Principal Operations Officer (SEFA), PERN3

• Grade : PL4 
• Position No. : 50086490 
• Posting Date: 02/10/2026 
• Closing Date : 03/02/2026 

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THE BANK:

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 81 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. In order to sharply focus the objectives of the Ten-Year Strategy (2023 – 2032) and ensure greater developmental impact,  four cardinal points, all of which will accelerate our delivery for Africa, have been identified for scaling up, namely; enhancing access to capital; reforming and consolidating the continent’s financial systems, institutions and talent to assert Africa’s global agency; harnessing the demographic transformation for economic development; and building climate-resilient infrastructure and robust value addition to natural resources.

THE COMPLEX:

The Vice-Presidency for ‘Power, Energy, Climate and Green Growth’ (PEVP) is a Sector Complex focusing on mobilizing public and private investments, technical assistance and capacity-building to support the development of power systems (generation, transmission and distribution) and enhance energy access (including through off-grid solutions and clean-cooking);  policy and regulation; renewable energy, energy efficiency, as well as climate change and green growth.  In addition to delivering on the fourth Cardinal Point of Building Climate-Resilient Infrastructure, the complex is directly contributing to Mission 300, a flagship initiative co-developed with the World Bank, which aims to facilitate access to electricity for the first time to 300 million Africans by 2030.

THE DEPARTMENT/DIVISION:

Situated within PEVP, the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Department(PERN) has the broad objective of promoting the development of renewable energy - both large and small scale – also including energy efficiency and clean cooking activities. More specifically, the Department is mandated to (i) function as a one-stop source / hub for renewable energy, energy efficiency and clean cooking programmes/projects (ii) focus on accelerating “market development” with an emphasis on developing new approaches / areas (e.g. mini-grid programmes, thematic or country focused funds) and play a lead role in establishing region- or country-specific programmes (iii)  mobilize concessional resources as part of the structuring of blended finance solutions for projects and programmes.

The Renewable Energy Funds (PERN.3) Division leads the implementation of specific initiatives related to renewable energy – in particular fund investments and fund management. Specifically, PERN.3 manages the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) Special Fund, entailing technical assistance and concessional investments across its three focus areas – Green Mini-Grids, Green Baseload and Energy Efficiency - and plays a lead role, together with other PEVP units, in the origination, appraisal and supervision of equity and debt fund investments in the renewable energy and energy access space.  SEFA is one of the Bank’s key mechanisms for delivering on the M300 mission.

THE POSITION

The Principal Operations Officer will drive and/or support a range of programme and portfolio management activities linked to the origination, appraisal and implementation of investment and technical assistance projects and programmes, with a specific focus on the functioning of SEFA.  Specifically, he/she will act as a lead for the SEFA Operations Team and in so doing will be responsible for the day-to-day supervision of support staff covering portfolio monitoring, management reporting, procurement, communications and monitoring and evaluation (M&E).

KEY FUNCTIONS:

Under the supervision of the PERN.3 Division Manager (the Head of SEFA), the Principal Operations Officer will carry out the following tasks:

Programme Administration:

• Act as the primary resource on SEFA Operational Procedures, guiding project teams in the proper design of projects, appraisal and implementation, ensuring alignment with rules and procedures.

• Supervise the pipeline development/portfolio management platform that is used for tracking the implementation of projects and related operational activities.
• Maintain up-to-date guidelines, templates and user manuals for internal and external audiences.
• Oversee the accurate entry and ongoing maintenance of all SEFA projects in the Bank’s relevant systems, such as SAP Project System (PS) and Trust Fund Management System (TFMS) and other project tracking platforms, ensuring compliance with new systems and guidelines
• Supervise a team of professionals (long-term consultants) providing technical backstopping on aspects of procurement, financial management, communications, knowledge management, M&E.
• Design and implement a robust portfolio management platform leveraging latest software and artificial intelligence applications, in collaboration with the Bank’s IT department.

Reporting, M&E and Knowledge Management

• Ensure continuous improvement and adequate implementation of SEFA’s M&E framework.
• Design and implement an IT platform for real-time monitoring of project results, with advanced analytics features (in collaboration with an external partner).
• Ensure, through appropriate tools, accurate tracking and reporting of SEFA’s key outputs and outcomes to ensure appropriate reporting of SEFA’s impacts.
• Lead in the preparation of SEFA’s annual report, semi-annual reports, quarterly management updates
• Lead the development of the Annual Work Plan and Budget (AWPB).
• Develop a knowledge management action plan and coordinate related activities, including knowledge products and outreach events.

Communications and stakeholder management:

• Coordinate SEFA’s web-presence (AfDB website, external website, external donor data platform, etc.).
• Manage SEFA’s communications materials, including brochures, presentations and press releases.

• Liaison and coordination with internal and external partners, on aspects related to procurement, financial management and audits, compliance with Bank and SEFA rules and procedures.
• Manage operational requests from SEFA donors, including disbursements, financial reports and operational updates.

SELECTION CRITERIA (including desirable skills, knowledge and experience):

• At least a Master’s degree or equivalent in economics, finance, energy or related field.
• A minimum of six (6) years of relevant experience in project portfolio management, preferably with complex portfolios including multiple instruments (grants, equity and debt).
• Experience of working with projects and institutions in Africa, preferably with some exposure to processes and procedures of development finance institutions.
• Proven ability to monitor programs and to ensure quality of portfolio/program performance.
• Some prior exposure to energy sector and private sector finance not mandatory but an advantage
• Ability to work independently, pro-actively and with little supervision.
• Strong inter-personal competencies and demonstrated team leadership skills
• Gender and Diversity competence
• Communicate and write effectively in French or English, with strong working knowledge of the other language;
• Competence in the use of standard Microsoft Office Suite applications; knowledge of SAP, portfolio management tools and artificial intelligence applications is an added advantage.

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THIS ADVERTISEMENT IS POSTED BY THE AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (AFDB) ON BEHALF OF THE SUSTAINABLE ENERGY FUND FOR AFRICA (SEFA) WHICH IS THE EMPLOYER FOR THIS POSITION. ENGAGEMENT AS STAFF OF SEFA DOES NOT OFFER ANY EXPECTATION FOR FUTURE EMPLOYMENT AS STAFF IN THE AfDB.
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Applicants who fully meet the Bank's requirements and are considered for further assessment will be contacted. Applicants should submit a concise Curriculum Vitae (CV) and any additional documents that may be stated as required. The President of the African Development Bank reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level.  The African Development Bank is an equal opportunities employer. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. http://www.afdb.org
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The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) does not ask for payments of any kind from applicants throughout the recruitment process (job application, CV review, interview meeting, and final processing of applications). In addition, the Bank does not request information on applicants’ bank accounts. The African Development Bank Group declines all responsibility for the fraudulent publications of job offers in its name or, in general, for the fraudulent use of its name in any way whatsoever . 
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