The Village Economic and Social Association (VESA) Advisor will lead support to VESAs and savings and lending activities. In this role, the Advisor will design provide trainings and trainings of trainers to project staff in group governance and management, VSLA methodologies, and financial literacy. S/he will travel to project implementation sites, conduct monitoring about VESA functioning, including VESA sustainability and recovery from conflict, and provide guidance to partners on how to support VESAs. S/he will advise on strategies to maximize VESA sustainability post-project. S/he will also make sure that savings and loan performance data are properly tracked, compiled, and documented for performance management and learning. S/he will report to the Senior Financial Services Advisor, and will support him/her in developing linkages with rural savings and credit cooperatives (RUSACCOs) and microfinance institutions (MFIs).

II. MAJOR RESPONSIBLITIES

 Job Responsibility #1: Capacity building of project staff and VESAs (40% of time)

• In collaboration with implementing partner staff, guide interventions to strengthen project-supported VESAs in their saving and loans activities

• Provide training of trainers to staff of CARE and implementing partners on group governance and management, VSLA/VESA methodology, and financial literacy as needed

• In coordination with implementing partner staff, conduct VESA assessments to ensure that VESA/VSLA minimum standards are met, to identify critical areas for support to conflict-affected VESAs, and to identify areas for support to maximize VESA sustainability

• Guide VESAs and implementing partner staff in VESA conflict recovery in project areas affected by conflict

• Work with implementing partners to identify key capacity building strategies to maximize VESA sustainability post project

• Assess capacity of implementing partner staff in VESA support and follow-up, and provide refresher training as needed  

• Work with implementing partner staff to engage government stakeholders in VESA support interventions

Job Responsibility #2: VESA access to finance (20% of time)

• Contribute to the development of practical strategies, approaches, and systems to link VESAs to financial services

• Follow up on VESAs’ access to financial services from microfinance institutions, banks and RUSACCOs to engage in selected livelihood activities

• Follow up on implementing partners’ efforts to help as PSNP households access finance from MFIs and RUSACCOs

• Work with implementing partners to follow up on VESA loan applications

• Work with implementing partners to help MFIs collect outstanding arrears

• In collaboration with the Senior Financial Services Advisor and implementing partner staff, follow up with MFI branches in the timely provision of quality services to VESA members

• Conduct frequent discussions with MFI staff to address the repayment challenges in areas with VESA-MFI linkages

• In collaboration with implementing parnter staff in areas with VESA-MFI linkages, organize periodic and regular review meetings with financial service providers on access to finance

• Support financial service providers and implementing partners staff to monitor proper loan utilization and timely loan collection in order to ensure repeated loan cycle.

Job responsibility #3: Support VESA digitization (20% of time)

• Work with implementing partners to identify VESAs to pilot digitization approaches

• Coordinate VESA trainings on agent banking and other digitalization process adopted by CARE to VESA applications and methodologies (on a pilot basis)

• Support VESAs through trainings and follow ups in coordination with financial technology providers as they transition to digital record keeping transformation

Job Responsibility #4: M&E, management information system, and learning (10% of time)

• Collect quarterly VESA reports from CARE and partner staff, work on data quality, aggregate reports, and provide feedback to improve the quality of the groups

• Regularly maintain project information on VESA activities using appropriate database regarding households accessing loans, amount disbursed, matured and repaid by loan cycles and by financial service providers  

• Keep up to date on developments in the microfinance and savings group sector, including best practices within Ethiopia and internationally, and ensure ongoing personal development and learning

• Identify success factors, challenges, and opportunities around access to financial services for the Livelihoods for Resilience Activity targeted households

• Liaise with MFIs on best practices in the operation of VESAs

• Supports external and internal project reviews particularly focusing on VESA methodologies

Job Responsibility #5: Gender equity and diversity (Time: 5%)

• Promote gender equality within teams, communities and households

• Together with gender experts to ensure that capacity building support to VESAs is responsive to the needs of women

• Ensure that proposals and reports make explicit reference to approaches used to address unequal gender relations, and that reports are properly disaggregated by gender

Job Responsibility #6:  Perform other duties as assigned (Time: 5%)

Job Requirements

Qualifications

 A) Education/Training

• MSc/BA in Finance, Business, Rural Development, Sustainable Development, or any other related development study, with work experience of 5/7 years.

• And have minimum 3-year experience on managerial and/or advisory position in an International Non-Governmental Organization (INGO).

B) Experience:

Required:

• Seven years of work experience in development, livelihoods and food security, climate change adaptation and resilience programs and related areas in an NGO setting

• Experience in promoting and supporting small-scale savings groups such as VSLAs, VESAs, or SILCs

• Practical experience working with rural poor community members, such as PSNP households

• Solid experience in facilitating discussions, workshops and trainings for staff and government experts

• In-depth knowledge of small-scale savings and lending and micro-finance

 C) Technical Skills:

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, and the ability to work effectively with a wide range of constituencies

• Excellent analytical skills

• Strong training/facilitation skills

• Problem solving and creative thinking skills

• Sensitivity to various aspects of diversity (gender, culture, religion, etc) and a firm belief in teamwork

• Excellent verbal and written communication and presentation skills in Amharic and English

• Flexible and creative attitude, highly motivated and able to take initiative

How to Apply

HOW TO APPLY

If you are interested to be part of our dynamic team, exciting work environment and contribute to CARE Ethiopia’s mission and vision, please send your CV (not more than 3 pages) and cover letter (not more than one page) through CLICK HERE

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Passionate and dedicated candidates who meet the requirement are strongly encouraged to apply, especially women!

CARE Ethiopia is committed to preventing all unwanted behavior at work. This includes sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, and child abuse. We expect everyone who works for us to share this commitment by understanding and working within the CARE Safeguarding Policy and related framework. CARE Ethiopia has a zero-tolerance approach to any harm to, or exploitation of, a vulnerable adult or child by any of our staff, representatives or partners.

CARE Ethiopia reserves the right to seek information from job applicants’ current and/or previous employers about incidents of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment the applicant may have been found guilty to have committed or about which an investigation was in the process of being carried out at the time of the termination of the applicant’s employment with that employer.

By submitting the application, the job applicant confirms that s/he has no objection to CARE Ethiopia requesting the information specified above. All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks.

CARE seeks to improve the lives of the most marginalized, particularly women and girls. Our diversity is our strength. We encourage people from all backgrounds and experiences to apply.