Centre for Disaster Protection - Lead Risk Financing Adviser

The Centre for Disaster Protection works to prevent disasters devastating lives, by helping people, countries, and organisations change how they plan and pay for disasters. We focus on disaster risk financing to help ensure that money and plans are in place before a disaster strikes, so that the poorest and most vulnerable people are better protected. We are committed to work in partnerships across sectors and geographies to drive more impactful and more equitable disaster risk finance that leaves no one behind.

Specifically, through a focus on:

• Delivering excellent client outcomes and promoting lasting disaster risk finance expertise. We provide clients with impartial and evidence-based advice, quality assurance and training that meets their needs and drives more effective disaster risk finance.
• Quality evidence and learning. We work to strengthen the evidence base for prearranged financing and document and share what shows the greatest potential to achieve system change.
• Impactful communications and global policy engagement. We seek to engage and influence through evidence-led policy and inclusive policy dialogue that bridges both ‘local to global’ and the humanitarian development climate nexus, targeting the bottlenecks key to effect transformative change of the international crisis financing architecture.

Additionally, we are focused on building effective systems and processes for people and operations that support the Centre to rapidly, yet strategically, scale and grow in a way that supports our people to do their best work through safe challenge, promoting and integrating diversity, equity and inclusion.

The Centre is funded with UK aid through the UK government.

About the role

The role will include providing advice, quality assurance and training to country governments, as well as wider international development and humanitarian organisations and donors to contribute to the knowledge, skills and tools needed to make better and sustainable decisions about planning and paying for disasters to ultimately improve disaster risk management and financing. In this context, the candidate is expected to contribute to the design and lead the delivery of high-quality technical advisory and analysis of disaster risk and pre-arranged financing, as well to advise on related thematic areas, including strengthening adaptive social protection ahead of shocks for risk-vulnerable people.

Examples of work to be undertaken include:

• Working to provide advice to a low-income country government or a regional development bank on the design and implementation of pre-arranged finance solutions for their members;
• Providing quality assurance reviews of disaster risk financing products for a humanitarian, donor or country client of the Centre;
• Presenting findings and best practice examples of pre-arranged finance initiatives at regional events.

This role will also be involved in reviewing and quality assuring other Centre suppliers’ ongoing work alongside the Centre’s Advisory team. This role is expected to be largely desk-based, requiring incidental travel to countries internationally. Applicants will be required to travel irregularly to low or middle-income countries to support and deliver advisory work. As a guide, one week every 2-3 months, travel restrictions permitting).

In addition to these role-specific responsibilities, the Lead Risk Finance Advisor is expected to:

• Uphold the organisation’s values and contribute to a positive organisational culture.
• Build the Centre’s external reputation through delivering excellent technical work and the development of innovative solutions.
• Develop effective partnerships and relationships at senior levels across the regional multilateral institutions, humanitarian and financial sectors.
• Manage and supervise teams of Centre staff and consultants, coaching and mentoring colleagues as required, including potentially direct line management of a Risk Analyst.

Skills and experience

Successful candidates will be able to demonstrate the following skills and experience:

• Significant experience in disaster risk financing or a relevant field, such as public financial management, insurance, risk management, risk modelling, actuarial science, economics, shock-responsive social protection, or humanitarian finance.
• Experience in designing, delivering and/or quality assuring technical advisory in the international development sector to a high standard is required.
• Experience in managing projects for or in close coordination with international development and/or humanitarian agencies and/or governments is highly desirable.
• Experience in complex client management and the ability to build effective strategic partnerships across different sectors and stakeholders, including working with government at a senior level.
• Proven ability to work independently with occasional guidance and oversight, and as part of international teams often working in different locations and time zones.
• Work experience in fragile and low-income countries will be considered an asset.
• Qualifications at master’s degree level in a relevant field.
• Fluency (written and spoken) in English is required. Fluency in an additional language such as French, Spanish, or Arabic (written and spoken) is strongly desirable.

Successful candidates must also demonstrate:

• A strong commitment to building resilience and reducing vulnerability in low and middle-income countries.
• An understanding and commitment to the Centre’s values and mission.
• Be willing to travel to low- and middle-income countries in Africa, Asia, and other international locations as needed and travel restrictions permitting.

Competencies

Successful candidates will be able to demonstrate the following skills and capabilities:

• Analytical: Consistently demonstrates the use of strong analytical skills to effectively interpret data and make informed decisions, leading to quality outcomes for clients and partners.
• Problem Solving: Is adaptable, analytical, creative and persistent in resolving complex challenges for clients and partners.
• Strategic Thinking: Engages in inclusive dialogue with key partners and expert judgement to deliver strategic insights to achieve the Centre's mission.
• Delivering Excellence: Employs reliable insights to deliver excellent, quality work, in line with the Centre's mission.

The offer

This role is expected to be offered on a fixed term contract basis, starting in July 2025 and running to June 2029, including an initial probation period of up to 4 months. The role will be contracted by DAI Global UK (or local partner/representative), who are the Centre’s managing agent. Additional travel is expected with this role. The position is offered in the first instance as a position based in the UK, Nigeria or Pakistan. Whilst the role is primarily remote, regular visits to the Centre’s office in the City of London will be required (UK based employees are encouraged to be in the office a minimum of eight days per month). Flexible, part-time and remote working arrangements will be considered. Other locations of employment may be considered.

For contracting purposes, candidates must have the right to live and work in one of the following countries: UK, Belgium, Austria, Serbia, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Netherlands, Denmark, Croatia, Pakistan, Nigeria, USA. Other locations of employment may be considered, subject to feasibility. Candidates based elsewhere who fulfil the required skills and experience may contact the Centre on the inquiry e-mail below to verify if the role can be offered in their location.

A competitive salary and benefits package will be offered depending on experience (indicative gross salary range between £47,000 and £75,000 per annum where the role is based in the UK). The proposed salary will be confirmed at the offer stage.

The Centre is committed to building a diverse workplace and so we particularly encourage applications from diverse backgrounds that are typically under-represented in this sector.

DAI is a global development company with corporate offices in the USA, the UK, the EU, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Palestine, and project operations worldwide. DAI tackles fundamental social and economic development problems caused by inefficient markets, ineffective governance, and instability; it works on the frontlines of global development, transforming ideas into action—action into impact. DAI is committed to shaping a more liveable world.

Application Process

Interested applicants should apply via DAI’s recruitment portal, including a cover letter (no more than one page) and a CV to be considered. The deadline for receiving applications is 11:59pm (UK time) on 15th June 2025. Any questions about the role or the recruitment process or for any adjustments to be made, should be sent to: (please do not send applications to this email address). We are assessing applications for this position as they are received, interested applicants are therefore encouraged to complete their applications before the deadline. If you do not receive further communication from us for this opportunity, please understand that, regrettably, you were not selected for this position.

Please note that your data will be stored confidentially on DAI’s corporate database, which has restricted access for necessary DAI corporate staff only. DAI takes your privacy seriously. If you choose to, you may opt out of inclusion in our database at any point in time by sending an email. See our Privacy Policy for details. Your data may be held outside of the EU and/or UK by one of the other DAI group companies with sufficient safeguards in place regarding security and use.