Programme Policy Officer (Blended Finance Specialist)

Smallholder farmers and fisherfolk play a vital role in food systems. Under the CSP WFP supports the Government to reduce the countrys vulnerability to climate economic and conflict-related shocks through:

• Enhancing emergency preparedness capacities at the national and local level.

• The design and implementation of multi-sectoral integrated programmes to enhance local food systems that include the building of small-scale agricultural infrastructure and nature-based solutions; helping smallholder farmers invest in high-valued local crops organize in cooperatives and access potential markets with better prices and terms.

• Technical support to develop multi-hazard impact-based forecasting and early warning systems that can reach the last-mile communities.

• Strengthening adaptive shock-responsive and nutrition-sensitive social protection including institutionalization and operationalization of anticipatory action (AA) systems for priority hazards.

• Evidence generation on vulnerabilities and risks to livelihoods food security and nutrition.

Considering that many smallholder farmers and fisherfolk struggle to access the credit insurance and financial services that would help them grow their livelihoods and build resilience the WFP together with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and UN Women is implementing a joint programme which aims to strengthen inclusive climate-resilient food systems by designing and deploying blended financing solutions aligned with national and local priorities. Anchored in institutional markets such as school meals and social protection programmes the initiative aims to blend public funding concessional finance and de-risking instruments to unlock private-sector investment and overcome longstanding barriers to financial inclusion for value chain actors.

The initiative aims to introduce financial products tailored to the needs of smallholders and bundled with climate insurance deployed through local financial order to de-risk private sector lending in fragile and underserved contexts the initiative aims to develop a blended finance facility offering guarantees and risk-sharing instruments to local financial institutions technical assistance provided by WFP to the end beneficiaries and to provide anchor buyers via the national school feeding and social protection programmes.

JOB PURPOSE

• The Blended Finance Specialist will play a central role in designing and structuring the blended finance facility with instruments that unlock inclusive and climate-resilient food systems from public and private sector resources. This facility will be anchored in institutional markets such as school feeding and social protection programmes and will be co-developed with partners local government units (LGUs) cooperatives and national agencies.

• The Blended Finance Specialist will ensure that financing solutions are technically sound financially viable climate-smart and aligned with both local development plans and investor priorities. This includes conducting feasibility assessments market scoping costing and risk analysis and preparing financial structuring documents that meet the due diligence requirements of public and private capital providers; as well as identifying and establishing partnerships with relevant stakeholders. The job holder will also support the development of investment cases convening of investment forums and matchmaking events facilitating engagement between LGUs and impact investors.

• The holder is expected to operate with a high degree of independence to ensure that programme and policy objectives are achieved in full; to be involved in a variety of programme and policy activities and analytical work; and liaise with internal and external counterparts proactively to ensure effective collaboration and programme results.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES (not all-inclusive nor exhaustive):

The Blended Finance Specialist will report to the Head of Climate Change and Resilience and with overall guidance from the Head of the Programme. The holder will collaborate proactively with other units and sub-units such as with the Head of Social Protection and School Feeding and Programme Policy Officer for Disaster Risk Financing as well as UN partners national and local government officials to support the design development and implementation blended finance solutions including:

Design a blended finance model/facility meeting the Programmatic objectives

• Identify partners to provide risk-sharing instruments and other potential blended finance/re-risking instruments.

• Identify partner Financial Service Providers (FSPs).

• Design the bundled financial product for the target beneficiaries comprising financing climate insurance technical assistance and guaranteed off-take

• Lead the development of technical guidelines and Standard Operating Practices for risk-sharing mechanisms and readiness for Local Government Units.

Assess the financial sector and inclusive finance ecosystem

• Conduct market analysis demand forecasting and price trend assessments to inform investment strategies and resilience planning.

Regulatory & Policy Alignment

• Ensure compliance with national regulations.

• Advocate for enabling frameworks supporting institutional procurement and climate finance.

• Contribute to the development of projects plans and processes ensuring alignment with wider programme policies and guidance.

Learning & Reporting

• Coordinate the development of dashboards and frameworks to track financial mobilization guarantee utilization climate resilience and social inclusion metrics across investment pipelines.

• Research and analyze context policy and operational issues to inform strategic adjustments and support accurate timely reporting.

Stakeholder Engagement and Advisory Support

• Engage government banks International Financial Institutions insurers investors and other stakeholders to co-develop financing solutions for smallholders (e.g. First Loss Guarantee Zero Hunger Facility) and food systems.

• Provide technical advice to WFP on blended finance financial inclusion and private sector engagement beyond the Joint Programme as needed.

• Support other analytical advisory and learning activities

• Contribute to internal guidance knowledge products and recommendations to inform WFPs broader programmatic engagement.

DELIVERABLES

• Workplan of the consultancy with key deliverables and timeframe.

• Mapping of the formal financing landscape and inclusive finance ecosystem.

• Proposed partners (ie. Financial Service Providers Insurance Providers market actors) for the initiative based on financial and operational due diligence findings and ability to meet programmatic objectives.

• Financial product design bundling financing insurance technical assistance and guaranteed off-take

• Recommend a blended finance model/facility that meetstheneedsof the end beneficiariesand achieves the programmaticobjectivefor WFP with clearly definedroles of all entities involved (WFP FSPs government other partners) andarealisticbudget.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Education: Advanced university degree in Finance Development Finance Economics or related field or a first-level university degree with an additional two (2) years of related work experience and/or trainings/ courses

Experience:

• Minimum five (5) years of postgraduate professional experience in blended finance development finance innovative financing or impact investing.

• Proven experience in designing or structuring de-risking instruments for financial institutions/inclusive finance programmes

• Experience in working with/assessing financial institutions products and performance

• Experience working at both national and local levels in the Philippines.

• Experience in project management and multi-stakeholder coordination and engagement

• Experience in establishing partnerships and fundraising is considered an asset

• Experience in financial sector assessment/market analysis.

• Familiarity with institutional procurement climate finance and gender-responsive financing approaches.

Knowledge and skills

• Strong financial modelling and structuring skills (e.g. ROI projections risk-adjusted returns capital structuring).

• Strong project management and coordination skills

• Strong multi-stakeholder management and engagement skills

• Excellent written and communication skills.

• Strong analytical skills including ability to synthesize information draw conclusions and recommend a course of action.

• Ability to think creatively proactively and problem-solve with flexibility and adaptability.

• Strong interpersonal and diplomatic skills with ability to establish effective relations with communities authorities colleagues and partners staff.

• Ability to maintain a high degree of judgement discretion and confidentiality.

Language

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English with proficiency in Tagalog considered an advantage.