Financial Inclusion and Market Project Advisor

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is a leading humanitarian and development organization working in more than 40 countries to help people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster, including climate crisis, to survive, recover and gain control of their future.

The IRC began working in Somalia in the early 1980s; initially to assist people seeking refuge in the aftermath of the Somalia-Ethiopian conflict. IRC Somalia programming focuses on Economic Recovery and Development (ERD), Health and Nutrition, WASH, Governance, and Women’s Protection and Empowerment (WPE) interventions to crisis-affected communities in most of the targeted locations. With headquarters in Mogadishu, the IRC oversees field offices in Garowe, Gaalkayo, Dhusamareb, and Baidoa in Puntland, Galmudug, Southwest, and Benadir Region. IRC programming in Somalia adopts an integrated and holistic approach, in which each sector provides mutually reinforcing services to at-risk populations.

JOB AND PROJECT OVERVIEW

The IRC is looking for a highly qualified and professional Financial Inclusion and Markets Project Advisor – BRCiS III Workstream Co-Lead for the anticipated Building Resilient Communities in Somalia -BRCiS III Consortium project. This position will work 50% of the time in supporting the Building Resilient Communities in Somalia (BRCiS) Consortium. BRCiS anticipates finalizing a new, multi-year project supported by FCDO entitled “Building Resilient Communities in Somalia III “(or “BRCiS III “) that will run from July 1, 2023, until March 31, 2028, as part of FCDO’s Humanitarian Assistance and Resilience Building in Somalia (HARBS) business case. The objective of BRCiS III is that marginalized communities in disaster-prone, rural Somalia have sufficient social, financial, and environmental assets to better cope with shocks and stresses and adapt to the effects of climate change. This objective will be achieved through a set of multi-sectoral outputs, aligned around three system-level workstreams:

• Workstream 1: Inclusive, Shock Responsive Leadership System
  • Output 1: Inclusive Local Leadership Development
  • Output 5: Early Warning, Early and Anticipatory Action
• Workstream 2: Ecosystem
  • Output 2: Natural Resource Management
  • Output 3: Agro-Ecological Production and Consumption
• Workstream 3: Economic Diversification and Financial Inclusion (as a subset of the Market System)
  • Output 4: Economic Diversification and Financial Inclusion

BRCiS III Members will implement all outputs in their geographic areas of intervention either directly or through local, downstream (DS) implementing partners; however, each Workstream will be (co-)led by one of BRCiS III’s Member organizations responsible for providing technical guidance across the consortium and leading flexible, adaptive management exercises. The [Financial Inclusion and Markets Project Advisor] will be responsible for leading Output [4] of Workstream [3] on behalf of the International Rescue Committee-IRC. This position will be managed in partnership between IRC and the BRCiS III Consortium Management Unit. Within the IRC, the Position will report to the Deputy Director for Programs (DDP).

Responsibilities:

Quality Standards

• Lead BRCiS Members and DS partners through the development of minimum standards for activities under the assigned Output including discussion facilitation, technical leadership/advice, preparation of formal guidance documentation (including for publication), and revision of guidance over time.
• Ensure that programme quality standards are sufficiently harmonized to allow effective project management and measurement, while remaining flexible enough for contextualization based on geography, access/operational factors, communities’ positionality on the Resilience Spectrum, etc.
• Collaborate with the BRCiS CMU and BRCiS Member focal points for downstream implementing partner capacity strengthening, identifying, and addressing opportunities for cross-consortium capacity strengthening related to the assigned Output.
• Carry out regular field-based monitoring of activities, including travel to insecure environments.
• Proactively identify and document best practices, lessons learnt and relevant human-interest stories for publication and dissemination.
• Coordinate documentation of learnings as evidence to inform further project designs and scale up

Adaptive Programme Management and Learning

• Oversee the development and implementation of the Workstream-level adaptive management work plan and overall BRCiS Learning Strategy including management of learning consultancies, outcome harvesting exercises, activity pilots, and/or other activities resourced by the Workstream, in consultation with BRCiS CMU Programme Manager and the BRCiS CMU MEAL Manager.
• Lead regular meetings (including and especially field locations where access is feasible) to oversee the adaptive learning implementation at the field level and lead knowledge and experience sharing across the Consortium members.
• Participate in national, regional, and global technical fora to remain up to date on technical developments and best practices and proactively identify external innovations for consideration by the Workstream.
• Collaborate with the Project Improvement Advisor (hired by IRC, 50% seconded to BRCiS III) and BRCiS CMU on the establishment, measurement, and application for programme management use of Output-level Value for Money indicators as part of the overall BRCiS III Value for Money Framework.
• Represent the BRCiS III project in presentations of adaptive management findings (research, reports, best practice guidelines, etc.) to external stakeholders including BRCiS III donor representatives, peer implementers, and national, regional, and global communities of practice.
• In any other ways requested by the BRCiS CMU, support the overall design, adaptation, and delivery of the BRCiS III Learning Strategy and the BRCiS III Influencing Strategy for all aspects related to the assigned Output and Workstream.

Program Implementation:

• Lead and support different market assessments and analyses aimed at informing market-based interventions planned across BRCiS III outputs/workstreams.
• Technical support in the mapping and identification of sound FSPs to adopt saving groups (SGs) schemes, and in identifying existing suitable products and services for BRCiS III clients
• Refining and popularizing models for SG linkage to formal financial services providers (FSPs)
• Lead in the harmonization of the SG approach and training materials for the establishment of new SGs and strengthening of the already formed SGs under the BRCiS III Consortium project and coordinate the adoption of best practices within BRCiS III including managing harmonized exercises such as data collection, monitoring of indicators, and in facilitating SG linkages, and aggregation activities.
• Continuous engagement with Financial Service providers and regulators to advocate for breaking barriers to success
• Support with the development of specific cost-efficient services that can be offered at an acceptable cost to SGs and their members.
• Advise the consortium on the best approach to establish and strengthen market linkages to mature SGs and their members.
• Support in developing tailored guidelines, operational manuals, toolkits, and training guides for SGs, BRCiS III Partners, and participating Financial Service providers
• Provide context-appropriate technical guidance on the best approach to community entry and engagement and securing buy-in from other relevant stakeholders.
• Support in the identification of market actors /private sector actors to work with in market-based business development processes through skilful identification of players based on their clear incentives, will, capacity, and motivation to engage with BRCiS III Interventions
• Promote learning between BRCiS III Consortium, its previous FCDO-funded interventions, and other donor actions within Somalia in the promotion of financial inclusion and microenterprise development programming uptake at scale.
• To technically guide the naturing and growth of microenterprises and in the promotion of context-appropriate business development engagements with financial service providers to improve inclusive access to affordable financial services for remote and poor clients such as pastoralists.
• Any other BRCiS CMU authored thematic technical thought processes linking and financial inclusion and markets workstream to the other 3 BRCiS III Outputs and workstreams

Qualifications

1. 5+ years’ experience in humanitarian/development aid in complex and/or insecure environments, preferably in East/Horn of Africa and including significant field-based experience with relevant rural livelihoods programming, especially in Agribusiness, financial inclusion and markets, economic growth, and expertise in financial services and/or investment advisory, private sector capacity development, and public and private sector engagement and technical approaches.
2. Demonstrable experience with resilience programming and/or measurement, past experience with adaptive programming is essential
3. Excellent communication (i.e., negotiation, networking, influencing, public speaking, and facilitating workshops at different levels), reporting, and proposal writing skills in the English language, including synthesis and elaboration of qualitative and quantitative inputs/data.
4. Ability to work closely with field-based national staff and experience in various staff training and development approaches.
5. Strong planning, monitoring, and organizational skills with good knowledge of the use of logical and result-based monitoring and evaluation frameworks.
6. Experience in naturing micro-enterprises and inclusive access to affordable financial services
7. Ability to conduct training – remotely and in person and provision coaching and mentorship to others.

Behavioural competencies

• A system thinking mindset and expertise in working with various multi-stakeholders/actors
• A positive, solution-oriented attitude to working within a diverse team is essential.
• Hands-on approach to key tasks; delegation skills are important, but not the default. This position will directly handle many key tasks that cannot be delegated.
• Commitment to continuous learning and willingness to keep abreast of new developments in the disaster management field.
• Ability to work both independently and as part of a team.

Context/Specific skills, knowledge, and experience:

• Knowledge of the context of Somalia
• Experience working in complex, volatile contexts, multi-country disaster preparedness, response, and recovery programming.
• Experience with coordination in a humanitarian context (i.e., consortium coordination, cluster coordination)