Finance Officer FT NOB at World Food Programme (WFP)

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

Under the direct supervision of the International Finance Officer, the National Finance Officer will report and provide core administrative support to enable effective management of funds, and ensure assistance to beneficiaries is undertaken in the most efficient and effective way possible.

JOB PURPOSE

To support the stewardship of WFP’s resources, monitoring budgets, forecasting, analysing, reporting and providing core administrative support to enable effective management of funds, and ensure assistance to beneficiaries is undertaken in the most efficient and effective way possible.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Provide financial and operational recommendations to the Country Director (CD), activity managers and functional managers based on comprehensive financial analysis that consider programmatic and operational perspectives
• Identify key financial indicators to guide financial management; regularly report to Country Office (CO) management on the key indicators, along with financial trends and projections; flag areas of concern and opportunities to improve cost efficiency and financial viability 
• Participate in operational planning processes as a member of the CO Finance team
• Lead Budget and Reporting section of theFinance unit in the development of annual workplans and KPIs; use the workplans to guide unit and staff performance and monitor progress throughout the year.
• Support the development of and endorse country level policies and standard operating procedures for finance and Budget
• Supervise the preparation of corporate budgets and financial plans, e.g. County Portfolio Budget and its revisions, Implementation Plans, Management Plans.
• Support Strategic Outcome (SO)/Activity and Functional Managers to manage their budgets by ensuring sufficient technical and analytical support and guidance; identify knowledge or information gaps and propose solutions
• Oversee and provide guidance to CO management on compliance with corporate procedures and internal controls; undertake periodic risk and internal control and assessments.

ACCOUNTABILITIES Cont..

• Establish and maintain effective strategic level coordination with other functional areas at CO, HQ, and RB level to resolve large or complex issues related to Finance and Budget.
• Represent unit/CO at internal meetings, external meetings and events with other UN agencies, banks and other financial institutions, or other partners and entities as required.
• Participate in the UN Common Services Management Team activities, and represent WFP as the Lead Agency, when required
• Contribute to preparedness actions such as early warning, risk analysis and contingency planning
• Lead, motivate and coach Finance General service staff to enable continued development and high performance.
• Ensure transparency and efficient utilization of WFP’s financial resources and integrity and consistency in the financial and accounting systems;
• Participate in preparing WFP budgets, its implementation, fund utilization and act as Certifying Officer for the country office;
• Set up proper accounting procedures and systems, internal controls to ensure that proper monitoring mechanisms are in place; Identify weaknesses and address them immediately;

ACCOUNTABILITIES Cont..

• Ensure that bank reconciliations for WFP accounts are regularly performed and regularly reviewed by designated officials;
• Ensure that disbursements are made based on proper authorizations and timely clearance of outstanding advances and other receivables; coordinate financial closure for entrusted imprest accounts;
• Ensure proper maintenance of vendor accounts and timely clearance of outstanding advances and other receivables;
• Respond to audit queries and follow-up on audit recommendations;
• Perform other related duties as required.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Education: Advanced University degree in Finance, Business Administration, Accounting or related fields, or First University degree in the same subject(s) with additional years of related work experience plus membership in an international recognized professional accountancy body such as Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Institute of Certified Public Accounts (ICPA) or equivalent.

Experience: With Masters degree, minimum 4 years of relevant work experience  or Bachelors degree with minimum 8 years’ experience working in finance with business adminstration, accounting or related fields. 

 Language: Fluency in English language and the duty station’s language.

OTHER SPECIFIC JOB REQUIREMENTS

• Resourcefulness, initiative, maturity of judgement, tact, effective working relations in support of work conducted by other officers.
• Ability to prioritize work and handle multiple tasks at the same time and a high sense of  intergrity and excellent negotiation skills
• Application of expertise in various administrative fields including, implementing training programs; monitoring of budgets and providing accurate and complete accounting, budgetary and financial information; procurement of food and non-food items while adhering to WFP Regulations.  Ability to deal patiently and tactfully with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.
• Ability to provide guidance and supervision to support staff.
• Ability to communicate effectively in both oral and written English and Kiswahili.

4Ps CORE ORGANISATIONAL CAPABILITIES

Purpose

• Understand and communicate the Strategic Objectives: Understands WFP’s Strategic Objectives and the link to own work objectives.
•  Be a force for positive change: Flexibly adapts individual contributions to accommodate changes in direction from supervisors and internal/external changes (such as evolving needs of beneficiaries, new requirements of partners).
•  Make the mission inspiring to our team: Recognizes and shares with team members the ways in which individual contributions relate to WFP’s mission.
•  Make our mission visible in everyday actions: Sets own goals in alignment with WFP’s overall operations, and is able to communicate this link to others.

People

• Look for ways to strengthen people’s skills: Assesses own strengths and weaknesses to increase self-awareness, and includes these in conversations on own developmental needs.
•  Create an inclusive culture: Participates in open dialogue, and values the diverse opinion of others, regardless of background, culture, experience, or country assignment.
•  Be a coach & provide constructive feedback: Proactively seeks feedback and coaching to build confidence, and develop and improve individual skills.
•  Create an “I will”/”We will” spirit: Participates in accomplishing team activities and goals in the face of challenging circumstances.

Performance

• Encourage innovation & creative solutions: Shows willingness to explore and experiment with new ideas and approaches in own work.
•  Focus on getting results: Consistently delivers results within individual scope of work on time, on budget and without errors.
•  Make commitments and make good on commitments: Commits to upholding individual accountabilities and responsibilities in the face of ever-changing country or functional priorities.
•  Be Decisive: Makes rational decisions about individual activities when faced with uncertain circumstances, including in times of ambiguity regarding information or manager direction.

Partnership

• Connect and share across WFP units: Seeks to understand and adapt to internal or cross-unit teams’ priorities and preferred working styles.
•  Build strong external partnerships: Demonstrates ability to understand and appropriately respond to and/or escalate needs of external partners.
•  Be politically agile & adaptable: Portrays an informed and professional demeanor toward internal and external partners and stakeholders.
•  Be clear about the value WFP brings to partnerships: Provides operational support on analyses and assessments that quantifies and demonstrates WFP’s unique value as a partner.

FUNCTIONAL CAPABILITIES

 DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE

• Has experience reviewing and analyzing financial statements.
  • Has experience implementing accounting and internal control processes.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.
• The World Food Programme DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS.
• WFP embraces diversity and equal opportunity. We are committed to building a team that celebrates diversity and inclusivity in all ways. 
• All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications and merit.
• Applicants profile MUST match the C.V attached. Any discrepancies may lead to automatic disqualification.