Venture Investment Lead

Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropy Rwanda (AGGPR) has embarked on a journey to develop responsible entrepreneurs across the African continent in service of the common good. Our Vision is an empowered, prosperous, productively engaged African citizenry thriving in ethical societies with dignity and hope. Our Mission is to attack poverty by investing in, nurturing, and empowering responsible entrepreneurs and leaders who benefit society by helping to accelerate meaningful employment creation, while embodying the values and behaviours of ethical leadership. Our Values are long-term commitment, spirit of humility and significance, excellence, responsible stewardship, and diversity and inclusion.

• Own and drive the overall Jasiri Growth Accelerator strategy, ensuring tight alignment with Jasiri Capital's investment thesis and programme/portfolio objectives.

• Capture lessons learned from programme delivery and investment decisions and turn them into practical improvements to the venture support model, investment processes and decision-making.

• Monitor venture ecosystem trends and draw on partner insights to improve the JGA strategy and venture outcomes.

• Prepare and present detailed venture portfolio and investment reports to the Executive and Investment Committees.

• Work closely with the Jasiri Talent Investor and Post Programme team to optimize internal venture sourcing and investment strategies.

• Oversee the annual valuation of the JGA venture portfolio.

• Lead venture investment decisions from deal identification, selection, due diligence completion, presentation to the investment committee for approval, to post-investment oversight.

• Build and sustain strategic relationships across the ecosystem, including partners and funder platforms, to generate high-quality deal flow and high-potential ventures for the JGA portfolio.

• Shape portfolio construction with a disciplined approach to sector diversification, balancing concentration risk and ensuring the venture mix aligns with Jasiri Capital's broader risk appetite and investment strategy.

• Lead the identification, due diligence, and selection of external Accelerator Partners, ensuring Jasiri works with the strongest venture-building and investor readiness expertise available across the ecosystem.

• Manage Accelerator Partner relationships end-to-end, setting clear performance expectations, reviewing delivery quality, holding partners to account on contract compliance, and ensuring matched ventures consistently receive high-value support.

• Establish and chair structured governance checkpoints (monthly and quarterly reviews) to maintain delivery standards across all partner-led cohorts.

• Build and manage Jasiri's investor network and relationships to connect portfolio ventures with the right sources of follow-on capital.

• Champion Jasiri's distinct dual mandate - commercial discipline alongside measurable impact- ensuring this is clearly understood and valued by investors and partners engaging with the portfolio.

• Serve as the primary liaison to the Jasiri Capital Investment Committee for venture review and approvals, accelerator performance reporting, and portfolio escalations.

• Oversee portfolio pipeline health across all active cohorts, ensuring ventures are progressing toward investment readiness and follow-on capital milestones.

• Strengthen venture portfolio data and evidence-based quarterly reporting processes, ensuring timely delivery aligned with the standards expected at Investment Committee and Board level.

• Strengthen venture portfolio data and quarterly reporting, ensuring these are evidence-based, timely, and aligned with the standards expected at Investment Committee and Board level.

• Establish robust portfolio performance monitoring and dashboarding, providing ongoing visibility into portfolio health, growth, and capital mobilisation.

• Oversee JGA budget development and Jasiri Capital Fund management, partnering closely with the Regional Finance Manager.

• Lead and manage the JGA programme team, building a lean, high-performing team through coaching, clear accountability, and a culture of continuous learning.

• Represent Jasiri in external accelerator, investor, and ecosystem forums, maintaining and strengthening Jasiri's positioning as a leading venture investment platform in East Africa.

• Build thought leadership on East Africa's venture investment landscape, speaking credibly on market trends, capital gaps, and governance standards, and positioning Jasiri as a reference point for key conversations on venture investing in the region.

Education:

• Bachelor's Degree in Business, Finance, Economics, or a related field;

  • A Master's degree or MBA is an advantage.

Experience:

• 8+ years of experience in venture capital, impact investing, accelerators, or an adjacent investment ecosystem-building function.

• Proven experience managing external partners or vendors, including setting performance expectations and holding partners to account on contractual and delivery standards.

• Demonstrated experience building and managing investor relationships and capital networks.

• Experience serving as a liaison to an Investment Committee, including preparing credible portfolio performance data and decision-ready reporting.

• Managing and developing a high-performing team.

• Deep familiarity with the East Africa startup and investment ecosystem; existing relationships with investors, DFIs, and ecosystem players required.

Skills and Competencies:

• Strategic judgment: assesses venture portfolio health, identifies risk early, and makes sound capital-related decisions.

• Partnerships management: sets clear expectations with external delivery partners, holds them accountable to agreed standards, and maintains effective, proactive communication that surfaces and resolves issues quickly before they escalate.

• Strong Investment & Financial Acumen: draws on robust financial management expertise to rigorously assess ventures' financial health, funding structures, and overall investment position.

• Investor and Stakeholder Relations: builds credible, lasting relationships with investors, co-funders, and ecosystem players that translate into real capital outcomes, not just venture introductions.

• External presence and thought leadership: represents JGA with confidence, speaking with confidence on investment trends and JGA portfolio opportunities.

• Effective governance and reporting: delivers clear, timely, evidence-based reporting to the Jasiri Executive Committee, Investment Committee and Board.

• Commercial and impact fluency: balances commercial discipline and social impact with equal conviction.