Lead the design and delivery of ARCAFIM's technical assistance and gender and social inclusion agenda, enabling small-scale rural producers and small and medium-sized agribusinesses to access, use and benefit sustainably from climate-responsive finance. The role ensures that capacity-building activities prepare end-borrowers for green lending, are aligned with the programme's lending interventions, and deliver measurable benefits for women, youth, low-income rural producers and other underserved groups.
the KEY responsibilities:
Technical Assistance Strategy & Delivery
- Lead the design, implementation and continuous improvement of the Component 2 technical assistance workstream, including needs assessment, delivery models, implementation plans, partner coordination and quality assurance.
- Ensure capacity-building interventions strengthen end-borrowers' readiness to qualify for green finance and their ability to deploy loans effectively, manage their enterprises and sustain repayment.
- Tailor support to the needs of small-scale rural producers and SMEs in agribusiness, including practical guidance on business planning, financial management, climate-smart practices and investment readiness.
- Oversee delivery plans, milestones, budgets and partner outputs, escalating implementation risks and proposing corrective action where required.
Gender & Social Inclusion Strategy
- Develop and implement an inclusion strategy that enables women, youth, low-income rural producers and other underserved groups to participate in and benefit from ARCAFIM technical assistance and lending.
- Identify barriers to participation and finance, and design practical measures to address gaps in access, capability, affordability, information and decision-making.
- Ensure inclusion considerations are built into programme design, beneficiary selection, outreach, delivery methods and monitoringnot treated as stand-alone activities.
- Promote meaningful consultation with women and marginalized groups so that interventions reflect their priorities, constraints and local context.
Mainstreaming Across the Programme Cycle
- Integrate gender and social inclusion analysis into programme documents, operational plans, implementation tools and review processes.
- Participate in operational missions and programme reviews, providing advice on gender-responsive and socially inclusive design and implementation.
- Support implementation of the Bank's gender strategy and ensure appropriate gender balance and inclusion in programme teams, training activities and beneficiary participation, consistent with applicable requirements.
- Work with programme and Bank teams to translate inclusion commitments into clear actions, responsibilities, indicators and follow-up mechanisms.
Alignment with Green Lending & Climate Adaptation
- Work closely with the Climate Change Adaptation Banking Coordinator and relevant Equity Bank teams to align technical assistance with lending priorities, eligibility requirements and the needs of prospective borrowers.
- Ensure capacity-building helps producers and agribusinesses understand climate-related risks, adopt relevant adaptation practices and identify suitable green investments.
- Facilitate feedback between borrowers, technical assistance providers and lending teams to improve borrower readiness, appropriate loan use and the effectiveness of programme interventions.
Monitoring, Evaluation & Reporting
- Prepare accurate and timely financial and physical progress reports for Component 2 in accordance with the ARCAFIM Operations Manual and donor reporting requirements.
- Work with the M&E Coordinator and relevant Bank teams to track activities, outputs, outcomes and inclusion results, maintaining reliable evidence for programme management and reporting.
- Monitor participation and results by relevant disaggregation, including gender, age, location and beneficiary category where appropriate and feasible.
- Use monitoring findings, beneficiary feedback and implementation evidence to recommend adaptations and strengthen programme effectiveness.
Safeguarding, Social Risk & Stakeholder Engagement
- Identify and help manage social risks associated with programme activities, including exclusion, unequal access, exploitation and risks of gender-based violence.
- Promote safe, accessible and confidential channels for raising concerns, and ensure incidents or safeguarding concerns are referred through the appropriate established mechanisms.
- Engage producer organizations, community structures, agribusinesses, technical assistance providers and development partners to support inclusive implementation.
- Promote respectful, culturally responsive and accessible engagement practices, while protecting beneficiary dignity and confidentiality.
- Coordination & Continuous Improvement
- Coordinate with internal teams and implementation partners to clarify deliverables, resolve delivery constraints and maintain consistent programme standards.
- Provide technical guidance to colleagues and partners on gender-responsive delivery, social inclusion and inclusive beneficiary engagement.
- Capture lessons and good practices and use them to improve delivery models, programme tools and future interventions.
Qualifications
KEY TECHNICAL SKILLS & LEADERSHIP COMPETENCIES
- Technical expertise in gender equality, social inclusion and inclusive financial access.
- Programme design, implementation planning and delivery oversight.
- Stakeholder engagement, facilitation and partnership management.
- Analytical capability, results-based management and evidence-led decision-making.
- Clear report writing and communication with technical and non-technical audiences.
- Sound judgement, cultural awareness, integrity and sensitivity when working with vulnerable groups.
- Problem-solving, adaptive management and the ability to influence across teams without direct authority.
- At least 10 years' relevant experience in financial inclusion-related technical assistance for small-scale rural producers and small and medium-sized agribusinesses.
- Demonstrated experience designing or implementing gender equality, social inclusion, community development or vulnerable-group inclusion programmes.
- Strong knowledge of barriers to financial inclusion for rural producersparticularly women, youth and other underserved groupsin East Africa.
- Strong understanding of climate-change challenges facing rural producers in East Africa and the role of rural finance in supporting adaptation and resilience.
- Experience coordinating multi-stakeholder programmes, tracking implementation results and preparing high-quality progress reports for programme or donor requirements.
ACADEMIC QIALIFICATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor's degree in business, Finance, Economics, Commerce, Marketing or a related discipline; a relevant postgraduate qualification is an advantage.
- Master's degree in business, Finance, Economics, Commerce, Marketing or a related discipline; a relevant postgraduate qualification is an advantage
- Nice to Have: (as added advantage)
- Relevant professional certifications in Gender Equality and Social Inclusion, Project Management, Climate Change & Adaptation, Monitoring & Evaluation etc. are desirable.