Programme Manager (Partner-A-District) at Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA)

In brief

**Overview** The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) is a development finance institution wholly owned by the South African Government. Its purpose is to accelerate sustainable socio-economic development to improve the quality of life of the people in South Africa, SADC and Rest of Africa by providing financial and non-financial investments in the social and economic sectors. The Programme Manager for Partner-A-District (PAD) is a key role that operationalises the Bank’s municipal strategy. This involves transforming the M2/M3 municipal segment through an integrated, programmatic, and partnership-driven approach, positioning districts as strategic entry points for the DBSA to elevate development impact in alignment with government policies and the District Development Model (DDM). The Programme Manager leads and coordinates the implementation of multiple projects within the PAD programme to advance the Bank’s strategic objectives. This role requires collaboration with municipalities, government departments, and both public and private sectors, managing resources, partnerships, and cross-functional teams to deliver sustainable development outcomes in local government. **What you will do** * **Programme Management** * Develop sector-specific programmes for financing, including scope definition and success criteria. * Prepare programme execution plans aligned to partnership frameworks and strategic objectives. * Compile technically sound reports that establish the basis for projects to inform investment decisions. * Oversee programme implementation, track milestones, deliverables, costs, dependencies, risks and issues. * Maintain strong data-capture and reporting capability to support analysis and decision making. * Manage programme inter-dependencies and interfaces to ensure coherent and on-time delivery. * Provide technical status reports for milestone payments, assess service-provider claims, prepare payment instructions and oversee disbursements. * Collaborate with municipal finance team and provide relevant module information to support due diligence. * Manage procurement and contract activities, including dispute resolution, in line with contract policies. * Prepare programme management reports and presentations for EXCO, Board, internal and external stakeholders for progress reporting and decision making. * Provide leadership, mentorship, and technical guidance to junior team members. * Implement appropriate project management methodologies to strengthen organisational maturity and ensure consistent delivery outcomes. * Transfer completed projects to clients and partners and conduct post-implementation and transfer reviews to ensure sustainability and lessons-learned integration. * **Deal Origination** * Lead the execution of origination strategies and municipal sector initiatives to drive infrastructure investment. * Identify market opportunities through comprehensive sector analysis, including demand and supply dynamics and gap assessments, to inform strategic decision-making and maintain competitive advantage. * Navigate political, sectoral, and institutional insights to shape origination strategies and broaden business opportunities. * Build and maintain a robust pipeline of high-quality, bankable investment opportunities through proactive business development and in-depth municipal sector expertise. * Originate financing and non-financing initiatives that strengthen municipal institutions and enhance development impact. * Lead the identification, preparation, and development of viable infrastructure projects by coordinating scoping exercises, feasibility studies, business cases, and other pre-investment activities to ensure project bankability and enable successful deal closure. * Drive consistent deal flow and ensure bankability across all originated opportunities. * Collaborate with planning, project preparation and municipal finance teams to ensure successful deal structuring and closure. * Present transactions at deal and investment committees, providing strategic and technical insights. * Foster strong networks with internal and external stakeholders to position the bank as a leader in infrastructure finance. * Strengthen relationships across municipalities, sector departments, and strategic partners to support origination success. * **Business Development** * Drive business development to position DBSA as the preferred lender, investor, and development partner. * Lead the creation and execution of strategies to build a strong pipeline of development impact projects. * Develop approaches with municipal finance teams to secure concessional funding for infrastructure projects. * Expand municipal client base and secure sustainable revenue streams through relationship building. * Design and implement targeted marketing strategies to capture growth opportunities for DBSA’s services. * **Stakeholder Management** * Collaborate with internal and external stakeholder on integration relating to project prioritisation, resources, scope, cost, commissioning, operational readiness and handover. * Build and maintain strong relations at local, provincial and national IGR structures, including sector and transferring departments. * Foster good working relations with heads of functionaries at municipalities to support programme delivery. * Establish and maintain strategic partnerships, networks, and alliances that enhance the Bank’s development support role in strengthening municipal institutions. **Requirements (from the original advert)** * **Minimum Qualifications** * A Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical or Civil Engineering. * Postgraduate qualification in Engineering, Project Management, Business Management, or Economics. * Registration as a Project Management Professional (PMP) with the Project Management Institute (PMI). * **Minimum Experience** * A minimum of 10 years demonstrated work experience in infrastructure programme development and programme management managing mega or multidisciplinary projects concurrently. * In-depth understanding of the end-to-end infrastructure programme development process including feasibility studies and deal structuring. * Extensive experience in business development/ deal origination and client relationship skills, and ability to focus on client's needs effectively. * Proven ability to lead complex strategic initiatives and projects successfully. * Comprehensive knowledge of regulatory environments across municipalities/ metros, SOEs, and government entities in South Africa. * Strong understanding of government planning cycle and demonstrated experience engaging high-level government stakeholders. * Advanced technical proficiency with Project Management tools such as Microsoft Project and Planner. * Solid understanding of SCM processes and relevant legislation, including PFMA, MFMA, and PPPFA. * **Desirable Requirements** * A relevant master’s degree. * Registered with ECSA as a Professional Engineer or Professional Engineering Technologist. * **Location** * Gauteng, Johannesburg **Who should apply** This role is suitable for an experienced Programme Manager with a strong background in infrastructure development and programme management, particularly within the South African municipal and government sectors. The ideal candidate will have demonstrated ability to lead complex strategic initiatives, originate deals, drive business development, and manage diverse stakeholders effectively. They should possess a relevant engineering Bachelor's degree, a postgraduate qualification in a related field, and PMP registration, alongside comprehensive knowledge of regulatory environments and project management tools. A person who can provide leadership, mentorship, and is committed to sustainable development outcomes in local government would be a good fit. **Deadline** 14th October, 2026 **Reference** Original posting: https://www.myjobmag.co.za/job/programme-manager-partner-a-district-development-bank-of-southern-africa-dbsa-1 Source: myjobmag

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