Head: Project Development at Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA)

Job Description    

• Leads the origination and early-stage development of infrastructure projects across South Africa and the rest of Africa by identifying, shaping, and structuring innovative project concepts. The role is responsible for translating strategic priorities into a pipeline of viable, high-impact infrastructure opportunities, guiding pre-feasibility and early structuring, and mobilising partnerships and funding to support project development. The role ensures that projects are strategically aligned, technically sound, and positioned for successful transition into the preparation phase.

Key Responsibilities    
Strategic Focus

• Build a pipeline of bankable projects in support of the DBSA mandate, ensure deal flow and create co-funding opportunities by catalysing co-investment in projects prepared.
• Lead the execution of DBSA’s project development strategy, as defined by the Senior Head, with a focus on earlystage origination and concept innovation.
• Identify strategic infrastructure gaps and opportunities aligned with national and regional development priorities.
• Translate strategic intent into a pipeline of viable, high-impact project concepts.
• Develop and maintain policies and frameworks that guide early-stage project development.
• Monitor global and regional trends to inform innovative approaches to project origination and delivery.

Infrastructure Origination and Concept Development

• Identify and shape infrastructure concepts from ideation through to pre-feasibility.
• Direct early-stage technical, commercial, and regulatory assessments to determine project viability.
• Curate a pipeline of innovative, high-impact projects aligned with DBSA’s mandate.
• Ensure seamless transition of viable concepts to the Project Preparation Unit for further development.

Conduct project-specific feasibility assessments to provide technical and financial requirements:

• Environmental Impact Assessments
• Regulatory environment and approvals required
• Procurement needs assessment
• Key stakeholder engagement and approvals required
• Technical evaluations and needs assessments
• Oversee the development of standardised technical requirements for each project structure and ensure procurement specification documents are clear and meet the minimum standards and regulatory requirements.
• Develop the procurement model and specifications to guide project owners on the approach to market for implementing the project.
• Develop and recommend sustainable financing structures, models, and solutions for DBSA clients through various products, which include (amongst others) blended finance structures, climate finance, Public Private Partnerships (PPP) structures, project finance, B-BBEE funding structures, local currency funding, guarantees and derivative hedges.
• Provide project development oversight, including investment and financial advisory solutions, considering the technical, financial, environmental, and insurance factors.
• Provide technical implementation support to beneficiaries with respect to project development grants, loans, access to technical assistance and instruments.
• Oversee compliance with DBSA governance processes and sound programme/ project management methodologies and best practice standards for project development execution initiatives.
• Provide status reporting on execution milestones, deliverables, dependencies, risks and issues, communicating across leadership and identified stakeholders.

Stakeholder Management

• Build and manage strategic partnerships with project sponsors, municipalities, SOEs, DFIs, and private sector actors.
• Facilitate co-development of projects with ecosystem partners to enhance innovation, impact, and bankability.
• Represent DBSA in national and regional forums to promote its leadership in infrastructure origination and earlystage development.
• Mobilise third-party funding and technical assistance to support early-stage project development.

Reporting and Governance

• Establish governance mechanisms for project development activities, ensuring transparency and accountability.
• Track and report on pipeline growth, concept conversion rates, and alignment with strategic goals.
• Ensure compliance with DBSA’s internal policies, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) standards, and external regulatory frameworks.
• Maintain oversight of early-stage project risks and mitigation strategies.

People Management

• Lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing team, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous learning to maximise individual and collective potential.
• Drive talent development initiatives, including coaching, performance management, and career pathing, to build and retain a skilled and motivated team.
• Provide direction and management to the Division, to enable strategy execution.
• Attract, retain, and develop talent and ensure succession planning and sufficient capacity and capability in all critical functions, supporting diversity strategies and initiatives as well.
• Promote DBSA values and a culture of high performance through implementing performance management in line with the planned strategic objectives, goals, quality standards and agreed key performance measures using sound performance management principles.
• Contribute to building synergies & cooperation across functions in the DBSA.
•  Live the DBSA values.

Key measurement of output:

• Value of projects prepared and committed by DBSA and other funders.
• Value of bankable projects.
• Number of projects prepared which result in the identification, assessment and realisation of projects.
• Management of client relationships and key stakeholders.
• Partnerships established to promote projects.
• Successful execution of strategic initiatives and projects.
• Implementation of Effective Governance and Compliance Structures.
• Clean audit.

Expertise & Technical Competencies    
Sector Expertise

• Demonstrates global thought leadership, including speaking at international conferences, sharing work via knowledge management, documenting business cases, white papers, and articles.
• Understands dynamics of other sectors and uses that knowledge to draw comparisons and insights about the given sector.
• Foresees trends in the given sector industry at a global level and actively communicates/publishes opinions and insights.
• Understands sector industry dynamics, trends and key players at the global level and uses that knowledge to position DBSA as an economic policy authority of repute within the global market.

Deal Origination

• Formulate and develop new and alternative financing mechanisms and concepts that can be replicated elsewhere within and outside SA.
• Conceptualise and develop innovative funding instruments (equity, venture capital, mezzanine, debt, securitisation of projects, etc.) to finance infrastructure that would otherwise not be possible, relying on the market only to develop and propose these investment opportunities.
• Proactively develop impact concepts to take to the market.
• Leads and mentors project teams.
• Formulate new products.

Deal Structuring

• Uses credit enhancement techniques to structure deals and optimise pricing in terms of Basel principles.
• Has an in-depth and practical understanding of how to optimise the Capital Structure, collateral package, and debt repayment profile.
• Interrogates financial models, including those with a high degree of complexity, to develop an optimal structure.
• Identifies complex structural issues that need escalation and proposes appropriate bankable structures.
• Demonstrates knowledge on advanced structuring, including the use of derivatives, syndicated loans, synthetic loans, securitisations, inflation-linked debt, credit default swaps and subordinated debt.
• Prepares specialised or tailored reports relating to new innovative instruments, gathers information from a variety of sources, analyses and includes in a report to new product approval committees.
• Compiles comprehensive specialist reports as required for inclusion into credit committee submissions.

Negotiation

• Has an appreciation of cultural sensitivities and differences.
• Effectively employs a variety of advanced behavioural/interpersonal competencies to control the negotiation situation.
• Is able to take the lead in a variety of sensitive negotiation situations requiring high levels of tact and diplomacy.
• Is able to place a discrete negotiation situation within the context of a broader long-term relationship and is not threatened by conceding ground to protect the longer-term interests of DBSA.

Financial Analysis

• Serves as subject matter expert and leads work teams for more complex issues.
• Evaluates and determines fiscal, operational, and service impacts; analyses and evaluates legislation; and implements and evaluates statistical models in their subject areas.
• Demonstrates in-depth technical and administrative knowledge of the rules and regulations in the subject area and to defend analyses, testimony, and recommendations relating to a variety of issues before management and commissions.

Qualifications
Minimum Requirements

• Postgraduate degree in Engineering and/or in the Built Environment (Civil, Construction Management or Quantity Surveying).
• Registration with the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) as a professional engineer (PrEng).

Experience
Minimum Experience

• Minimum 12 years’ experience in infrastructure project development, built environment, advisory service or consulting experience, with 5 years in a management role. 
• In-depth understanding of the end-to-end infrastructure project development process including feasibility studies and deal structuring.
• Deep understanding of development finance and the financial instruments and structures relevant to infrastructure projects.
• Strategic planning and leadership expertise, with a demonstrated ability to align project development with national, provincial, and local development strategies.
• Solid knowledge of the infrastructure development landscape, public finance frameworks, and macroeconomic dynamics in South Africa and across the African continent.
• Strong business development and relationship management skills, with an established network across local government, national departments, development partners, and the private sector.
• Exceptional negotiation and communication skills, with experience influencing and closing infrastructure proposals at executive, political, and board levels.
• Proven ability to operate in politically sensitive environments, engaging senior municipal and government stakeholders across diverse regional and cultural contexts.
• Demonstrated ability to produce high-quality reports, briefing documents, and presentations for Executive Management, Boards, and high-level policy forums.
•  In-depth technical understanding of regulatory frameworks and industry best practices.

Desirable Experience

• Expertise in financial modelling.
• Knowledge of regional infrastructure development dynamics

Deadline:18th December,2025