Program Accountant at International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI)

Key Responsibilities:

Financial accounting, reporting and donor compliance

• Maintain complete and accurate accounting records for assigned REAP countries, workstreams, partners and cost categories, ensuring transactions are recorded in the correct period, project, budget line and reporting dimension.
• Prepare monthly, quarterly and annual program financial reports, including budget-versus-actual analysis, commitments, burn rate, forecasts, cash position and key exceptions requiring management action.
• Support preparation of Mastercard Foundation financial reports, fund requests, forecasts and supporting schedules for review by the Finance & Grants Manager.
• Track and proactively manage donor financial reporting deadlines through the ERP System (OCS), coordinating with program teams, country offices, and implementing partners to ensure the timely submission of accurate, complete, and compliant financial reports, while promptly addressing any reporting risks or delays.
• Maintain complete, orderly and accessible electronic records and audit trails for financial transactions, approvals, reallocations and key financial decisions.

Budgeting, forecasting and financial analysis

• Support preparation, consolidation and periodic revision of program budgets and forecasts across assigned countries, workstreams, partners and implementation periods.
• Translate approved workplans and procurement plans into detailed budgets, cash-flow forecasts and expenditure projections.
• Monitor actual expenditure and commitments against approved budgets and implementation plans; investigate variances with budget holders and track agreed corrective actions.
• Support budget reallocations and donor approval requests by preparing analyses, reconciliations and supporting documentation.
• Monitor cost recovery, co-financing obligations, pooled and direct charges, and ensure approved allocation bases and supporting documentation are consistently applied.
• Provide practical financial guidance and training to program staff on budget interpretation, eligible costs, supporting documentation and use of financial reports or dashboards.

Partner and sub-award financial management

• Support financial due diligence and risk assessments of implementing partners before contracting and periodically during implementation.
• Review partner budgets, cash requests, financial reports, supporting documents and liquidations for completeness, accuracy and compliance before recommending payment or acceptance.
• Maintain up-to-date schedules of partner agreements, disbursements, expenditure, advances, outstanding balances, reporting status and close-out actions.
• Follow up overdue or incomplete partner reports and unsupported expenditure, escalating significant delays, exceptions or recovery issues.
• Support risk-based partner monitoring, spot checks and financial capacity strengthening, and document agreed improvement actions.

Cash flow, receivables and payables management

• Prepare cash-flow projections for assigned program components and support timely donor funding requests and partner disbursement planning.
• Raise donor invoices or requests, record receipts and follow up outstanding reimbursements and transfer advice.
• Process partner and supplier payments in a timely manner, ensuring all transactions are supported by approved budgets, valid agreements, complete supporting documentation, and comply with donor requirements, ILRI policies, and applicable statutory regulations.
• Perform monthly reconciliations of receivables, payables, advances, partner balances and relevant control accounts; follow up and clear reconciling items promptly.
• Monitor foreign currency transactions and program foreign exchange gains or losses and provide timely and accurate information to the Finance & Grants Manager and ILRI Treasury.

Controls, audit and risk management

• Perform finance compliance checks over expenditure, travel, consultants, procurement-related transactions, assets, advances and partner payments in accordance with delegated responsibilities.
• Identify financial and compliance risks, maintain assigned risk and issue logs, and monitor implementation of agreed mitigation actions.
• Prepare audit schedules and supporting documentation and respond promptly to donor, internal and external audit or expenditure-verification requests.
• Track audit findings and management actions relevant to assigned program component and support timely closure.
• Promote segregation of duties, fraud awareness and prompt escalation of suspected irregularities or material control weaknesses

Systems, data quality and financial close

• Support accurate setup and maintenance of program structures, budgets, reporting dimensions and partner records in Agresso/Unit4 and other approved systems.
• Complete monthly and year-end reviews, reconciliations, accruals, corrections and project close processes within the agreed timetable.
• Prepare reliable dashboards and standardized schedules that provide program management with clear financial information and action points.
• Identify opportunities to simplify, standardize and automate finance workflows, while preserving appropriate controls and audit evidence.
• Support grant close-out, including final partner liquidation, resolution of commitments and balances, asset records, final reporting, audit support, refunds and records retention.

Business partnering and coordination

• Serve as the day-to-day finance focal point for assigned REAP program teams and partners, providing responsive, practical and solutions-oriented support.
• Work collaboratively with the Finance & Grants Manager, country finance teams, program leadership, Grants and Contracts, Procurement, Legal, People and Culture, Internal Audit and other service units.
• Prepare concise financial updates for program review meetings and follow up agreed finance actions to closure.
• Crosstrain an alternate staff member and provide support across the REAP finance team during peak reporting, budgeting, audit and close-out periods.
• Perform any other related duties as may be required.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in finance or accounting
• Full professional accounting qualification (CPA (K) or ACCA) and active membership in ICPAK or an equivalent recognized professional accounting body.
• At least Five years of relevant experience in accounting, preferably in program or project financial management. Experience managing the financial aspects of a Mastercard Foundation-funded project will be an added advantage.
• Experience using enterprise resource planning and financial reporting systems, with advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel. Experience with dashboards or business-intelligence tools is desirable
• Pro-active and Service minded; to provide efficient quality service to the program
• Integrity: Honest, above reproach and appropriate in actions / behaviour and transparent in conduct.
• Result Oriented/ Focused: Ability to consistently meet set goals. Focused, efficient and goal oriented. Ability to direct others to perform set duties.
• Professionalism: Application of ethics, principles, standards and expertise in all areas of work.
• Teamwork, Interpersonal Relations: Working and relating with others in mutual support and respect towards common goals and shared vision. Build and nurtures strong and authentic reciprocal relationships. Non-domineering or patronizing attitude and /or behaviour.
• Multi-cultural fit & Respect for Diversity: An ability to work effectively, respectfully and inclusively with people from different backgrounds and with different perspectives is critical for all staff members.
• Communication: Ability to express oneself, share and exchange information clearly and proactively, in a timely and client friendly style.
• Innovation & Creativity: Ability to generate new ideas and ways of working to continuously improve existing work processes, practices, concepts