Senior Finance Associate

UNICEF Job no: 595550

Contract type: Fixed Term Appointment

Duty Station: Maseru

Level: G-7

Location: Lesotho

Categories: Financial Management

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

For every child, the right to Opportunity How can you make a difference? The Senior Finance Associate works under the direct supervision of the Operations Manager, and acts as GSSC local focal point providing a variety of specialized tasks in finance functions, ensuring accurate and timely delivery that is in compliance with UNICEF financial rules and regulations, whilst demonstrating the capacity to research, adapt and evaluate irregular cases, and also to recommend improvements to process delivery and design. He/She manages the area of accounting control, recording, reporting of assets, liabilities and income. He/She monitors the appropriate disbursements of programme funds and payments of accounts in accordance with the rules, regulations and established budgetary limits. This is skilled work, which is being carried out with a high level of independence, and may include the provision of procedural leadership to more junior staff or serve as a focal point for a finance project.

The Senior Finance Associate will be responsible for providing a variety of specialized tasks in finance functions, ensuring accurate and timely delivery that is in compliance with UNICEF financial rules and regulations, whilst demonstrating the capacity to research, adapt and evaluate irregular cases, and also to recommend improvements to process delivery and design.

Summary Of Key Functions/accountabilities

• Vendor Payments and GSSC Liaison Responsible for initiating payment of vendors. Ensures accuracy and completeness of information required by GSSC, submit and follow up Finance requests to the GSSC. Communicates with the GSSC, if required, to provide additional or clarifying information. Monitors status of submitted Finance requests through completion. Follows up with the GSSC when requests are in progress and when they have gone beyond the processing period in the Service Level Agreement.
• Banking Services, Cash Transfers, and HACT Compliance

Focal Point for local banks for matters related to banking services such as exchange rates, interest rates, changes in procedures and regulations, and matters pertaining to maintenance of office bank accounts. Review of Direct Cash Transfers (OCT) liquidations and monitors OCT advances or reimbursement to implementing partners within the Harmonized Approach of Cash Transfers (HACT) framework, in accordance with established rules, regulations and systems, and within budgetary limits. Participates in spot checks, training activities, and capacity building exercises for DCT partners as identified by micro and other assessments. Ensure that the documentation is created relevant to these activities and that the information is held in the central filing system for NGO partners. Ensures the correct use and completeness

of Funding Authorization and Certification of Expenditures Form (FACE).

• Financial Accounting and Reconciliation Maintain financial records and monitor systems to record and reconcile expenditures, balances, payments, statements and other data for day-to-day transactions and reports, vouchers, bank transfers, petty cash, etc. Ensures accuracy of cash books and monitors movements in bank accounts daily to ensure adequate balance is maintained. Maintains general ledger and accounting records for classification and recording of financial transactions and for the reconciliation of accounts and preparation of recurring or special reports.
• Open Items Monitoring and Financial Close Support

Monitor open items (accounts receivable, accounts payable, prepayment, deposits, etc) on regular basis. Assist in the preparation of month and year-end closure schedules and submits reports to SharePoint.

• Staff Financial Support and Travel Claims Advise and assist staff/consultants on all aspects of payroll deductions, allowances, salary advances, travel claims and other financial matters. Calculates and authorizes payments due for travel expenses and other services including submissions on MyCase.
• Cash Receipt and Recovery Management Follow up and records all cash receipts (OCT refund and reimbursement from staff in VISION and ensures filing of cash receipt vouchers with supporting documentation in accordance with organizational standards.
• Budgeting, Forecasting, and Cash Management

Prepare detailed cost estimates, Coordinate the cash flow forecasting in liaison with Programme Sections, performs budget analysis and prepare replenishment requests, as

required.

• VAT Administration and Financial Compliance

Prepare VAT submissions to Revenue Services of Lesotho (RSL) on a quarterly basis and reconcile VAT ledger account follows up VAT receivables with RSL. Performs other duties, as required by Supervisor

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have… Minimum Requirements

• Education: Completion of secondary education is required. Professional and/or university courses related to the field of work, a professional accounting designation equivalent to university degree (General Accounting level, ACA, ACCA, CPA, CIMA, CPFA, Expert Compatible) from an internationally recognized institute/body of accountancy will be an asset.
• Work Experience: Minimum seven years of Administrative, Clerical work, Accounting and Auditing, Banking and Finance experience is required. Cash Transfers, Budgeting, Cash Management experience is required. Three (3) years and an additional two (2) years of experience may be substituted for candidates holding a bachelor’s and master’s degree.
• Skills: Financial Management, VISION, HACT
• Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables

• Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.
• Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.

For every Child, you demonstrate... UNICEF's Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it.

UNICEF Competencies Required For This Post Are…

• Builds and maintains partnerships
• Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
• Drive to achieve results for impact
• Innovates and embraces change
• Manages ambiguity and complexity
• Thinks and acts strategically
• Works collaboratively with others
• Nurtures, leads and manages people

For more information and to apply, please visit our website via the apply button below.