Country Director Nigeria at SNV

Job Details
We are currently recruiting for a Country Director Nigeria. 

• Contract: National contract – initial two-year assignment with the possibility of extension 
• Location: Abuja, with frequent travel to Lagos 

Position overview 
As Country Director, your core assignment is to build and scale SNV Nigeria's presence into a flagship country programme. You lead the growth of our portfolio by positioning SNV strongly in the market, enabling high-quality program delivery and securing funding needed to expand our impact across agri-food, energy and water.  

In this highly external role, you spend most of your time opening doors, building relationships and translate these into concrete opportunities and partnerships. As the face of SNV in Nigeria you represent the organisation at senior levels and you ensure that programs remain relevant and aligned with national priorities and global development agendas.  

You actively grow SNV's pipeline by engaging embassies, donors, public and private sector partners and financial institutions, translating partnerships into concrete opportunities, blended finance structures and donor-funded programs. You stay close to market dynamics and turn insights into strategic positioning and concrete opportunities. At the same time, you lead and guide a local team of around ten staff, providing clarity, focus, and alignment with SNV’s CARE principles and ways of working. 

Success in this role is reflected in a strong and growing pipeline, increased visibility in the market and impactful partnerships across sectors. You combine leaderships with hands-on business development, enabling both team performance and deal-making, while frequently traveling between Abuja and Lagos to strengthen private sector engagement.  

In this role, you will focus on: 

• Business development and positioning: This role is primarily focused on business development, with most of the Country Director’s time dedicated to identifying and advancing opportunities, leading proposal development and originations of flagship partnerships, and building partnerships to strengthen SNV’s pipeline and positioning. 
• Enabling team performance: Build, guide, and lead a high-performing country team, growing it in line with program expansion while providing clarity, focus, and alignment with SNV’s CARE principles and ways of working. 
• Stakeholder engagement and representation: building and maintaining strong relationships with investors/donors, partners, government actors, and private sector stakeholders, and representing SNV in key platforms and networks.  
• Programme oversight and quality: ensuring projects are delivered effectively and in line with donor requirements, with a focus on quality, impact, and continuous improvement rather than heavy operational oversight 
• Collaboration and scaling: working closely with regional and global colleagues to leverage opportunities, contribute to multi-country initiatives, and strengthen SNV’s overall positioning 
• Learning and innovation: contributing to knowledge development, evidence building, and the continuous improvement of SNV’s approaches, in collaboration with internal teams and external partners 

Qualifications
Your background 
You bring substantial experience in international development in Nigeria, with a solid understanding of the local context and stakeholder landscape. You have worked across governments, donors, private sector and development partners and are familiar with SNV’s sectors and thematic areas. You also bring strong experience in project management, including working with donor-funded programmes and processes. 

You have senior-level experience leading or setting up a country presence or small team and are comfortable operating in an environment where evidence-building and impact matters. Rather than managing large structures, you enable teams to perform—providing clear direction, and support to a team of around ten staff. You bring a collaborative, people-focused approach, with a strong awareness of and curiosity for diversity and inclusion, aligned with SNV’s CARE principles. 

With a strong entrepreneurial mindset, you are first and foremost a business developer. You have a proven track record in identifying opportunities, building strategic partnerships and leading successful proposals. You are experienced in working with a wide range of stakeholders, including bilateral and multilateral donors, financial institutions, impact investors and private sector partners and have demonstrated ability to mobilise resources and grow a pipeline.  

You are pragmatic, proactive and externally driven, with strong networking and influencing skills. You are comfortable in operating in complex, multi-stakeholder environments and are sensitive to the political and economic dynamics in Nigeria. You take initiative, build trust quickly and act as a credible partner to both teams and external partners. Fluency in English (written and spoken) is required. 

What you bring  
To be considered for this role, you bring:  

• A Master’s degree in Business Administration, Development Studies, or a related field, or equivalent senior commercial experience. 
• A minimum of five years of relevant leadership experience in Nigeria, ideally within international development and/or sustainable enterprises.  
• A proven track record in securing competitive funding and managing project portfolios of approximately USD 10 million. 
• Excellent communication, networking and presentation skills, with experience profiling and representing an organisation. 
• Experience in strategy and policy development within an international organisation. 
• Experience managing multidisciplinary and multicultural teams. 
• Strong strategic thinking, planning, and organisational skills, with the ability to work effectively in partnership networks. 
• A result‑oriented mindset and the ability to perform under pressure. 
   

Additionally, we value: 

• An entrepreneurial mindset and a track record of building something, whether a business unit, a country office, or a venture.  
• Proven success closing commercial deals, public private partnerships, or blended finance arrangements 
• Regional working experience across West Africa 
• Strong network across Nigeria's private sector, government, and donor community, with the ability to open senior-level doors 
• Gravitas and presence to represent SNV at the highest levels