Agri-Finance Expert, Malawi Trade and Investment Programme

About the role

Adam Smith International (ASI), implementing the Malawi Value Chains (MVC) component of the six-year FCDO-funded Malawi Trade and Investment Programme, is recruiting an Agri-Finance Expert. The role provides sustained technical support to the programme's work with MSFs and other agricultural market actors, strengthening understanding of farm-level financial performance, improving the financial management capabilities of MSFs, assessing sources of finance and helping viable businesses prepare for suitable financing. The Expert works as part of the Agricultural Competitiveness team over two years.

Key responsibilities

• Agricultural lending market assessment: map and survey banks and financial institutions in Malawi that lend to agriculture, gather details on policies, collateral, pricing and tenor, and produce a summary report by mid-December
• Concessional and international finance review: review grant, challenge, climate finance and development finance facilities, and produce a summary report by the end of December
• Assess demand for formal finance among mid-sized farmers, processors and aggregators, and design and deliver awareness sessions and training for MSFs, aggregators and processors, including a targeted training for finance-sector staff
• Review and adapt the farm finance Excel model used by MSF owners to generate simplified financial statements, and validate it by end January
• Provide tailored finance-raising support to selected MSFs, aggregators and processors, and advise on further support for large-scale players
• Work closely with colleagues across the programme, including the agronomy team, and adapt outputs to feedback from the finance sector

Required profile

• 15+ years of professional experience in agricultural finance, commercial banking, investment, corporate finance, transaction advisory or a closely related field, including a senior advisory or technical role
• Demonstrable knowledge of the financing needs, operating models and constraints of agri-businesses
• Experience designing and delivering structured trainings for a specific target audience
• Ability to turn technical financial concepts into accessible tools, guidance and training materials
• High-level spoken and written English; knowledge of Malawi's agricultural and financial sectors and relevant local language capability would be essential