Digital Finance Expert for Unilever Shakti Ethiopia, Better Than Cash Alliance

Consultant

Overview

Support development and implementation of digital payments for women entrepreneurs.

You have:

• A Master’s degree in economics, public/business administration, ICT, social sciences, or related discipline or the equivalent experience
• A minimum of five (5) years dedicated experience in digital finance, payment systems or electronic payments
• Working experience in the Ethiopian payments ecosystem sector
• Experience in formulating and implementation of digital payments initiatives/pilots at the private sector level
• Fluency in English and Amharic is required
• Working knowledge of current developments in payment technologies, including innovative payment methods

Contract

This is a International Consultant contract. More about International Consultant contracts.

Background

A. Better Than Cash Alliance

The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) makes public and private finance work for the poor in the world’s 47 least developed countries. With its capital mandate and instruments, UNCDF offers “last mile” finance models that unlock public and private resources, especially at the domestic level, to reduce poverty and support local economic development. UNCDF’s financing models work through two channels: financial inclusion that expands the opportunities for individuals, households, and small businesses to participate in the local economy, providing them with the tools they need to climb out of poverty and manage their financial lives; and by showing how localized investments—through fiscal decentralization, innovative municipal finance, and structured project finance—can drive public and private funding that underpins local economic expansion and sustainable development.

By strengthening how finance works for poor people at the household, small enterprise, and local infrastructure levels, UNCDF contributes to SDG 1 on eradicating poverty and SDG 17 on the means of implementation. By identifying those market segments where innovative financing models can have transformational impact in helping to reach the last mile and address exclusion and inequalities of access, UNCDF contributes to several different SDGs.

Based in UNCDF, the Better Than Cash Alliance (BTCA) is a partnership of governments, companies and international organizations that accelerates the transition from cash to digital payments in order to reduce poverty and drive inclusive growth by:

• Advocating for the transition from cash to digital payments in a way that advances financial inclusion and promotes responsible digital finance.
• Catalyzing the development of inclusive digital payments ecosystems in member countries to reduce costs, increase transparency, advance financial inclusion-- particularly for women-- and drive inclusive growth; and
• Conducting research and sharing the knowledge and experiences of our members to inform strategies for making the transition.

Billions of dollars in cash payments and transfers are made daily in emerging and developing economies, including payment of salaries, social welfare and relief, payments to suppliers, remittances, etc. The problems with these cash payments include a lack of transparency, accountability and security, as well as inefficiency.

Furthermore, the individuals who receive the cash payments are often part of the 1.7 billion excluded from the formal financial sector. This means they are excluded from access to a range of appropriate and affordable financial services to help them save safely take advantage of economic opportunities and reduce their vulnerability to risk.

Shifting these payments from cash to digital has the potential to improve the lives of low-income people, particularly women, while giving governments, the development community and the private sector a more transparent, time and cost efficient, and often-safer means of disbursing payments.

The Better Than Cash Alliance Team’s Core Values are the following:

• Achieving together
• Striving for excellence
• Service oriented
• Results oriented

For more information on BTCA, please visit the website: http://www.betterthancash.org/

B. Project Description

Unilever has been developing, in different countries around the world, an inclusive distribution model, called Shakti, reaching out to women in low-income rural communities. The Unilever Shakti Program is an inclusive business model to financially empower rural women and create livelihood opportunities while growing brand awareness and route-to-market solutions in rural areas. In Ethiopia, Unilever is collaborating with a social enterprise, Kidame Mart, to implement an ‘open-basket’ distribution model – one in which women micro-entrepreneurs, sell a mixed basket of products from Unilever and other producers. The Program in Ethiopia aims to support 5,000 rural women entrepreneurs in the next 3 – 5 years.

Currently, financial transactions between these women micro-entrepreneurs and Kidame Mart are done in cash. Enabling digital payments and other digital financial solutions for the agents can help improve collection practices and scale growth of the program while helping the women micro-entrepreneurs access additional financial services, such as savings, credit and promote better control of their finances.

Unilever Ethiopia and Kidame Mart with the support of the Better Than Cash Alliance have just concluded Phase 1 of the project which sought to: (1) Explore how digital payments might be able to reduce cash collection in Unilever supply chain and enable access to financial services for the participating women and; (2) Contribute to the development of the Ethiopian rural digital payments ecosystem. To achieve this, the partnership conducted the following activities among other things;

1. Collected data on financial and digital behavior of the women micro-entrepreneurs to carry out a financial needs assessment and;
2. Carried out a landscaping of financial service providers (FSPs) to identify potential partners to pilot a digital payment solution for the women micro-entrepreneurs.

After selection of financial service provider was completed by Unilever and its distributor Kidame Mart and as the project moves into Phase 2, Unilever Ethiopia and the Better Than Cash Alliance are looking to hire a Digital Financial Services expert to support the development and implementation of a digital payment solution pilot with select DFS providers.

Duties and Responsibilities

C. Scope of Work

Based within the Kidame Mart team, under the direct supervision of the Better Than Cash Alliance Private Sector Digital Innovation Lead and the Africa Regional Lead in consultation with Unilever Ethiopia and Kidame Mart, the Consultant will provide technical expertise and support in preparation, design, and when confirmed project management and documenting lessons learned and recommendations on the digital payment and working capital pilot implementation, including engagement with Unilever, Kidame-Mart and selected financial partners. This will include but not limited to defining characteristics of digital payment solution, developing the pilot protocols, selecting location for pilot, incentives for adoption and link with mobile money agents. Key responsibilities are as follows:

A) Pilot Preparation and Design

Conduct and assessment of the current digital payment solution that Kidame Mart is implementing with a focus on:

• Document the end-to-end process flow of the solution [ *This should include relevant aspects of training of the women micro-entrepreneurs on the solution, onboarding, legal documents used, cost structure and pricing of the solution, payment flows between the women micro-entrepreneurs and Kidame Mart, conflict resolution mechanisms etc.**]*
• Number of women micro-entrepreneurs currently using the solution and impact on their business.
• Attitudes of the women towards the solution
• Document challenges (including impact of the shift from credit-based to cash-based sales on the women micro-entrepreneurs) and lessons
• Assess to what extent the current pilot has incorporated the responsible digital payments’ guidelines.

Based on the assessment above provide technical input and support to refine the digital payment and working capital solution for the women micro-entrepreneurs that can support growth of their business, increase access and usage of digital financial service and access to finance in collaboration with BTCA. Key elements for consideration of the proposed pilot:

• Ensure regulatory compliance of proposed solution for women micro-entrepreneurs, Kidame Mart and Unilever
• Work with the financial service provider to document the workflow for the digital payment and credit solution
• To the extent possible, ensure incorporation of the responsible digital payments’ guidelines into the solution.
• Assess potential for scale in Kidame Mart’s current 8 regions of operation and future envisioned locations.
• Provide expertise on data management and analytics and solution marketing to drive user adoption and optimize user experience.

Prepare a pilot inception report on the design, function and implementation steps for the digital financial and working capital solution. This will capture among others:

• Objectives of the pilot
• Design of the solution
• Implementation plan that includes location of the pilot and rationale thereof, number of target women micro-entrepreneurs, definition of a successful pilot [elements like active usage will have to be defined] etc.

Progress to subsequent phases will be based on the development of a sound digital financial solution that is regulatory compliant and intended to achieve stated objectives key among which will be achieving increased financial inclusion and access for the women micro-entrepreneurs*. This will be agreed upon by Unilever, Kidame Mart and BTCA.*

B) Pilot Development and Implementation

1. Lead piloting of digital financial solution across one selected pilot region which will include five locations.
2. Prepare, align and share progress reports on the pilot.
3. Propose recommendations and implementation workplan for scaling up of the digital financial solution across remaining Shakti locations after pilot

Key target indicators for 6-month pilot

• 100 women micro-entrepreneurs in one region (approximately 20 per location) registered and trained on digital payment solutions and actively using their digital accounts (e.g. at least 2 of 4 financial transactions conducted digitally)
• % and volume of digital payment transactions made on the digital payment solutions within the first 3 months of launching
• Availability of data and track record of digital payments to be used in defining working capital credit solution for the women micro-entrepreneurs with selected FSPs
• Number of working capital facilities extended to women micro-entrepreneurs

Capacity Building

1. Working closely with Unilever Ethiopia, Kidame Mart and the selected FSP, support capacity building of field teams to implement the digital financial solution.
2. Support capacity building of relevant Unilever Ethiopia, Kidame Mart and the selected FSP field teams to embed the innovation, partnership and operational mindset and skills to drive the digital financial solution
3. Identify and coordinate development of future innovation areas, in particular to build credit, working capital solution for women micro-entrepreneurs.

Stakeholder Engagement

Map the project critical stakeholders, set up and coordinate meetings and engagements with all potential partners on implementation of the digital financial solution including but not limited to Unilever, Kidame Mart and selected FSPs.

• As part of the consultation with various partners and stakeholders the consultant will be expected to engage with additional FSPs that may also have potential to scale a digital payment and working capital solution across all 8 current regions of operation and future envisioned locations of the Shakti Program which will give the women micro-entrepreneurs the benefit of choice.

Document lessons

• Document the learnings on digitization process and dissemination: At the end of the project, the overall experiences and lessons learnt should be documented in a final public learning paper, that will be written in close consultation with Unilever Ethiopia and the Alliance before becoming publicly available.

D. Expected Outputs and Deliverables

Target Completion

Deliverables

Payment terms in % of total contract price

30th of January 2021

1. Assessment report on digital payment solution currently being implemented by Kidame Mart.
2. Minutes of meetings with key stakeholders (Unilever, Kidame Mart, selected FSPs) on engagements towards design and implementation of digital finance solution pilot.

15%

15th of March 2021

1. Draft inception report with details on pilot design and implementation plan (word or PPT), including decided location for starting pilot
2. Monitoring and Evaluation framework and tools to monitor pilot implementation, including agreed target numbers for number of women micro-entrepreneurs registered and trained on digital payment solutions, number and definition of women micro-entrepreneurs actively using their digital account (e.g. at least 2 of 4 financial transactions conducted digitally), % and volume of digital payment transactions made on the digital payment solutions within the first 3 months of launching, number of working capital facilities extended to women entrepreneurs

15%

15th April 2021

1. Business model workshops between Unilever, Kidame Mart and selected FSP staff on capacity building to embed the innovation, partnership and operational mindset and skills to drive the successful implementation of the digital financial solution
2. Updated pilot design and implementation plan (word or PPT)
3. Proven start of the pilot in the selected location

20%

31st May 2021

1. Periodic reports on implementation of the digital finance solution pilot as per the implementation plan and M&E framework and tools developed.
2. 50 women micro-entrepreneurs registered and trained on digital payment solutions and actively using their digital accounts (e.g. 4 ordering cycles within 3 months of onboarding)

20%

31st July 2021

1. 100 women micro-entrepreneurs registered and trained on digital payment solutions and actively using their digital account (e.g. 4 ordering cycles within 3 months of onboarding)
2. % and volume of digital payment transactions made on the digital payment solutions within the first 3 months of launching as defined by Unilever Ethiopia, its distributor and BTCA
3. Number of working capital facilities extended to the women micro entrepreneurs.
4. PPT presentation of key lessons learned and results from the pilot to be shared internally with Unilever Ethiopia and the Better Than Cash Alliance (around 20 slides)
5. Recommendations and implementation workplan in scaling up of the digital financial solution across remaining Shakti locations after pilot (around 30 slides)
6. Public learning paper (2-4 pages), that will be written in close consultation with Unilever Ethiopia and the Alliance before becoming publicly available
7. Text of a blog linked to the learning paper, written in close consultation with Unilever Ethiopia and the Alliance

30%

TOTAL

100%

Any delay in the completion of the outputs, if not attributed to the performance of the consultant, shall be addressed through a no-cost time extension.

E. Institutional Arrangement

The consultant will report and work under the direction of Unilever Ethiopia Shakti program manager based in Ethiopia, with supervision from the Better Than Cash Alliance Private Sector Digital Innovation Lead and the Better Than Cash Alliance Africa Regional Lead. The consultant will be based and working within the Kidame Mart team.

A project steering Committee will convene regularly (monthly or more if needed) to review project progress, address any issues, and provide feedback and clearance on deliverables or when necessary. The project steering committee will be constituted by members of the Better Than Cash Alliance, Unilever and Kidame Mart.

F. Duration of the Work

This is an assignment that will have an initial duration of nine months. However, the performance control/ monitoring mechanism will be applied from the start date.

G. Duty Station

• The duty station/location for the contract duration is Addis Ababa in Ethiopia;
• If there is any approved travel, UNCDF will pay separately travel expenses (economy airfare, terminal expenses and per diems which include hotel and food expenses) according to standard UN rates based on evidence of approved and actual travel.

Competencies

Core Competencies:

• Demonstrates ethics and integrity;
• Demonstrates political acumen and calculated risk taking;
• Impeccable diplomatic skills and knowledge of protocol; essential
• Demonstrated excellent writing, editing and communications skills to an international standard including correspondence, reports, talking points and briefing material; essential
• Builds own competence, creating an environment of creativity and innovation;
• Creates and promotes open communication;
• Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure;
• Conducts fair and transparent decision making;
• Displays cultural and gender sensitivity and adaptability;
• Shows strong corporate commitment.

Functional Competencies:

Professional

• Project management lifecycle
• Ensures the full implementation of a project to obtain results;
• Conceptualizes more effective approaches to programme development and implementation and to mobilizing and using resources;
• Anticipates constraints in the delivery of services and identifies solutions or alternatives;
• Makes effective use of UNCDF’s and other BTCA member resources and comparative advantage to strengthen partnerships;
• Creates networks and promotes initiatives with partner organizations;
• Creates an environment that fosters innovation and innovative thinking;

Technical:

• Working knowledge of current developments in payment technologies, including innovative payment methods (e.g., digital government, mobile financial services, pre-paid/reloadable/other cards, etc.);
• Solid skills in market assessments, DFS pilot initiatives, business case/strategy development and data analysis/management (spreadsheets, data visualization tools like Tableau, etc.)
• Understanding of key issues and international good practice relating to financial inclusion and digital payments
• Excellent presentation and representation skills in multicultural contexts
• Ability to translate complex technical ideas to a non-technical audience in both verbally and in writing

Required Skills and Experience

H. Qualifications

• A Master’s degree in economics, public/business administration, ICT, social sciences, or related discipline or the equivalent experience; and

• Additional training related to digital financial services is highly desirable.

Experience:

• A minimum of five (5) years dedicated experience in digital finance, payment systems or electronic payments required;
• Working experience in the Ethiopian payments ecosystem sector;
• Experience in formulating and implementation of digital payments initiatives /pilots at the private sector level;
• Specific experience for digital inclusive finance in rural areas;
• Experience in effectively leading or managing technical assistance to a very diverse group of clients or members and maintaining positive relationships with peers;
• Detailed and knowledgeable about the Ethiopia payments landscape, including digital payments regulatory environment and technology partners,
• Working knowledge of current developments in payment technologies, including innovative payment methods (e.g., digital government, mobile financial services, pre-paid/reloadable/other cards, etc.);

Languages:

• Fluency in English and Amharic is required;
• Working proficiency in another Ethiopian language highly desirable.

I. Scope of Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments

Payments will be made based on the percentage of contract price corresponding to the deliverables stated in Section D above, and upon confirmation of UNCDF that the individual has delivered on the contract obligations in a satisfactory manner. All payments are subject to the review & approval of the Private Sector Digital Innovation Lead, following consultation of the project steering Committee

J. Application

The following documents are requested (Note: the system does not allow multiple uploads of documents. Applicants must make sure to upload all documents in one PDF file):

1. Duly accomplished Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability;
2. Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references;
3. Brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment, and a methodology, if applicable, on how they will approach and complete the assignment.
4. Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive Daily Fee price. If an Offeror is employed by an organization/company/institution, and he/she expects his/her employer to charge a management fee in the process of releasing him/her to UNCDF under Reimbursable Loan Agreement (RLA), the Offeror must indicate at this point, and ensure that all such costs are duly incorporated in the financial proposal submitted to UNCDF.

Failure to submit all the below mentioned documents may result in rejection of the application.

K. Criteria for Selection of the Best Offer

Consultants will be evaluated based on UNDP’s cumulative analysis method. When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract shall be made to the consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable vis-à-vis the requirements of the TOR and the project operating environment; and
• Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical (70%) and financial (30%) criteria.

The Better Than Cash Alliance will conduct a review of a profile (technical evaluation) that matches applicants experience and expertise to the key tasks outlined in the consultancy. These are detailed under each of the following Key work areas noted above:

• Programme Development and Management (40 points);
• Experience in implementing Digital Financial Services Solution in Ethiopia (40 points);
• Stakeholder and Partner Consultation (20 points).

Only the top candidates obtaining a minimum of 70 points in the review of profile will be considered for Technical Interviews. Technical interviews will explore the same key work areas, in greater depth, with the same weighting.

Technical proposal = Review of a profile through desk review (30%) + Technical Interview (40%).

/ma

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Added 5 years ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: jobs.undp.org