Mercy Corps exists to alleviate
suffering, poverty and oppression by helping people build secure, productive
and just communities.
Driven by local needs, our programs
provide communities in the world’s toughest places with the tools and support
they need to turn the crises they confront into the opportunities they
deserve.
Finance and Subgrants Manager – Nairobi
(Re-Advertisement)
Programme / Department Summary: The
Mercy Corps Building Resilience in Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED) is a
flagship programme of the United Kingdom (UK) Department for International
Development (DFID) under the International Climate Fund (ICF).
BRACED is a global initiative that
aims to benefit up to 5 million vulnerable people, especially women and
children, in developing countries by helping them be more resilient in the face
of climate extremes and disasters. DFID has funded BRACED programs around the
world including Africa and Asia.
Mercy Corps has received funding for
implementation BRACED consortium in Kenya and Uganda which will enhance
resilience to climate extremes in northern Kenya and Northern Uganda through
community-led and systems-driven programmes.
General Position Summary: The Finance and Sub-grants (F & S) Manager will support program implementation of the BRACED programme, in Northern Kenya and in Northeastern Uganda by working with the BRACED Mercy Corps team and consortium members including local and international partners.
The Finance and Sub-Grants Manager
will work very closely with all consortium members to ensure accountability,
adherence to DFID compliance requirements, capacity building of local partners,
and support to programme monitoring and adaptive management.
Essential Job Functions:
Programme Implementation:
The F&S Manager works under the
guidance and supervision of the Kenya Finance Director and with direct
interaction with the BRACED Programme Director, Managers, Consortium Members
and the Mercy Corps Home Office Finance Team.
and the Mercy Corps Home Office Finance Team.
The F&S Manager is expected to be
an integral part of the senior management team in-country and work closely with
the management, technical and operations field and country teams in Kenya and
Uganda.
- Support the Programme Director in managing all
financial operations of the project, including accounting and reporting,
cash management, and budget management.
- Travel between field locations including
Nairobi, Wajir, Kampala and Karamoja
- Provide direct oversight of the BRACED
subgrants and finance team including staff of consortium partners. Manage
financial operations and financial reporting of BRACED.
- Provide monthly management reports to the
Country Directors in Kenya and Uganda, Programme Director and Programme
Managers, including expenditures by fund and country, subgrantee reporting
and other financial information, in a timely and accurate manner.
- Participate in developing of annual fiscal
year budgets with the Finance Director and Country Directors and implement
grant budgeting and forecasting systems with Programme Managers
- Ensure that the project financial operations
are in compliance with all DFID and Mercy Corps policies and procedures
- Ensure that monthly transactions are reviewed
and entered in the General Ledger accurately and on timely basis
- Assist with monthly review and reconciliations
of balance sheet accounts (receivables, payables, advances, bank &
cash reconciliations, etc.) and all the BRACED related expenditures.
- Review BRACED related payment documents,
national staff payroll and other supporting documents ensuring their
compliance with the local laws, donor regulations and MC Kenya internal
policies.
- Be prepared to respond to any budgetary and
financial inquiries from the donor, consortium members and Mercy Corps
senior management within East Africa and home office in Edinburgh,
Scotland.
- Prepare monthly cash flow projections and
request funds from the home office.
- Provide financial advisory on overall
strategic programme decisions
- Oversee and coordinate management of sub-grant
agreements and financial management of sub-grants
- Review and track expenses and proper
documentation as per Mercy Corps procedures and donor requirements for
record keeping and accountancy
- Responsible for processing of sub-grants and
issuance of payments, transfers and transactions between BRACED consortium
members as well as locally engaged partners.
- Oversee pre-award and post-award activities
include asset control, timely reporting and contract fulfillment to check
against payment
- Work with BRACED programme team to verify and
track budget and expenditures vis-à-vis sub-grant awards and ensure proper
reporting, documentation and overall deliverables are reviewed by Senior
Management and signed off on prior to issuance of payment.
- Ensure consistency across sub-grantees on
basic provisions and highlight issues that could be viewed as bias or
discrepancies.
- Provide regular reports on BRACED , issues,
recommendations that need to be considered for operational adjustment
- Work with Mercy Corps Kenya and Uganda Finance
Directors to conduct ad-hoc audit review of BRACED field operations
- Other financial and subgrant tasks as required
Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E)
and Reporting:
- Work with the BRACED Senior Management,
M&E and finance staff in Nairobi and home office to ensure that BRACED
deliverables are aligned with value-for-money objectives and that
financial milestones are proportionate to programme milestones.
- Provide financial perspective in management
and decision-making to enhance BRACED Mercy Corps’ adaptive management.
Staff Management, Professional
Development and Team building:
- Create a work atmosphere conducive to
professional growth and development of personnel at all levels.
- Implement, and ensure all staff are
effectively using the performance planning and management system,
establishing performance expectations and regularly providing constructive
feedback.
- Promote accountability by conducting staff
annual performance reviews with direct supervisees, and ensuring that
supervisory staff do the same.
- Contribute to country team-building efforts,
and ensure the integration of all team members into relevant
decision-making processes.
Programme Support Operations:
- Ensure that BRACED financial systems are
efficient and are based on smooth-running infrastructure that facilitate
timely and efficient programme implementation.
- Provide regular review of field operations to
ensure cost-effectiveness and provide guidance on improved operational
practices for value-for-money.
Security: Work
with field office management teams to establish financial reporting and
management systems that ensure the safety and security of BRACED financial
resources including cash assets and records.
Conduct himself/herself both
professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy
Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission.
Other duties as assigned.
Supervisory Responsibility: Field Finance Officer(s)
Accountability: Mercy Corps team members are expected to support
all efforts towards accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to
international standards guiding international relief and development work while
actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design,
monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
Reports Directly To: Mercy Corps Kenya Finance Manager
Works Directly With: Kenya and Uganda Country Directors, BRACED
programme team, finance and subgrant staff in Nairobi, Kampala, Wajir and
Karamoja, and technical and support staff from Mercy Corps office in Portland,
Oregon and Edinburgh, Scotland.
Knowledge and Experience:
- A BA/S or equivalent in accounting or finance
is required; an advanced degree will be an added advantage
- Professional accounting certification highly
preferred
- At least four (4) years of demonstrated
professional experience managing financial and administrative aspects of
large international development projects, preferably DFID-funded projects
- Significant experience managing and
supervising financial and administrative personnel
- Strong accounting skills and experience,
including management of the general ledger, journal entries, payroll,
payables and balance sheet
- Commitment to excellence in financial systems
and management, and commitment to identifying and combatting fraud and
corruption, and ability to train staff in the same
- Strong analytical and computer skills, with
emphasis on budget and financial analysis and advanced computer skills in
MS Office programmes, particularly Excel.
- Fluency in the English Language, excellent
communications and interpersonal skills
Success Factors:
The successful candidate will have
the following characteristics:
- A strong team player, with good communication,
written and diplomatic skills.
- Proven ability to work independently as part
of a regional team and with international professionals.
- Excellent analytical and information
management skills.
- Good organizational skills and ability to work
under stress and in austere contexts of remote locations.
- Flexible and creative in planning and problem
solving.
- Attention to detail, ability to follow
procedures and meet deadlines and work independently and cooperatively
with team members.
- Proven excellence maintaining professional
internal and external relationships.
- Demonstrated ability to be flexible and work
in intense work environment with a fast-moving team.
- A focus on building staff capacity.
Candidates who had previously applied
for this position need not reapply
Finance Assistant – Nairobi
General Position Summary: The Mercy Corps Finance Department is responsible
for all financial functions including accounting, payments and banking,
payroll, budgeting, financial reporting, and grant financial management and
compliance.
The Mercy Corps Finance Department
ensures compliance with donor regulations as well as Mercy Corps’ internal
policies and procedures.
In its role as a support to the
Program Department, the Finance Department provides timely reports and
assistance to the Country Director and the Program team to ensure that
financial resources are used efficiently and effectively.
Program / Department Summary: Working in the Finance Department under the
direction of the Finance Manager, the Finance Assistant will assist in the
processing and recording of payment transactions in timely and accurate manner.
Essential Job Functions:
- Review expense reports (travel expense reports
and operational expense reports) for accuracy and completeness and ensure
that expense reports have been fully approved before payment.
- Prepare bank wire transfer requests based on
fully approved documents and present to approved signatories for review
and signature.
- Prepare bank payment vouchers and ensure that
all bank transactions are properly and fully documented.
- Prepare scanned copies of vouchers and other
supporting documents as required for the monthly reporting package to HQ
Finance
- File all bank vouchers and maintain voucher
filing system such that files are updated, complete and safeguarded.
- Record payment vouchers daily in the bank sub
journal and Navigator Financial Accounting System.
- Prepare online bank wire transfer requests
based on fully approved documents and present to approved signatories for
review and signature.
- Maintain the bank file and ensure that all
bank information is properly filed and updated.
- Make sure that all supporting documentation is
prepared and filed according to MC procedures.
- File deductions for withholding tax and PAYE
with KRA on a monthly basis.
- Conduct himself/herself both professionally
and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to
not jeopardize its humanitarian mission.
- Other duties as assigned.
Supervisory Responsibility: None
Accountability
Reports Directly To: Finance
Manager, Nairobi
Works Directly With: Finance
Officers working under Kenya program, Program and Operations staff supporting
Nairobi office.
Knowledge and Experience:
- Two or more years of bookkeeping, banking or
cashiering experience
- A degree in accounting or a relevant business
field is desirable
- CPA qualification will be an added advantage
- Strong computer skills in MS Office programs,
particularly Excel
- Accuracy in the processing of cash
transactions, mathematical aptitude and attention to detail
- Excellent oral and written English skills
Success Factors:
- A clear understanding of finance and
procurement ethics as well as the willingness and ability to enforce
compliance with Mercy Corps and donor policies and procedures is
essential.
- A high level of personal integrity, honesty
and transparency in all cash handling is absolutely essential.
- The ability to interact effectively with
international and national staff members is required.
- A demonstrated ability to work quickly and
accurately, meet deadlines and process information in support of changing
program activities is necessary.
Program Officer
Lodwar – Turkana County
General Position Summary: Mercy Corps implements high-quality, analytical
development work in very difficult places.
We have been operating in Kenya since
2008 and are presently implementing development programs across the Central,
Rift Valley and Northern regions of Kenya.
We are currently launching a 3-year
Nike Foundation funded program, focused on improving livelihoods in Turkana and
West Pokot (Kenya) and Karamoja (Uganda) regions.
The project, called Girls Improving
Resilience with Livestock (GIRL), aims to empower pastoralist girls in the
Turkana region to improve their livelihoods and personal agency, as well as
increase the food security and adaptive capacity of their households and the
resilience of their communities.
Mercy Corps is looking for a
qualified Kenyan to fill the position of Program Officer for the GIRL program.
Program / Department Summary: Reporting to the Program Manager in the Lodwar
Field Office, this position is focused on community and adolescent girl
engagement, including the identification, recruitment and retention of training
girl participants; the establishment of partnerships with key community members
(elders, religious leaders, government officials) and the execution of
livelihood development activities.
He/she will be based in the Lodwar
and will be responsible for day-to-day field work in implementation of
activities, mobilization, formation and monitoring of girls’
livelihoods/education cohorts.
Essential Job Functions:
- To work closely with all the program staff in
implementation of the program
- To engage community members (community
representatives, teachers, religious leaders, government officials and
gatekeepers) to form an Advisory Committee to support and inform program
activities
- To organize community events to sensitize
communities on the GIRL program
- To assist in the creation of technical
curricula, basic education (numeracy & literacy) and financial
literacy
- To recruit and train mentors to deliver
technical curricula to girls
- To identify and recruit girls in the community
to participate in livestock/producer groups
- To identify and engage local animal health
workers to provide training and technical assistance to livestock/producer
groups
- To monitor and track the success and failures
of livestock/producer groups
- To collect program data accurately and forward
the same to the office timely
- To support community mapping activities,
market assessments and base-line/end-line evaluation activities
- To prepare accurate and timely monitoring and
field reports and other project documentation as required
- Maintain proper project/program files
- To represent the organization in meetings at
the grass root level
- Conduct himself/herself both professionally
and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to
not jeopardize its humanitarian mission
- Other duties as assigned
Supervisory Responsibility: None
Accountability
Reports Directly To: Program Manager, Lodwar
Works Directly With: All GIRL program staff in Lodwar.
Knowledge and Experience:
- 2-3 years’ experience working with NGOs/CBO’s
in civic engagement, livelihoods and education
- Degree in Community Development, Economic
Development or related field of study
- Commitment to working with youth and
vulnerable groups in need, regardless of race, tribe, religion or gender;
- Understanding of working with local partners;
- Good problem solving, written and oral
communication skills;
- Strong written and spoken English
- Local language skills required
- Ability to work without constant supervision
and as part of a mixed team;
- Good knowledge of MS Office software such as
Excel, Word, and Access;
Success Factors:
The ideal candidate will have the
ability and curiosity to work comfortably and effectively in the cultural,
relatively poor infrastructure of Turkana County.
S/he will be an excellent
communicator, have a strong sense of humor, multi-tasker, and able to work
difficult and often stressful environments.
Willingness to travel to and work
with adolescent girl in a sometimes insecure environments is needed.
Interested candidates who meet the above required qualifications and experience should submit a cover letter, detailed Curriculum Vitae (CV) listing three professional references (including a recent supervisor) to hrkenya@ke.mercycorps.org on or before Friday 26th February, 2016 by 4.00pm.
The email subject line must clearly
show the job title and location they are applying for.
Applications without the right
subject heading will be automatically disqualified.
Please do not attach any
certificates.
(Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. We will only get in touch with shortlisted candidates.)
NB: Mercy Corps does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment process.
