Innovative Finance Lead (NORCAP Green Shift Team)

NORCAP has developed its Energy portfolio to support the humanitarian system and humanitarian partners to transition to green and circular approaches in their development and humanitarian assistance. NORCAP believes Innovative Finance (IF) mechanisms are a key enabler for these objectives and has been working with partners to bring about practical solutions, including the Blended Finance Solutions for Clean Energy in Humanitarian and Displacement Settings: Lessons Learned – An Initial Overview report and Blended Finance Toolkit, published in January 2022.

One of the key outcomes of the Blended Finance (BF) report was to explore the development of a BF pilot that delivers sustainable projects to support the aims of SDG7 in displacement settings in collaboration with investors, energy providers, financing institutions, governments, and receiving agencies. As a result of the Blended Finance Consultant Project in 2023, a technical assistance facility was identified. This aim of this facility is to support identified NORCAP projects with highly specialised expertise (e.g., financial, commercial, or legal) to make them more attractive or eligible for investment from innovative/blended sources.

About the Role:

The Innovative Finance Lead will have the primary responsibility to facilitate the critical recommendations of the BF Consultant Project and further develop, design, and implement the BF Pilot. The Lead will work in close collaboration with other members of the Energy team, as well as other projects such as the Decarbonising Humanitarian Energy project and potentially other thematic areas.

This pivotal role requires successful balancing between high-level strategic work, partnership development, fundraising, and day-to-day program design and implementation. It also requires coordination with key external partners and stakeholders, including international organisations (UN agencies, World Bank entities etc.), finance institutions, donor governments, refugee-hosting governments, international NGOs, and private sector partners and actors.

The IF Lead position will be based in Africa (preferably in NRC countries), with travel to NORCAP Head Office (HO), Oslo, Norway. Travel up to 40% of the time to support field and global activities, is required.

Key responsabilities :

• Responsible for finalising the design and implementation of the Pilot.
• Support NORCAP to streamline blended and innovative finance into NORCAP energy portfolio with training, technical assistance and backstopping
• Identify and lead engagement with potential partners for the Pilot with the NORCAP Energy and Environment Team.
• Identify fundraising for NORCAP Energy Projects for innovative and blended finance opportunities

Read for more on the responsibilities and tasks by reading the TOR: Innovative Finance Lead TOR 052024.docx

The ideal candidate will be dynamic, entrepreneurial, and high-energy, with the ability to work productively and independently across different teams and cultures.

The IF Lead will be creative, analytical, and organised. Demonstrated success in managing high-impact initiatives from concept through to completion with a strong record of achievement of desired outcomes, including strong project management skills, are prerequisites for this role.

The ideal candidate has experience both in the private and public sectors, including, for instance in investment banking, business development, developing structured financial products, and/or development finance or financing modalities such as the MPTF (Multi Partner Trust Fund) and other innovative financing mechanisms.

Essential Minimum Requirements

• Master’s degree within finance, business administration or economics.
• A minimum of 7 years in contributing to the design, structure or implementation of blended/innovative finance instruments or products, either from within development finance institutions, banks, private sector, impact, or commercial funding sectors, with a solid understanding of innovative finance landscape.
• Experience working with energy sector projects, and a deep understanding of private sector led distributed energy or clean cooking business models.
• Knowledge and experience of structuring multi-layered technical assistance interventions.
• Experience assessing and analysing the bankability of renewable energy projects or companies across a range of criteria including commercial, financial, technical, and operational viability.
• Strategic thinking capability, with an entrepreneurial mind-set, as well as being adaptable and able to deal with large organisations.
• Familiarity with current discussions and developments around innovative and blended finance, impact assessments, and environmental standards and safeguards a plus.
• Careful attention to detail, superior organisational skills, ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines and ability to handle multiple workstreams simultaneously and autonomously.

Desirable Qualifications and Skills:

• Experience in the humanitarian sector, specifically in areas such as clean energy access in humanitarian settings and market-based approaches, is highly desirable.
• Field experience in the humanitarian sector.
• Experience working with UN Agencies, INGOs, local government, and national and regional organisations.
• Experience working with the private sector.
• Proven ability to fundraise.
• Experience working in remote contexts.
• Experience with data visualisation tools and data management.
• Fluency in other languages, such as French, Spanish, or Arabic, is an advantage.

The main competencies of a NORCAP Expert are: 1) Building working relationships, 2) Planning and organising, 3) Adaptability, 4) Resilience.

What we offer

• Rewarding work for a renowned global organisation
• Access to a network of humanitarian, peace, and development professionals
• Join NORCAP’s team of experts and be considered for future assignments elsewhere.
• A dedicated Staff Care Unit