Young Professionals Program (YPP)

The Young Professionals Program (YPP) at the African Development Bank Group is a Program that aims at attracting highly qualified and motivated professionals from its member countries, for a productive and rewarding career path in development. Candidates to the Program have to be committed to development of Africa, and must have demonstrated outstanding academic and professional achievement, as well as effective team work and leadership potential.

Through the YPP, the Bank aims to ensure continuity and excellence in both the management of its work programs and the provision of policy advice to its regional member countries. Young Professionals have the opportunity to work on programs that cover the continent and be at the forefront of exciting Bank initiatives that are helping to shape Africa’s future.

We have been running the YPP since 2008, targeting the best available talent in our niche – young professionals with a passion for development in Africa. This three-year program is not an internship; rather it offers an exceptional opportunity to talented young professionals with leadership potential, an established record of outstanding academic and professional achievement, a commitment to engagement in crucial issues and to making a difference at the national or international level. The YPP includes a rigorous program of activities that prepares participants to be development professionals with notable impact.

Strategic Focus areas of the Program

TheTen-Year Strategy for 2012-2022places the Institution on a 10-year path to maintain its role as one of the key players in Africa’s quest to achieve substantial economic growth while safeguarding, and promoting, social cohesion and development (Inclusive Growth) and transition to promoting the sustainable use of all natural resources (Green Growth). The twin objectives are supported by five operational priorities (infrastructure development, private sector development, regional economic integration, governance and accountability, and skills andtechnology) and three areas of cross-cutting emphasis (fragile states, food security and gender) in which the Bank has comparative advantage and trust. The Bank seeks to position itself at the ‘center of Africa’s transformation’.

The specific disciplines and specialist professional areas that are aligned to our Ten-Year Strategy (TYS) and our gender strategy are the following:

1. Financial Sector Development
   • Public and Private Sector Financial Management, Knowledge of International Financial Reporting Standards, International Public SectorAccountingStandards and International Standards on Auditing, International Capital Markets, EnvironmentalFinance.
   • Actuarial Science, Investment Management and Analysis, Accounting, Financial Audit
2. Natural Resource Management
   • Water resource management, Environmentalist, Forestry specialist.
   • Climate change, Infrastructure financing, Energy economist.
3. Gender Analysis and Integration
   • ICT and Gender, Women in oil and gas, Gender economist.
4. Political Economy Analysis – Fragile States and Situations
   • Regional integration, Political Economy analysis, Public policy.
   • Macro Economist, Government financial management, development policy and operations.
5. Corporate Lawyers
   • Public and private sectors operations.
   • Administrative affairs.
6. Engineers
   • Architect, Transport economist, ICT specialist, Agro-industry.

The Bank aims to recruit candidates possessing the technical depth and professional breadth in a number of disciplines.

Eligibility Requirements

The following are the minimum requirements:

• Citizen of a regional or non-regionalmember countryof the African Development Bank.
• 32 years of age or younger by 31st December, 2015.
• A Master’s degree or equivalent in Economics, Engineering, Social Sciences, International Development,BusinessAdministration, Finance, or any discipline that is relevant to thebusinessof the Bank, and with outstanding academic credentials.
• A least 3 years relevant work experience, preferably with a multi-disciplinary background.
• Demonstrated strong analytical skills; dynamism; results-orientation; and problem-solving capability.
• Demonstrated passion for development issues and a commitment to Africa.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English and/or French with a working knowledge of the other language.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft operating systems (PowerPoint, Excel, and Visio)
• Willingness to operate from the Bank’s Headquarters and undertake country assignments.

Female candidates are encouraged to apply.

Please note that under the European License-Masters-Doctorate (LMD) system, the “Maîtrise” is not equivalent to the current Master’s degree in the Frencheducationsystem. Accordingly, candidates who present equivalencies to the Master’s degree (in both the Anglo-Saxon and French systems), must provide written verification from the university or academic institution that confer the degree.

To be considered for the program, all applicants must have completed and obtained a Master’s degree or equivalent Academic Certificate by the time the vacancy announcement closes.

The YPP is a highly competitive program with a limited number of positions. The African Development Bank expects to recruit between 15 and 20 candidates in the above focus areas. In addition, preference will be given to candidates who demonstrate the following:

• Leadership potential.
• Ability to leverage knowledge.
• Ability to share knowledge and coachothers.
• Adaptability to multicultural settings.
• Information Communication and Technology (ICT) skills.
• People management and administrative skills.
• Fiduciary Risks (i.e. Audit, Risk Management and Anti-Corruption) skills.
• Knowledge Management skills.
• Field experience on the continent and/or in other developing countries.
• Working knowledge of a third language that is relevant to the Bank’s operations.

List of Member countries:

54 countries in Africa(Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Dem. Rep. of Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia,Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Zambia, Zimbabwe,) and26 countries outside the continent(Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil,Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom and United States of America.)

Features of the Program

Professional Experience

The first rotational assignment will be a ‘stretch’ or ‘learning’ rotation, intended to provide exposure to the Bank’s various departmental and developmental programs and processes. Individual work programs will reflect on-the-job learning that is central to the YPP.

The second rotational assignment will take place in one’s area of expertise or organizational unit (according to availability and demand) in which the YP hopes to remain for the mid to long term if selected on a competitive basis. The work program will provide a suitable level of experience and responsibility required to compete for a higher level position.

YPs are expected to participate in missions and assignments in Field Offices for a certain period of time.

YP assignments span alldepartmentsand functions at the Bank. The following is a non-exhaustive list of assignments previous YPP participants have completed:

• Project Implementation:hands on experience in designing, implementing, procuring and processing Bank projects.
• Regional Integration:identifying and supporting cooperation between African states to promote growth, competitiveness and diversify economies.
• Financial Analysis:developing countrylendingstrategies.
• Risk Management:providing advice on loan portfolio performance and managing currency, interest rates and liquidity risks.
• Asset Management:managing Bank Group assets in the Treasury Department.
• Capacity Building:conducting capacity building training courses in regional member countries.
• Legal Services:providing legal advice and drafting loan and grant agreements.
• Support:providing critical corporate functions from human resources management to communications and strategic planning.
• Infrastructure:developing  andmonitoringregional projects  in the four key areas of sanitation, energy, transport and telecommunications.
• Private Sector:strategizing innovative partnerships and transactions to promote and assess private sector development and its impact.

Training

• Young Professional Orientation: a one week induction program where YPs are introduced to the Bank’s organizational units, operations and functions. This is intended to facilitate integration into the Bank’s daily routine.
• Other training opportunities: trainings designed specifically for the Program participants as well as other general Bank-wide training courses/seminars.

Coaching and Support

• Mentoring: the Mentoring Program aims to build an efficient partnership between management and YPs in order to help young professionals gain the knowledge and skills they require to effectively contribute and be successful in the organization.
• A “Buddy-System”: new YPs are assigned a “Buddy” from the previous YP cohort, who serves as a source of information and support during the YP’s familiarization with the Bank and country of assignment.
• YPP Coordination Team: the YPP team is dedicated to the recruitment, training, performance evaluation and rotation management of the YP cohorts to ensure their successful completion of the Program.
• YP Liaison Team (YPLT):  two representatives are selected from the YP cohort and act as an active link between all YP cohorts and the YPP Coordination team in the HR Department.  The YPLT serves one year and also sits on the YPP Steering Committee.