in a bilateral or multilateral development finance institution, at least three (3) years of which should be focused on developing countries.
• Experience in conducting economic and policy analysis, preferably with a focus on Nigeria.
• Ability to carry out independent research and manage outsourced research activities.
• Sound understanding of the development financing landscape in Nigeria.
• Ability to apply innovative approaches, work independently, and apply new methods to solve problems, while remaining efficient in a fast-paced, changing, and challenging institutional environment.
• Fully proficient in English. Working knowledge of French is an advantage.
• Competence in the use of Microsoft standard software (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, MS Projects); knowledge of SAP desirable.

Application Closing Date
28th December, 2023.