The Senior Project Officer II – Agri-Finance will help see through the partnerships with financial institutions from beginning to end starting with the identification of which financial institutions to partner with. From there, the SPO will lead the design and implementation of the above-listed matching, de-risking, and training scheme for the financial institutions. In addition to this, the

The SPO will spearhead a partnership with DBE to facilitate asset leasing, wholesale financing, and SME credit lines for partner institutions. The SPO will also oversee linkage with investment funds for equity / quasi-equity and long-term debt agreements for large and mature AgriHub SMEs.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES:

The SPO II will be responsible for the implementation and achievement of the expected results of component 2 of AgriHub. He will be accountable and report to the AgriHub Project Team Lead. His / her key duties will be:

• Develop expression of interest (EOI) and request for proposals (RFP) for the partnership with financial institutions.

• Contribute to the assessment of the EOI and Proposals by the preselected financial institutions.

• Develop partnership agreements (framework agreement and annual addendum) with the financial institutions and conduct negotiations for signature.

• Identify and facilitate linkages of the partner financial institutions with financial instruments (guarantee schemes, credit lines, etc).

• Develop EOI and RFP for the experts/consultancy firms to be contracted for technical assistance to the partner financial institutions.

• Monitor implementation of the agreements with the partnership financial institutions and achievements of contractual targets, through a desk review of reports, interaction with the financial institution’s management and field visits. Develop tools for the monitoring of the implementation of the agreements.

• Monitor implementation of the Technical Assistance by the contracted experts/consultancy firms.

• Develop the ToRs for a scoping study of the investment funds operating in Ethiopia and supervise the study.

• Organize exchange workshops with partner financial institutions and other relevant stakeholders to draw lessons and document best practices.

• Work closely with international experts that may be mobilized by ATI to support the implementation of component 2.

• Contribute to activities of component 3 related to access to finance.

• Develop a draft annual workplan and budget for component 2.

• Contribute to AgriHub reporting to ATI and the donor for component 2.

• Support regional Business Advisors and AgriHub HQ team help connect AgriHub enterprises to financial institutions

• Collect, track, and create materials to disburse learned lessons from AgriHub and best-practices for AgriHub-supported enterprises

• Act as a liaison between all relevant AgriHub stakeholders (e.g. regional teams, project teams, HQ management) on anything related to the AgriHub financing scheme

• Help manage the procurement of any additional AgriHub resources related to the financing scheme

• Provide regular documentation and updates to donors, internal stakeholders, and local government stakeholders 

Job Requirements

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• MBA, Master’s degree in Finance, Banking Development, Economics, Management, Accounting, Agricultural Economics or other relevant

• At least 8 years of relevant experience in the Ethiopian financial sector with the main focus on project support to MSMEs and agri-SMEs at the management position level

• Demonstrated ability to interact effectively and collaboratively with a broad range of public and private sector counterparts and other key stakeholders

• Past experience working with international donors

• Fluency in English required

 PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

•  Excellent and demonstrable in-depth understanding of the dynamics of the Ethiopian agricultural private sector, SME financing, and challenges related to financing agricultural SMEs within Ethiopia

• Track record of successfully working with large financial institutions within Ethiopia

• Specific work experience in product design for agricultural SME financing 

• Demonstrable track record of success with program design, performance management, monitoring, and evaluation;

• Excellent oral and written communication skills

How to Apply

Register using the following LINK

Note: Your CV should not exceed 5 Pages. Don't forget to attach your cover letter. It is mandatory to mention the position title under the subject line of your cover letter. Please DO NOT submit scans of certificates with your application. Women are highly encouraged to apply. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted