Senior Partnership Accountant – Mogadishu, Somalia

VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

SENIOR PARTNERSHIP ACCOUNTANT-MOGADISHU, SOMALIA.

Job Title:

Senior Partnership Accountant

Reports to:

Assistant Country Financial Controller (ACFC), Mogadishu

Direct Reports:

Finance Officer – Partners

Liaises with:

Internally – Budget/Grant Owners and other finance team

Externally- LNGO partners staff and management

Job Location:

Mogadishu

Job Summary:

The job holder will play a key role in enabling partners to demonstrate good financial management practice and optimal use of available funds in a transparent manner. This will include; oversight of finance functions, pre-assessment of partner financial capacities, monitoring of partner expenditure and performance, partner capacity building and assistance to programme teams’ in-country on partner related finance issues.

The performance of this role will require flexibility as the exact duties will vary depending on a number of factors in Somalia. Additionally, excellent time management skills will be required to cope with the disparate duties.

Main Duties &

Responsibilities:

Partner Financial Assessment

• Undertake the financial assessment with potential partners (using CILPAT partner assessment tool) and existing partners (Risk assessment) on a timely and comprehensive basis in compliance with Concern procedures.
• Undertake annual reassessment of current partners to identify any risk areas and/or capacity building needs
• Summarize financial assessment findings and recommend whether the partnership is workable with the resources available
• Share findings with the partners and ensure that any weakness is communicated to the management so that it can be built in the monitoring support plan
• Ensure financial assessment is signed off by all the relevant staff members (Country Financial Controller, PD (Programme Implementation), Relevant Programme Teams and Country Director)
• Ensure that all financial assessment documentation is being maintained on the Partner file for future reference

Capacity Building and Monitoring

• Carry out partners’ monitoring using assessment and any other available material as a basis and prepare a Partner Monitoring Programme
• Carry out frequent Systems Review visits in accordance with the Partner Monitoring Programme and to work with partner organisations on agreed areas, ensuring compliance with relevant financial policies (partners own, agreed with Concern and donor’s rules) as well as government regulations
• Ensure programme staff are aware of their responsibilities in regards to monitoring of partners. Ensure sign off from appropriate senior Programme representatives is obtained on the CILPAT, Partner Monitoring Programme and Annual Risk Review
• Ensure an updated risk assessment is completed at least annually and is signed off by Senior Management after each field visit. Conduct frequent partners’ visits in both their offices and field locations, and prepare and disseminate a Partner Visit Report after each visit
• Ensure Partner Reports and findings are circulated to all interested parties within Concern and the Partner. Ensure all documentation relating to Concern‘s financial relationship with the partner is filed correctly and updated where necessary
• Perform regular Transactions Audits/expenditure verification in accordance with the Partner Monitoring Programme
• Strengthening partner capacities to better comply with Concern and other donor’s requirement during project implementation of contractual arrangements, in-depth knowledge and understanding on Concern policies, best practices and government regulations and ensuring good understanding by partner staff on best practice in financial management
• Providing useful materials on a regular basis to relevant staff in partner organisation, including templates, guidelines, updated taxation rules, etc. and providing support to ensure their understanding

Partner budgets & accounting

• Review partner financial reports, transaction listing and relevant supporting documentation as per approved budgets. Ensure contractual and donor compliance and taking the initiative to question unusual transactions; variations from established procedures or any information which does not demonstrate transparency and accountability highlighting any unusual items to the attention of relevant Programme Coordinator/team and the ACFC.
• Ensure that Concern has received all relevant financial documents from the partners
• Consolidate, document and communicate all concerns relating to quarterly financial reports and ensure that these are addressed by the partner
• Review partner expenditure journals to ensure that the transactions are correctly coded, in right Concern headings and format.
• Review partner fund monitoring records to ensure the fund disbursement, and approved expenses remain within approved budgetary and contractual limits.
• Providing timely and effective support to the partner to prepare a realistic budget for the programme requirements, and ongoing support when partner agreement or budget is revised
• Provide support required by budget holders when preparing proposals requiring partner implementation
• Review partners cost mapping to avoid overlapping costs
• Ensure timely partner’s funds disbursement and liquidation follow up.

Buddy to Programme coordinators on matters pertaining to partnership management

• Working with programme coordinator/team for cross organizational monitoring of budgets and management reports

Communication and Reports

• Ensure regular communication with the ACFC/CFC, Programme and partner staff is maintained at all times
• Sharing and explaining the audit findings with the partners and working with partner staff to identify how to mitigate the issues.

Other Duties

• Undertake other appropriate tasks as  requested by the ACFC/CFC
• Assist in the management of audit (internal and external) process.

Accountability 

• In line with Concern’s commitments under the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS):
• actively promote meaningful community participation and consultation at all stages of the project cycle (planning, implementation, M&E);
• work with relevant colleagues  to ensure that the Complaints and Response Mechanism (CRM) is functional and accessible, that feedback and complaints are welcomed and addressed;
• Work with relevant colleagues to ensure that information about CRM, safeguarding and expected staff behaviour is disseminated among programme participants and communities.

Concern’s Code of Conduct (CCoC) and its associated policies

• Adhere to the standards of conduct outlined in the (1) Programme Participant Protection Policy; (2) Child Safeguarding Policy; and (3) Anti-Trafficking in Persons Policy.