Country Officer at International Finance Corporation (IFC)

IFC is recruiting a Country Officer to promote and coordinate IFC's investment, upstream, advisory activities and implement tools relevant to Fragile and Conflict Affected Situations (FCS) in Somalia. The role requires close interaction at a high level with the private sector, government, and international development organizations, as well as key counterparts in the World Bank Group (WBG) to develop new business and to support implementation of new/existing investment, upstream and advisory projects the structuring and negotiation of deals. The position will be based in Nairobi, Kenya until a resident mission is opened in Somalia and reports to the Country Manager for the Kenya Cluster (covering Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, Rwanda and Uganda).

Duties And Accountabilities

• Assist the Kenya Cluster Country Manager in overseeing IFC activities in the country and the smooth running of the Country Management Unit.
• Work with the Country Manager to oversee implementation of IFC’s strategy in the country including preparation of business plan updates.
• Oversee the preparation of WBG strategy documents such as Country Strategies, Country Private Sector Diagnostics, and Country Partnership Frameworks.
• Develop and maintain a good understanding of the country and key economic and political issues.
• Work with investment, advisory, upstream, FCS, WB and MIGA teams to continue to roll out the IFC 3.0 strategy and develop the project pipeline.
• Build and maintain strong high-level relationships with the private sector, relevant government officials, key development partners, and WBG colleagues to support business development and portfolio management.
• Participate in client selection and help ensure that IFC is working with the right sponsors.
• In collaboration with the FCS Africa team, develop and support the implementation of the overall program strategy for the FCS program in Somalia and contribute to the development of specific strategies.
• Play a central role in helping to shape and direct the IFC’s overall FCS investment and advisory engagement strategy in Somalia.
• Perform periodic reporting and liaison as required with the FCS Africa team.
• Support the FCS and other programs in sharing data and information on market trends, potentials, challenges and opportunities for doing business in Somalia
• Implement AFI program activities in Somalia
• Assist in project structuring and implementation using local market intelligence. Track the project pipeline and assist in moving transactions forward.
• Help manage development partner relations to support the raising of funds for advisory and upstream projects.
• Identify and team with peers and other staff to resolve issues and questions related to security issues that affect operations in Somalia and engage with WB CMU and security teams to ensure IFC interests are incorporated in the operational security and mission plans
• Track and oversee the preparation of visiting missions/trips to the country.
• Contribute to the preparation of board papers and other documents, as needed.
• Develop a good understanding of the portfolio, assist with resolving issues, and maintain good relationships with existing clients.
• Prepare/coordinate high-quality briefs for WBG senior management.
• Represent IFC externally and provide visibility for IFC through organizing/participating in high profile events (high-level visits, press interviews, seminars, and conferences).

Selection Criteria

• Post-graduate degree, preferably in finance, business administration, management, economics, or a similar field.
• 10+ years of relevant experience, preferably in areas such as investment or commercial banking, public-private partnerships, management consulting, or operational experience in an investment and/or advisory role.
• Experience and/or a strong interest in the Africa region is required, and operational experience in Somalia would be an advantage.
• Excellent understanding of the country national, political and economic context.
• Ability to assess the viability of business opportunities and risks.
• Ability to think creatively about potential investment opportunities, and to use business development skills to translate such opportunities into bankable projects.
• Strong analytical, finance, financial modeling, credit, and transaction structuring skills is an advantage.
• Good understanding of IFC’s investment and advisory business lines, their products, how they complement each other, and how they may be leveraged to match the long-term needs of clients and open new markets.
• Track record in developing and maintaining strong high-level relationships in the private sector, government, and development institutions.
• Ability to represent IFC externally with the private sector, government, development partners, media, and other stakeholders.
• Team management experience including supervising, mentoring, and training staff.
• Team player with strong leadership and influencing skills, and track record in working in a matrix structure.
• Strong client service orientation with an ability to resolve challenging issues.
• Excellent critical thinking, analytical and presentation skills, and ability to work with or supervise the use of data utilizing standard office software Excel, Word, PowerPoint; and,
• Excellent written and oral communication