MSME Financing Embedded Advisor at Mastercard Foundation: (Deadline 20 July 2023)

MSME Financing Embedded Advisor at Mastercard Foundation: (Deadline 20 July 2023)

ABOUT MASTERCARD FOUNDATION

Mastercard Foundation seeks a world where everyone has the opportunity to learn and prosper. Through its Young Africa Works strategy and Canadian EleV program, the Foundation works with partners to ensure that millions of young people, especially young women, access quality education, financial services, and dignified work. Mastercard Foundation was established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company. The Foundation is independent with its own Board of Directors and CEO.

THE WORK AT THE FOUNDATION

We are currently in an exciting period at the Mastercard Foundation as we intensify the implementation of the Young Africa Works strategy, aiming to empower 30 million young people throughout Africa to access dignified and fulfilling employment.

To ensure the Foundation’s accessibility to our partners and program participants, we have established offices in Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, Senegal, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Uganda. These offices provide strong in-country support for the implementation of Young Africa Works. We collaborate with governments, the private sector, educators, and other funders to enhance the quality of education and vocational training, equip young individuals with the necessary skills for the workforce, expand access to financial services for entrepreneurs and small businesses, and facilitate connections between job seekers and meaningful employment opportunities.

Our values serve as our guiding principles, transcending and surpassing all other considerations. We wholeheartedly encourage you to bring your bold ideas, curiosity, and expertise to your work.

 If you are an experienced Finance professional ready to build something new and increase your impact, read on!

THE OPPORTUNITY 

Reporting to the Program Lead, MSME Finance, the Consultant will assess potential partner institutions’ strengths, weaknesses, and readiness to offer MSME (Micro, Small & medium Enterprise) finance products and services as well as institutional readiness to embrace agriculture and tourism and hospitality lending. This will involve a thorough review of the institutions’ Finance, Human Resources, Credit portfolio, adaptability, practices, Customers, Policies & Procedures, Distribution channels, Management Information Systems, and Information Technology tools. The key deliverable of this review will be the development of a comprehensive MSME financing strategy for the financial institution, aligned with its objectives and market conditions.

WAYS YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE

• Design a framework and oversee market research to identify relevant market clusters and segments, financial and non-financial service needs, value chain linkages, competition, and associated risks for the targeted sectors.
• Based on an assessment of the market and organization, help the institution design/re-design appropriate lending products in the targeted sector with strong intentionality to consider youth and women-owned businesses. Provide further support for pilot testing, roll-out preparation, and system set-up including risk management, credit risk assessment, and credit scoring model.
• Design and position the organizational structure of the MSME unit or agriculture and tourism & hospitality units, develop structures, and job descriptions for the key positions, draft Operation plans for MSME business lending, and design appropriate credit processes and procedures. This might also include a specific focus on drafting a credit assessment approach, approval & disbursement procedures and credit scoring model development and loan monitoring and management, and a comprehensive Management Information System.
• Provide training and capacity-building programs for the financial institutions’ staff to enhance their understanding of MSME financing, credit analysis, risk management, and customer relationship management. This helps strengthen the institutions’ internal capabilities to serve the MSME sector effectively.
• Support potential partners and the foundation team in the design and review of the proposals on access to finance to support value chains in Agriculture and Tourism and Hospitality MSMEs.
• Review and refine the institutions’ risk assessment methodologies and credit policies for MSME lending. This includes establishing appropriate risk management frameworks, credit scoring models, collateral requirements, and loan approval processes to mitigate risks while increasing access to financing for MSMEs.
• Conduct regular portfolio analysis to assess the quality and performance of the MSME loan portfolio for partner financial institutions. This involves identifying non-performing loans, delinquencies, and potential risks, and providing recommendations for portfolio optimization and risk mitigation.
• Train financial institutions staff on advisory services to MSMEs seeking financing, including financial health assessments, business plan reviews, and guidance on loan application processes, as a way of facilitating MSMEs to improve their creditworthiness and increase their chances of accessing financing from the institution.
• Establish and nurture relationships with external stakeholders, such as government agencies, development organizations, industry associations, and other financial institutions, to foster collaboration, share best practices, and explore partnership opportunities for MSME financing initiatives.
• Assist financial institutions in aligning with relevant regulatory frameworks, laws, and policies governing MSME financing. Collaborate in advancing and recommending changes in regulations and advising the financial institution on necessary adjustments to its practices and processes.
• Share industry insights, trends, and emerging practices related to MSME financing through workshops, seminars, and publications. This helps build knowledge within the financial institution and contributes to the broader development of the MSME financing ecosystem.
• Prepare regular reports and presentations on the progress, impact, and outcomes of the MSME financing initiatives. This includes analyzing key performance indicators, tracking disbursements, evaluating the effectiveness of strategies, and providing actionable recommendations for continuous improvement.

WHO YOU ARE

• An advanced degree (master’s or above) in business administration, finance, economics, international development, or another relevant field.
• A minimum of 15 years’ experience in banking, MSME finance, development finance.
• Demonstrated experience working with commercial banks or other financial institutions in developing countries, preferably Rwanda and other African countries, on the design and implementation of their downscaling strategy.
• Experience guiding a commercial bank or financial institution in creating a dedicated MSME vertical.
• Experience in conducting feasibility studies and provision of market intelligence on the MSME market and making business cases for investing in MSMEs.
• Experience with innovative and operational products/toolkits aimed at adequately addressing the challenges faced by MSMEs, especially in Agriculture and Tourism and Hospitality value chains and women & youth-owned enterprises in accessing finance.
• Experience in product design, especially Agriculture and Tourism and Hospitality value chains, youth & women financing products, climate financing products, alternative financing products (equity, quasi-equity, mezzanine, etc.), and Fintech.
• Experience in organizing and facilitating cross-learning workshops, networking, and pitching events in partnership with relevant stakeholders such as BDS service providers, etc.
• Experience working with MSME ecosystem players such as BDS providers, government ministries and agencies, development partners, NGOs, etc.
• Experience in business development advisory services, more so in developing training materials and conducting training in business and financial management for MSMEs
• Flexible, adaptable, and able to execute a range of job duties and changing priorities.
• Proven excellence in verbal, written, and presentation skills with the ability to articulate information to a variety of constituents across cultures and to distill complex information and data into accessible conversation and written pieces.
• Possess professional maturity, sensitivity with different cultures, and impeccable integrity that exemplify the Foundation’s values.
• You have a commitment to Mastercard Foundation’s values and vision.

Deadline for Applications is July 20, 2023

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