CEO (Full-time, Nairobi) 355 views2 applications

Organisation

The African Aquaculture Investment Company (AAIC) is dedicated to investing in, and supporting, the sustainable growth of aquaculture on the African continent. This social impact investment fund has been recently established by AquaSpark, an impact investment fund focused on supporting sustainable aquaculture worldwide, and Msingi East Africa

(Msingi), an East African industry development institution established by the Gatsby Foundation and the UK’s

Department for International Development (DFID). Msingi seeks to deliver transformative sector development in East Africa by catalysing the growth and increased competitiveness of new and existing high-potential industries. The over-arching strategic objective for the AAIC will be to identify, invest in and support companies that develop a flourishing pan-African aquaculture industry, thereby enhancing African aquaculture’s contribution to economic growth, employment and food security on the continent.

 

We are currently looking for an inaugural CEO to lead the new organisation in Nairobi, initially supported by the management teams of both Aqua-Spark and Msingi.

CEO

(Full-time, Nairobi)

Job description

The CEO will lead the African Aquaculture Investment Company (AAIC) to strengthen aquaculture infrastructure on the continent, advance aquaculture development in East Africa and provide leadership through AAIC to usher in a new era for aquaculture in Africa.

 

The CEO and the management team will be supported by the professional staff of both Aqua-Spark and Msingi, both of which currently work to develop the aquaculture sector in Africa through multiple initiatives. The role will 1) provide leadership to the AAIC team and mission; 2) identify promising companies to recommend for investment and supervise due diligence and deal structure for such investment; and 3) work with relevant government and governmental agencies involved with aquaculture and applicable regulations and oversight. Sustainable and long-term growth in the aquaculture sector will require innovation, creativity, and the development of various partnerships, financial tools and strategies.

The AAIC CEO will significantly contribute to the enhancement of African aquaculture’s role in economic growth, employment and food security on the continent.

Key responsibilities 

• Leading the identification, due diligence, and deal structure process for AAIC to make integrated investments in commercially viable and sustainable aquaculture and associated enterprises (e.g. fish farming and/or fingerling hatcheries as well as feed, genetics and ancillary services) in key geographies in sub-Saharan Africa, which are believed to offer a risk-adjusted commercial return in the medium term to investors.
  • Initial investments will focus on securing all the elements required by a fish farm operator, ideally on a fully vertically integrated basis, with an option for other standalone investments.
  • The initial focus will be on local species for domestic consumption (e.g. catfish and tilapia) to maximize contribution to regional food security and, by demonstrating achievement, to encourage other operators and enhance small-holder production.
• Working with the Aqua-Spark and Msingi teams and government and industry partners on formulating, advocating and implementing policies that support the reform and sustainable growth of the African aquaculture sector.
• Assisting with attracting commercial investment to develop and grow small to medium-scale private enterprises that foster future growth of sustainable African aquaculture.
• Writing reports and presenting investment recommendations and business opportunities to the Managing Partners and the Investment Committee, which includes representatives from Msingi and Aqua-Spark.
• Responsible for the investment process, which includes deal screening and coordination of the (in-depth) due diligence process on potential portfolio investments, with the goal to turn high quality leads into a final agreement on investment and negotiation of the final shareholders agreement.
• Working together with the portfolio company directors to set key performance indicators for the portfolio companies and to monitor both financial and non-financial performance of the existing portfolio investments.
• Working (pro-actively) on sustainable relationships with internal and external stakeholders such as (potential) portfolio companies, experts and consultants, investors, etc., including the representation of AAIC at relevant aquaculture-related conferences and events.

Qualifications 

Besides a Bachelor degree (Master’s degree preferred) in Business or a similar discipline, you have:

 

• 10 years of work experience and 5 years of professional experience in a leadership position, preferably in impact investing, corporate finance or business development, and at least three years of work experience within East or Southern Africa
• Work experience within the field of investment management, conducting due diligence, closing a variety of investment deals and making initial investments, especially experience in investing in SMEs/early stage companies and helping to bring early stage SMEs to maturity as an investor
• Experience leading and managing a team
• Knowledge and experience within the world of the global food production and the agri-/aquaculture industries and willingness to follow trends and developments in aquaculture
• Strong understanding of finance and performance management principles, business planning, negotiating and working with financial modeling
• Experience with structuring and continuously improving the deal flow and investment process, negotiations and coordination with external advisors
• In-depth knowledge of risk management, corporate governance and general management best practices and familiarity with diverse business functions such as legal and marketing
• Alignment with Aqua-Spark’s and Msingi’s values

Required personal skills

• You have excellent analytical and financial skills and the ability to understand and work through complex business problems and the evaluation of company performance metrics.
• As an excellent communicator and networker with great interpersonal skills, you are able to communicate and negotiate effectively on politically / administratively sensitive matters with leading representatives of domestic and foreign leaders or governments, universities, legal and judicial organizations, non-governmental and other relevant organizations.
• You have an entrepreneurial mind-set and are action-oriented with a commitment to, and understanding of, market developments and an ability to understand sector dynamics and approaches to transforming entire sectors.
• You are self-motivated and able to work independently.
• You have outstanding organizational talent and strong intellectual curiosity—keenness to learn and innovate.
• You have the ability to discover new opportunities and solutions for problems by looking beyond current practices and using innovative thinking.
• With your outstanding leadership skills and as a team player, you are able to build and lead a diverse management team and create strong relationships across diverse groups of people. You have the ability to motivate and energize others while striving for continuous improvement.
• You are results driven and able to initiate and act with a strong sense of urgency and focus, are energetic, and are willing to take a high degree of personal responsibility for the team’s results.
• You have excellent written and oral communication skills, with a high degree of professionalism in English and preferably a second language such as French, Portuguese or Kiswahili.
• You are proficient in Microsoft and Excel and have familiarity with databases and excellent IT/computer skills in general.

Remuneration

The position comes with an excellent salary package, attractive secondary benefits, and the opportunity to make real change with an impactful role within a great entrepreneurial and global network. 

Contact information

For more information or if you would like to apply directly, please contact Marjolein Jetten by phone or email: +31 (6) 29 33 2916 or [email protected].

 

We are looking forward to receiving your application!