BACKGROUND

The Global Water Partnership (GWP) is an international institution with a unique model comprising an intergovernmental organisation, the Global Water Partnership Organisation (GWPO), and a global network of more than 2,800 partner organisations. GWP was founded in 1996 with the support of the World Bank, the United Nations Development Programme, and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency with a mission to support countries in the sustainable development and management of water resources at all levels.

In 2002, the Global Water Partnership Organisation (GWPO) was established as an intergovernmental organisation with a mandate to serve as the global secretariat of GWP and support the worldwide GWP Network in pursuit of its mission and vision of a water secure world.

For more than two decades, GWPO and the GWP Network have been at the forefront of promoting integrated water resources management and strengthening water governance globally. GWP comprises 13 Regional Water Partnerships and 77 Country Water Partnerships operating in more than 180 countries. Since 2014, GWP has directly and indirectly supported investments and strengthened water governance and policy frameworks in more than 90 countries.

In 2025, GWPO and its GWP Network launched a Global Transformation Agenda on Water Investments. Under the GWP Strategy 2026–2030, GWPO is undertaking a profound institutional transformation to accelerate mobilization and deployment of finance at scale, strengthen water governance, and management of water resources for sustainable, climate-resilient, and equitable development.

This bold new chapter includes strengthened partnerships with G20 countries, multilateral development banks (MDBs), global climate finance institutions, the private sector, and regional financial and economic institutions to scale up impact. It also includes establishment of GWPO’s innovative Dual Headquarters anchored in the Global South while offering an opportunity to visionary States and governments around the world to join the organisation — a historic opportunity to renew global water cooperation and be part of the world’s first Global South anchored intergovernmental architecture on water investments.

POSITION PURPOSE

The Director – Finance, Administration & Chief Financial Officer (CFO) provides strategic leadership and executive oversight for GWPO’s financial stewardship, fiduciary governance, institutional sustainability, corporate services architecture, and enterprise financial management systems across the GWPO Secretariat and the GWP Network.

The CFO underpins GWPO’s institutional credibility, operational resilience, fiduciary integrity, and delivery capacity by ensuring sound financial governance, strategic resource management, robust internal controls, and effective corporate systems. The effectiveness of this role is fundamental to enabling GWPO’s transformation into a globally trusted delivery and investment platform and sustaining the confidence of governments, development partners, multilateral development banks, climate finance institutions, investors, and strategic partners.

The CFO serves as GWPO’s senior institutional authority on financial governance, fiduciary systems, corporate finance, treasury governance, financial sustainability, grant governance, enterprise risk management, and financial compliance architecture.

The position provides executive leadership across finance, administration, procurement, human resources administration systems, treasury governance, grant management systems, payroll governance, and corporate services functions supporting all global thematic, hub-based, and institutional operations.

The CFO leads strategic oversight of GWPO’s decentralized financial governance architecture, including joint delivery and cost recovery frameworks, enterprise financial integration, financial harmonization across the GWP Network, and implementation of institutional fiduciary standards.

The CFO serves as a member of GWPO’s Senior Management Team and works closely with the CEO & Executive Secretary, Steering Committee, Audit & Finance Subcommittee, Global Technical Committee, Regional Water Partnerships, host institutions, donors, auditors, governments, multilateral development banks, climate finance institutions, sovereign partners, and strategic stakeholders.

The Director shall lead a small but highly capable Finance & Administration Team responsible for sustaining, strengthening, and continuously modernizing GWPO’s global financial management systems and practices across the GWP Network.

Certain operational responsibilities may be exercised directly or through delegated supervision and coordination of finance, treasury, payroll, grants management, procurement, and administrative personnel within the Finance & Administration function.

STRATEGIC RESPONSIBILITIES

The Director shall:

Serve as GWPO’s Chief Financial Officer and provide executive leadership of the Finance & Administration function across the GWPO Secretariat and GWP Network;
Lead implementation of GWPO’s financial and administrative strategy in support of the GWP Strategy 2026–2030 and the Global Transformation Agenda on Water Investments;
Lead development and implementation of relevant GWPO financial policies, fiduciary systems, grant-making policies, cost recovery policies, and enterprise financial governance frameworks;
Safeguard GWPO’s financial sustainability, liquidity position, and long-term institutional viability;
Position GWPO as a credible and globally trusted fiduciary, delivery, and investment implementation partner for governments, MDBs, climate finance institutions, bilateral donors, sovereign partners, and private sector actors;
Lead institutional financial architecture for GWPO’s joint delivery and cost recovery framework, including governance structures, allocation principles, sustainability mechanisms, and financial oversight across decentralized delivery systems;
Lead full strategic oversight and institutional integration of GWPO’s Network Integrated Financial Management and Reporting System (NIFMARS) across the GWP Network;
Provide strategic leadership for harmonization of financial governance, fiduciary standards, enterprise financial systems, and financial management practices across the GWP Network;
Lead institutional financial sustainability planning, long-term scenario modelling, liquidity strategy, and revenue diversification mechanisms;
Strengthen fiduciary assurance, internal controls, compliance systems, enterprise risk management, and audit responsiveness across GWPO-led and jointly delivered programmes;
Oversee institutional fiduciary frameworks, accreditation-related financial governance systems, and financial due diligence standards applicable to RWPs, CWPs, host institutions, implementing partners, and strategic delivery entities;
Lead development and execution of financial management systems and institutional financial strategies supporting GWPO’s ambition to help mobilize and influence USD 15 billion in water investments by 2030.

CORE FUNCTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Financial Strategy, Planning and Sustainability

Develop and oversee GWPO’s multi-year financial management strategy, annual budgets, and medium-term financial forecasts;
Lead enterprise financial planning, institutional resource allocation, liquidity management strategy, and long-term sustainability modelling;
Integrate portfolio-based delivery and joint-delivery cost-recovery mechanisms into institutional financial planning and operational architecture;
Support the financial sustainability of GWPO’s delivery and Global Investment Platform (GIP) through scenario planning, cost optimization, and revenue diversification;
Lead GWPO strategic funding partners, donors engagements with their respective CFOs including senior financial representatives of governments, G20 countries, MDBs, climate funds, sovereign financing institutions, and development partners;
Advise the CEO & Executive Secretary and Senior Management Team on institutional financial strategy, sustainability risks, and financial implications of strategic decisions;
Ensure financial sustainability of the dual GWPO Headquarters and decentralized GWPO technical support hubs across Africa, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America & the Caribbean.

Financial Governance, Treasury and Enterprise Controls

Provide executive oversight of accounting, treasury governance, cash management frameworks, payroll governance, and enterprise financial reporting systems;
Ensure robust internal controls, segregation of duties, delegated authority frameworks, and enterprise financial risk management systems;
Oversee institutional financial policies, procedures, controls, and compliance frameworks;
Ensure compliance with applicable accounting standards, donor financial regulations, and institutional fiduciary obligations;
Provide executive oversight of payroll governance, pension and insurance financial frameworks, and staff financial entitlement systems;
Oversee payroll governance frameworks, payroll quality control systems, and institutional compensation administration controls;
Oversee strategic financial governance of bank account structures, treasury frameworks, liquidity controls, and institutional financial reconciliations;
Ensure institutional coordination with pension and insurance providers and oversee governance of staff benefit frameworks and related financial obligations;
Oversee strategic review and market comparison of insurance, pension, and related corporate service providers to ensure institutional effectiveness, competitiveness, and value for money.

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