Private Sector Partnerships

The World at Abt

Solving the world’s most pressing issues and improving the quality of life for people worldwide is what we do every day at Abt Global. Creating a more equitable world is no small task, but we are driven by big challenges. We are a team of 3,000+ people in over 50 countries working in unison and focused on the bigger picture. Only by sharing our commitment, energy, and innovation do we affect change and push the boundaries of what’s possible. We welcome diverse ideas, backgrounds, and viewpoints – joining Abt means access to exceptional thinkers at the top of their game. To thrive at Abt is to embrace flexibility and collaboration. Our open culture allows you to balance your work and personal life as needed to optimize personal well-being. Creating a more equitable world starts from within – we look after people around the world, and we’ll do the same for you. Ready to embrace rewarding and meaningful work? Now’s your chance.

The Opportunity

Abt Global (Abt) seeks a Private Sector Partnerships and Investment Director for the anticipated USAID-funded Morocco EcoRise Activity. The activity will leverage the private sector for sustainable, inclusive economic growth and strengthen Morocco’s resilience to shocks and long-term stressors, including water scarcity and drought. Interventions will seek to improve the enabling environment for investment and business growth for a sustainable economy, assist early-stage entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) through access to finance and technical support to create and scale innovative solutions increasing economic resilience, and promote a skilled workforce to support the development and growth of a sustainable and equitable economy.

As the Private Sector Partnerships and Investment Director, you will be responsible for leading the development of interventions to catalyze private sector investments, expertise, and technology towards resilience, including through the increased adoption of resilience-building management strategies across business operations and supply chains and increased knowledge and capacity of the private sector to invest in resilience (e.g., identifying investment opportunities and design of resilience-building projects). The Private Sector Partnerships and Investment Director will lead the development and implementation of the Activity’s private sector engagement and investment strategy and contribute to the Activity’s overall work plan development, indicator selection and monitoring of finance mobilization, and the project’s development and learning agenda.

The position is anticipated to be full-time for a five-year duration, will be based on Rabat, Morocco, and report to the Chief of Party. The tentative start is in June 2025.

The position is contingent upon the activity’s award and USAID approval.

Core Responsibilities

Partnerships:

• Identify and map key private stakeholders, build relationships across relevant actors, and develop a tailored PSE strategy aligned with the Activity’s objectives, local USAID resilience priorities, and key sectors, including actor types such as MSMEs, financial institutions, corporations, and government entities.
• Contribute to interventions that improve the business enabling environment for private sector resilience projects/activities through public-private dialogues, local stakeholder engagement (ministries, business associations, chambers of commerce), and advocacy support to facilitate the ease of doing business.
• Design private sector convenings, consultations (e.g., landscape assessments), and co-creation sessions using human-centered design approaches to identify and develop partnership models and concepts (e.g., solutions to address water scarcity leveraging existing private resources and expertise).
• Ensure the private sector is aware and can fully access USAID’s private sector engagement tools, capabilities and networks, per USAID’s Private Sector Engagement Policy, in support of private investment and resilience-building activities.
• Develop due diligence guidelines, checklists and processes for project staff to assess potential partners, ensuring compliance with reputational, legal, financial, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards, including protocols to conduct terror and sanctions checks.
• Collaborate with the Program team on interventions to enhance the private sector’s operations (including hiring and CSR initiatives) and investments more inclusive of underrepresented communities, women, youth, indigenous populations, and people with disabilities.

Mobilizing Finance:

• Play a lead advisory role in building out finance-related tools and knowledge products to generate awareness and educate the private sector and other stakeholders (e.g., regulators, policy makers, research institutions, etc.) on investment and insurance products to proactively mitigate risk exposure for rural communities.
• Identify opportunities and connect capital to where the demand is while understanding the appropriate mechanisms to use, including but not limited to debt markets, debt instruments, equity instruments, grants and risk mitigation.
• Lead and support interventions to support national financial institutions to increase and expand financial instruments to increase resilience to shocks such as water scarcity and drought and support their borrowers to access capital for building resilience to water scarcity and drought.
• Work with stakeholders to identify, structure, and prioritize bankable resilience projects and initiatives for funding, ensuring alignment with the guidelines and criteria of financing entities.

Resilience:

• Develop roadmaps that support resilience within the private sector, considering the size and sector of various firms, and national sector priorities.
• Contribute to cross-cutting activities, such as disaster risk financing by the public sector; building productive partnerships for resilience; gender and social inclusion; monitoring, evaluation, and learning; and collaborating, learning, and adapting.

What We Value

• Master’s degree in economics, finance, international development, business, or a related field.
• At least 8 years of experience in private sector engagement with at least 4 of those years helping private businesses assess risks, develop risk mitigation strategies, and invest in resilience. This experience should include a demonstrated track record working with financial institutions and/or insurance companies to increase private sector access to finance and/or insurance, as well as working with micro, small, medium, and large businesses, preferably in agriculture and other relevant sectors.
• Demonstrated knowledge of various financial instruments by which resilience and green economic growth activities are funded, and how these can be used to attract private sector finance, including: blue/green bonds, blended finance funds, index insurance, carbon markets, debt swaps, concessional equity, and various debt instruments.
• Experience developing comprehensive due diligence processes and guidelines, adverse findings assessments, and identifying potential risks before engaging potential partners, including financial, operational, and reputational factors.
• Experience working with MSMEs, providing or structuring business development support and facilitating innovation sprints and challenges to accelerate MSME entrepreneurship and growth
• Established networks and relationships including with private equity and venture capital fund managers, private debt funds, investment banks, DFIs, development donors, multilateral funds (e.g., GCF, GEF, Adaptation Fund), business development service providers, business associations, and relevant industries (e.g., energy, agriculture, water).
• Well-developed analytical skills, such as investment analysis, systems analysis, market reviews or benchmarking, financial and economic modelling.
• Demonstrated ability to develop collaborative working partnerships with the private sector, including businesses, business chambers, and financial institutions.
• Excellent interpersonal, intercultural, diplomacy, and leadership skills, including the ability to manage high-level relationships and motivate subordinates.
• Highly self-motivated and adaptable to learning and understanding new things.
• Ability to work both independently and in a team-oriented, collaborative environment.
• Strong skills in verbal and written communication required. Fluency in French is required.

What We Offer

We foster an environment where you can Thrive Your Way. Our innovative total rewards programs are designed to help balance your work and personal life. The approach toward your wellbeing centers around comprehensive benefits and professional development.

Abt Associates is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity employer committed to fostering a diverse workforce. Abt Associates provides market-competitive salaries and comprehensive employee benefits. Local candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.