Senior Investment Officer, Farming and Agribusiness Sector Lead

World Bank Group•Washington, DC

8d•Onsite

About The Position

The World Bank Group’s Planet Vice Presidency works to make the planet livable by supporting scalable public- and private-sector solutions for development challenges, job creation, and poverty elimination. The Farming and Agribusiness Department (FAB) works with regions to transform food systems through thought leadership and solutions for governments, private-sector operators, investors, and financial institutions. Its priorities include strengthening food and nutrition security, advancing climate-smart and sustainable food systems, and improving jobs through innovation and agribusiness investment. FAB’s Solutions and Impact unit is recruiting a Sector Lead to support investment teams and manage external relationships, thought leadership, knowledge management, and strategic and tactical development, implementation, and coordination. The role provides sector expertise and strategic guidance across the investment cycle, supports WBG farming and agribusiness strategies and the operationalization and scaling of AgriConnect, and helps develop financing solutions that mobilize private capital. The position is based in Washington, DC, with significant travel, including extensive travel in emerging markets. The successful candidate will bring substantial debt and equity investment experience, sound judgment in complex transactions, agrifood sector knowledge, and the ability to develop relationships and collaborate across institutions. The role also includes mentoring colleagues, contributing to sector knowledge and thought leadership, and responsibly using AI-enabled tools for research, analysis, and drafting while validating outputs and remaining accountable for recommendations.

Requirements

Master’s degree in finance, economics, business administration, agribusiness, or another relevant discipline.
At least 8 years of debt and equity investment experience.
Proven judgment in investment assessment, screening, structuring, negotiation, and execution, including the ability to lead or provide technical guidance on complex transactions.
Knowledge of agricultural inputs and machinery, sector benchmarks, operating parameters, and client targeting, with the ability to turn sector knowledge and market intelligence into investment opportunities.
Ability to contribute to sector strategies and business growth plans, identify strategic clients, and build relationships that support business development and market creation.
Ability to identify sector-wide risks and portfolio issues and apply lessons from portfolio performance to improve investment structuring and decision-making.
Experience applying sustainability solutions and supporting innovative financing structures to address sector financing constraints and mobilize private capital.
Ability to integrate multidisciplinary perspectives and collaborate across WBG institutions and sectors, drawing on internal and external networks.
Ability to mentor and coach colleagues, share sector expertise, and ensure the quality of assigned work and deliverables.
Excellent written and spoken English, strong stakeholder skills, and ability to communicate complex sector and investment issues clearly to diverse audiences.
Ability to use commercially available LLM tools, such as Claude, ChatGPT, and Copilot, for research, analysis, and drafting; validate outputs against primary sources and remain accountable for recommendations.
Willingness to travel extensively in emerging markets.
Responsibly leverage digital and AI-enabled tools to enhance productivity, learning, and decision-making.
The requisition is open to WBG and IMF staff only, including short-term and extended-term consultants and temporaries; external candidates are not eligible for consideration.

Nice To Haves

15 or more years of relevant experience.
Emerging-market agrifood experience.
Experience working in fragile, conflict-affected, and violent (FCV) contexts.

Responsibilities

Build and maintain strategic relationships with private-sector companies, investors, public institutions, and industry associations to identify investment opportunities, foster partnerships, and advance sector priorities.
Identify and pursue collaboration opportunities across WBG sector teams to address agrifood challenges, unlock private investment, and develop scalable integrated solutions.
Provide sector expertise and strategic guidance to investment teams throughout business development, screening, structuring, appraisal, and portfolio supervision.
Support development and implementation of WBG farming and agribusiness strategies, including operationalizing and scaling AgriConnect and translating sector priorities into actionable investment opportunities and replicable solutions.
Contribute to the development and innovative deployment of debt, equity, guarantees, risk-sharing instruments, and blended-finance solutions to address financing constraints and mobilize private capital.
Monitor portfolio performance, industry trends, and market developments to identify risks, opportunities, and implications for financial performance, development impact, and future business growth.
Lead sector knowledge generation and dissemination, contribute to thought leadership and external engagement, and represent IFC in relevant industry forums.
Mentor junior colleagues and strengthen sector expertise and institutional capabilities.
Use approved AI-enabled tools for recurring research, analysis, and drafting; validate material outputs against primary sources and remain accountable for recommendations and decisions.