Agriculture Finance Specialist

Workplace Circumstances

• Environment: Office
• Languages: English, Khmer
• Location: Phnom Penh

Position Summary

Location: Phnom Penh and travel to provinces

Schedule: Intermittent

Job Purpose: To provide guidance and support to the agricultural extension activities in design and operationalize green investment and financing mechanism model development related to climate smart agriculture

Duties & Responsibilities

• Design and operationalize green investment and financing mechanisms, including grants, matching funds, and blended finance models, to support adoption of climate-resilient and nature-positive technologies.
• Develop clear eligibility criteria, appraisal procedures, and monitoring tools for assessing farmer and group investment proposals and financing applications.
• Facilitate linkages with producer groups, agribusinesses, and financial institutions such as banks, MFIs, and savings groups to improve access to affordable financial services.
• Support farmers and producer organizations in preparing simple business plans, cash flow projections, and investment proposals to strengthen their creditworthiness and develop and deliver financial literacy, enterprise management, and record-keeping training to farmers, with particular attention to women and vulnerable households.
• Promote the integration of climate and environmental risk considerations into agricultural financing and investment decisions.
• Support the selected participating financial institution (PFI) to design appropriate loan product (s) catering the financing needs of the project beneficiaries as well as loan package including underwriting model to loan products to be offered for project beneficiaries
• Develop loan portfolio monitoring mechanism for the selected PFI, obtain loan monitoring reports quarterly from the PFI and analyze it compared with project key performance indicators.
• Lead the design of the credit guarantee scheme that includes but not limited to coverage ratio, sharing order, process to claim and settle the loan default and provide the necessary training to the selected PFI loan officer to process loan application of project beneficiaries.
• Monitor the performance, repayment, and sustainability of supported investments and financing arrangements, and recommend corrective actions where necessary.
• Coordinate with PMU financial management staff to ensure compliance with government financial procedures.
• Document financial models, good practices, and lessons learned to support scaling and policy engagement.

Languages

• English - Fluent

Qualifications

• Master's Degree in finance, economics, agribusiness, rural development, or a closely related field, providing a strong foundation in financial analysis, investment planning, and agricultural enterprise development as a minimum

Work History

• Rural and agricultural finance, including designing and implementing financial products, credit schemes, grant mechanisms, or blended finance models for smallholder farmers and rural enterprises for 12 years as a minimum

General & Technical Skills

• Extensive experience working with microfinance institutions, banks, saving groups, cooperatives, and agribusinesses.
• Strong understanding of smallholder investment constraints, risk management, and cash flow cycles in agriculture.
• Strong experience in supporting farmers to prepare simple business plans and investment proposals
• Familiarity with green finance, climate finance, or environmentally sustainable investments
• Strong analytical, facilitation, and communication skills are required to effectively link farmers with financial services and support sustainable investment.
• Good English language skills are required and a willingness to travel and work in remote areas.