Regional Financial Management Agency for Civil Society Education Fund
IBIS Ghana has been appointed as a Regional Financial Management Agency (RFMA) for the Civil Society Education Fund for Africa for 2016- 2018. The fund provides grant funding and technical support to representative and democratic National CSO coalitions to strengthen citizens and CSO participation in national education sector planning and policy processes, research, analysis and tracking, engagement and input into regional and global policy processes.
The Role of IBIS as a Financial Management Agency among others includes:
- Receives and disburses national coalition grant funding (based on allocation made by the Regional Funding Committee with endorsement of the Global Oversight Committee),
- Reviews and reconciles national coalition quarterly financial reports (accounting for all income and expenses),
- Leads coalition grant close-out and liquidation,
- Maintains all financial records for coalition grants,
- Provides regional-level capacity-building support to coalitions relating to financial management.
JOB SUMMARY: To be responsible of managing the Assessment, disbursement process and Financial Accounting and Reporting of 8-10 National Education coalitions of the CSEF programme in Southern and Eastern Africa by, ensuring timeliness, quality and accuracy of financial information produced by countries. Extract and interpret data from the countries financial records to feed into the Regional Grants and Finance Manager with critical information to facilitate decision-making process.**Reporting to: Regional Grants and Finance Manager (Based in Accra, Ghana)
Liaison: ANCEFA Sub-Regional offices
Position location: Maputo, Mozambique
Key Responsibilities
Budgeting and Disbursement **
- Liaise with Ancefa Regional offices to provide input into the budgeting processes of the coalitions.
- Support programme management during development of budgets
- Undertake initial review of request for funds from national coalitions.
- Maintain and control over cash disbursement process to coalition by ensuring that all standards and requirements are met
Financial Accounting and Reporting
- Supervise the monthly submission of coalition’s financial reports
- Support the Coalitions in preparation of monthly and quarterly financial reports. Including variance analysis
- Trigger investigation on major budget variances and liaise with coalitions to obtain explanations.
- Support the Finance and Grants Manager to ensure that there is a reliable set of data with which to prepare financial reports to donors and for analysis purposes on quarterly basis.
- Carry out on the field visits to review coalitions financial systems and activities and financial assessments
- Coordinate all coalitions financial monitoring visits schedules for the countries responsible for each quarter to ensure visits are implemented.
- Consolidate country monitoring reports and agreed actions and follow up with the accountants at the coalitions to ensure issues identified are being addressed.
Capacity Building
- Support the RFMA secretariat in communicating on issues with the national coalitions.
- Participate in monitoring and mentoring visits to the national coalitions.
- Coordinate the follow-up of the capacity building plan/actions to be addressed following monitoring visits
- To take part in any Coalition Finance capacity building initiatives required in the countries of responsibility.
- Identification of new coalitions, developing the capacity improvement plan, and providing guidance on financial management of coalitions generally.
- Assist the Finance & Grants Manager to provide capacity building support to the coalitions generally.
Audit and compliance Follow up
- Support the CSEF Regional Finance and Grants Manager in the follow-up of internal and external audit recommendations as they relate to good coalition management.
- Consolidate recommendations/Actions/Responsibility from internal and external audits as they relate to coalitions management.
- Coordinate the national end of project audits related to areas of responsibility
Other Tasks
- To ensure that up-to-date records of coalitions documents e.g. agreement letter, reports are implemented according to IBIS and donor requirements.
- To undertake any other duties as required and discussed with the Regional Grants and Finance manager
Person Specification (Educational Qualifications, Skills and experience)
- A good first degree in Accounting or equivalent professional qualification (ACCA or other Recognized Accountancy Body)
- At least four year’s work experience in finance-related field.
- At least two year’s work experience in numerous partners/coalitions management
- Inquiring, analytical mind
- Good working knowledge of accounting information, while keeping up to date with changing financial rules and regulations
- Proven knowledge and experience of computerized systems, preferably with accounting packages as well as advanced Excel and Access skills.
- Excellent communication skills, and fluency in both verbal and written Portuguese and English
- Ability to combine on-going work demands with tight travel plans across Africa.
- Ability to discuss financial issues with both fellow professionals and those with little or no financial background
- Time-management skills
- Excellent interpersonal skills; ability to work on own and within various teams
- Ability to manage competing tasks; ability to prioritize and produce high level output consistently.
- Audit experience will be an advantage.
HOW TO APPLY:
Interested candidates for the above positions should submit their expression of interest and detailed CVs to rfmaibis@ibisghana.org. Heading should be Sub-Regional Accountant (Country). Deadline for the submission of applications is 15th April 2016
