Delivery Advisor, Infrastructure

Job Introduction

The Government of Malawi is embarking on an ambitious agenda to transform the heavily agriculture-dependent economy away from a reliance on tobacco in order to develop an economy that can create jobs and add value in-country. Around 85 percent of Malawi’s population is estimated to live in rural areas and rely on rainfed agriculture for employment. Nine-tenths of rural households engage in subsistence farming, cultivating small and fragmented land held under uncertain customary tenure. As such the agro-led industrialisation of the economy is critical.

Malawi’s President is strengthening the capacity of his Government to implement his vision for development. A key part of this is accelerating access to electricity and transport connectivity, in particular as Malawi is a land-locked country. The Government is heavily focused on increasing electricity generation capacity, improving transmission and distribution and facilitating private investment. Similarly, the Government is focused on major road and rail projects.

TBI is supporting the Government of Malawi to strengthen its delivery and implementation mechanisms, particularly in the Presidency. The project will support the roll out of this delivery agenda, providing support and facilitation to key ministries and agencies.

We are recruiting a Delivery Advisor for infrastructure to join this project and support the Government to implement its top infrastructure priorities. This is an important role in the team and will report to the TBI Malawi Country Head while serving as our delivery advisor on infrastructure supporting the Presidency and relevant senior Government officials (e.g. Ministers, Permanent Secretaries). The post holder will be supported by TBI’s Energy and Climate practice.

This is an exciting role requiring an exceptional candidate with relevant expertise, deep networks with Government and/or industry in country or other peer countries.

Key Responsibilities

The Delivery Advisor, Infrastructure will be responsible for:

Government Relations

• Establishing and managing trusted relationships with key decision makers and implementers around the President’s infrastructure delivery agenda
• Supporting the Government to strengthen communication and coordination, both among Government agencies and ministries, but also with development partners, the private sector and other stakeholders, with the aim of driving the infrastructure delivery agenda
• Coordinate closely, via the President’s Delivery Unit, with other areas of focus, such as agro-industry, human capital and digitization, in order to ensure a joined-up Government approach to implementation of the President’s overarching vision of development
• Doing the above while building the capacity of Government, where the opportunity exists for sustainable gains, for example mentoring and supporting of Government officials with high potential for development who are at the fore front of driving this agenda

Strategy, Planning and Execution

• Supporting the Government as needed so that major milestones in top priority energy and/or transport projects and reforms are delivered with minimal time delay
• Supporting the Government to address resource gaps for priority projects and reforms and help ensure timely application of existing resources
• Providing independent and objective advice to the Government of Malawi on a range of key energy and infrastructure areas, using a pragmatic delivery lens, whilst recognising that policy decision-making and implementation of initiatives is the responsibility of the Government
• Exploring any opportunities for transformative technologies to speed up the implementation of the Governments infrastructure agenda

One TBI

• Contributing to the success of the Malawi project, by supporting the Country Head, the Deputy Country Head and other team members and workstreams where necessary including contributing to prudent financial management individually and for the project, monitoring and evaluation of the project work and team building exercises (e.g. organising team briefings, outings, etc).
• The team will consist of experienced advisors providing embedded support at the Presidency and to key economic institutions of the Government to attract and scale up investment in priority sectors positioned to diversify the economy away from tobacco and to drive job creation and improved governance.
• He/she will also be a member of TBI’s Energy and Climate practice, through which they will gain from and contribute to the expertise of TBI’s teams across Africa and beyond.

Person Specification

We are looking for outstanding individuals with a proven track record of leadership and delivery in the public or private sectors. We seek to create international and multi-disciplinary teams and are looking for individuals with a background in: public/civil services worldwide; strategy consulting; relevant industry experience; private equity and finance; and international development.

All candidates will be required to have:

• At least 5-10 years of experience in delivery, management, project finance, strategy or similar, preferably with experience working in energy or transport and preferably in emerging markets especially in Africa and or similar contexts like Malawi
• Strong interpersonal, leadership, collaboration, and communication skills
• Strong at adaptive management and a team player with an ability to develop and foster relationships with counterparts across a large organization
• Strong analytical and management skills, including sound knowledge of data analysis, strategic planning, and project management tools
• An ability to work independently, think strategically and translate strategies into tangible delivery plans
• Political savvy and an understanding of the needs of senior Government officials, while being able to work and interact at the highest level of public life
• Ability to liaise with partner Governments, external bodies, organizations and key stakeholders to help deliver the Government’s agenda
• Willingness to travel, sometimes at short notice; and to go the extra mile when needed
• Experience of identifying and resolving project implementation bottlenecks
• Proven ability to mentor, coach, and build capacity of national counterparts
• Excellent writing, presentation skills and verbal communication skills in English
• A master’s degree in a related field or equivalent practical experience
• Be open about exploring digital and tech solutions to support the implementation of the Governments’ infrastructure delivery agenda

About The Institute

The Tony Blair Institute (TBI) is a mission-driven not for profit organisation. We exist to equip political leaders and governments to build open, inclusive and prosperous societies. We work hard, every day, to make a difference. When governments work well they are able to create economic and social change in a way that promotes fairness, social justice and opportunity. We work relentlessly to support leader and governments with the challenges they face. Giving them practical solutions and actionable insights, that once implemented, can be transformative for their people  

We do this within two connected divisions: 

 Government Advisory 

Our Advisory Practice works directly with political leaders and governments around the world to implement reforms that improve the lives of their citizens. It has both non-profit partners and a client base and its outputs cover a range of disciplines and projects across countries in Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and South Asia. We are currently in a rapid expansion phase from c. 18 countries at present, to 30 by December 2022.

 Policy Futures 

Our Policy Futures work encompasses three broad areas: 

• Renewing the Centre: developing a bold and innovative domestic policy programme to help renew the centre ground of British politics; 
• Tech and Public Policy: exploring the policy challenges and opportunities presented by the technological revolution; and 
• Extremism Policy Unit: creating solutions designed to tackle the threat of extremist ideologies in the UK and around the world. 

As an organisation, the core beliefs we all embrace are: 

• Open and Progressive: you’ll believe in the value of teamwork 
• Bold and Pragmatic: you’ll approach everything you do with integrity and authenticity 
• Optimistic Changemaker: you’ll be focused on results 

TBI believes embracing diversity and inclusion make us a better place to work.  It’s our goal to reflect everyone in society and we actively welcome applications from individuals and groups who are under-represented in the workplace. We celebrate difference be it ethnicity, religion, age, gender or gender identity, sexual orientation or disability. We will only ever assess you on your abilities and fit for a role. We’re happy to discuss any adjustments you need to ensure a level playing field during recruitment and, if you\'re successful, discuss any adjustments you might need to thrive in your role.