Grants Associate – Kenya at Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)

The Position

Grants Associate, Job Reference: GA/OPS/KE/08/2024

The Grants Associate has the responsibility for providing administrative, financial and logistical support to the Grants Unit. Grants Associate supports the grants unit staff with grants disbursements, reporting, and follow-on grantees’ general communication correspondence.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

• Receive and log in AMIS (Management Information Systems) all funding requests and inquiries and forward them to relevant program units for review while maintaining a tracking system to ensure timely response.
• Generation of monthly grants process performance reports for Head of Grants review and reporting any deviations.
• Schedule reporting and payment requirements for all new grants in the grant management system
• Develop and maintain an effective document management system for all documents related to the grants unit for easy retrieval.
• Conduct pre-award due diligence for potential grantees including organization capacity assessments
• Monitor grantee budget utilization and advise grants officer and Head of Grants on variances and forecasts.
• Engages and follows up with the program staff for timely grants reporting and closure
• Monitors and maintains updated records of all in-kind budgets and ensures that the Grants Officer and program staff are informed of the current utilization and expenses reported.
• Tracking approvals and initiate grants related disbursement requests
• Serve as the Grants Unit contact person to receive, acknowledge, log-in and track resolutions of general grants-related issues in a timely manner.

Key Qualifications and Experience required:

Essential

• Bachelor’s degree in a commercial domain or equivalent experience in a related field.

Desirable

• Knowledge of AMIS operating system
• Relevant experience in a grant making environment
• Computer proficiency in: Word, Excel, Outlook, Internet search skills, PowerPoint, and ability to learn new applications quickly
• Working knowledge of key donor agencies including USAID, Rockefeller Foundation and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Master Card Foundation and FCDO.

Technical Competencies

• Capacity Building and Training Coordination
• Grantee Budget Management and Performance Reporting
• Record and Database Management
• Technical and Industry Knowledge

Behavioral Competencies

• Ability to drive collaboration through inclusive and agile teaming, breaking siloes, sharing information celebrating joint successes.
• Ability to execute excellently by delivering high-quality work at speed, committing to decisions and plans, and increasing accountability to deliver impact at scale.
• Ability to be sincerely constructive in interactions with others by demonstrating trust, sincerity, and care, in recognition of our joint purpose.
• Ability be increasingly entrepreneurial by breaking hierarchies, embracing learning and innovation to unlock the potential of diversity and ideas.