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Project Finance Associate

Chisinau

  • Organization: UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
  • Location: Chisinau
  • Grade: Level not specified - Level not specified
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Operations and Administrations
    • Administrative support
    • Banking and Finance
    • Project and Programme Management
  • Closing Date: 2024-10-17

Background

 
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP:  we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.

 
UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

During August 2024 – July 2028, UNDP will implement the Project “Resilient Communities through Women Empowerment, Phase 2”, funded by Sweden and Norway.
 
The Project aims to enhance gender-responsive climate resilience in Moldova by integrating gender considerations into climate policies, empowering women leaders, and promoting climate-smart solutions. It aligns with national priorities and the Moldova 2030 National Strategy, addressing climate change adaptation and environmental protection. The project also supports the Government Programme on Gender Equality (2023-2027) and contributes to energy-related objectives, enhancing domestic energy production and affordability.
 
As a continuation of the Resilient Communities Project, phase I, UNDP Moldova intends: 
  • to enhance the understanding on climate change and gender empowerment matters, via synergetic engagement of public authorities from both national and local level;
  • to expand the poll of experts on gender&climate nexus through fellowship progammes, knowledge management portal etc and with participation of the NGOs; 
  • to foster cooperation among the main local stakeholders – LPAs, community members and women-led businesses which all contribute to addressing the same priority issues identified in the Sustainable Energy and Climate Actions Plans (SECAPS);
Expected Results: 
The project envisions a transformed landscape where climate action and gender equality converge, resulting in stronger communities and enhanced climate resilience. This transformation is driven by a set of expected results:

Outcome 1: 
  • Capacities of national and local authorities to advance gender transformative climate change actions are enhanced. This result is achieved through mainstreaming climate and gender into policy frameworks and enabling multi-stakeholder engagement. It ensures that climate and gender considerations are integrated from national to local levels, fostering a comprehensive response to the challenge. 
Outcome 2: 
  • National and local women's leadership in climate actions is expanded and advanced. The project achieves this by enabling education, capacity-building, and a gender-specific leadership fellowship program. Empowering women as leaders and change-makers in climate adaptation and mitigation efforts is key to fostering inclusive and sustainable development. 
Outcome 3
  • Women led climate-smart solutions are identified, supported and replicated among women groups and target communities. The project supports the implementation of climate-smart activities in households and women-led agri-businesses, fostering sustainable practices and generating economic opportunities. These solutions are grounded in gender-sensitive approaches, enhancing women's resilience and community well-being. 
Outcome 4: 
  • Women-led climate-smart solutions are disseminated, and societal awareness is raised. The project conducts information campaigns, contributes to development of the gender-sensitive climate change knowledge management portal, and ensures project visibility. By showcasing success stories and engaging multiple stakeholders, the project promotes a culture of climate awareness and gender sensitive actions. These expected results collectively address the challenge by integrating gender considerations into policies, empowering women leaders, promoting sustainable practices, and raising climate awareness. Through these outcomes, the project catalyzes positive change, contributing to Moldova's journey towards climate resilience, gender equality, and sustainable development.
Duties and Responsibilities
 

The Project Finance Associate will ensure, in line with the Project scope, the provision of the following development services and products pertaining to an effective administrative and financial management, as well as procurement:

Financial management: 

  • Ensure compliance with all corporate rules of UNDP in the field of financial planning, reporting, and auditing;
  • Monitor budget expenditures and maintain a proper record of approved project budgets and their revisions; 
  • Prepare proposals for budget revisions; budget corrections etc.; 
  • Upon request, prepare and submit expenditure and program budget status reports; 
  • Maintain accurate budget reporting in both UNDP and EU standard templates; 
  • Prepare other recurring reports as scheduled and special reports as required for budget/financial preparations and audit; 
  • Respond to queries from the UNDP and EU in respect to financial aspects of the program, liaise with UNDP-appointed and external auditors wherever required; 
  • Prepare requests for advance of funds and/or direct payments, as well as proposals for budget revisions;
  • Perform necessary checks of the financial reports submitted by project suppliers;
  • Advise international and national consultants on all aspects of allowances, travel claims and other financial matters and calculate payments due for claims and services;
  • Prepare Travel Requests and F10 claims for project staff and consultants;
  • Ensuring payments in Quantum to project suppliers;
  • Verify and monitor the accuracy of e-requisitions in Quantum;
  • Provide advice to the team on project financial issues;
  • Undertake other financial tasks as required; 

Administrative management: 

  • Assume overall responsibility for the coordination of project administrative matters;
  • Contribute to project implementation and ensure conformity to expected results and work plans;
  • Monitor compliance with both UNDP and Donor standards and ensure the corresponding quality control;
  • Provide advice to the project team on administrative issues, at the necessity;
  • Maintain records on all project suppliers, including their respective status (e.g. appropriate contract management, monitoring of deadlines, ToRs and reports, etc.) in accordance with accepted policies and procedures;
  • Ensure compliance with corporate human resources policies and strategies under UNDP HR procedures;
  • Undertake other administrative tasks on an ad hoc basis.

Support knowledge building, knowledge sharing and capacity building relevant to the assigned project.

  • Provide support in the dissemination and sharing of relevant data and lessons learned within the CO and regionally. Keep pulse on emerging best practices nationally, regionally, and internationally that relate to the work of the assigned project.
  • Make sound contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice. Support compiling and systematizing project knowledge, products and tools as well as their wide distribution to partners.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Institutional Arrangement

The Project Finance Associate will execute the duties and responsibilities outlined above under the guidance and supervision of the Project Manager.

Project Finance Associate works in close collaboration with the Programme, Operations, Communications and other project teams in the Country Office (CO) for effective achievement of results, anticipating and resolving complex project-related issues and information delivery.

The incumbent is expected to exercise full compliance with UNDP programming, financial, procurement and administrative rules, regulations, policies and strategies, as well as implementation of the effective internal control systems.
 

Competencies

Core Competencies
  • Achieve Results: 
    • LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline 
  • Think Innovatively: 
    • LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements 
  • Learn Continuously: 
    • LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback 
  • Adapt with Agility: 
    • LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible 
  • Act with Determination: 
    • LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
  •  Engage and Partner: 
    • LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships 
  • Enable Diversity and Inclusion: 
    • LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination
Cross-Functional Competencies
 
  • Digital awareness and literacy: 
    • Ability and inclination to rapidly adopt new technologies, either through skillfully grasping their usage or through understanding their impact and empowering others to use them as needed.
  • Working with evidence and data 
    • Ability to inspect, cleanse, transform and model data with the goal of discovering useful information, informing conclusions, and supporting decision-making.
  • Monitoring 
    • Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback on the consistency or discrepancy between planned and actual activities and programme performance and results.
  • Budget management 
    • Ability to support budgetary aspects of work planning process, drawing and management of team budgets.
  • Financial planning and budgeting 
    • Ability to create and manage processes to achieve UNDP's long and short-term financial goals, including through planning, budgeting, forecasting, analyzing and reporting.
  • Financial reporting and analysis 
    • Understands changes in regulatory, legal and ethical frameworks and standards for financial reporting in the public sector. 
    • Ability to extract, evaluate financial data, derive relevant findings and present them in a meaningful and coherent manner to facilitate effective decision making and performance monitoring.
    • Understands the benefits of integrated reporting, including non-financial resources such as human, social and intellectual capital, and environmental and governance performance.
  • Assets management 
    • Knowledge of policy & procedures on PP&E; 
    • Ability to prepare financial statements on PP&E; 
    • Maintain Asset Management Module in Quantum, Asset Dashboard; 
    • Develop supporting tools for assets certification and further enhancements for AM module; 
    • Design and run training programs, etc. on assets management and assets recording; 
    • Run AP-AM interface; perform AP-AM-GL reconciliation; 
    • Perform analytical review of AM reports and asset information to ensure completeness and accuracy of asset information.
       
Required Skills and Experience
 
Education:
  • Secondary Education with specialized certification in accounting and/or Finance is required.  
  • University degree in Finance or Accounting desirable. (The degree must state that the major is in accounting or finance. Degrees in Business Administration or Public Administration are not considered equivalent.) 
  • Part-qualified accountants from an internationally accredited institute of accountancy will have a distinct advantage.
  •  Fully Qualified Accountant, from an internationally accredited institute of accountancy or Full Completion of the UNDP Finance Training and Certification Programme (FTCP). No UNDP Accountancy and Finance Test (AFT) is required. 
  • Candidates with no professional accountancy qualifications, but with degrees that major in accountancy and/or finance must complete UNDP Finance Training and Certification Programme (FTCP), if recruited. However, no UNDP Accountancy and Finance Test (AFT) is required.
  • Candidate with no professional accountancy qualifications but with relevant experience must successfully undertake UNDP Accountancy and Finance Test (AFT) before shortlisting and must complete the UNDP Finance Training and Certification Programme (FTCP), if recruited.
Experience:
  • Minimum 7 years (with Secondary Education) or 4 years (with bachelor’s degree) of experience in administrative work, accounting/finance, economics, audit or other substantive area is required.

Desired Skills:

  • Proven experience in a similar position in UN Agencies will be considered an advantage; 
  • Experience in development assistance or related work for a development organization, consulting company, or NGO;
  •  Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc), advance knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages, experience in handling of web-based management systems.

Languages:

  • Fluency in oral and written English and Romanian is required. 
  • Knowledge of one or more minority languages relevant for Moldova, including Russian, Romani, Gagauzian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian and sign language, is an asset.

Professional Certificates

  • Additional training and/or certification in financial management and/or accounting would be an advantage.
Disclaimer
 
Applicant information about UNDP rosters
 
Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.
 
Non-discrimination
 
UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.  
 
UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status. 
 
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