Country Head For India, Nepal And Bangladesh - UK Export Finance

UK Export Finance (UKEF) is seeking a Country Head for India, Nepal and Bangladesh. The successful candidate will be based in the British Deputy High Commission in Mumbai.

The UK Government is expanding commercial team in South Asia, with a focus on growing UK trade within the region. Finance is a critical part of promoting more trade between the UK and our overseas partners. UKEF’s Country Head will shape long-term partnerships for prosperity and stability between the UK and India, Nepal and Bangladesh.

UKEF’s Country Head will join a regional team across UKEF, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO).

About UK Export Finance

UKEF is the UK’s export credit agency (ECA) and operates in partnership with DBT.

UKEF’s mission is to advance prosperity by ensuring that no viable UK export fails for lack of finance and insurance, doing that sustainably and at no net cost to the taxpayer. In 2022/23, UKEF provided £6.4 billion worth of support for UK exports to nearly 100 countries.

UKEF Business Plan

UKEF four-year business plan has 4 delivery objectives, which set out what we need to achieve to realise our mission, and three organisational objectives, which define the resources, skills and operational capabilities we will need to do that.

You can read our Business Plan in full here, and find out more about the Department’s work in the latest UK Export Finance Annual Report and Accounts

Partners, stakeholders and observers

UKEF works closely with partners within government, most notably DBT and the FCDO. In the private sector our principal partners include trade associations and financial institutions.

Our work is varied and complex, spanning all business sectors and all corners of the world. UKEF is delighted to have been named best Export Credit Agency by Global Trade Review and Trade Finance Global. This is a recognition of our innovative approach to supporting exporters, comprehensive product offering and substantial appetite to take on new business.

About the Department for Business and Trade

DBT is the UK Government department that helps foster UK exports and inward investment. DBT officers at overseas Embassies, Consulates General and High Commissions liaise with the UK headquarters and other departments across the UK Government to generate commercial, policy and institutional collaborations

UKEF’s Country Head will be responsible for promoting UKEF’s export finance capabilities and developing new business opportunities in India, Nepal and Bangladesh.

The purpose of the Country Head’s role is to promote export growth through finance. This will involve building relationships and partnerships with business, government and other stakeholders. The jobholder will proactively collaborate with DBT and FCDO officials in India, Nepal and Bangladesh, playing an important role on wider Government initiatives involving UKEF, including by strengthening the UK Government’s exports offer.

As the sole UKEF representative in the relevant British Deputy High Commission, the jobholder will work as part of a wider team across British Government Departments, including local DBT and FCDO leads.

The Country Head will report into UKEF’s London headquarters, and will join UKEF’s strong cross-Asia network of Country Heads based in South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and China. The Country Head will form part of a dual reporting structure, reporting to both UKEF’s headquarters in London and the Department for Business & Trade in South Asia.

We reserve the right to review, revise or amend the roles and responsibilities from time to time reflecting the changing needs of business.

Roles and responsibilities / what will the jobholder be expected to achieve:

The Country Head’s key responsibility is to build UKEF’s business and profile overseas, helping to grow UKEF-supported exports by focussing on five areas of activity:

In performing these objectives, the Country Head will form part of the wider Embassy or British Consulate General team, and will contribute to DBT’s South Asia trade and investment objectives.

1) Build, expand and progress new business opportunities for UKEF

• Build a diversified pipeline of deal opportunities for UKEF in India, Nepal and Bangladesh.
• Demonstrate a strong command of the UK supply chain in key areas such as energy and infrastructure.
• Raise UKEF’s profile in India, Nepal and Bangladesh through engagement with C-Suite business leaders, high-profile government representatives and senior leaders within regional and international banks.
• Engage in early stage structuring and bankability assessments of new transactions, working in close coordination with UKEF’s London team to enhance the prospects of UKEF involvement in overseas projects.

2) Develop and execute UKEF’s growth strategy in India, Nepal and Bangladesh

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• Deliver UKEF’s future growth strategy in India, Nepal and Bangladesh.
• Develop tailored strategies to expand UKEF’s track record and future business pipeline in India, Nepal and Bangladesh
• Represent UKEF at high profile speaker engagements, industry events and conferences locally and across the South Asia region.
• Support DBT’s local strategic planning, ensuring alignment with UKEF’s strategy and embedding UKEF financing into DBT export campaigns.

3) Build and share market knowledge

• Gain insight into the strategic business objectives of key public and private sector stakeholders in India, Nepal and Bangladesh.
• Integrate first hand market insights into UKEF’s strategic plans for India, Nepal and Bangladesh, sharing local market knowledge with the UKEF, DBT and FCDO teams.
• Track project and sector development plans and priorities of the governments of India, Nepal and Bangladesh.
• Act as the lead source of UKEF advice to local DBT teams, including integration of UKEF objectives in priority campaigns led by the DBT in India, Nepal and Bangladesh.

4) Establish and maintain stakeholder relationships

• Build and expand UKEF’s business networks and enhance the profile of UKEF products across these networks.
• Integrate DBT sector leads in core UKEF outreach activities in India, Nepal and Bangladesh, creating cohesive business development strategies involving DBT and FCDO at a local and regional level.

5) Build awareness of UKEF support capabilities

• Develop tailored presentations to enhance awareness of UKEF’s products and capabilities across the local business community.
• Enhance DBT team members’ command of UKEF’s financing products through regular presentations, workshops and joint meetings.
• Lead UKEF collaboration with the local DBT team, including frequent presentations to DBT members on UKEF’s latest strategy and pipeline developments.
• Coordinate and support visits from UKEF management and support visits from ministers and senior officials from the UK government.

Last date to apply is 7th April 2024 by 23:55 IST