View Vacancy - Infrastructure Adviser (80/19 PTA)

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Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Policy & Political roles)
Economic and Prosperity

Main purpose of job:

This is a great opportunity to deliver a key component of the £1.2bn cross-government Prosperity Fund (PF). The Fund represents a step change in the UK Government’s (HMG) approach to promoting economic development and prosperity overseas.

Your job will be to:

a) Help define and implement the Southern Africa component of the £12m PF China Infrastructure Programme, working from the Southern Africa Prosperity and Policy Programmes Team at the British High Commission, Pretoria. The objectives are to:

-  Scale up a tangible UK-China commercial collaboration, building on the UK-China Infrastructure Alliance with Chinese Government and UK and Chinese firms in Southern Africa, and working closely with UK and Chinese Industry Strategic Partners;

-  Identify infrastructure projects that meet Southern Africa’s priorities and support the region’s economic growth;

-  Match UK and Chinese firms to support collaborative bids around those projects and delivery of high quality, sustainable infrastructure;

-  Direct programme interventions (both ODA, i.e. funded through the overseas aid budget, and non-ODA) towards achieving progress in delivery of those projects, and UK firm participation;

-  Roll-out this template approach into other markets in the region as appropriate and according to prioritisation agreement with line manager and in consultation with relevant leads in Beijing and London;

-   Oversee delivery of UK PF China Infrastructure Programme (ODA; 2019-2022) activities in Southern Africa, actively engaging with the programme team in Beijing and driving delivery in this region in a way that is aligned with UK development priorities and opportunities, including within the Prosperity and UKinSA strategies.

b) Oversee delivery of the Global Infrastrcture Programme (GIP) in South Africa, working closely with programme leads in London (FCO; Infrastructure and Projects Authority) and delivery partner(s) in South Africa. Through GIP, the UK will share technical assistance with the South African Government in support of infrastructure project preparation, with a focus on business case development and appraisal.

The Global Infrastructure Programme seeks to introduce to the South African public and private sectors best practice infrastructure tools for business case preparation, evaluation and approval (5 Case Model), project initiation (based on the UK’s Project Initiation Routemap), as well as digital construction (based on the UK’s Building Information Modelling programme). The programme also works in ASEAN and Latin America. The programme is led centrally out of London, with regional infrastructure advisers to help roll it out on-the-ground in-country.

You will accordingly oversee these activities liaising closely with in-country stakeholders and maintaining progress, co-ordinating with the team in London. The Programme will promote development and training of these UK methodologies and also support their implementation and embedding in the processes and procedures of National Treasury in South Africa.

The job holder will maintain strong working relationships with the Global Infrastructure Programme’s UK implementing partners (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and Infrastructure and Projects Authority in the UK), South African government representatives including National Treasury, and UK private sector companies.

Roles and responsibilities:

The PF was established under the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) with the primary aim of supporting growth in recipient countries and thereby reducing poverty. As such, it represents a key component of the prosperity pillar of the UK Aid Strategy. But the Fund uniquely focuses on promoting growth in ODA-eligible middle income countries, which are home to nearly 70% of the world’s poor and where the development challenges remain significant, but at the same time are important business partners and drivers of prosperity. By delivering high impact, strategic multi-year programmes, across high opportunity countries, regions and sectors, the Fund will help create opportunities for international business, including UK companies. As the UK leaves the EU, an even more outward-looking global Britain investing and trading with the fastest growing markets will become increasingly important.

PF programmes cover trade, anti-corruption, infrastructure, business environment, health, future cities, education, financial services, energy and outward investment. For more information, see the PF Annual Report 2018/19 and programme summaries.

 PF China Infrastructure Programme:

As part of this, the £12m PF China Infrastructure Programme has identified Southern and Eastern Africa as priority regions with potential for UK-China partnerships to develop high quality, sustainable infrastructure. This will match the skills and experience of our two countries and our firms to deliver a world-beating solution to partner countries’ priority projects that stimulates and unlocks economic development.

You will need to be mindful of interest at the very top of HMG in this agenda, across the various Departments. China is one of the largest external infrastructure financiers in Africa, and the UK needs to position itself to take advantage of that commercially, while steering the unique support this can provide towards the projects that matter most to Southern African countries, and therefore deliver the best economic development impact. Similarly, there will be great interest in host countries in this initiative as two G20 partners representing significant private FDI interests joining forces to address their infrastructure requirements. You will need to be sensitive to that without raising expectations beyond what is realistic. This is about a long term partnership but we’ll be expected to deliver early wins and this region is the first to roll-out the Prosperity Fund UK-China Infrastructure Alliance.

Global Infrastructure Programme:

You will lead on the management of the South African elements of the Global Infrastructure Programme ensuring that relevant South African government ministries and relevant partners adopt and roll out best practice infrastructure tools and approaches, including from the UK, establishing training programmes, and working with the Programme team in London (IPA, BEIS and FCO).

Lead on ensuring that 3rd party suppliers working on GIP successfully implement the agreed strategy, objectives and activities for the Programme.

You will contribute to the effective day to day running of the Global Infrastructure Programme including: finances; reporting; communications; monitoring and evaluation; and robust contract management.  

Overall, your job will be to help design and implement interventions in Southern Africa that support the overall objectives of the UK PF China Infrastructure Programme, run from Beijing; the PF Global Infrastructure Programme, run from London; DIT’s work to foster Third Country Collaboration with China, run from London; and DIT’s High Value Campaign for UK participation in infrastructure projects across Africa, run from Johannesburg.

You will be seen across the Mission (XHMG) as an infrastructure expert. This will be demonstrated by a growth of external government, NGO and industry contacts who are informed on the subject; increased uptake and sharing of advice and insights obtained outside the Mission from a wide array of public and private sector contacts; informed reporting and engagement with third country partners, China itself, and business; and working with XHMG colleagues and particularly the Department for International Trade (DIT) to assist UK interests and facilitating access to UK Export Finance.

In your role as Infrastructure Adviser, you will also support gender equality act compliance and support PF’s policy and guidance on gender equality, women’s economic empowerment and inclusive growth.

Resources managed:

-  Guidance of around £3m of ODA which is managed through programme managers located in London and Beijing

-  Access to up to around £20k/yr of non-ODA programmatic budget

We are looking for a proactive, creative self-starter who can prioritise to operate in a fast-paced environment, largely unsupervised, delivering to deadlines. S/he will need excellent interpersonal and communications skills to build strong relations within the High Commission; in South Africa; and with stakeholders in the UK.

  • Graduate with a university degree OR at least five years experience in an infrastructure related managerial role
  • Knowledge of the infrastructure sector in Southern Africa from having worked in the public/private sectors
  • Experience in developing policy advice/analysis and delivering successful programmes
  • Minimum five years experience in programme management, ideally in a commercial context
  • Computer literate, working with Microsoft Windows and able to manage information effectively with available computer systems
  • Experience working with the Chinese in an infrastructure context;
  • Experience of managing budgets
12 December 2019
Higher Executive Officer (HEO)
Fixed term, with possibility of renewal
Africa
South Africa
Pretoria
British High Commission
R45,596.60
10 February 2020

Learning and development opportunities:

We place a strong emphasis on learning and development (L&D). You will be encouraged to undertake developmental training and get involved in corporate activities. This role provides an excellent opportunity to build up programme knowledge and expertise and gain exposure to working across government. You will have access to existing and new Project & Programme Management L&D as well as wider job-relevant L&D and support for your own personal development. You may have the opportunity to participate in annual reviews to assess the performance of PF programmes. The High Commission has a strong L&D offer (including L&D Weeks and the possibility of securing funds for personal L&D).


The British High Commission pays in full for the Key Care Plus option on Discovery Health for staff including spouses/partners and dependants.

  • Once you have successfully completed your probation the British High Commission will contribute 9% of your monthly salary to a Provident Fund.
  • Annual leave entitlement of 25 days
  • Working hours per week of 36.5 

This is a fixed term 12 months contract position, with possibility of extension. The successful candidate must have the right to live and work in South Africa.


Please complete the application form in full as the information provided is used during screening.

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The British High Commission will never request any payment or fees to apply for a position.

Employees recruited locally by the British High Commission in Pretoria are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law in South Africa.

All candidates must be legally able to work and reside in the country of the vacancy with the correct visa/work permit status or demonstrate eligibility to obtain the relevant permit. 

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  • Pay fees for the permit
  • Make arrangements to relocate
  • Meet the costs to relocation 
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This opportunity is closed to applications.