Overview
Seeking an Environmental & Social (E&S) Development Specialist to provide E&S guidance to Financial Intermediary (FI) clients and IFC teams in Eastern Africa, promoting compliance with IFC Performance Standards and Sustainability Policy.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead or contribute to the review of E&S documentation for new investments and advisory engagements in the Financial Intermediary sector.
- Provide E&S oversight of IFC investments throughout the project cycle.
- Deliver drafted project-related internal and external documents.
- Lead or contribute to the identification and development of E&S risk mitigation measures and value-add solutions.
- Provide guidance to IFC investment teams on E&S risk management.
- Support FI clients in developing and implementing their Environmental and Social Management Systems (ESMSs) and build their capacity.
- Provide guidance and support to team members when leading E&S assessments.
- Discuss and support the investment team in the formulation of E&S provisions for legal agreements.
- Proactively monitor portfolio clients for compliance with E&S conditions.
- Document and communicate gaps between client performance and IFC E&S requirements.
- Support industry teams and clients responding to CAO investigations and IEG requests.
- Participate in cross-regional and global teams for policy interpretation notes and contribute to the corporate knowledge base.
- Prepare management briefs of relevant E&S matters.
- Contribute to regional portfolio reviews and periodic reports.
- Other duties as required.
Required Experience
- Minimum of five years of professional experience working on E&S management, monitoring and/or due diligence applied to financial institutions (preferably in the Africa region).
- Direct experience advising or supporting commercial banks, PE funds, insurance companies, or other financial sector actors integrating E&S risk management frameworks and Development Financial Institution (DFI) requirements.
- Experience working with IFC’s sustainability framework particularly the IFC Performance Standards.
- Working experience in emerging markets, ideally in fragile or conflict affected environments.
- Prior work with Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) or DFI or donor-funded programs, including familiarity with their operational policies, reporting requirements, and project cycles, is an advantage.
Qualifications
• Advanced degree (Masters) in environmental science, Sociology, engineering, or other relevant disciplines.
