Senior Counsel (Bilingual French/English)

Background

Established in 1985, the Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB Group), is an African regional multilateral development bank, with a mandate to finance and foster trade, regional economic integration, and sustainable development in Africa. TDB Group counts several subsidiaries and strategic business units including Trade and Development Banking, TDB Asset Management (TAM), the Trade and Development Fund (TDF), TDB Captive Insurance Company (TCI), the ESATAL fund management company and TDB Academy. For more information, visit www.tdbgroup.org.

TDB aims to attract and retain exceptionally talented professionals by offering a conducive working environment and attractive salaries and benefits. In line with its growth strategy, TDB is looking for self-motivated and results oriented professionals to join a team committed to building a world class financial institution aimed at promoting trade, economic development and regional integration. Interested and qualified candidates who are nationals of TDB's member states are therfore invited to apply for the subject position.

Job Summary

Reporting to the Group Executive and Deputy General Counsel, as a member of the Legal Services Department, the Senior Counsel provides legal advice support to TDB Group and respective departments and units in relation to external customers, service providers, business partners and consultants to protect TDB Group's interests and mitigate any legal risks.

Duties and Responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities of the role include but are not limited to:

• Collaborate with business units in undertaking the appraisal due diligence, as and when required to obtain approvals of prospective financing transactions.
• Negotiate, draft or review, and administer documentation related to debt financing transactions in a timely manner with the relevant parties, ensuring compliance with TDB's Charter and Policies.
• Draft or review commercial contracts to ensure that TDB's interests are protected and in line with the Charter and Policies.
• Manage the closing process for the loan and security documentation by coordinating and following up with internal stakeholders, the obligors, and external counsel to ensure satisfaction of conditions precedent to financial close.
• Manage the legal process on litigation/arbitration/receivership matters, including by managing and supervising the work of external counsel with a view to protect TDB's interests.
• Contribute to the process of submitting loan transactions to the various committees of TDB, by advising the relevant business teams, to ensure that the submissions and resulting committee decisions are in line with the appropriate policies and procedures of TDB.
• Coach, mentor and supervise junior team members in the Department to ensure they acquire the right skills to support timely delivery of quality legal services.

Qualifications and Competencies

• A Master's degree in Law (LLM) and Bachelor's degree in Law (LLB) or a Juris Doctor degree from an accredited institution.
• Qualification to practice law in any juridisction relevant to TDB's business or in any of the TDB's member countries.
• A minimum of 8 years of relevant experience as a finance and banking transactional lawyer, including international work experience in a commercial, financial, or legal advisory institution or public sector financial body (e.g., international law firm, multi-national corporate, bank, insurance company, investment advisory firm, DFI, Ministry of Finance, National Treasury, Sovereign Wealth Fund).
• Proven track record and experience as a banking, finance, and corporate lawyer.
• Strong legal drafting, problem solving, negotiation, organizational and planning skills with the ability to work in a multi-cultural environment, manage dynamic priorities, and work under pressure to deliver on strict deadlines.
• A results-oriented individual with excellent communication, facilitation, and interpersonal skills.
• Fluency in both written and spoken French and English is mandatory.

Duty Station

The duty station is Nairobi, Kenya.

Application Procedure

Interested and qualified candidates should express their interest by submitting their applications by 7 September 2025.

The application package should include a resume, cover letter, academic and professional certificates, full contact address, and three reference names and contact information.

Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for further processing. TDB is an equal opportunities employer. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.