Program Description:
The Feed the Future Tanzania Agri Finance Project is an access to finance project working to improve access to finance for smallholders, women, youth, and micro, small, medium (including large) enterprises (MSMiLs) in Tanzania by improving the agri-finance ecosystem and strengthening the capacity of both borrowers and lenders. The Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project will prioritize interventions that increase availability and adoption of priority technologies, including climate-smart technology, and create more inclusive agricultural finance ecosystems, enable expanded and sustained lending and investment, and increase productivity and incomes.
Project interventions will support 20 financial institutions, 15 demand-side institutions including agricultural enterprises and women and youth groups, train 300 financial institution staff, and reach 18,000 borrowers with $21 million in agricultural finance facilitated in Tanzania. The Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project will utilize a system-driven, private sector-led approach to target agricultural market coordination failures and develop commercially oriented solutions that will sustain and scale agri-financing. The project includes two interconnected strategic objectives to achieve tangible, positive impact for smallholder farmers, women, youth, agro-enterprises, and financial institutions.
Objective 1: Improve income and bankability of smallholders, women, youth and micro, small and medium (including large) enterprises.
The Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project will deliver targeted technical capacity strengthening and direct training and coaching to smallholders, women, youth, and MSMiLs beneficiaries in financial and money management skills and tools, business planning, finance and investment, development of business funding proposals, records keeping, loan applications, and loan repayment and/or savings strategies.
Objective 2: Strengthen financial institution operational capacity to expand agri- lending.
The Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project will provide targeted support to supply side financial institutions to develop new agri-finance products and improve operational capabilities and efficiencies, build capacity and strengthening their motivation to expand agri-lending to smallholders, women, youth, and MSMiLs – with a focus on priority and climate-smart technologies such as irrigation, inputs, storage, and value addition. The Feed the Future Tanzania Agri Finance Project is an access to finance project working to improve access to finance for smallholders, women, youth, and micro, small, medium (including large) enterprises (MSMiLs) in Tanzania by improving the Agri finance ecosystem and strengthening the capacity of borrowers and lenders. With a particular emphasis on priority technologies, including climate- smart technologies. The Feed the Future project is working to create more inclusive agricultural finance ecosystems, enable expanded and sustained lending and investment, and increase productivity and incomes. The Recipient interventions will increase supported financial institutions from 9 to 20, train 300 financial institution staff, and reach 18,000 borrowers with $21 million in agricultural finance. The project will utilize a system-driven, private sector-led approach to target agricultural market coordination failures and develop commercially oriented solutions that will sustain and scale agri-financing.
Problem Statement:
Agriculture remains a cornerstone of livelihoods for a significant portion of the population in Zanzibar, as it employs 42 percent of the workforce and contributes to over a quarter of the national economy. Zanzibar boasts considerable potential for agricultural development, leveraging its inherent advantages such as fertile soil, ample rainfall, and natural pastures. However, Zanzibarians have not been able to maximize the agricultural sector’s full potential. Farmers and other sector actors in Zanzibar need capital and financial resources to buy inputs, invest in equipment, storage, and irrigation infrastructure, and intensify crop production. Limited access to financial resources hinders their ability to make these investments. Access to finance plays a catalytic role in strengthening farm businesses and augmenting the productivity of scarce resources, as it is critical for the sector’s growth and facilitates the shift from subsistence to commercial farming.
To address the challenges facing smallholder farmers and other sector actors in Zanzibar, a commercial bank wants to train management and staff in agricultural financing and lending to better serve their agricultural sector customers and diversify the bank portfolio. This bank provides Islamic and conventional banking services in Zanzibar and Tanzania mainland, and they aim to target agricultural customers in both Unguja and Pemba. This training is expected to enhance their knowledge and understanding of agribusinesses and agriculture financing and lending, introduce key agriculture lending tools, procedures, and best practices, and increase their confidence serving agriculture customers.
Therefore, the Feed the Future Tanzania Agri Finance Project is recruiting an experienced international volunteer expert to provide a tailored “learn by doing” agriculture financing and lending training to the bank’s management and staff. The goal of this training is to enhance their knowledge of agriculture, agricultural financing and lending, and share practical knowledge of agriculture financing, and lending, and how to work with agribusinesses. Additionally, the volunteer expert will support the development of agricultural crop calendars to ensure lenders and other bank staff have accurate timelines for lending activities.
Objectives of the Assignment:
- Develop and provide a tailored “l earn by doing” agricultural financing and lending training to the commercial bank management and staff to enhance their skills and build capacity.
- Work with the commercial bank management and staff to review existing agricultural lending policies, procedures, tools such as crop calendars, products, and lending practices, and make recommendations on improvements.
- Recommend further initiatives and actions that can be implemented by the commercial bank to kick off its agriculture lending operations and loan recovery, and effectively deliver agriculture financial and credit services to farmers and agribusinesses.
Tasks to be Performed:
Pre-Assignment:
- Hold meeting with the Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance team to review the assignment objectives, plan, and expected deliverables
- Conduct desk to research to develop an understanding of the Tanzanian agriculture sector and agriculture financing and lending
- Prepare a gricultural financing and lending training materials based on previous experience and findings from desk top research
On Assignment
- Attend orientation hosted by the Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project staff to review assignment objectives, in-country security orientation, and logistics plans.
- Hold kickoff meeting with host organization to review and finalize assignment objectives and plan.
- Meet with host organization management and staff, including heads of departments, managing director, and loan officers to understand current bank services, tools, procedures, and products. Develop an understanding of how the commercial bank operates its financing and lending business to identify knowledge gaps.
- Customize and finalize the training and materials for the bank.
- Prepare for the delivery of training to bank leadership and staff in Zanzibar and Pemba.
- Deliver a tailored “learn by doing” agricultural financing and lending training and support the design and introduction of key agricultural lending tools, techniques, and best practices.
- Identify and develop recommendations for further initiatives and actions that can be implemented by the commercial bank to improve its agricultural lending operations and loan recovery, and effectively deliver financial services (credit services) to farmers and rural businesses.
- Hold debriefing with host organization to share recommendations.
- Hold debriefing with the Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project team.
- Draft final report for assignment and submit to Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project Agri-Finance and Lending Specialist
Country Schedule for Assignment:
Day
Activity
Location
Estimated days
Pre-Assessment Task
- Hold meeting with the Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project team to review the assignment objectives, plan, and expected deliverable
- Conduct desk research to develop an understanding of the Tanzanian agriculture sector and agricultural financing and lending
- Prepare a gricultural financing and lending training materials based on previous experience and findings from desk top research
U.S.
Day 1
- Travel to Zanzibar
U.S. to Dar es Salaam
1
Day 2
- Arrive in Zanzibar
Zanzibar
1
Day 3
- Attend orientation hosted by the Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project staff to review assignment objectives, in-country security orientation, and logistics plans.
- Hold kickoff meeting with host organization to review and finalize assignment objectives and plan.
Zanzibar
1
Day 4-5
- Meet with host organization management and staff, including heads of departments, managing director and loan officers to understand current bank services, tools, procedures and products. Develop an understanding of how the commercial bank operates its financing and lending business to identify knowledge gaps.
- Customize and finalize the training and materials for the bank.
- Prepare for the delivery of training to bank leadership and staff in Unguja
Unguja
2
Day 6-8
- Deliver a tailored “learn by doing” agricultural financing and lending training, and support the design and introduction of key agriculture lending tools, techniques, and best practices
Unguja
3
Day9
- Travel to Pemba
Pemba
1
Day 10
- Meet with host organization management and staff, including heads of departments, managing director and loan officers to understand current bank services, tools, procedures and products. Develop an understanding of how the commercial bank operates its financing and lending business to identify knowledge gaps.
- Customize and finalize the training and materials for the bank.
- Prepare for the delivery of training to bank leadership and staff in Pemba
Pemba
1
Day 11-13
- Deliver a tailored “learn by doing” agricultural financing and lending training and support the design and introduction of key agriculture lending tools, techniques, and best practices
Pemba
3
Day 14-15
- Travel to Unguja
- Identify and develop recommendations for further initiatives and actions that can be implemented by the commercial bank to improve its agriculture lending operations and loan recovery as well as to effectively deliver financial services (credit services) to farmers and rural businesses.
- Hold debriefing with host organization to share recommendations.
- Hold debriefing with the Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project country team.
- Draft final report for assignment and submit to Feed the Future Tanzania Agri-Finance Project Agri-Finance and Lending Specialist
- Departure
Unguja
Dar es Salaam to U.S.
2
Total
15
Volunteer Engagement:
USAID and IESC encourage all volunteers to participate in public outreach. An important objective of the program is to increase awareness of the work of Americans abroad . If you would like to share your experience, IESC can offer support if needed.
Expertise of Volunteer Expert Requested:
- At least 10 years of professional experience in agriculture, agricultural finance, digital finance, access to finance and/or agricultural economics.
- University degree or higher in financial management, credit management, agriculture finance and risk control and mitigation, business, economics, or other relevant field; advanced degree preferred.
- Knowledge of and experience in banking, digital finance, credit management and agricultural access to finance in sub-Saharan Africa preferred. Higher university degree in finance, agribusiness, agro lending, agricultural science, or a related field
- Highly developed financial operations skills with the ability to comprehensively understand business models as they relate to operations (mainly credit), risk mitigation, loan recovery and financial reporting.
- Strong leadership and communication skills with capacity to plan strategically and flexibly.
- Sufficiently physically fit, with appropriate medical clearance.
- Experience working in Tanzania and/or the region will be an added advantage.
- Writing Skills: reporting requires good computer skills including working and generating reports with MS Word. Experience with PowerPoint presentations is desirable.
- This is a United States government funded program. Therefore, for the purpose of achieving desired results in accordance with the work plan and submitting requisite reports, written, and spoken fluency in English is required.
- The ability to work through translators in the field, however, is essential. This requires deliberation and sensitivity to cultural issues in communication.
- Good writing and analytical skills, interpersonal communication, and presentation skills (adult education skills), ability and desire to teach in both classroom and field settings.
