Compliance & Investigations Manager

About Watu:
At Watu Africa, we empower entrepreneurs.

Reporting to the Head of Compliance & Investigations, this role is required to assist the Head of Compliance & Investigations in providing leadership to the entire Compliance & Investigation team in Uganda. The role will also be responsible for promoting an ethics & compliance conscious culture at Watu. This will include E&C training, advising employees, implementing communication strategies, and conducting internal investigations into allegations of compliance misconduct. This position ensures that the company has an effective overall compliance program that will help identify and mitigate risks whilst improving upon company policies and procedures.
ROLE DESCRIPTION:

• Collect and prepare Compliance & Investigation statistics for the periodical Audit and Board Committees.
• Conduct timely, high-quality internal investigations in line with the Watu Internal Investigations Procedure; prepare investigation reports and communicate outcomes to key stakeholders.
• Identify and present investigation learnings to management, implement corrective and preventive actions, and conduct retaliation checks.
• Monitor, interpret, and assess applicable regulatory requirements and legislative developments impacting the business, ensuring timely communication of regulatory changes and associated compliance obligations to relevant stakeholders.
• Maintain and oversee the regulatory compliance framework, including compliance registers, regulatory obligations mapping, compliance monitoring activities, and remediation plans to ensure ongoing adherence to applicable laws, regulations, and regulatory expectations.
• Coordinate regulatory compliance assessments and reviews, identify compliance gaps, recommend corrective actions, and track implementation to completion.
• Support regulatory examinations, inspections, and audits by preparing documentation, coordinating responses, and managing follow-up actions with business stakeholders and regulators where required
• Ensure the company’s full compliance with AML/CTF regulations by maintaining and strengthening the AML framework, including CDD/EDD, sanctions and PEP screening, transactional monitoring, investigation of alerts, and reporting of suspicious activity.
• Provide AML subject-matter expertise across the business, support AML audits and regulatory reviews, and enhance AML/CTF awareness through targeted training and communication.
• Serve as a key point of contact for regulatory compliance matters, supporting interactions with regulators and ensuring timely and accurate submission of regulatory reports, notifications, and responses.
• Lead the implementation and ongoing management of the Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) framework by coordinating with risk owners, maintaining the risk register, ensuring effective mitigation plans, and preparing risk reports and analyses for the Risk Committee.
• Facilitate periodic risk assessments, scenario analysis, and risk workshops to support risk-informed decision-making and embed a strong risk culture across the organization.
• Act as a trusted advisor for employees seeking guidance on compliance-related matters or wishing to discuss or report suspected misconduct.
• Deploy Ethics & Compliance training and communication strategies and initiatives, and monitor their effectiveness.
• Participate in the review and development of policies related to the organization’s business activities, ensuring alignment with local legislation and internal standards.
• Keep abreast of the latest Ethics & Compliance developments, technologies, and ways of working, and promote continuous improvement.
• Monitor and interpret changes in regulatory requirements and advise management on emerging legal and compliance obligations that may impact business operations.
• Implement, and continuously review compliance policies, procedures, and controls to ensure alignment with local regulatory requirements and compliance standards.
• Provide guidance to management and business units on the interpretation and application of relevant laws and regulations affecting the organization.
• Support the review and implementation of legal and regulatory requirements relating to lending operations, consumer protection, debt collection practices, digital financial services, privacy, data protection, anti-bribery, anti-corruption, and corporate governance.
• Liaise with external legal counsel and regulatory consultants on matters requiring specialist legal interpretation or regulatory engagement.
• Perform any other duties assigned.

What are we looking for:

• University degree in Law, Criminology, Business or any other related field
• 5-8 years of relevant experience in legal, corporate governance, investigations or compliance related field
• Integrity and professional skills such as presentation skills, analytical skills, time management, influencing and stakeholder management
• Strong ability to advise and where necessary challenge leadership on actions or changes to be implemented
• Ability to work independently and proactively with a limited level of direct supervision
• Self-starter, target oriented and a good communicator 
• Teamwork and collaboration
• Relevant professional qualifications or certifications in the following fields will be an added advantage ;
  •  Certified Compliance and Ethics Professional (CCEP)
  •  Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS)
  •  International Compliance Association (ICA) Certification