Lead Risk Financing Adviser at Development Alternatives Incorporated

Development Alternatives Incorporated (DAI) is an international development company. For more than 45 years, we have worked on the frontlines of international development, tackling fundamental social and economic development problems caused by inefficient markets, ineffective governance, and instability. Currently, DAI is delivering results that matter in some 80 countries.

Our development solutions turn ideas into impact by bringing together fresh combinations of expertise and innovation across multiple disciplines. Our clients include international development agencies, international lending institutions, private corporations and philanthropies, and national governments.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Lead Risk Financing Adviser within Centre for Disaster Protection

Job Code: 6635
Location: Nigeria

Description

• The Centre for Disaster Protection was launched by the UK Prime Minister in July 2017 to strengthen resilience in developing countries through better preparedness and planning backed by risk-based financing arrangements. The Centre is funded with UK aid from the UK government.
• The Centre for Disaster Protection works to change how the world prepares and pays for disasters. Identifying, planning for and financing disasters before they strike saves lives, reduces suffering and protects livelihoods and economies, especially for the poorest and most vulnerable communities.
• The Centre brings countries together with international development, humanitarian and private sector organisations to find solutions and advocate for change. We find ways to stop disasters devastating lives by supporting countries and the international system to better manage risks. To do this, the Centre provides advisory services, builds knowledge, catalyses innovation and creates partnerships across the development, humanitarian and financial sectors.
• With Covid-19, the world is more aware than ever of the importance of being prepared and working together to address risks. The Centre’s work has never been more crucial.
• With a recent funding uplift from the UK government to mid-2025, the Centre is entering a new period of organisational growth, evolving beyond its start-up phase to tackle the increasingly urgent impact of climate change and frequency of disasters around the world.

The Centre’s technical work is focused on cross-cutting goals as set out in our five-year strategy (2019-2024): 

• Advice -  quality assurance and advisory services and training: We will have a respected and widely used quality assurance function that has increased the quantity and quality of risk financing products and services. Our effective technical assistance and capacity building will have supported high risk, vulnerable countries to make better disaster risk management decisions through knowledge exchange and genuine skills transfer.
• Evidence and Learning: We will be internationally recognised as driving change through evidence, experimentation and learning which will strengthen the global evidence base on disaster risk financing.
• Advocacy and Influencing:  Through advocacy and influencing and being a positive disrupter, we will have improved the quality and quantity of disaster risk financing through the multilateral system.
• Additionally, we are focused on building effective systems and processes on people and operations to support the Centre to rapidly yet strategically scale and grow in a way that promotes diversity, equity and inclusion and ensures the organisation is a great place to work.

The Role

• As part of our organisational growth plan, we are expanding our Advisory team and recruiting up to three Lead Risk Financing Experts to support the delivery of the Centre’s ambitious workplan – in which our advisory offer is a strategic priority.
• This workstream includes advice, quality assurance and training to developing country governments, international development and humanitarian organisations and donors to improve disaster risk management and financing. The workstream aims to ensure high quality crisis and disaster risk financing is available to and used to good effect by countries and organisations, so that the most vulnerable people are better protected.
• Examples of work to be undertaken may include, for example: leading a team of consultants to provide technical advice to a low-income country government or a regional development bank on a disaster risk financing product; leading a review of a proposal from a humanitarian agency for a new risk management or financing initiative; or leading on the design of specific risk financing solutions and presenting findings at a global event.

In addition to role-specific responsibilities, the Lead Risk Finance Experts will be required to:

• Uphold the organisation’s values and contribute to a positive organisational culture. 
• Build the Centre’s external reputation through delivering excellent technical work and the development of innovative solutions.
• Develop effective partnerships and relationships at senior levels across the development, humanitarian and financial sectors.
• Manage and supervise teams of Centre staff and consultants, coaching and mentoring colleagues as required, including potentially direct line management of a Risk Analyst.
• One of the roles will also lead our training programme, increasing a range of stakeholders’ knowledge and enabling them to better engage with both the theory and practice of DRF to challenge the current system of slow and inefficient disaster relief.
• The Centre’s training aims to create a common language around DRF, encourage dialogue and debate around best practice, facilitate peer learning exchange, and ultimately equip stakeholders to do more and better DRF.
• The Centre’s DRF training offering has been conceptualised, delivered and evaluated with a number of different stakeholders, ranging from country governments to multi-lateral institutions and humanitarian organisations. Due to the pandemic, the foundational training modules have been delivered remotely and feedback from our stakeholders has been extremely positive.
• This workstream is now at scale-up stage, with the scope to build upon this success and shape a comprehensive training programme and learning strategy to amplify the impact of this workstream.

Person Specification
Successful candidates should:

• Demonstrate a strong commitment to building resilience and reducing vulnerability in low and middle-income countries.
• Understanding of and commitment to the Centre’s values and mission.
• Be willing to travel to Africa, Asia, and other international locations as needed including lower income and fragile, conflict-affected contexts (as a guide, one week every 1 - 2 months, to be arranged only if restrictions due to COVID-19 allow).

Skills and Experience:

Successful candidates will be able to demonstrate the following skills and experience:

• Significant relevant professional experience from senior level advisory roles.
• Significant technical expertise (and where relevant, professional qualifications) in disaster risk financing or a relevant field, such as public financial management, insurance, risk management, risk modelling, actuarial science, economics, shock-responsive social protection / services, or humanitarian finance.
• A strong understanding of actors, incentives, and institutional and policy environment of multilateral and bilateral international development.
• Strong track record in presenting to large, senior, and multi-stakeholder audiences.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English; other languages, particularly French, would be advantageous.
• Ability to take initiative and work effectively as part of a dynamic, multidisciplinary team.
• Relevant professional experience in developing and delivering training and/or professional education, learning and development is a plus, and is a requirement for the training role.
• Experience commissioning, supporting or delivering research in a developing country context is a plus.
• Broad experience delivering technical assistance projects and/or analytical and advisory services in a developing country context.
• Strong track record in complex client management and the ability to build effective strategic partnerships across different sectors and stakeholders, including working with government at a senior level.

The Offer

• A competitive salary in the region of £60 - 80,000 depending on experience.
• After a successful probation period, the contract will be until the end of June 2025, renewable if project funding is extended. The roles will be contracted by DAI Global UK, who are the Centre’s managing agent.
• A generous benefits package including 25 days annual leave (plus public holidays) and a contributory pension scheme.
• We have an office in the City of London, but we are open to considering flexible, part-time and remote working arrangements.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply

Note

• Interested applicants should apply, including a Cover Letter (no more than one page) and CV, via DAI’s recruitment portal.
• Any questions about the role or the recruitment process should be sent to: [email protected] (please do not send applications to this email address).
• We are recruiting for these vacancies on a rolling basis, meaning there is no fixed deadline and applications will be assessed as they are received, and the vacancies will remain open until they are filled. We are posting these vacancies in mid-December 2021 with an aim to make all appointments by the end of March 2022, preferably sooner.
• The Centre is committed to building a diverse workplace and so we particularly encourage applications from diverse backgrounds that are typically under-represented in this sector