Head: Legal (Infrastructure Fund) at Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA)

• The mandate of the Infrastructure Fund has been captured in a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the National Treasury, Infrastructure South Africa (ISA), and the DBSA entered into on 17 August 2020.
• The Head of Legal is to lead and manage the Infrastructure Fund Legal Function. Provide legal opinion/s and advice for the Infrastructure Fund and deliver effective legal services both at strategic and operational levels

Key Responsibilities    
Strategic Direction and Outputs

• In collaboration with the Chief Investment Officer: Infrastructure Fund, set the strategic direction for the provision of Legal Services for the Infrastructure Fund through the conceptualisation, design and establishment of legal regulatory frameworks, policies, and parameters.

Legal Unit Management and Advisory

• Provide expert and strategic advice to management and business units on legal matters. These would include the drafting and recommending to management the Infrastructure Fund position on legal and regulatory issues.
• Provides advice on legal risks and complex legal matters and proactively provides solutions that consider multiple inputs, applicable risks, and impacts.
• Drafts, negotiates, and advises concerning material agreements and oversees the review of non-material agreements to minimise risks and maximise legal rights in alignment with corporate risk procedures.
• Collaborate and develop infrastructure procurement documents to ensure that they adhere and align to compliance principles laid out in the following: The Constitution; National Treasury Supply Management Circulars, Directives and Guidelines; Supply Management policies; Public Finance Management Act (PFMA); Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act (PPPFA); Other applicable Procurement Laws and Public Law principles.
• Provide legal opinions, draft and negotiate legal agreements and other legal documentation in respect of investment projects and programmes. Review and draft agreements to facilitate that the business interests of the Infrastructure Fund are protected and are legally sound. These would include the facilitation and assisting IF with the structuring of various investment projects including conducting legal due diligence investigations.
• Provide expert legal advice across each phase of energy projects to create a sense of assuredness to investors and the IF, including but not limited to: performing legal due diligences; evaluating transaction structures; developing and drafting legal documentation; mediating negotiations amongst various stakeholder parties; and providing the IF with legal advice regarding the structuring of third-party service contracts.
• Provide guidance on material purchases, acquisitions, engagement of vendors for new and complex services, complex business loans, and current and/or future business structures and legal entities.

Governance and Legal Regulatory

• Develop and facilitate the implementation of governance policies, practices and systems and the continuous improvement in governance. Ensures business practices and policies/procedures meet regulatory requirements enable the Infrastructure Fund to achieve material compliance to international, national, and local laws and regulations.
• Monitors and provides comment on pending legislation and regulation. May participate on advisory committees to regulators and related government agencies.
• Prepare brief and / or consult with external counsel / legal advisors on legal issues where necessary. Engages and manages outside counsel to ensure costs are within budget and supervises and coordinates work performed by outside counsel.
• Represent Legal at relevant internal Infrastructure Fund management and Board Committees.

People Management

• Engage and manage the legal team in preparation for the case in consultation with the GE: Infrastructure Fund.
• Provide general legal education and training to Infrastructure Fund personnel.

Other Necessary Duties

• When and if necessary, institute and defend legal proceedings on behalf of the Infrastructure Fund.
• Performs other IF duties as assigned.
• Undertake other tasks as assigned by the line manager, from time to time.

Key Measurements of Outputs

• Value and Number of projects closed and implemented
• Case duration:  The time taken for a matter to go from open to closed.
• Time taken to preparation and or review agreements, opinions and provide solutions.
• Quality of agreements, opinions and solutions provided.
• Effective management of legal claims and litigation risks.
• Management of total case / agreement / opinion / other legal costs.
• Clean Audit

Expertise & Technical Competencies    

• LLB Degree (Admitted Attorney)
• A minimum of 10 years’ experience in the Commercial or Corporate Law field, with emphasis on project finance.
• Knowledge and understanding of all legislation relevant to the business of the Infrastructure Fund
• A minimum of 5 years’ experience of a similar or related function at Head: Legal level, as well as the ability to engage with high level legal professionals.
• Additional business qualifications (Finance related) will be an added advantage.
• Demonstrated ability of strong legal / business writing skills. Excellent drafting skills with regards to legal opinions.
• Demonstrated experience in infrastructure and/or project finance and development.
• Expert knowledge of legal, risk and financial management principles, philosophy and methodologies to lead the most complex legal cases, projects/assignments and agreements undertaken by the Infrastructure Fund.
• Demonstrated ability to develop innovative solutions, identify new areas of opportunity, and identify, analyse and address the legal risks inherent in moving the business forward.
• Proven negotiating skills with the ability to close deals/transactions/agreements from a legal perspective.
• Strong verbal and effective presentation skills and with the ability to express complex legal concepts in business terms.
• Ability to interact professionally and confidently at all levels of Management, Board, Shareholder, Clients, employees as well as internal and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrated knowledge of legislation, regulations, policies, processes and procedures governing the infrastructure planning and development in South Africa such as PFMA, MFMA, PPP Regulations.

TECHNICAL COMPETENCIES

Legal Knowledge

• In-depth knowledge, understanding of the principles and investigation in their specialised areas such as contracts and agreement, litigation and other general legal advice and ability to give clear and accurate advice to IF.
• Remains up-to-date with new laws, regulations and compliance with South African laws affecting the business, and regularly interprets and advises senior Stakeholders on these.
• Identifies risk in commercial transactions and suggests risk mitigation methods where applicable.
• Advises senior management on the sequencing and pacing of policy recommendations in terms of legal implications.

Legal Policy Knowledge

• Knowledge of applicable legislation and the legal policies and procedures pertaining to the local, regional and relevant global laws.
• Directs and oversees the setting of organisational legal strategies, policies and guidelines of the most complex and important cases/legal objectives.
• Extensive knowledge of topics such as procurement laws, claims, agreements, and patents laws, intellectual property financial laws, labor laws, environmental laws, trade and economics laws etc.
• Knowledge and ability to enforce conditions and provisions of contracts, grants, agreements and leases.
• Understands global market conditions and trends to meet the needs of different stakeholders and to advance the liberalisation of IF.
• Awareness of all local regional and global legal developments.
• Ability to represent DBSA/Infrastructure Fund in the court of law when required.
• Ability to draft non-standard legal documents per procedures.
• Ability to draft more sensitive policy and legal procedures to be followed by stakeholders of IF, and review and refine in response to inputs from relevant stakeholders, for approval.
• Ability to understand legal rights and responsibilities and the possession of authority to make legal decisions.
• Protects the organisation’s legal rights, utilizing a broad knowledge base of all major legal disciplines.

Risk Identification & Assessments

• Diagnoses significant, unusual and emerging risks to which the business is exposed.
• Advises on applicable aspects of legal risk identification and assessment.
• Develop innovative and strategic approaches to managing significant legal business risks for the Division.
• Interpret risk reporting and make effective decisions based on high-level understanding and expertise.

Solution Focused

• Identifies complex problems based on a broad range of factors, many of which are ambiguous or difficult to define.
• While remaining guided by organisational values, identifies optimal solutions, thinking first in terms of possible approaches and flexibilities in the system vs. blind adherence to rules or procedures.
• Evaluates the effectiveness and efficiency of solutions after they have been implemented and identifies needed changes.

Knowledge of Contracts

• Advises management and user departments on contractual issues related to procurement.
• Has an in-depth knowledge of the legal framework and appropriate regulation. Ability to apply this to develop appropriate contractual terms, conditions and documentation.
• Identifies and resolves risk and liability.

Negotiation Skills

• Has an appreciation of cultural sensitivities and differences.
• Effectively employs a variety of advanced behavioural/interpersonal competencies to control the negotiation situation.
• Is able to take the lead in a variety of sensitive negotiation situations requiring high levels of tact and diplomacy.
• Is able to place a discrete negotiation situation within the context of a broader long-term relationship and is not threatened by conceding ground to protect the longer-term interests of IF.

Reporting & Communication

• Designs, reviews and improves reporting processes and provides guidance.
• Leads production of complex environment reports, takes an editorial role, determines content and level of detail, and ensures consistent messaging and branding.
• Is relied on by others to help them write complex technical and non-technical documents and briefs.
• Is able to determine which aspects of this knowledge area need to be transferred to others in order to achieve organisational goals.
• Coaches others and transfers communication skills and knowledge to others.
• Able to communicate complex problems or concepts, by making them simple and understandable for others.
• Adapts language to the level of the audience in order to ensure that the message has a positive impact and is interesting to the audience.
• Is articulate, demonstrates a wide range of vocabulary, and is confident when talking to large/high level audiences.

Presentation Skills

• Knows how to deliver arguments persuasively by employing a range of advanced presentation techniques (e.g. the appropriate use of body language, how to close a presentation so that the audience continues to think about the subject matter etc.).
• Has knowledge of various feedback mechanisms to check levels of audience understanding.

Required Personal Attributes    
LEADERSHIP/BEHAVIOURAL COMPETENCIES

Leading & Empowering Others

• Identifies long-term goals for the team and communicates them to team members, ensuring their buy in.
• Sets a good example by personally exercising desired behaviour; acts on values and beliefs.
• Communicates a vision for the team and future success that inspires team members.
• After assessing others’ competence, one delegates full authority and responsibility to others to do a task in their own way.
• Ensures that competent employees are given opportunities to further their careers.

Leading & Managing Change

• Anticipates the need for change when not obvious and influences others to gain support. Builds sustainable business and organisational capacity to embrace and thrive on change.
• Re-engineers and aligns structures, processes and practices to support and sustain the desired change.

Strategic & Innovative Thinking

• Understands connections and trade-offs of strategic choices to evaluate which ideas are practical and possible by considering business and/or scientific implications.
• Develops innovative business and/or customer solutions that shape industry practices.

Teamwork & Cooperation

• Acts to promote a friendly climate and good morale and resolves conflicts.
• Creates opportunities for cross-functional working.
• Encourages others to network outside of their own team/department and learn from their experience.

Developing Others

• Gives specific positive or mixed feedback for developmental purposes.
• Gives negative feedback in behavioural rather than personal terms.
• Reassures and/or expresses positive expectations for future performance when giving corrective feedback.
• Gives individualised suggestions to individuals for their improvement.

Driving delivery of results

• Identifies and implements a business opportunity that will have a long-term impact on the business (which may include the organisation’s reputation or brand image). Monitors progress and adapts the plan if necessary to ensure optimal benefit to the business.
• Makes decisions, sets priorities, or chooses goals on the basis of inputs and outputs: makes explicit considerations of potential profit, return on investment, or cost benefit analysis.
• Based on the cost-benefit analysis, makes decisions of entrepreneurial risk nature.

Decisiveness (High Performance, Service Orientation)

• Makes timely decisions about complex issues even when some information is missing.
• Makes decisions and stands by them even when they are controversial or unpopular. Grasps critical business opportunities when they arise by making timely decisions.