Business Support Officer I (Project Accountant) at icipe - International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology

Overall Purpose of the Job

To provide support to the Senior Accountants in accounting tasks to ensure adequate financial implementation and management of financial resources in line with the icipe financial policies and donor regulations. 

This entails:

• Review of financial reports from partners.
• Assist in facilitation of projects audits.
• Prepare invoices for funds request.
• Create new project and budget lines codes.
• Input projects budgets into the accounting system.
• Other related tasks as assigned.

Specific Duties

Review of financial reports from partners

• Review of financial reports from partners for Plant, Animal, Human and Environmental Themes.
• To confirm accuracy, validity, and reasonability of the expenses, to also ensure that the partners are followed up to get fully supported documentation for expenses not fully supported.
• Input of expenses into the Sun system for posting.

Assist in facilitation of projects audits

• Assist in facilitation of projects audits.
• Retrieval of supporting documentation as requested by the auditors and clarifying the figures on the supporting documents to the auditors.

Prepare invoices for funds request

• Preparation of invoices for funds request for projects and other new projects that will come on board during the period.
• Acquire the relevant information pertaining the grant disbursement from the grant agreement.
• Prepare invoices using the information from the grant agreement.
• Print invoices and submit for approval.

Create new project and budget lines codes

• Create new projects and budget lines codes for new projects that will come on board during the period.
• Get information pertaining new project creation from the Senior Accountant.
• Information includes new agreement between icipe and the donor, Grant number, new project code, principal Investigator, the budget, containing the budget lines and activity description.
• Create new project using the new project excel template.
• Forward for review.

Create new project and budget lines codes

• Get the approved budgets from the Senior Project Accountant/new project agreements.
• Feed the approved budgets one after the other, on a journal importing template with the correct budget codes, lines, and amounts.
• Journal importing the budgets to the Sun System.
• Hand them over for review.

Requirements/Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in accounting.
• CPA II or its equivalent.
• A minimum of progressive experience in project accounting for at least 2 years.
• Relevant exposure to auditing or financial management will be desirable.

Other Desirable Attributes

• Ability to study, familiarize with the Centre’s documents (Financial Rules & Regulations, Procurement Manual, Whistleblower policy, Anti-fraud and ant-corruption policy…etc.) and donor specific requirements.
• Ability to interpret, resolve and adapt decisions within established guidelines and directions in the execution of tasks.
• Ability to search for common ground to problem solving.
• Ability to give guidance to matters related to own work area and capacity to function effectively as a member of a multi-disciplinary team.
• Expected to handle own imprest.