Meet AIIB’s Graduate Analysts: Young Talent Helping AIIB Finance Infrastructure for Tomorrow

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) once again opens its Graduate Program, a two-year rotational program to recruit and develop a team of outstanding talents at the early stage of their career to contribute to the realization of AIIB’s mission. The Graduate Program has five streams: Investment, Finance, Risk Management, Strategy, and Corporate.

AIIB first opened the program in 2022 and admitted 25 Graduate Program associates from a pool of 5,039 applications worldwide (from 123 economies). The first cohort is composed of 19 female and 6 male young professionals from 16 economies (Cambodia, Canada, China, France, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Mongolia, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Romania, Russia, United Kingdom, and Viet Nam). All of the successful candidates are multitalented young professionals, with excellent academic track records and interested in contributing to international development, particularly in Asia.

According to Vincent Nicolier, Principal HR Officer - Training and Development, “By working closely with clients in Asia’s public and private sectors, AIIB’s Graduate Program analysts will gain a deep understanding of, and broader perspectives on, infrastructure development and financing challenges and opportunities in Asia and beyond. By rotating across different departments, they also receive training, mentoring, career guidance and development opportunities to grow and develop professionally at AIIB.”

Meet some of AIIB’s Graduate Analysts:

Nomundari Battsogt, Jessica Halim, Gavin Jingxiang Li, Muykung Sorn, Ze Wang, and Jinwen Ye are all pursuing the Investment Track, assigned either to the Infrastructure Investment Departments or the Banking Departments, and are currently working with clients in preparing projects to ensure that they are sustainable from a financial, economic, environmental, and social perspective.

Nomundari, or Nami, is from Mongolia and has a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Business from University College London. She has three years of experience working in the private sector prior to joining AIIB. “I realized I could learn a lot at this organization while contributing the best I can with the relevant private sector experience I already had,” she said. “For me, the graduate program is an excellent entry point to the multilateral investment sector where I feel I could make the most impact in infrastructure development in my home country and other developing nations across the world.”

AIIB’s focus on Asia was also what attracted Jessica to apply to the Graduate Program. Jessica, who is from Indonesia, began her career with AIIB as a summer intern while pursuing her master’s degree in engineering management from Tsinghua University. She said, “Three years ago, I grew an interest in international development, and AIIB stood out to me from other multilateral development banks (MDBs) due to its focus on my home region of Asia as well as its emphasis on technology-enabled infrastructure. I decided to apply for the full-time graduate analyst position after my internship as I could see myself contributing and growing professionally within AIIB’s supportive environment.”

Jinwen, who is from Canada, is also working on several digital infrastructure projects as well as on-lending projects with other financial institutions. Her background in mathematics and finance is serving her in good stead as she works as an Investment Analyst with AIIB’s Banking Department. When asked what skills would help future applicants succeed in the role, she replied, “I think the ability to communicate with different parties would be valuable as [members of the Investment Operations Department] need to engage with multiple functions within the Bank to understand a project’s full implications. An understanding of financial products and financial modelling is also essential.”

Muykung, who is from Cambodia, had been working as a Cambodia-based investment analyst specializing in corporate finance for three years before relocating to Beijing to join AIIB’s investment team. She has a bachelor’s degree in banking and finance from Sheffield Hallam University. “What motivated me to apply to AIIB was the opportunity for career expansion and meaningful work,” said Muykung. “Moreover, the Graduate Program is the best fit for me as a young professional as it offers both technical and soft skills training. I was attracted to the program because it gives me opportunities to rotate to a different department and allow me to further expand my knowledge and stretch my capacities. After spending one year in the Banking Department, I will rotate to the Risk Department for six months before coming back to my home department.” 

Hira Usman, from Pakistan, is also on the Investment track but focusing on the operations side. As an environment analyst with the Operational Services Department, she supports Environment Specialists in implementing AIIB’s Environmental and Social Framework. “I research and analyze the environmental aspects of projects including biodiversity, sustainable use of resources like water and energy, pollution prevention, and climate change and share inputs with project teams. I enjoy collaborating with internal and external partners in planning and organizing E&S-related seminars. I also enjoy learning Chinese in a class offered weekly for free by AIIB.” Hira is a Fulbright Scholar, with a master’s degree in environmental resource policy from George Washington University.

Justine Regine Tamano, from the Philippines, is on the Strategy track, assigned to the Strategy, Policy and Budget Department. She is a Certified Management Accountant and a foundational Public-Private Project professional. She has a master’s in accounting from Singapore Management University and graduated with honors from the University of the Philippines Diliman. As a budget analyst, she supports the full budget management cycle of the bank as well as the cost monitoring for select Special Funds resources, among others.

According to Justine, “Believing in the power of private capital for good and seeing the difference efficient infrastructure can make on everyday lives in the Philippines and in Singapore, I knew I wanted to specialize in infrastructure projects that would enable economic improvement for developing nations particularly in Asia. AIIB combines exactly the fields I want to specialize in and was offering a rare window for young professionals like me to join their experienced team. The Graduate Program–aimed at people starting their careers and offering a rotation through different departments of the Bank–is a perfect match and the first of its kind, even among other multilateral development banks, and so was something I could not pass up. The journey to getting the offer and coming to Beijing has been a whirlwind, but I would not have had it any other way.”

Young talents who are interested in applying to the AIIB Graduate Program should:

• Have a Master’s degree with at least one to two years of relevant working experience OR

A Bachelor’s degree with at least two to three years of relevant working experience.

• Be fluent in oral and written English.
• Meet the criteria of the specific positions in each department.

For more information about the AIIB Graduate Program and to apply online, visit AIIB Career site. Deadline for application submission is 5 February 2023.

 

Register for the virtual event on Graduate and Legal Associate Program on Jan. 20, 2023. A platform for young and entry-level professionals to engage directly with AIIB HR representatives, current Graduate Analysts and Legal Associates. For more information, visit AIIB’s campaign page on Impactpool.