Head

Head Job #: req33747 Organization: MIGA Sector: Operations Grade: GH Term Duration: 4 years 0 months Recruitment Type: International Recruitment Location: Mexico City,Mexico; Panama City, Panama; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Bogota, Colombia Required Language(s): English & Spanish Preferred Language(s): Portuguese Closing Date: 7/31/2025 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC

Description

Do you want to build a career that is truly worthwhile? The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA or Agency) is a member of the World Bank Group, and our mission is to promote foreign direct investment into developing countries to help end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity on a livable planet. We do that through the provision of political risk insurance and public sector credit guarantees to investors and lenders against losses caused by noncommercial risks. For more information, visit www.miga.org
In July2024, the World Bank Group launched the WBG Guarantee Platform (WB GP) a major upgrade to its guarantees business, that will deliver improved guarantee access through a unified team at MIGA as well as innovative new guarantee solutions. These new reforms will help position MIGA to achieve the goal of tripling annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030.
Recognizing the need for MIGA to achieve this ambition and be closer to prospective new clients, MIGA established the Latin America and Caribbean regional Hub in the region with a Regional Head (RH) mandated to originate new business opportunities and client relationships for MIGA in support of MIGA’s focus areas. The presence of staff in the region helps MIGA more effectively work with clients and allows the Agency to actively participate in regional markets and to benefit from the strength of outbound and inbound investments.  It also offers a chance to build on the increasing interest of investors looking for opportunities in the emerging markets.   MIGA’s Operations Department (MIGOP) is seeking a Regional Head of Latin America and Caribbean Hub with extensive political and public sector credit risk underwriting, new business origination, and client relationship management experience, who will identify new business opportunities for MIGA and the WB’s GP, achieve business targets and grow the World Bank Group guarantee business.  This position will be based in one of the relevant hubs of the World Bank Group in LAC (Bogota, Mexico City, Sao Paulo or Panama City). The selected candidate will report to MIGA’s Financial Institutions Group (FIG) Director based in Washington D.C.
Duties and Accountabilities:
The Regional Head of Latin America and Caribbean Hub plays the primary role in developing MIGA’s business pipeline in the Latin America and Caribbean Region, with a particular focus on lesser developed countries in the region.  He/she will be responsible for developing and implementing strategies to identify clients/ projects in priority sectors, countries, and areas. He/she will oversee the provision of technical underwriting support from the region, conduct outreach to clients and provide overall quality assurance for work produced by the Latin America and Caribbean regional team.  The Regional Head will primarily report to MIGA’s FIG Director with the responsibility to support both the FIG and Industries Directors in all areas including pipeline and portfolio management, new business development and meeting overall business targets for MIGA.  The Regional Head will also support the Directors and MIGA’s Senior Management Team overall in policy, planning and strategy for the region. In addition, the Regional Head will be the primary counterpart for World Bank and IFC regional engagements. S/he is expected to maintain close contact with the various country management units (CMUs) on sector and regional issues impacting MIGA’s pipeline. The work of the Regional Head involves frequent interaction with top government officials and equivalent contacts in other international organizations, private sector companies and financial institutions that are clients, potential clients, and partners of MIGA, including counterparts within and across sectors, networks, and other WBG units.  The role also requires contact, as required, with the MIGA Board and Board Committees, and senior and executive management at Headquarters and in the field.
Responsibilities include:
• Ensuring proper financial and fiduciary management of MIGA's resources;• Ensuring the successful delivery of the WB GP commitments by closely coordinating with WBG sister institutions and relevant staff, host governments, and partner institutions, including conducting ongoing roadshow / briefing sessions to regularly inform such stakeholder groups on the goals and objectives, and progress of the WB GP;• Ensuring the agreed Accountability and Decision Making (ADM) protocols for the WB GP are consistently and comprehensively applied where/when applicable.• Managing relationships with Host Government and Host Government Officials in countries identified as priority markets for the Agency;• Collaborating with other units within MIGA, IFC, and the WBG to deliver high level business results, with a particular focus on WB/IFC regional staff;• Working with the FIG, Industries, and World Bank Infrastructure Guarantees Unit managers and staff to provide oversight of all political risk insurance underwriting and business origination work of the Latin America and Caribbean team, including quality control of all papers and presentations for MIGA management and MIGA's Board, and providing high level client management oversight including leadership or participation in client teams;• Ensuring consistency of MIGA’s guarantees with WBG country partnership strategies;• Identifying new business opportunities for MIGA and WB GP using the IDA PSW and other Blended Finance modalities at MIGA’s disposal, among other business development tools; • Providing a specialized focus on business development and origination in lesser developed countries in the Latin America and Caribbean and other developing regions covered by the WBG, and develop and implement strategies for sub-sectors and priority areas such as climate / energy transition, and gender; • Developing client/ project leads; assist clients through the application process; structure initial deals, provide high-level client relationship management; working with MIGA FIG and Industries teams as needed when a new application is received to facilitate the underwriting of a transaction and to ensure excellent client service; developing and maintaining partnerships with regional DFIs and other like-minded institutions involved in foreign investment.• Developing and maintaining contacts with private sector investors, lenders and other institutions involved in the development and implementation of investment projects; • Meeting with prospective clients to market MIGA's guarantee products as well as with MIGA partners to better understand the market for political risk insurance and public sector credit risk guarantee solutions in priority areas and to identify new market opportunities for MIGA and the WB GP;• Structuring complex transactions and assessing project risks; • Coaching and mentoring junior staff, supervising the staff located and working in the region;• Representing MIGA and the WB GP at high-level conferences or other events where MIGA desires to market its services and products; overseeing sponsorship at such events where needed; • Advising MIGA's Management Team on business development strategies as needed. • Frequent travel is required to follow up on project opportunities that are likely to result in new business for MIGA.

Selection Criteria

• Master’s degree in international Business, Finance, Economics, or related field plus at least 12 years of directly relevant experience (such as political risk underwriting, public / sovereign debt finance, public procurement, project finance, and/or private sector work in emerging markets); • Extensive knowledge of emerging markets finance and economic development as well as an understanding of issues related to investment insurance and foreign direct investments in emerging markets; • Sound financial analysis skills, including experience analyzing and structuring complex project and debt finance;• Demonstrated high level technical underwriting skills, and proven track record in business development and in handling complex project risk underwriting and/or project and corporate finance;• Demonstrated high-level understanding of political / sovereign risk guarantee products, and their application in the project and export finance banking fields;  • Strong client orientation, diplomatic skills, as well as sensitivity to social and cultural issues as they affect multilateral risk mitigation and investors going into developing countries;• Demonstrated experience leading teams and a proven track record in delivering high quality work results;• Demonstrated interpersonal skills in managing and motivating people and teams; • Experience in guiding, mentoring and coaching staff on technical and business issues;• Experience in working across boundaries; and experience in joint projects ventures with key multilateral and bilateral institutions;• Ability to make forward-looking and practical decisions with a bias towards a results and implementation culture, with a focus on the big picture and the overall strategic framework for development;• High degree of discretion, ethics, tack, and sensitivity in handling confidential and sensitive information; ability to maintain high standard of personal integrity;• Excellent command of written and oral communications skill in English and Spanish required, with ability to make persuasive oral and presentations.  Ability to speak Portuguese would be a plus.

WBG Culture Attributes:

1. Sense of Urgency – Anticipating and quickly reacting to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
2. Thoughtful Risk Taking – Taking informed and thoughtful risks and making courageous decisions to push boundaries for greater impact.
3. Empowerment and Accountability – Engaging with others in an empowered and accountable manner for impactful results.

World Bank Group Core Competencies