Deputy Director, Local Development Finance Practice, UNCDF

*** Women are encouraged to apply! ***

Background

UNCDF is the UN’s capital investment agency for the world’s 48 least developed countries (LDCs). With its capital mandate and instruments, UNCDF offers “last mile” finance models that unlock public and private resources, especially at the domestic level, to reduce poverty and support local economic development. This last mile is where available resources for development are scarcest; where market failures are most pronounced; and where benefits from national growth tend to leave people excluded.

UNCDF’s financing models work through two channels: savings-led financial inclusion that expands the opportunities for individuals, households, and small businesses to participate in the local economy, providing them with the tools they need to climb out of poverty and manage their financial lives; and by showing how localized investments — through fiscal decentralization, innovative municipal finance, and structured project finance — can drive public and private funding that underpins local economic expansion and sustainable development. UNCDF financing models are applied in thematic areas where addressing barriers to finance at the local level can have a transformational effect on poor and excluded people and communities.

By strengthening how finance works for poor people at the household, small enterprise, and local infrastructure levels, UNCDF contributes to SDG 1 on eradicating poverty with a focus on reaching the last mile and addressing exclusion and inequalities of access. At the same time, UNCDF deploys its capital finance mandate in line with SDG 17 on the means of implementation, to unlock public and private finance for the poor at the local level. By identifying those market segments where innovative financing models can have the transformational impact in helping to reach the last mile, UNCDF contributes to a number of different SDGs and currently to 28 of 169 targets.

Over half of the population in the world`s 47 least developed countries (LDCs) live on less than $1.25 per day and billions of people still do not have the services and employment necessary for the enjoyment of a decent quality of life. Yet many LDCs have made significant progress in economic development as measured by national statistics and indicators. The Local Development Finance team at UNCDF addresses three problems that prevent the benefits of growth from reaching all sections of the population and all parts of the territory:

• Fiscal resources and domestic capital markets are not investing in local governments and local economies in a way that promotes sustainable and equitable growth, which is holding back structural transformation and economic resilience;
• Local governments and local economies are not able to attract development finance and therefore the benefits of growth are bypassing many populations;
• Finance is not available for local catalytic infrastructure projects with high impact on critical themes such as women’s economic empowerment, climate change, clean energy and food security.

UNCDF’s Local Development Finance Practice is a centre of excellence and innovative fund for local government finance and local economic development finance in the world’s 47 LDCs. As part of UNCDF’s development goals, the Local Development Finance Practice promotes and supports transformative investment through local governments and domestic banks in LDCs by piloting and scaling up innovative financing mechanisms and policies in the public and private sectors. The vision is a world in which LDCs will have robust policy environment, strong institutional capacity and effective financing vehicles that contribute to diverse, inclusive and resilient local economies and societies by 2030. Graduation from LDC status to middle income country status will benefit all sections of the population.

Local Development Finance at UNCDF adopts a transformative impact financing approach to promote service delivery, infrastructure investment and local economic development that retains value within the local territory. This builds local fiscal space and local fixed capital formation. Working with local governments, domestic banks and local businesses, we design, pilot and test out financing mechanisms and business models in both public and private sectors that support locally designed public investments and revenue generating capital investment projects. The investment financing toolboxes include Fiscal Decentralization, Local Development Funds for public capital investment programming, Structured Project Finance, Municipal Finance, SME Finance, and Public-Private Partnerships.

During the past two decades, this work has delivered measurable impact in areas such as job creation, women’s economic empowerment, clean energy, resilience to climate change and strengthened food security, which contributes to local economic growth, peacebuilding and more importantly, improvement in people’s quality of life at the grassroots level. For example, it brings Green Climate Fund resources to LDC local governments; it supports private investment that reduces land degradation and boosts food security; and it supports peacebuilding by strengthening the relationship between the citizens and the state at the local level through responsive local government investments.

The partners of UNCDF’s work in Local Development Finance include: Local governments and national governments; Financing agencies (the World Bank, domestic commercial banks and investment institutions); International partners (UCLG, ICLEI, CLGF, FMDV, Cities Alliance, The Hague Academy for Local Governance, IIED, KEI, WRI, DeLoG, OECD; UN partners (UNDP, UNDESA, UN-Habitat, FAO); Development partners : Sida, BTC, EU, SDC, DfID, Luxembourg, Liechenstein and others.


Reporting to the Director, Local Development Finance (LDF) Practice in New York, the Deputy Director (HQ) is the principal adviser to the Director on Local Development Finance Strategies, policy and programme/project management. The Deputy Director is Officer in Charge during the absence of the Director from HQ on leave or on official business.

The incumbent is responsible for management of business operations for the Unit, including
performance management, ensuring optimal organizational efficiencies and monitoring and
reporting on programme and operational performance of the Unit and its project portfolio including ensuring that the Results Based Management system and the Theory of Change of the unit is adhered to by all projects and ensuring timely reporting to internal UNCDF stakeholders and external parties. The Unit currently has a growing portfolio of programmes in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, including global programmes, with a total value of more than $100m and an aggregate annual expenditure of approximately $25m. Over the last four years the unit has supported the implementation of over 4,000 infrastructure investments through local governments by piloting and testing innovative business models in the public and private sectors. In many cases these have been taken to scale through policy reforms and follow-on financing from government and international financial institutions. ln this regard, the Deputy Director is expected to provide technical support and policy guidance to sub-regional offices, to Local Development Finance Regional Technical Advisors and to country teams in the programme countries.

The Deputy Director provides policy advice and guidance on Local Development Finance to LDC governments. ln close coordination with the Unit Director, the Deputy Director works with UNCDF management and the Partnership and Communication team to implement the business strategy for partnership development and mobilization of non-core resources. To this end, the incumbent builds technical partnerships with donors at the corporate and inter-regional levels, and with other stakeholders as well as the community of practitioners in the South and North. S/he represents UNCDF before external constituencies and at professional gatherings.

For the regions for which s/he is accountable, the Deputy Director works with government and withUNDP country office management on joint programming and resource mobilization initiatives; with the UNCDF Management Support Unit on operational issues, including finance and human resources and procurement and, in coordination with the Director, with the Partnership and Communications team for tools and templates for partnership agreements. The incumbent develops partnerships with bi-lateral and multilateral organizations and with local government associations for non-core resource mobilization, knowledge management and policy support and harmonization.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of key functions:

Together with and in support to the Director, Local Development Finance Unit, the Deputy Director provides strategic technical support and management of the Local Development Finance Unit; Working closely with UNCDF Directorate and with UNCDF Policy, Partnership and Communication Unit, and in coordination with the Director of the Local Development Finance Unit, applies business development strategy, tools and intelligence to build and maintain strategic partnerships and capitalize on new business opportunities in Local Development Finance; Manages knowledge management tools and processes for the Local Development Finance Unit; Provides policy advice and support in the area of Local Development.


1. MANAGEMENT: Together with the Director, Local Development Finance Practice, provides technical guidance and overall management of the Local Development Finance Practice Profocusing on achieving the following results:

• Development, monitoring and implementation of the annual Unit work plan, ensuring coherence with UNCDF Strategic Framework and the Unit Business Plan;
• Development, monitoring and implementation of Unit Annual Report and all other unit reporting requirements, both internal and external;
• Providing strategic advice and support to the Unit Director in provision of Local Development Finance related inputs into the UNCDF Strategic Framework and other relevante plans and documents. Support to the Director in development of reports and presentations by UNCDF management to the UNDP
• Executive Board on Local Development matters and other reports and presentations;
• Technical guidance to sub-regional and country office staff, including through periodic
  missions to the field;
• Review projects/programmes for technical quality and their potential for contribution to
  UNCDF global targets, prior to their submission to Local and Corporate Appraisal Committee for approval;
• Development and management of tools and processes to capture operational performance of the Unit and enhanced portfolio management and financial management according to established performance indicators and information available in the Atlas system;
• Procurement for contracting technical service providers of Local Finance products’’
• Promotion and modeling of organizational culture that supports innovation and risk taking;
• Act as Officer-in-charge in absence of Director

2. POLICY ADVICE: Provides policy advice and support in the area of Local Development Finance, focusing on achieving the following results:

• Policy support to the UN system agencies and external bodies including policy briefs and speeches as requested in the area of Local Development Finance;
• Policy advice to LDC governments and non-LDC governments, including in countries of joint programming with UNDP;
• Technical support to facilitate UNDP's awareness of best practices in the area of Local Development;
• Policy support and representation of UNCDF to international organizations, local governments, national governments and other relevant stakeholders as appropriate and indicated by the Director

3. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT/EXTERNAL RELATIONS: Working closely with UNCDF Directorate and UNCDF Policy, Partnership and Communications Unit, and in coordination with the Director, apply business development strategy, tools and intelligence to build and maintain strategic partnerships and capitalize on new business opportunities in Local Development Finance, focusing on following results:

• Expanded support to more LDCs to develop ways and methods that will provide increased fiscal space and fixed capital at the local level, including through local governments and through blended finance solutions with PPPs and SMEs
• Strengthened technical partnerships with development banks, multilateral and bilateral organizations for business development and cost-sharing and increases in partner co-financing of local development projects in LDCs as well as at regional and global level
• Strong working partnership with UNDP to supporting national and local governments and other key stakeholders in LDCs to establish mechanisms to increase capital going to the local level and build capacity of local actors;
• Effective working relationships with LDC governments at local and national levels, Regional Institutions, the World Bank, the European Commission,
• Local Governments institutions such as UCLG, Cities Alliance and others and research and academic institutions and the private sector;
• Interaction with the Finance Inclusive Practice (FIPA) staff members for identifying business development opportunities and securing additional resources for key project initiatives
• Representation of UNCDF before the key external constituencies and professional gatherings on matter of Local Development.

KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT: Manages knowledge management tools and processes for the Local Development Finance Unit, focusing on achieving the following results:

• Management and conducting of peer review of UNDP and UNCDF, for identification and incorporation of lessons into strengthening project delivery;
• Regional Portfolio Advisers kept informed of new or revised corporate policies and Extracting lessons from evaluations for knowledge management to enhance effectiveness of LDF programme;
• Collaboration with Local Development practitioners to develop cutting-edge strategies and approaches for project investment and piloting, in order to better achieve UNCDF Business Plan objectives.
  

Competencies

CORPORATE

• Demonstrates integrity and fairness
• Displays cultural sensitivity and adaptability
• Shows strong corporate commitment

FUNCTIONAL

• Demonstrated strong technical knowledge of development issues, particularly local governance and poverty,
• Understanding of the project management cycle
• Practical understanding of project and programme management
• Practical understanding of financial management

MANAGERIAL/BEHAVIORAL

Leadership

• Focuses on impact and results for client
• Takes initiative and calculated risks
• Leads team effectively
• Displays positive attitude
• Takes decisions

Managing Relationships

• Builds strong client relationships
• Builds strong relationships with external actors
• Communicates clearly and convincingly

Task Management

• Produces quality outputs in timely manner
• Analyzes problems carefully and logically, leading to fact-based practical recommendations

Managing Complexity

• Manages projects effectively
• Develops innovative solutions

Building and Sharing Knowledge

• Actively builds deep knowledge in local development area
• Provides advice and support to others in UNCDF, UNDP and elsewhere
• Makes valuable practice contributions in local development
• Applies existing knowledge to work
• Provides advice and support to others

Learning and People Development

• Provides constructive coaching and feedback
• Promotes learning environment in office

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Master’s degree (or equivalent) in economics, public/business administration, social sciences, or related discipline.

Experience:

• A minimum of ten (10) years progressively more responsible experience in field of local development and local government.
• At least three (3) years experience is highly desirable In either or both, of the following areas:
• An LDC with multilateral development agency working on local development; and/ or
  Experience with a local government in a management capacity or central government agency responsible for local government in a management capacity,

Language:

• Full working knowledge of English, including excellent writing skills.
• Fluency in French is highly desirable.

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