Principal, Bilateral Donor Relations

Purpose of Job

Donor funding, partnerships and expertise are integral to the EBRD’s business model and its ability to deliver its transition mandate. In 2025, the Bank mobilised a record €2.14 billion in donor funding and deployed nearly €2 billion of donor resources across its operations. Donor resources support the Bank through a range of instruments, including technical assistance, grants, concessional finance and risk-sharing mechanisms, helping to enhance investment impact, advance policy engagement, build capacity and respond to crisis and transition needs. Donor Partnerships (DP), working closely with teams across the Bank, plays an important role in developing and managing these partnerships and aligning donor resources with the EBRD’s strategic priorities. Under the Bank’s new Donor Strategy 2026–2030, donor partnerships will continue to play a central role in delivering the EBRD’s mandate and expanding its impact.

The Principal will be expected to take a leadership role in managing a portfolio of funds and partnerships and in providing strategic advice with the aim of positioning the EBRD as a lead agency for product quality and delivery, securing funding for strategic projects, and maximising the impact of the Bank’s policy orientations in the strategic areas covered by those funds and facilities. The Principal leads strategic relationships with key bilateral donors, driving resource mobilisation, aligning donor priorities with EBRD operations, and ensuring the effective delivery and impact of donor-funded activities across the Bank.

Background

Donor Partnerships are a vital pillar of the EBRD’s business model, playing a key role in advancing the Bank’s transition mandate and fostering sustainable market development across its Countries of Operation. Over the years, the scale and complexity of donor support have grown significantly, particularly in response to global crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the war on Ukraine. Today, almost two thirds of the Bank’s investments are accompanied by donor funding.

Donor support comes from a diverse network of partners, including shareholder governments, the European Union, multilateral climate funds, international organisations, philanthropies, and the private sector. This funding enables the EBRD to pursue investment opportunities that might not be viable on purely commercial terms, especially in fragile economies or markets facing institutional constraints. In recent years, the Bank has increasingly leveraged innovative financial instruments such as risk-sharing mechanisms and guarantees, alongside traditional grant-based funding.

The Donor Partnerships team is responsible for building and maintaining strategic relationships with bilateral, multilateral and philanthropic donors, mobilising support for the Bank’s investment plans and strategic initiatives. These include thematic priorities such as climate resilience, war risk insurance, women’s economic empowerment, trade facilitation, and improving the investment climate. The team also leads the design and management of multiple donor-funded vehicles that serve the Bank’s operations, and support teams in the design of donor-backed investment structures and policy or advisory projects. To advance the donor agenda, Donor Partnerships also develop and implement policies, systems, and reforms to improve service to donors, and enhance efficiency and standardisation across the institution. The team furthermore monitors trends in international development finance, engages in global policy dialogues, and ensures the EBRD adopts best practices from the broader development community.

Each year, the EBRD mobilises an average of over €1.5 billion in donor contributions and manages a portfolio of approximately 270 funds worth around €5.8 billion. The Bank collaborates regularly with more than 50 donors, including around 30 bilateral partners. The Donor Partnerships team is composed of around 65 staff across five dedicated sub-teams and plays a central role in shaping the Bank’s strategic direction through its work with development partners.

Facts / Scale

The EBRD works with a broad portfolio of bilateral donors, alongside the EU, multilateral climate funds and other partners. In 2025, overall secured donor funding reached €2.135 billion, with bilateral donors continuing to provide significant support through bilateral and multi-donor funding structures.
The total value of the active bilateral portfolio stands at around EUR 2bn (incl bilateral, multi donor and special funds). The Principal in DP is responsible for:

• Establishing, maintaining and managing effective donor relationships with a portfolio of at least 7 bilateral donor relationships.
• The volume of unallocated funds managed would be above EUR 100m;
• Act as focal point and maintain close engagement with operational teams for at least 1 strategic area, region, initiatives, or programmes.
• Act as a senior member of the team and an effective people manager of 1-3 staff.

Accountabilities & Responsibilities

• Strategic Donor Relationship Management - Lead and manage high-level strategic partnerships with key bilateral donors, ensuring alignment with the Bank’s strategic priorities and donor interests. Serve as the primary liaison with donor government representatives, embassies, development agencies, and ministries, fostering trust-based and results-oriented relationships. Drive donor satisfaction and retention by proactively identifying opportunities for collaboration and addressing issues with transparency and responsiveness. Identify and establish new partnerships alongside effective management of existing relations.
• Fundraising and Resource Mobilisation - Design and implement donor engagement strategies to secure new funding and guarantees, including replenishments, top-ups, or new bilateral arrangements. Lead fund mobilisation drives and efforts and coordinate internal efforts to this effect, including the creation of new funding platforms and funding vehicles. Lead negotiations of funding and guarantee agreements and memoranda of understanding with donors, ensuring compliance with internal policies and donor requirements. Support thematic or regional initiatives across the Bank by mobilising resources and contribute to effective pipeline planning with key user teams.
• Strategic Portfolio Oversight - Oversee the delivery of donor-funded portfolios supported by assigned bilateral donors, ensuring strategic coherence, impact, and value for money. Coordinate with sector and country teams to ensure funds are well-aligned with operational priorities and adequately monitored and reported. Monitor fund performance, provide strategic guidance, and contribute to donor reporting, impact narratives, and portfolio reviews.
• Cross-Bank Coordination and Representation - Act as the key internal focal point for assigned bilateral donors, providing strategic guidance to sector, country, and policy teams engaging with donor-funded activities. Represent the Bank in external donor coordination platforms, high-level development dialogues, and fundraising events, as required. Contribute to internal policy and strategy development from a donor perspective, particularly in shaping thematic or regional priorities. Manage effective relationships with external donor agencies or other relevant stakeholders, as well as internally by guiding key supporting departments (namely Office of the General Counsel, (OGC), Funds Accounting, Banking, amongst others.
• Team Leadership and Capacity Building - Provide leadership and mentoring to junior colleagues working on bilateral donor accounts, ensuring quality control and knowledge transfer. Promote a collaborative and results-driven team culture aligned with departmental goals. Support staff development by sharing best practices in donor engagement and partnership management.
• Risk Management and Compliance - Ensure adherence to internal procedures and donor requirements related to funding agreements, use of funds, visibility, and financial integrity. Identify and manage risks related to donor relationships or funding delivery, escalating issues appropriately and proposing mitigation measures.
• Strategic Intelligence and Positioning - Stay informed of donor policy trends, development agendas, and geopolitical priorities, advising senior management and informing EBRD’s positioning. Provide timely intelligence and analysis to shape EBRD’s outreach and value proposition to each bilateral partner.Manage ad-hoc qualitative and quantitative inputs into internal reports/policy papers, presentations, external publications including the Annual Donor Report and other donor visibility material.

Knowledge, Skills, Experience & Qualifications

Knowledge

• Excellent understanding of the global development agenda and trends, and emerging policies and practice on development finance
• Excellent understanding of the global development architecture, donor policy priorities and best practice in the use of donor funds
• Excellent understanding of blended finance structures and the use of grants, guarantees and concessional funding instruments for project finance aims
• Good understanding of results-based approaches to management of donor funds programmes and best development practice in the area of aid effectiveness
• Good understanding of EBRD’s business model and its various investment instruments as well as tools for policy reform and advisory support
• Knowledge or experience in the EBRD countries of operations would be an advantage.

Skills

• Excellent networking and partnership skills. A team builder with proven experience in building networks and relations and engaging effectively in international fora
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to influence others using data or analysis to support line of reasoning and collaborate effectively with multiple teams in a multicultural environment
• Excellent communication, pitching and negotiation skills
• Strong operational understanding and ability to turn ideas into projects
• Good managerial skills and strong inter-personal skills with ability to motivate staff and organise colleagues
• Good organisational and problem-solving skills and ability to work on own initiative, as well as in teams
• Good numerical and analytical skills
• Fluency in English, both written and verbal
• Computer literate: Microsoft Office suite

Experience

• Extensive experience of managing donor funds and relations or similar work in a multilateral / international development context.
• Substantive experience in building donor relations and networks and in communicating effectively with donors
• Substantive experience in fund mobilisation, including creating fundraising strategies, and identifying and designing compelling funding proposals
• Substantive experience in managing larger donor portfolios

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in international development, international relations, economics, finance, social science or related discipline

What is it like to work at the EBRD?

Our agile and innovative approach is what makes life at the EBRD a unique experience! You will be part of a pioneering and diverse international organisation, and use your talents to make a real difference to people's lives and help shape the future of the regions we invest in.

The EBRD environment provides you with:

• Varied, stimulating and engaging work that gives you an opportunity to interact with a wide range of experts in the financial, political, public and private sectors across the regions we invest in;
• A working culture that embraces inclusion and celebrates diversity;
• An environment that places sustainability, equality and digital transformation at the heart of what we do.

Diversity is one of the Bank’s core values which are at the heart of everything it does. A diverse workforce with the right knowledge and skills enables connection with our clients, brings pioneering ideas, energy and innovation. The EBRD staff is characterised by its rich diversity of nationalities, cultures and opinions and we aim to sustain and build on this strength. As such, the EBRD seeks to ensure that everyone is treated with respect and given equal opportunities and works in an inclusive environment. The EBRD encourages all qualified candidates who are nationals of the EBRD member countries to apply regardless of their racial, ethnic, religious and cultural background, gender, sexual orientation or disabilities. As an inclusive employer, we promote flexible working and expecting our employee to attend the office 50% of their working time.

Please note, that due to the high volume of applications received, we regret to inform you that we are unable to provide detailed feedback to candidates who have not been shortlisted (for further consideration).