Program Background

The Agrifood System Transformation for Youth Employment (ASTYE) Uganda program

ASTYE is a 5-year transformative initiative designed to enable dignified and fulfilling work opportunities primarily for financially disadvantaged young women, refugees, and vulnerable groups by addressing structural barriers in Uganda's Agrifood system. Aligned with Uganda’s Vision 2040, the National Development Plan and Government of Uganda Agriculture Value Chain Development Strategy, the program will contribute to national efforts toward poverty alleviation, economic growth, as well food and nutrition security. Additionally, ASTYE is part of the Mastercard Foundation’s Young Africa Works strategy in Uganda, which aims to empower 4.3 million young Ugandans, particularly young women, by addressing structural barriers to employment and providing them with the skills and resources to succeed.

Specifically, GOAL will implement component one to reach 500,000 financially disadvantaged young people, with 400,000 transiting into work and 320,000 securing dignified and fulfilling work. As the program is young women-centric, 80% of the total outreach target will be young women within Uganda's agrifood ecosystem. Furthermore, 3% of the total youth in work target will be refugees, and another 3% will be people with disabilities.

Job summary

The Financial Inclusion Specialist will lead the design, coordination, and implementation of financial inclusion interventions under the ASTYE Program in Kabarole and supported districts. The role focuses on financial literacy, digitization, access to financial services, insurance, value chain financing, and business development services for young women and youth-led agrifood enterprises.

The Specialist will work closely with Bank of Uganda, financial institutions, Civil Society Organisations, Business Development Services (BDS) providers, digital platforms, Private Sector Actors, and industry associations to remove systemic barriers and increase youth access to inclusive, affordable, and appropriate financial products.

Key Responsibilities

Financial Literacy and Capability Building

• Design and deliver financial literacy training for young women and youth groups, covering mindset change, cultural norms, money management, savings, budgeting, and business planning.
• Identify, profile, and support CSO staff and Master Youth Champions to participate in Bank of Uganda Financial Literacy Training of Trainers (ToT).
• Coordinate with the Bank of Uganda Financial Inclusion Department to conduct co-design meetings, sign and operationalize an MoU, organize and implement Financial Literacy ToTs.
• Support rollout of village-level financial literacy training delivered by trained Master Youth Champions and CSOs.
• Facilitate translation of financial literacy materials into local languages to ensure inclusivity and accessibility.

Digital Financial Inclusion and Record Management

• Promote and support adoption of digital record-keeping systems for youth groups and young women-led agribusinesses to enhance creditworthiness and visibility.
• Work with digital platform partners to integrate financial literacy content into their systems and upgrade platforms to host financial education materials
• Train group leaders on digital literacy, mobile platforms, and digital financial tools.
• Promote uptake and use of mobile money services and wallets, especially among young women in rural communities.
• Support digitization of enterprise and group financial records.

Access to Financial Services and Products

• Facilitate access to formal financial services, including savings, credit, insurance, agency banking, and value chain financing.
• Map and profile youth groups and enterprises for linkage to financial service providers (FSPs).
• Organize financial services clinics, stakeholder meetings, and business forums at district level to link youth with FSPs and off takers.
• Support youth participation in Youth Agro-Expos to engage aggregators, banks, and insurance providers.

Business Development Services and Enterprise Support

• Map and identify promising young women-led enterprises for targeted BDS support.
• Conduct capacity and needs assessments of youth groups and enterprises to determine technical, financial, and operational gaps.
• Coordinate tailored Business Development Services, including business registration, regulatory compliance and financial management strengthening.
• Support young women enterprises to prepare and organize documentation required for formal registration and compliance.
• Organize district-level business clinics and registration clinics in collaboration with BDS partners.

Insurance and Risk Mitigation

• Partner with Agro Insurance Consortium Ltd and other stakeholders to expand access to agricultural insurance products for young women and youth.
• Lead awareness campaigns through community engagements, media activations, radio talk shows and advertisements across program districts
• Promote understanding and uptake of insurance as a risk-management tool in agriculture.

Financial Ecosystem Partnerships and Systems Change

• Refresh and contribute to financial systems mapping to identify opportunities for women-focused financial products (including agriculture insurance and value chain finance).
• Co-design value chain financing solutions with financial institutions and private sector actors for selected value chains.
• Collaborate with Uganda Bankers Association (UBA) to develop a value chain financing strategy for young women, organize co-design and partnership meetings, secure buy-in from senior bank leadership and promote tailored loan products to youth enterprises.
• Support linkages between youth, Producer/Service Aggregators (PSAs), and financial institutions.

Monitoring, Learning, and Reporting

• Track progress against financial inclusion indicators and contribute to baseline and periodic assessments.
• Document lessons, best practices, and success stories related to youth financial inclusion.
• Prepare timely activity reports and contribute to program learning and adaptive management.

Documentation and Knowledge Management

• Develop and implement a documentation framework for all financial inclusion interventions under the ASTYE Program.
• Ensure systematic documentation of training sessions, partnership engagements, co-design meetings, financial clinics, exposure visits, and youth agro-expos.
• Compile case studies, human-interest stories, best practices, and evidence of impact related to youth financial inclusion, with a strong focus on young women and vulnerable groups.
• Maintain updated records of mapped youth groups, enterprises, financial service providers, insurance partners, and BDS actors.
• Support development of policy briefs, technical papers, and learning briefs to inform sector stakeholders and influence systems change.
• Contribute to donor reporting requirements by providing high-quality narrative and analytical reports.
• Establish and maintain a knowledge repository for financial inclusion tools, training materials, translated resources, and partnership documents.
• Facilitate learning review meetings at district and national levels to share emerging lessons and adaptive strategies.

Development and Implementation of the Financial Inclusion Sector Strategy

• Translate the overall program strategy into annual and quarterly operational plans for financial inclusion interventions at district level.
• Conduct sector analysis and financial ecosystem assessments to inform strategic priorities and intervention design.
• Identify systemic constraints affecting youth and young women’s access to fin

• Design and deliver financial literacy training for young women and youth groups, covering mindset change, cultural norms, money management, savings, budgeting, and business planning.
• Identify, profile, and support CSO staff and Master Youth Champions to participate in Bank of Uganda Financial Literacy Training of Trainers (ToT).
• Coordinate with the Bank of Uganda Financial Inclusion Department to conduct co-design meetings, sign and operationalize an MoU, organize and implement Financial Literacy ToTs.
• Support rollout of village-level financial literacy training delivered by trained Master Youth Champions and CSOs.
• Facilitate translation of financial literacy materials into local languages to ensure inclusivity and accessibility.
• Promote and support adoption of digital record-keeping systems for youth groups and young women-led agribusinesses to enhance creditworthiness and visibility.
• Work with digital platform partners to integrate financial literacy content into their systems and upgrade platforms to host financial education materials
• Train group leaders on digital literacy, mobile platforms, and digital financial tools.
• Promote uptake and use of mobile money services and wallets, especially among young women in rural communities.
• Support digitization of enterprise and group financial records.
• Facilitate access to formal financial services, including savings, credit, insurance, agency banking, and value chain financing.
• Map and profile youth groups and enterprises for linkage to financial service providers (FSPs).
• Organize financial services clinics, stakeholder meetings, and business forums at district level to link youth with FSPs and off takers.
• Support youth participation in Youth Agro-Expos to engage aggregators, banks, and insurance providers.
• Map and identify promising young women-led enterprises for targeted BDS support.
• Conduct capacity and needs assessments of youth groups and enterprises to determine technical, financial, and operational gaps.
• Coordinate tailored Business Development Services, including business registration, regulatory compliance and financial management strengthening.
• Support young women enterprises to prepare and organize documentation required for formal registration and compliance.
• Organize district-level business clinics and registration clinics in collaboration with BDS partners.
• Partner with Agro Insurance Consortium Ltd and other stakeholders to expand access to agricultural insurance products for young women and youth.
• Lead awareness campaigns through community engagements, media activations, radio talk shows and advertisements across program districts
• Promote understanding and uptake of insurance as a risk-management tool in agriculture.
• Refresh and contribute to financial systems mapping to identify opportunities for women-focused financial products (including agriculture insurance and value chain finance).
• Co-design value chain financing solutions with financial institutions and private sector actors for selected value chains.
• Collaborate with Uganda Bankers Association (UBA) to develop a value chain financing strategy for young women, organize co-design and partnership meetings, secure buy-in from senior bank leadership and promote tailored loan products to youth enterprises.
• Support linkages between youth, Producer/Service Aggregators (PSAs), and financial institutions.
• Track progress against financial inclusion indicators and contribute to baseline and periodic assessments.
• Document lessons, best practices, and success stories related to youth financial inclusion.
• Prepare timely activity reports and contribute to program learning and adaptive management.
• Develop and implement a documentation framework for all financial inclusion interventions under the ASTYE Program.
• Ensure systematic documentation of training sessions, partnership engagements, co-design meetings, financial clinics, exposure visits, and youth agro-expos.
• Compile case studies, human-interest stories, best practices, and evidence of impact related to youth financial inclusion, with a strong focus on young women and vulnerable groups.
• Maintain updated records of mapped youth groups, enterprises, financial service providers, insurance partners, and BDS actors.
• Support development of policy briefs, technical papers, and learning briefs to inform sector stakeholders and influence systems change.
• Contribute to donor reporting requirements by providing high-quality narrative and analytical reports.
• Establish and maintain a knowledge repository for financial inclusion tools, training materials, translated resources, and partnership documents.
• Facilitate learning review meetings at district and national levels to share emerging lessons and adaptive strategies.
• Translate the overall program strategy into annual and quarterly operational plans for financial inclusion interventions at district level.
• Conduct sector analysis and financial ecosystem assessments to inform strategic priorities and intervention design.
• Identify systemic constraints affecting youth and young women’s access to fin

• Financial literacy training delivery
• Digital literacy and mobile money promotion
• Partnership building with financial institutions and CSOs
• Business development services coordination
• Agricultural insurance promotion
• Value chain financing strategy development
• Monitoring and reporting
• Documentation and knowledge management
• Sector analysis
• Financial ecosystem assessment

• Experience in designing and implementing financial inclusion interventions.
• Familiarity with financial literacy, digitization, access to financial services, insurance, value chain financing, and business development services.
• Experience working with financial institutions, CSOs, digital platforms, and private sector actors.
• Strong understanding of the agrifood system in Uganda.
• Excellent communication, coordination, and reporting skills.
• Ability to translate financial literacy materials into local languages.
• Experience in monitoring, learning, and documentation.