African Conservancies Facility Lead, Ci Ventures

**African Conservancies Facility Lead, CI Ventures**

Conservation International protects nature for the benefit of humanity. Through science, policy, fieldwork, and finance, we spotlight and secure the most important places in nature for the climate, biodiversity, and for people. With offices in 30 countries and projects in more than 100 countries, Conservation International partners with governments, companies, civil society, Indigenous peoples, and local communities to help people and nature thrive together.

** - This position is based in Cape Town-South Africa**

CI Ventures is CI’s impact investment fund that provides loans to small
- and medium-sized enterprises that operate in the forests, oceans, and grasslands where Conservation International works. More recently, the African Conservancies Facility (ACF) has been successfully rolled out in Kenya, providing concessional loans to community-owned conservation areas in the buffer zone of Protected Areas with the aim of achieving long-term sustainability both financially and in terms of biodiversity conservation. Recognizing the positive impact of the program, CI now intends to scale up this program in size, as well as geographic focus, to include in the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area (GL TFCA), as well as critical frontier conservation areas across the African continent.

**RESPONSIBILITIES**
- Deal management of existing African Conservancies Facility transactions
- Pipeline development - scope out and perform high-level due diligence on potential investment pipeline for the ACF
- Structuring of financial transactions and management of internal approval processes, including risk assessments
- Fundraising - lead funding raising work to attract partners and capital to the ACF
- Development of alternative, innovative funding strategies for the ACF
- Ensure compliance with CI policies, funding agreements, and local requirements
- Effectively engage stakeholders including donors, government and NGOs, technical colleagues, and other partners important to program success
- Represent the organization externally and serve as a trusted point of contact for CI
- Perform related duties as assigned

Other duties as assigned by supervisor.

**WORKING CONDITIONS**
- Typical office environment
- Ability to work extended hours or travel as needed.
- This position follows a hybrid work structure, working some days from the office and some remotely. Guidance will be shared during the interview process.
- This role will be a 1-year fixed-term assignment, anticipated to begin in December 2024 and end in December 2025.

**QUALIFICATIONS**

**Required**
- Undergraduate degree in (Conservation) Finance.
- 7 or more years of working experience in finance, conservation finance, banking, or a related field.
- Experience working and/or traveling in diverse geographies, including East and Southern Africa.
- Understanding of, and demonstrated experience in, finance and/or business development.
- Business development and client management track record.
- Ability to work in remote locations or under difficult working conditions.
- Strong financial skills with in-depth knowledge of and experience with various financial product offerings incl. debt, equity, and the design of innovative financing structures.
- Demonstrated understanding of the complexities around the conservation and financing challenges, involving the relationships and interactions between human populations and wildlife, and the ecosystems they co-inhabit.
- Team player and able to work effectively with diverse work groups in a multicultural environment.
- Strong stakeholder management and coordination skills.
- Proven ability to multitask and meet priorities.
- Comfortable working in a fast-paced environment with changing priorities and under mínimal supervision.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Fluency in English is required.

**Preferred**
- Postgraduate degree in (Conservation) Finance.
- Development of further investment pipeline together with key landscape partners.
- Customization of ACF model solution for landscapes with different characteristics.
- Design and development of alternative innovative funding solutions for the further ACF roll-out in one of CI’s key priority landscapes: the Kenyan Southern Rangelands.
- Collaborate with country offices to identify opportunities for ACF in support of the Africa Field Division strategy programs.
- Management of portfolio of existing transactions.
- Leveraging the successful programs of CI country offices to build relationships and develop a network of relevant (private sector, NGOs, technical and other) partners.
- Mapping out ACF funding needs in the GL TCFA landscape, including the performance of high-level due diligence on potential investment pipeline.
- In collaboration with the CSA country office work on the development of alternative, innovative financing solutions for the GL TFCA.
- General fundraising activities.