Portfolio Officer

About Us

The AECF is a leading development finance organization that supports businesses to innovate, create jobs and leverage investments to build resilience and sustainable incomes for rural and marginalized communities in Africa.

AECF’s goal is to bridge the investment gap between early-stage enterprise and business maturity for entrepreneurs serving the poorest communities. We provide patient capital to new and innovative business models in the agribusiness and renewable energy sectors across Sub-Saharan Africa through various financing instruments. To supplement finance, we also offer advisory services, investment support, and knowledge and insights.

AECF has successfully implemented programmes across 26 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, supporting over 400 enterprises, and impacting over 30 million lives.

AECF is headquartered in Kenya, with offices in Côte d’Ivoire and Tanzania.

AECF has recently started its fourth programme in the Investing in Women series, a single programme operating across two countries – Benin and Burkina Faso. This programme looks to provide investment capital and technical assistance to private sector companies and co-operatives working with women in climate-smart agriculture, as well as working with Women’s Rights Organisations and other advocates for women to identify and build the capacity of gender champions within formal and traditional institutions.

This role supports implementation of AECF’s current Gender Lens Investing Strategy through the Investing in Women Benin and Burkina Faso programme to ensure that AECF effectively targets women investors, women farmers and women in the community in Benin.

The incumbent will be based in Benin and report to the Programme Manager who may be based in either Benin or Burkina Faso.

Key Responsibilities

Portfolio Monitoring & Reporting

• Undertake due diligence and compliance visits pre-and post-contracting, including supporting applicants to develop credible and high-quality proposals
• Ensure investee performance is in line with grant agreements through effective relationship management.
• Lead the planning and execution of investee performance monitoring activities, including data verification exercises to ensure the quality of programme results.
• Implementation of the financial policies, procedures, and systems guidelines for grant recipients.
• Ensure all investee site visits are conducted on a periodic basis, as per the agreed site visit schedule.
• Coordinate identification of investees who require technical assistance and arrange to deliver services based on the AECF TA and Learning service delivery framework.
• Reviewing periodic narrative and financial reports and disbursement requests from grant recipients.
• Provide periodic reports on the programme, information trends and other relevant information as requested.

Impact & Learning

• Contribute to the portfolio learning agenda through collection of investee progress reports and validation of impact reported following AECF guidelines on impact measurement.
• Contribute to baseline, mid-term and endline evaluations.
• Contribute lessons learned to regular reporting as well as ad hoc learning papers produced under the IIW Benin and Burkina Faso programme.

Risk & Compliance

• Ensure compliance with internal controls and risk management of the portfolio in accordance with the wider AECF Management Framework.
• Implement the programme risk and mitigation framework, in line with the overall AECF Risk and Compliance Management Framework.

Suitable candidates should possess:

• Hold a bachelor’s degree in business, finance economics, sustainable development, or related field.
• Have four to five years’ experience in portfolio or investment management, including experience with financial and operational due diligence of early or growth-stage businesses.
• Have experience in private sector development, sustainable finance, strengthening value chains or economic diversification – preferably in sustainable or blue economy-related industries
• Hold a professional accounting qualification e.g., ACCA, will be an added advantage.
• Have experience working with SMEs, and financial intermediaries working with micro and small businesses.
• Experience with gender lens investing, will be a distinct added advantage.
• Have demonstrated organizational and project management skills.
• Have an understanding of the donor landscape and demands of international development.
• Have excellent analytical and communication skills with the ability to prepare investment/grant memos, proposals, and reports to a high level of proficiency.
• Have a high degree of initiative and energy, “can-do” attitude, flexibility, teamwork, and attention to detail.
• Fluency in written and oral French and good knowledge of English languages.

How to apply

The AECF is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All applicants will be considered based on merit without regard to race, sex, colour, national origin, religion, age, disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

AECF does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, meeting, processing, training, or any other fees).

If you believe, you can clearly demonstrate your abilities to meet the relevant criteria for the role register and apply on:

https://recruitment.aecfafrica.org . To be considered, your application must be received by: 29th May 2023.

For more information, please visit our careers page on www.aecfafrica.org

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.