Senior Investment Officer at World Bank Group

Duties and Accountabilities:

Officers working in Upstream activities are responsible for:

• Coordinating with key stakeholders to create the enabling environment to mobilize private sector investment through regulatory and policy reforms.
• Developing business models and platforms that can be scaled across regions, countries, and sectors, and facilitating transformational projects.
• The timeline for these activities to progress from concept launch to final investment is 2-3 years or longer and, as such, staff in these roles have multi-year objectives with concrete deliverables (i.e., milestones) for each fiscal year.  The overall objective is to create enabling environments and advance sector markets across Africa, especially in LIC / FCS countries.

The specific roles and responsibilities of the position will include but not be limited to the following:

Program Management:

• Work with IFC and other World Bank Group (WBG) stakeholders to prioritize Upstream projects and initiatives and ensure they are incorporated in relevant sector, country, and regional strategies.
• Scope and prioritize work program based on these agreed upon strategies and stakeholder engagements.
• Create development metrics and monitoring approaches to ensure continuous progress in all aspects of the team's work.

Programmatic Approaches:

• Identify and harness technologies, business models, and opportunities for new approaches that can accelerate development impact within a region or across countries and sectors.
• Work across IFC and WBG to facilitate standardization and wholesale approaches to increase scale and efficiencies as well as innovate, including through warehousing and blending to de-risk projects and diversify the investor base.
• Disseminate knowledge and experience across the industry group to support adoption of new approaches and best practices.

Transformational Project Facilitation:

• Source projects and initiatives by engaging with senior officials in WBG, governments, other development organizations, and the private sector and by uncovering needs through strategic analysis, including WBG Country Private Sector Diagnostics, Country Strategies and similar initiatives.
• Connect expertise from investment and advisory staff, and external partners to projects and initiatives.

Sector Engagement:

• Participate in the identification of needed market and regulatory reforms and design of sector interventions to create enabling environments in new markets.
• Partner with sister organizations in the WBG and others to provide input to the development of sector-specific development strategies, from diagnostics to implementation.
• Provide input and guidance to the development of IFC's country strategy and provide substantive input to country diagnostics and WBG strategy documents.
• Coordinate a network of staff working on Upstream activities across their sectors to ensure efficiency and collaboration of efforts.

 
General:

• Develop innovative, scalable approaches for creating enabling environments for private sector investment.
• Manage individual initiatives that support Upstream priorities.
• Coordinate with internal and external stakeholders related to initiatives and disseminate knowledge across teams.
• Ensure coordination and integration of approaches with mainstream Investment colleagues.
• Draw on investment and advisory staff, industry specialists, and external consultants as needed.
• Supervise, mentor and coach junior staff and share experiences.

Selection Criteria

• At least a Master's degree, or equivalent professional qualification, in Business, Finance, Economics, Engineering, or Law.
• Minimum 12 years of experience in the developing world on non-routine financing or development of private or PPP infrastructure projects in challenging environments.  Familiarity with project development, management, documentation and negotiations (PPAs, concessions, EPC and O&M contracts, etc.) and limited recourse project financing.  Deep understanding of bankability constraints for greenfield projects, and a track record of resolving them, is a must.
• Excellent analytical, investment, business development, networking, integration, negotiation, and relationship management skills to facilitate working successfully across IFC/WBG, industry sectors, regions, business lines, and external stakeholder groups (both public and private sector).
• Commitment to the mission, strategy and values of IFC and the wider WBG.
• Good understanding of IFC's strategies, systems, functions and abilities.
• Experience in IFC (or other DFI) 'mainstream' investment operations a distinct advantage.
• Mastery of IFC/WBG's products (including de-risking products) and services as well as approaches for mobilizing private sector funding.
• Track-record of engaging with client companies, shareholders, and government officials to encourage pioneering business and market development.
• Strong capacity for innovation and challenging the status quo to build the business.
• Strong written and verbal communications skills.  Strong inter-personal skills, ability to interact effectively with clients and colleagues from various cultural backgrounds.
• Ability to mentor and coach junior staff, share experiences and ensure quality.
• Willingness to travel extensively.

Closing Date:10/21/2022