Impact Investments Fellow, Africa/Middle East (Francophone) at Kiva

Kiva Fellowship

Kiva's Impact Investments team works primarily with Microfinance Institutions (MFIs), non-profits, and social enterprises known as Field Partners who post borrower profiles from all over the world onto the Kiva website. The team is responsible for sourcing, conducting due diligence, monitoring and managing relationships with Field Partners. The team also trains new partners, and ensures that existing partners are compliant with Kiva policies and aligned with Kiva's social mission and strategic focus.

We are looking for passionate, dedicated, skilled volunteers to support the efforts of the Impact Investments team by working with our Impact Investments team, our Field partners and their clients in order to help us expand our impact. Reporting to regional Investment Managers, Kiva Fellows contribute to the overall goals of the team and the organization through the execution of a customized workplan over the course of 6-12 months.

Kiva Fellows come from a wide variety of backgrounds and professional experiences. They are united by their desire to gain on-the-ground, hands-on experience in the microfinance sector while meaningfully contributing to Kiva's mission. The Kiva Fellowship is a volunteer position, but reimbursements for international travel (up to $2,500 total) and monthly living expenses (~$1,000/month) are provided for the duration of the fellowship to help offset expenses.

All fellows must attend training week in San Francisco, CA, February 3rd - February 7th, 2020. The fellow is expected to deploy to their home base in Nairobi, Kenya within two weeks following training and conclude their service July 31, 2020. Kiva Fellowships are full-time, volunteer positions and successful applicants can expect to be based in multiple countries over the duration of the program, depending on the priority of our Field Partners’ needs.

Kiva is currently hiring for our February 2020 to July 2020 Fellowship Class

Primary Responsibilities

Fellows are responsible for on-site monitoring, assessing and improving Kiva-related operations and providing assistance and support to assigned Field Partners. Fellows will also be responsible for developing monitoring and evaluation systems, reporting impact, conducting client interviews and supporting Kiva’s impact assessment.

• Partner Support: Both as Kiva's on-the-ground ambassador and remotely, help to communicate Kiva’s mission, vision and strategies to Field Partners. Assist in onboarding approved partners, communicate Kiva policy to partners and update Kiva on any new Partner developments. Assist with the monthly repayment reporting process and escalate compliance, systems and process issues as needed
• Partner Operations: Conduct off-site and on-site Borrower Verifications (BV) to monitor Field Partners for compliance with Kiva policies. Assess the Kiva-related operations of assigned Field Partners, identifying opportunities for increased efficiency and implementing sustainable solutions. Provide training and technical assistance on Kiva systems, processes, and policies to key Field Partner staff members involved in the Kiva workflow
• Partner Impact: Support internal impact measurement efforts by collecting and/or verifying partner-reported impact data. Interview Field Partner staff and borrowers and provide relevant updates to the Kiva lender community through Journal Updates and Kiva Fellows Blog posts. Document Field Partner activities and impact through photo and video content collection
• Financial Analysis: Assist with the collection and analysis of assigned Field Partner’s financial performance
• Business Development: Support with lead generation and developing networks to source and recruit new impact investments, with an emphasis on achieving impact at scale. Screen investments and review applications



 

Additional Responsibilities

• Due Diligence: Support desk and on-site due diligence processes of potential investments to help assess prospects’ financial and social performance, and mission fit with Kiva
• New Initiatives: Help ideate, test, and operationalize new products and processes that expand the Kiva platform and bring efficiencies to investees
• Analysis of Existing Partner Credit Program: Evaluate existing credit program and identify areas for improvement, both in regards to Kiva policies as well as industry best practices
• Interest Rate/Borrower Cost Analysis: Assess the total cost of the loan product offered by field partners in comparison with the local and regional markets
• MIS Analysis/Improvement: Assess the overall effectiveness of the Management Information System (MIS) including: Functionality, Security, Cost, and Flexibility. Assess readiness for integration with Kiva systems. Recommend improvements to existing system or find more suitable alternatives
• Macro-level Risk Analysis: Conduct a Country/Regional-level risk analysis of the credit industry including the regulatory environment, market saturation and over-indebtedness, currency exchange risk, and current industry trends


 

Fellowship Location:

Role

The following is a list of countries where Kiva works in this region, and where the fellow assigned to this role may be asked to travel

For the duration of the fellowship, fellows working in the region of Africa/Middle East will be based out of our Nairobi, Kenya office.

Senegal, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda

Please note that these locations are subject to change based on the needs of Kiva's Field Partners and Impact Investments team. Further information about timing and sequencing of travel will be provided during the interview and offer process.

Required

Qualifications

• Full professional fluency in French, additional relevant language skills a big plus
• 21 years of age by the start of training week
• Able to commit full-time for 6-12 month term
• Positive attitude and dedication to Kiva's mission
• Experience managing and cultivating external partnerships
• Strong analytical abilities to assess business models, processes financial statements and social impact
• Strong communication skills, including the ability to tailor communications to a wide variety of audiences and stakeholders, across multiple cultures, both in person and remotely.
• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• Flexibility and adaptability in the face of rapidly shifting priorities and circumstances
• Comfortable traveling extensively when needed and living for an extended period of time in developing countries
• Ability to take initiative and work independently while maintaining ongoing communication with a remote manager
• Cultural sensitivity, which may include prior work or volunteer experience in a cross-cultural setting
• Highly organized with strong attention to detail



 

Preferred

• Demonstrated project management experience. You can move projects forward even when time is limited and there are lots of different opinions in the room.
• Experience designing and conducting trainings (particularly online/remote training experience)
• Experience working with multiple stakeholders on continual process improvement
• Comfortable learning new technologies
• 3-5 years’ work experience in microfinance/banking/credit
• Patience and persistence when advocating for change
• Process-oriented thinker with an eye for efficiency
• Experience collecting data or implementing surveys
• Experience working in Africa or the Middle East a plus



 

Benefits

• Access to a well-connected network of 800+ former Kiva Fellows, plus the wider Kiva network of staff, interns, and partners
• A week of in-depth training at Kiva HQ, plus ongoing professional development workshops and trainings
• On-the-ground exposure to the microfinance, crowdfunding, and social enterprise sectors
• Modest reimbursements to help offset international travel and monthly living expenses, plus travel insurance coverage.

A diverse and inclusive workplace where we learn from each other is an integral part of Kiva's culture. We actively welcome people of different backgrounds, experiences, abilities and perspectives. We are an equal opportunity employer and a great place to work. Join us and help us achieve our mission!

Please note this application may take 45 - 60 mins to complete, and there is no option to save a working draft. We recommend writing the answers to the short essay questions in a separate document and copying and pasting your responses here once they are complete.

Please include any languages you speak and at what level of proficiency on your resume.

While there is an option to upload a cover letter as part of your application, the answers to the short essay questions will provide the context we need. We will not review any cover letter included in your application.