Finance Specialist

Organizational Setting

The main aim of the FAO country offices, which are headed by an FAO representatives, is to assistant governments to develop policies , programmes and projects to achieve food security and to reduce hunger and malnutrition, to help develop the agricultural, fisheries and forestry sectors and to use their environmental and natural resources in a sustainable manner.

The FAO Representation in South Sudan is organizes in three main units: programme, Operations and administration. The current portfolio of projects in South Sudan includes activities related to agriculture (crop), livestock, Fisheries, Natural Resource management, food information systems is implemented with humanitarian, transitional and development funding. The incumbent will contribute to the country’s programme and portfolio as foreseen in the project.

Reporting Lines

The finance specialist will work under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative and the direct supervision of the Deputy FAO Representative and corporate & operational support team leader. The Consultant will work on a day-to-day basis under the corporate and operation’s pillar of new organogram of South Sudan. The incumbent will consult with the relevant Technical Units at FAO country office, headquarters, RAF and SFE, and the Lead Technical Officer and line government ministries in South Sudan when necessary.

Tasks and responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of Deputy FAOR in South Sudan and the overall supervision of the FAO Representative, the Finance Specialist Consultant will assists the Administrative Officer, corporate and operational support unit to achieve timely programme deliverables in South Sudan.

• Liaise with the Relevant units such as Admin and procurement Units to reduce unmatched invoices
• Manages Accounts Payables - Validation of Invoices and clear old Invoices in the corporate system dashboard.
• Manage Accounts receivables – Receipts are done in GRMS on time
• Manage Voucher and CBI’s payments.
• Manage Operational Advances;
• Manage bank reconciliations
• Manage Money Vendor Reconciliations
• Prepare Monthly Financial Reports for Circulation to Management
• Ensure that liquidation received from the field is correctly documented and justified in accordance with FAO’s financial rules and regulations;
• Prepare and respond to all correspondence on Financial Matters
• Perform Surprise Operational/petty Cash operations and ensure it is managed in accordance with FAO Manuals
• Analyse payment workloads by project and on this basis assign project responsibilities to the Finance Assistants/Associates
• Responsible for providing guidance, training and daily supervision to Finance Associates and Assistants
• Attend Finance Working Group Meetings and prepare correspondence on deliberations to the Supervisors.
• Learn, Mentor and Train staff on the use of FAO Corporate systems such as GRMS, IMIS.
• Perform any other duty assigned by the supervisor

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• University degree in Finance, Accounting Economics, Business Administration or any other Field in the Mandate of FAO from a recognized institution. Advanced Degree will be an added advantage
• At least 7 years of practical experience in Auditing and Financial management.
• Working knowledge of English (Level C) and limited knowledge of Arabic or French.

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Analytical judgement and ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• Excellent inter-personal skills and commitment to work in a participative way.
• Strong command of Ms Office® software (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Oracle).
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Supervisory experience
• Demonstrated experience in dealing with money vendors, financial institutes and other development partners.
• Good interpersonal, communications and facilitation skills.
• Sound knowledge and experience in writing reports.
• Strong computer, word processing and statistical skills.
• Good knowledge of the UN system, procedures and operational activities would be an advantage.