Consultant, Industrial Park/SEZ

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Role Summary

The Tony Blair Institute is seeking a short-term Core Expert to provide specialist technical input into the Industrial Park and SEZ Development project the institute is working on.

The work focuses on strengthening the design, governance, financing, and investment readiness of Rwanda's industrial parks and special economic zones. The Core Expert will bring direct, hands-on experience in designing, operationalizing, or managing industrial parks and/or SEZs in comparable markets, and will provide targeted diagnostic assessments, practical frameworks, and decision-ready recommendations within a compressed three-month engagement.

This is a short-term, deliverable-focused engagement rather than an embedded advisory role. The Core Expert will work closely with TBI's Special Investment and Trade & Industrialization project teams and relevant Government counterparts to accelerate priority outputs already scoped for FY2026/27.

Role Responsibilities

1.     SEZ Development (Special Investment Projects, RDB)

• Validate and strengthen the SEZ landscape assessment, drawing on comparable international experience to sense-check firm profiles, infrastructure status, and clustering opportunities
• Advise on the strategic clustering and investment pipeline approach, including priority sector selection, anchor firm profiling, and value chain linkages
• Provide expert input into the SEZ firm incentive and support framework, covering options for investor attraction, retention, expansion, compliance, and local economic linkages
• Contribute to targeted advisory notes on priority SEZ policy, regulatory, financing, or institutional decisions

2.    Industrial Parks Strategy Operationalisation (Trade & Industrialisation, MINICOM/NIRDA)

• Provide expert input into the industrial parks transition roadmap and governance framework, including the target management model, institutional mandates, and coordination mechanisms
• Advise on the design of the priority industrial park pilot, including maintenance fee arrangements, park-level service standards, decentralised management processes, and tenant engagement approaches
• Support the design of the industrial park financing framework, outlining public, private, and blended financing options for development, maintenance, and service delivery
• Benchmark Rwanda's proposed models against comparable industrial park/SEZ management and financing structures internationally

Candidate Profile

• 15+ years of hands-on experience in industrial park and/or SEZ development, design, management, or advisory, ideally in comparable emerging-market contexts
• Demonstrated track record designing park operating and governance models, financing frameworks, or clustering and investment pipeline strategies
• Experience navigating multi-institution government environments (e.g. trade/industry ministries, investment promotion agencies, park authorities, or regulators)
• Strong diagnostic and advisory skills, with the ability to produce decision-ready recommendations within a short, defined timeline
• Prior experience in Africa, or in comparable emerging or premium industrial development contexts, is highly advantageous
• Excellent written communication skills, with the ability to translate technical analysis into clear briefs and advisory notes for senior government stakeholders
• Based in or able to relocate to Kigali, Rwanda.

Engagement Terms

• Contract Type: Short-Term Consultant/Contractor
• Duration: Up to 3 months (exact start date to be confirmed)
• Location: Kigali, Rwanda, with possible travel to industrial park/SEZ sites
• Reporting Line: Senior Manager, Country Program & Delivery, working closely with the Special Investment Projects and Trade & Industrialisation workstream leads

Closing Date: