Burundi Micro-insurance and Resilience Associate [Fixed term]

About One Acre Fund

Founded in 2006, One Acre Fund equips more than 4 million smallholder farmers to make their farms more productive. Across nine countries that together are home to two-thirds of Africa’s farmers, we provide high-quality farm supplies, tree seedlings, accessible credit, modern agronomic training, and a wide range of other agricultural services. On average, this model enables any farmer to increase her income and assets on supported land by more than 40 percent, while permanently improving her climate resilience. This is all made possible by our team of 8,000+ full-time staff, drawn from diverse backgrounds and professions. To learn more, please see our Why Work Here blog post.

Our Burundi program, established in 2011, operates under the local brand Tubura. We are a rapidly growing organization with over 1,000 employees nationwide. As of 2024, we serve over 340,000 unique farmers in 7 provinces; Muramvya, Gitega, Kayanza, Mwaro, Ngozi, Muyinga, and Ruyigi. To learn more about our work, look at our Burundi program blog.

About the Role

You will spearhead the establishment and expansion of One Acre Fund’s microinsurance initiatives, focusing on personal insurance products in Burundi. These products include funeral, hospital cash, maternal health, asset loss or other impactful insurance products. You will design, implement, and manage systems, operations, and distribution channels to offer new forms of protection to our farmers, beyond the traditional scope of climate and agricultural insurance.

You will work closely with farmers and customer-facing teams, dedicating significant time to fieldwork to understand community needs, inform and engage farmers on available products, and build trust and fluency in our insurance offerings. We offer the unique opportunity to contribute to the financial security and empowerment of smallholder farming communities, with a strong emphasis on innovation and leadership.

You will report to both the Global Head of Risk & Resilience and the Burundi Impact Team.

Responsibilities

Product Development:

• Lead the design and implementation of new microinsurance products tailored to the needs of smallholder farmers. This includes conducting market research, developing product concepts, and planning and managing pilot tests.
• This also includes designing, and overseeing the execution of formative research which can include focus groups, interviews, and surveys with farmers and other organizations locally involved in insurance work
• Create strategic plans for the long-term implementation of a new product or service coming from the pilots tested (timelines, TOCs, budgets, adoption) and Create detailed, clear work plans for new and ongoing pilots
• Calculate budgetary needs for trial roll outs, advocate for those and ensure trial spending remains within budgetary limits set

Project Management, Operations and Distribution

• Set and track goals to monitor pilot progress and staff performance during execution
• Plan all activities in advance to delegate as relevant
•  Set up and improve operations and distribution networks for microinsurance products.
• Hands-on fieldwork to train and support field officers and ensure products are accessible well-understood and adopted by farmers.
• Develop relationships with a variety of partners, including insurers, technology partners, government agencies, and NGOs, to facilitate product delivery.

Impact Measurement and Reporting

• Monitor and evaluate the performance and impact of insurance products, ensuring understanding of One Acre Fund’s mission of improving farmer prosperity and.
• Design databases to track trial results
• Examine and interpret past data and integrate that into present decision-making processes
• Use Excel (can perform complex functions) , Stata or R to analyze trial results and write up reports with recommendations on next steps

Innovation and Strategy

• Inspire creativity in the microinsurance space, identifying opportunities for new products or improvements to existing offerings.
• Develop strategic plans for scaling operations sustainably – this includes long-term strategies that align with Burundi country Vision
• Work with field departments to grow successful products and services  in our core program
• Contribute to the country program impact strategy through participation in determining OKRs, quarterly goals and other strategic discussions

Team management

• Conduct weekly check-ins with staff, helping them prioritize and plan tasks
• Create professional development plans for staff and support their growth
• Monitor staff performance to identify potential challenges
• Complete payroll

Career Growth and Development

We have a strong culture of constant learning and we invest in developing our people. You’ll have weekly check-ins with your manager, access to mentorship and training programs, and regular feedback on your performance. We hold career reviews every six months, and set aside time to discuss your aspirations and career goals. You’ll have the opportunity to shape a growing organization and build a rewarding long-term career.

Qualifications

Across all roles, these are the general qualifications we look for. For this role specifically, you will have:

• 2+ years of experience in operations, business development, or a related field, with a preference for backgrounds or understanding in insurance, financial services, or social enterprises.
• Understanding of microinsurance products, regulations and industry trends, especially in the region
• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field.
• Experience with project management and innovation in challenging environments.
• Proficiency in Excel and a willingness to spend significant time in the field.
• Leadership experience and working as part of a team.
• Passion for One Acre Fund’s mission and a commitment to improving the lives of smallholder farmers.
• Fluent in English and French. Kirundi preferred.

How to Apply

Submit your application using this link: https://grnh.se/c2228de81us

Preferred Start Date

As soon as possible

Job Location

Muramvya, Burundi

Benefits

Health insurance, housing, and comprehensive benefits

Contract Duration

4 Years.

Eligibility

This role is only open to citizens or permanent residents of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Malawi, Zambia, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Nigeria and Uganda.

Application Deadline

24 April 2025. Please note that we hire on a rolling basis which means that applications are reviewed and processed on a continuous basis until a hire is made.

One Acre Fund never asks candidates to pay any money or pay for tests at any stage of the interview process. Official One Acre Fund emails will always arrive from an @oneacrefund.org address. Please report any suspicious communication here (globalhotline@oneacrefund.org), but do not send applications or application materials to this email address.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI), and anti-racism are deeply connected to our organization’s mission and purpose. One Acre Fund aspires to build a culture where all staff feel consistently valued, represented, and connected – so that our team can thrive as professionals, and achieve exceptional impact for the farmers we serve.

We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender, gender identity or expression. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.