Financial Inclusion Advisor (Contingent to Donor Funding)

SNV is a global development partner, deeply rooted in the countries where we operate. We are driven by a vision of a better world: A world where across every society all people live with dignity and have equitable opportunities to thrive sustainably. To make this vision a reality, we need transformations in vital agri-food, energy, and water systems. SNV contributes by strengthening capacities and catalyzing partnerships in these sectors. We help strengthen institutions and effective governance, reduce gender inequalities and barriers to social inclusion, and enable adaptation and mitigation to the climate and biodiversity crises.

Building on 60 years of experience we support our partners with our technical and process expertise and methodological rigor. We do this in more than 20 countries in Africa and Asia with a team of approximately 1,600 colleagues. By being adaptable and tailoring our approaches to these different contexts, we can contribute to impact at scale, resulting in more equitable lives for all.

Our core values of people-centeredness and respect, equity and equality, and diversity and inclusion, are fundamental to who we are, and what we do. This is reflected in our vision and mission, and strategy, which sets out our aspirations and commitments as our compass towards 2030.

For more information on our operations in Ethiopia and SNV generally visit our website: www.snv.org

Programe background

SNV Ethiopia is recruiting an experienced, Financial Inclusion Advisor for an anticipated flagship program. The program aims to secure 800,000 dignified and fulfilling job opportunities for rural young women.  The program will embrace a market system approach in high-potential value chains, (horticulture, poultry, dairy, and complementary value chains), grounded in seven regional clusters. It will deliberately integrate Gender Equity and Social Inclusion (GESI) transformative approaches and safeguarding mechanisms across all program interventions, and facilitate young women’s empowerment to secure jobs through initiatives that address market and socio-economic barriers and location-specific gendered root causes.

SNV will implement the programme jointly with five other Ethiopian/ International NGOs, that will deliver their work in specific clusters. Together, these clusters will integrate technical expertise, and they will support the programme’s ecosystem to achieve longer-term systems change for young women and men employment in agri-business.

Summary of the Position

This is an exciting opportunity for someone passionate about creating entrepreneurial opportunities for young women in the agricultural sector and addressing systemic barriers to young women’s empowerment. We are looking for a strong professional with considerable experience in financial inclusion, particularly for rural young women, MSEs, and the agriculture sector.

Reporting to the Deputy Program Manager – Technical lead, the position will provide technical leadership in creating access to a range of finance services for young women and men in the project operational areas. S/he will be responsible for the design, implementation, and monitoring of the youth financial inclusion component of the project. Together with the program youth engagement Advisor will develop a strategy for the establishment and linkage of the Youth saving and lending groups and SACCOs. S/he will be responsible for designing quality capacity-building schemes for staff and young women and men who will start their own MSEs. S/he is expected to establish partnerships with key stakeholders in the country’s financial sector for effective collaboration. S/he will identify innovative digital solutions and services to increase youth financial inclusion.   S/he will ensure that the project interventions are performed as planned to bring the desired impact through monitoring, evaluation, research, and documenting lessons learned.

In this role, you will work with consortium partners of the program, young women and men, the community, public and private sector, and Civil societies.  You will develop positive relationships with young people, networks of agri-preneurs, and program-implementing partners, so that our work is driven by the voices of young agri-preneurs, with a special focus on the needs of young women, and you will create innovative ways for young people to engage in the program.

• Leads the development of the youth financial inclusion strategy of the program with a focus on addressing rural young women, persons with disability, and returnees.
• Lead reviews/research to identify the root causes of low access to financial services for young women in the operational areas.
• Leads the development of approaches, systems, and products/services to ensure access to financial services for young women and men.
• Works closely with financial service providers (Banks, MFI, YSLAs, SACCOs ….) to create better functioning and sustainable institutional linkages between YSLAs and MFIs, SACCOs, and banks.
• Work with relevant financial institutions to develop market-oriented financial services for young women, startups, existing MSES, and other actors along the selected value chains.
• Develop the capacity of SNV and partners field level staff and partners on the YSLA approach and linkages mechanisms between program participants and financial institutions.
• Identify and establish partnerships with digital technology service providers to enhance youth financial inclusion
• Identify capacity gaps and develop capacity-building interventions for financial service providers to develop and implement youth-inclusive financial services.
• Defines and executes monitoring systems for data capturing and monitoring of youth groups and financial inclusion component
• Works with MFI and bank partners to systematize information flows and share reporting and portfolio effectiveness as it relates to the project.
• Supervise  and coach field-level staff
• Document and share lessons with staff, donors and other stakeholders in collaboration with the MEAL advisor
• Represent the project/SNV in different forums to share results/lessons to influence policies and  practices

Basic Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in finance and banking, economics and related fields with at least 10 years of direct experience in the finance sector
• Experience in financial inclusion of youth, women and other marginalized groups
• Knowledge of Ethiopia’s financial sector landscape and strong network among stakeholders in the finance sector
• Experience in microenterprise development, in informal and formal saving and lending methodologies; in public and private sector development.
• Experience in market system development approach is preferable
• Experience in gender programming
• Experience and knowledge in digital technologies

Contract Type: National – Full time

This position will be based on Donor Funding and approval confirmation.

Expected start date:  February/March 2025

Duty Station:  Addis Ababa – Ethiopia

Contract Duration: Two years with the possibility of extension based on performance.

 

How to Apply?

If you believe that your credentials meet the outlined profile, we invite you to apply by uploading your CV and a letter of motivation before/on January 11th, 2025. 

Please submit your application only via: Smart Recruiters.

All information will be kept in the strictest confidentiality.

If your experience and skills match the position’s requirements, we will contact you to advise on the next steps in the recruitment process.

Working at SNV  

SNV offers a challenging work environment, opportunities to lead and innovate, and a commitment to growing your skills in a fulfilling and diverse environment. Our staff benefit from and contribute to, an internal and global network of experts.

At SNV, inclusivity is at the heart of our ethos. We celebrate the diversity of our workforce and uphold a policy of non-discrimination based on factors such as disability status, religion, ethnic origin, gender, sexual orientation, and more.

Vetting

SNV carries out rigorous background and reference checks concerning possible safeguarding incidents for all candidates applying for national and internationally determined positions. As SNV participates in the Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme, all reference checks include a request to past employers to fill in a questionnaire regarding Misconduct (sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment), the “Statement of Conduct“. This Statement of Conduct adopts the definitions used in the Scheme.

SNV is an equal opportunities employer and female candidates are encouraged to apply.