Manager, Climate Innovation Challenge Fund

Nordic Development Fund (NDF) is the joint Nordic international finance institution (IFI), established in 1988 by the five Nordic countries - Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. NDF’s work focuses on the nexus between climate change and development in lower-income countries and countries in fragile situations. NDF provides concessionary financing with an active portfolio valued at nearly EUR 400 million. Together with our strategic partners, we develop, launch and scale high-impact projects to support developing countries and people vulnerable to climate change.

In order to strengthen our Portfolio Management (POM) department, we are now recruiting a Challenge Fund Manager to join NDF Headquarters in Helsinki, Finland.

Reporting to the Director of the POM department, the Manager’s main responsibilities will be to coordinate the establishment and management of a new challenge fund, named the Climate Innovation Challenge Fund (CICF), set-up as a multi-donor trust fund. CICF will be managed by a combination of NDF staff and external service providers and is expected to become operational during 2026.

Key responsibilities

Lead the Inception phase for the establishment of the Climate Innovation Challenge Fund, including

• Selection of external service providers
• Conclude the design phase of the challenge fund
• Finalisation of Internal Implementation Guidelines
• Launch of the CICF
  
  

Overall management of the Climate Innovation Challenge Fund including 

• Donor relations with existing donors
• Fund raising within the Nordic countries
• Oversee the day-to-day operational activities of the Fund, including management of consultants/service providers as well as a small team within NDF 
• Coordination and preparations of the CICF Supervisory Board meetings 
• Development and planning of strategic activities and associated workplans.
• Coordination of complementary NDF inputs (e.g. legal, financial administration, procurement) 

Supervision of the Climate Innovation Challenge Fund operations including  

• Call for proposals process and project contracting 
• Portfolio management and M&E in collaboration with service providers 
• Ensure integration of cross-cutting issues: gender equality, environmental sustainability, anti-corruption, and poverty reduction
• Support risk management and quality assurance to achieve the Fund’s objectives
• Events and publications  
• Partnership development 

 Fund representation externally including 

• Represent the CICF in external events 
• Making presentations to various stakeholders 

 Any other duties as requested  

Key Competencies, Experience and Personal Attributes

• A genuine interest in the purpose and values of NDF
• Experience from working with development and climate issues in a global context
• A University degree in economics, business administration, development, climate and environmental science or similar relevant field
• A minimum of eight (8) years of experience of project or trust fund management, preferably in international development or climate finance, involving management of private sector climate change focused projects
• Experience of working with innovative financing instruments, particularly Challenge Funds
• Strong leadership skills
• Experience from working in a Nordic context or with Nordic partners
• Knowledge and experience from working with topics such as innovation, biodiversity and natural resource management, agriculture, circular economy, water security or blue economy is an advantage
• Excellent command of English
• Strong communication, interpersonal and presentation skills.
• A team player and a natural collaborator with high levels of self-motivation and a drive for excellence, used to working flexibly at fast pace
• Willingness and ability to travel as may occasionally be required

 We offer you

• A possibility to work in an international organisation in the field of climate change and development financing
• Intellectually stimulating work in a multicultural and multilingual environment in a vibrant Nordic capital
• An opportunity for a hybrid working model and other attractive employee benefits

We warmly welcome expatriate employees and their families by supporting their relocation and integration.

Additional information

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Malena Rosman, Director, Portfolio Origination and Management (malena.rosman@ndf.int).

To apply, please fill in the application form on NDF's website. Please submit your application with CV and personal letter, including salary expectation and an indication of availability. The CV should be maximum two pages and the personal letter maximum one page. The deadline for submitting your application is on 28 January 2026.

NDF collaborates with the Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) on HR and other administrative matters. Applications will go through NIB’s recruitment system and will then be processed by NDF. For more information about employment at NDF, see the People Policy.