Position Purpose:
The Chief Investment Officer (CIO) plays a crucial role in leading the Investment and Implementation Division of the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF). Reporting directly to the Executive Secretary, the CIO provides strategic leadership and oversight for UNCDF’s investment strategy and portfolio management, ensuring alignment with the organization’s Strategic Framework.
The CIO is responsible for sourcing, designing, developing, and implementing projects and programs financed through grants, loans, and guarantees as well as technical advisory support, based on contributions to UNCDF from partners. The CIO also leads on the development of strategic partnerships at both corporate and transactional levels, working closely with the UNCDF Executive Office. The CIO oversees the effective and efficient management of UNCDF’s diverse portfolio, aiming to achieve development impacts underpinned by sustainable financial solutions in high-risk underdeveloped market conditions while ensuring compliance with all relevant rules and regulations. As a member of the UNCDF Executive Team, the CIO supports the Executive Secretary in the overall management and strategic growth of UNCDF, contributing to its strengthening within the UN Development System.
The Investment and Implementation Division, under the CIO’s leadership, serves as UNCDF’s “front office” in responding to member state requests for development funding and finance. The Division’s key functions include:
Engagement and Identification: Engaging with member states to identify development finance requirements and conducting due diligence in project sourcing, identification, design, and development.
Partnership Development: Nurturing strategic partnerships with key UN organizations, Multilateral Development Banks, and Development Finance Institutions.
Project Execution Oversight: Supporting the oversight of project execution to ensure the delivery of impactful results from a portfolio of programs and projects.
The CIO will be based in Nairobi, Kenya, leading the global Thematic Leads and Regional Leads within the Investment and Implementation Division. The role requires frequent travel. UNCDF staff may be periodically redeployed to different regional hubs or headquarters as needed, subject to capability, consent, and due process.
UNCDF adopts a portfolio approach to accommodate changing business needs and leverage linkages cross interventions to achieve its strategic goals. This is a recognition of interconnected nature of development risks & rises that the world is facing and that call for assembling of multidisciplinary teams for an integrated & systemic response. Therefore, UNCDF personnel are expected to work across issues, units, functions, teams and projects in multidisciplinary teams in order to enhance and enable horizontal collaboration.
Duties and Responsibilities
Summary of Key Functions:
Strategic Leadership
Lead Overall Management
Lead Partnerships and Resource Mobilization
Lead Knowledge Management and Advocacy
Duties and Responsibilities:
Strategic Leadership
Sets the strategic direction for the sourcing, design, development, and provision of implementation support associated with UNCDF’s portfolio of projects and programmes financed through grants, loans, and guarantees in line with UNCDF’s vision and mission statement.
Leads the effective sourcing, design and management of a focused, coherent, cost-effective and high impact UNCDF portfolio of programmes and projects financed by grants, loans, and guarantees.
Overall responsible for ensuring consistency in application of thematic objectives of UNCDF for each of the thematic leads and for each of the regional leads.
Sets the strategic direction of UNCDF’s Thematic and Regional Leads on the execution of operations in the various country investment programmes.
Lead the development of innovative approaches to achieve development targets, including through design and development of different financing mechanisms particularly with a focus on third party capital mobilization including the private sector.
Proactive monitoring to achieve management targets and implementation of the different investments.
Ensure regular review of the progress of the different investments to ensure everything remains on track, and guide/advise on adjustments/interventions as needed (from an impact, financial, and risk perspective).
Work with each of the Thematic and Regional Leads to understand and advise on each of their business plans, including implementation and execution process, key milestones, outreach/business development programs with identified targets and timetables.
Ensure good and regular communications between each of the Thematic and Regional Leads enabling effective coordination.
Implement a detailed and cohesive plan to drive strong coordination and communication between the Thematic Leads and the Regional Leads, including working with each of them to develop business development and execution plans in line with the UNCDF’s overall objectives.
Lead discussions with respect to the overall resource mobilization efforts, including building and deepening partnerships, engaging diverse stakeholders, fostering strategic partnerships with governments, private sector, NGOs, donor community, international financial institutions and other UN entities.
Report regularly to the Executive Secretary on the effectiveness and impact of the Thematic and Regional Leads working together to ensure business development and development impact in line with technical rigour and in line with UNCDF’s investment strategy to support the realization of UNCDF’s vision and mission statement.
Lead Overall Management
Leads the overall management of a team of Thematic and Region-based Investment Leads and technical and policy officers who undertake UNCDF’s “front office” function of sourcing, design, development, and provision of implementation support associated with UNCDF’s portfolio of projects and programmes financed through grants, loans, and guarantees in line with UNCDF’s vision and mission statement and Strategic Framework.
Ensure an efficient and collegiate management of the senior team in UNCDF’s Investment and Implementation Division in line with the objectives of UNCDF’s Strategic Framework and associated four-year business plan.
Accountable for the effective provision of first level oversight of a portfolio of programmes and projects under the management of UNCDF’s Investment and Implementation Division.
Ensure the investment integrity of the organization and full compliance with UNCDF’s investment rules and regulations and UNDP’s rules and regulations as outlined in the POPP.
Ensure UNCDF’s investment and programming approach fully complies with internal program and operational policies and procedures as approved by the UNCDF Executive Secretary.
Lead on the coordination and delivery of an integrated workplan with UNCDF’s two other Divisions – Investment Finance Oversight Division and Investment Operations Divisions – and UNCDF’s Executive Office.
Management of overall risk of investments, ensuring continued monitoring and quality of regular reporting obligations.
Ensure results-based management and constantly demonstrate value for money in all UNCDF programming.
Manage Investment and Implementation Division staff and personnel and encourage an organizational culture that supports innovation and effective risk management.
Ensure the implementation of gender and other workplace policies.
Ensure effective internal communications and a positive, healthy work environment.
Lead Partnerships and Resource Mobilization
Develops strategic partnerships to advance corporate strategic objectives as well as transactions-level needs in line with UNCDF’s vision and mission statement.
Lead on UNCDF’s Resource Mobilization efforts in line with objectives and targets of UNCDF’s Strategic Framework and associated regular 4-year business plans, and working collaboratively with the UNCDF Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operations Officer and other senior managers in the UNCDF Executive Office.
Represent UNCDF within the wider UN and in other international fora.
Represent UNCDF in the broader market helping to highlight UNCDF’s capabilities with a wide range of stakeholders, including the private sector, Global and Regional Multilateral Development Banks, Development Finance Institutions, Philanthropy and Foundations as well as International Non-Governmental Organizations.
Promote UNCDF to external audiences, ensuring appropriate positioning and business development.
Lead Knowledge Management and Advocacy
Ensure monitoring and evaluation of UNCDF programmes and the effective capture and codification and use of the knowledge generated in line with UNCDF’s vision and mission statement.
Ensure effective advocacy around UNCDF’s programmatic work and themes, at both the global and country levels.
Education:
Advanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in Economics, Finance, Business Administration other closely related field is required. Or
A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas mentioned above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree
Experience:
A minimum of 15 years (with master’s degree) or 17 years (with bachelor’s degree) of progressively responsible experience, in international development, development/impact finance, business development involving public and/or private financing, or related fields is required.
Experience in programming, resource mobilization, and raising funding from public and/or private sources for financing for both national and sub-national public, as well as private sector, entities in key thematic areas including (although not limited to) municipal finance, climate (adaptation) finance, energy (clean cooking and energy access) finance, agriculture finance, business development including incubators and accelerators, and/or infrastructure finance is required.
Proven track record in the discharge of fiduciary oversight duties over a large-scale portfolio (with at least 100 projects, valued at over US$0.5 billion, across more than 50 countries) that are aligned with the SDG agenda with rigorous donor reporting requirements and obligations on the discharge of fiduciary responsibilities is required.
Experience in origination, design and structuring of blended finance solutions, combining private capital and public finance is desirable.
Demonstrated ability in technical, managerial, and strategic leadership of large teams of more than at least 20 professionals in a decentralized organization in the private and/or public sector is required.
Leadership experience in mobilizing finance or investment, particularly in impact and green finance and ESG impact, in underdeveloped markets is desirable.
Experience working in the private sector and/or with financing partners across public and private domains, including multiple UN agencies, Development Banks, DFIs, Foundations, global funds, and the private sector is desirable.
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