Private Sector Development Officer

The Private Sector Development Officer will help identify, develop, and implement private sector development activities (PSD) activities in Sri Lanka. PSD activities include: (1) upstream support for (i) strengthening government’s capacity for planning and implementing policies and projects to develop the private sector, and (ii) institutional, legislative, and policy reforms to develop enabling environment for private sector; (2) midstream support for (i) market facing advisory and (ii) project preparation; and (3) downstream support for (i) sovereign and non-sovereign financing, and (ii) capital mobilization through co-financing. ADB has identified the PSD shift as one of the four fundamental shifts under the new operating model. To mainstream PSD interventions into ADB’s operations and to promote programmatic approach and solutions, SARD PSD team will work with the Sectors Group, Private Sector Operations Department (PSOD), and Office of Markets Development and Public Private Partnership (OMDP).

You will:

Strategies and Planning:

Help prepare country partnership strategy (CPS). Specific tasks include, among others, (i) support for preparation of private sector assessment and PSD annex to the CPS; (ii) review of sector assessment to ensure PSD elements are included in each sector assessment, and (iii) any other relevant inputs for CPS.

Business Development:

• Help with country programming and project conceptualization in early stages of sovereign operations, identifying ADB support to promote PSD through diverse, programmatic solutions across ADB’s operations.
• Monitor development needs for private sector and PPPs in Sri Lanka, gather feedback for PSD, and support policy dialogue and project design to promote PSD.
• Support policy dialogue with government, municipalities, state-owned enterprises, development partners, and others to address challenges and promote private sector-led growth (including PPPs) in Sri Lanka.
• Help identify ADB’s upstream PSD support in view of ADB’s comparative advantage and donor coordination, and further help design and implement such upstream PSD activities.
• Help expand opportunities for advisory and non-sovereign operations.
• Contribute to the development of financing framework or facility to promote PSD.
• Build relationships with relevant development partners and cofinanciers, including the development of partnership for blended finance.
• Help with the Sectors Group, PSOD, and OMDP to promote diverse solutions for the clients and develop a pipeline of ADB’s sovereign, advisory and non-sovereign operations.

Project Management:

• Support identification, processing, implementation, and administration of high-value technical assistance projects for private sector development.
• Review documents to ensure PSD elements are integrated into project design.
• Support Regional Head, PSD, SARD and Country Director, SLRM in relevant committee deliberations on proposed sovereign, advisory and non-sovereign operations.
• Support solutions teams in PSD-related operations, including participation in project processing as a team member.

Knowledge Sharing:

• Engage with private sector partners to communicate ADB operations in Sri Lanka.
• Contribute to training, conferences, and knowledge sharing on PSD.
• Prepare and share knowledge products on private sector development.

Staff Supervision:

• Lead and support reporting staff.
• Oversee performance of reporting staff with clear direction and regular performance monitoring and feedback.
• Ensure the ongoing learning and development of reporting staff.

Qualifications You will need:

• Bachelor’s degree in economics, finance, business administration, public policy or related fields, preferably with advanced training.
• At least 8 years of work experience in (i) policies and regulations for private sector development regarding investment climate reforms, sector reforms, state-owned enterprise reforms, or public-private partnerships; (ii) private sector financing for infrastructure, corporates or financial institutions; (iii) transaction advisory for PPPs or corporate finance advisory, or (iv) business development in the private sector.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
• Ability to work with clients and colleagues from different cultural background.

Source: https://www.adb.org/careers/250122