Chief Financial Officer - NGO - Africa

Chief Financial Officer - NGO - Africa

International Nonprofit Organization — Multi-Country Operations (Africa)

This search is being conducted on a confidential and exclusive basis. The identity of the organization will be disclosed at a later stage of the process.

Company Profile

A mission-driven, multi-country nonprofit organization working to expand opportunity and improve quality of life for underserved communities in some of the world's most remote regions. The organization is entering a new strategic cycle, shifting from a direct implementer of rural infrastructure to an enabler of systems-level change, backed by a significant new funding commitment that will support growth from a ~$10-15M/year to a ~$100M organization over the next six years.

The organization offers flexible work arrangements (genuine long-term remote, or hybrid at a program office with relocation covered), comprehensive medical coverage for employee and family, a professional development stipend, and generous time off.

Role Summary

The Chief Financial Officer is accountable for the administrative, financial, and risk management operations of the organization, including the development and execution of a long-range financial and operational strategy, and the ongoing development of control systems designed to preserve organizational assets and ensure accurate reporting. As a core member of the senior leadership team, the CFO serves as a strategic partner to the CEO, Board, and country leadership, translating the organization's growth ambitions into sound, scalable financial stewardship across a complex, multi-country portfolio.

This is a builder's role: the successful candidate will combine strategic and systems-level thinking with the hands-on ability to create, structure, and scale financial infrastructure that does not yet fully exist — rather than stepping into a fully established function.

Tasks

Strategy:

• Serve as strategic thought partner to the CEO and senior leadership on financial strategy, organizational sustainability, and long-term growth.
• Own the organization's multi-year financial strategy, including scenario modeling, capital planning, and resource allocation frameworks.
• Translate organizational strategy into financial plans, metrics, and targets that drive accountability across the organization.
• Engage the Board Finance Committee on short-, medium-, and long-term financial plans and projections.
• Represent the organization to financial partners, institutional donors, auditors, and relevant government bodies — including at high-level donor and networking events.
• Support due diligence and financial structuring for new awards, partnerships, and geographic expansion.
• Drive investment readiness and diversification of the funding base, including exploration of non-donor / self-generated revenue mechanisms.

Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A):

• Lead enterprise-wide budgeting and forecasting across departments and country offices.
• Develop forward-looking financial models and activity-based analyses to inform leadership decisions.
• Build financial dashboards and KPI frameworks giving leadership and the Board timely visibility into performance.
• Oversee cash flow planning, cash and investment management, banking relationships, and financing strategy.
• Prepare financial proposals and budgets for grant and contract bids alongside the Programs team.

General Accounting & Risk:

• Provide executive oversight of the accounting function across all operating countries, including fund and grant accounting and donor compliance.
• Drive harmonization and continuous improvement of finance processes, including automation and digitalization.
• Coordinate external audits across jurisdictions and ensure statutory/regulatory compliance as the organization scales into new geographies.
• Design and maintain internal control systems that support growth without compromising integrity.
• Lead or co-lead cross-functional initiatives such as ERP implementation or shared services model development.
• Manage the direct report relationship with the organization's senior in-country Finance lead.

Requirements

Requirements

• 8+ years of progressive financial leadership experience, including senior/C-suite level experience in a nonprofit or social enterprise context.
• Significant experience in nonprofit fund and grant accounting, multi-donor compliance, and donor reporting — U.S. grant landscape experience is particularly valuable given that most donors are U.S.-based. Additional experience across the private, profit-making sector is highly regarded.
• Demonstrated experience designing or transforming financial systems/processes across a multi-country organization.
• Strong financial modeling, scenario planning, and analytical capabilities, with the ability to translate complex financial information into clear executive-level insight.
• Significant professional experience across East and/or Central Africa; candidates currently based anywhere in Africa or in the United States (including diaspora candidates open to relocating) will be considered.
• Demonstrated leadership ability and experience building/managing finance teams across distributed geographies.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including board-level and donor-facing presentation.
• A genuine "builder" mindset — comfortable operating with ambiguity, creating structure from scratch, and working in a lean, agile, fast-moving environment.
• Willingness and availability to travel approximately 25-30% of the time for leadership, board, and funder engagements across Africa.
• CPA, MBA, or equivalent advanced qualification.

Benefits

Why Apply

• A true builder's mandate: the opportunity to design and stand up a modern financial function from the ground up, rather than inherit an already fully-formed structure.
• Scale and impact: the chance to help take the organization from a ~$10-15M/year operation to a ~$100M platform over six years, backed by a major incoming funding commitment already in motion.
• A genuine seat at the table: direct reporting line to the CEO, full C-suite membership, and real influence over the organization's strategic direction — not just its accounting.
• Visibility and ambassadorial exposure: representing the organization with major institutional donors, at high-level conferences, and with the Board.
• Mission-driven work with tangible, on-the-ground outcomes for underserved communities across Africa and beyond.
• A genuinely flexible working environment: long-term remote or hybrid at a program office of your choice, with relocation covered — not a temporary arrangement.
• A lean, agile, non-bureaucratic culture where new ideas can move quickly and individual contributions are highly visible.
• Competitive nonprofit-sector compensation plus full medical coverage for employee and family, a professional development stipend, and 31 days of paid time off.

Contract

• Attractive compensation package.
• Benefits: comprehensive medical coverage for employee and family; professional development stipend; 31 days of paid time off per year.
• Work mode: hybrid based at one of the organization's offices with relocation costs covered, or fully remote
• Location: Africa or US-based (excluding North Africa)
• Reporting line: reports directly to the CEO; member of the senior leadership team.
• Direct report: the organization's senior in-country Finance lead.