Assistant Finance Officer at Jesuit Refugee Service

Assistant Finance Officer at Jesuit Refugee Service

Assistant Finance Officer at Jesuit Refugee Service

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The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) BURUNDI – TANZANIA would like to recruit a Finance Manager to be based in Kibondo, Kigoma Region, Tanzania.

The terms of reference for the position are as follows:

JOB DESCRIPTION FOR THE FINANCE OFFICER

Identification of Position

Position Title: Assistant Finance Officer

Location: Kibondo– Kigoma, Tanzania

Reports to: Project Director

Position Requirements

Organizational Context

The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) is an international non-governmental organization with a mission to accompany, serve, and advocate for the rights of refugees and forcibly displaced people. The organization was founded in November 1980 and has a presence in over 60 countries. JRS undertakes services at national and regional levels with the support and guidance of an international office in Rome. The style of JRS service is human and spiritual, working in situations of greatest need, seeking the long-term wellbeing of refugees, while not neglecting their immediate or urgent needs. JRS offers opportunities to a wide variety of staff, local and international, while maintaining a realistic and localized scheme of salary/stipend, insurance, etc.

Operational Context/Role

The Assistant Finance Officer is the overall responsible person for all the finance related activities in JRS Tanzania under the supervision of the project director in a close collaboration with JRS Burundi – Tanzania Country Finance Officer. She or he oversees the finance overall planning, organizing & implementing, staffing, monitoring & evaluating the financial activities of the project.

The position requires good communication, leadership, managerial skills and the capacity to work with a team. Analytical thinking and the capacity to research innovative intervention methods, as well as creativity and flexibility are also expected.

Key Responsibilities include:

• In co-operation and consultation with the Project Director takes overall responsibility for the operational and strategic financial management of JRS Tanzania.
• Consolidates financial reports for the country and provides analysis to advise the Project Director on the financial position of the country. Flags potential issues to other relevant staff.
• Participates in the Burundi-Tanzania Country Office preparation for the external annual audit and other project audits as needed. Liaises with auditors directly, with support from the Project Director and Country Office, and if needed, the support of the International Office.
• Ensures adherence and implementation of JRS Global Financial policies, carrying out relevant training for country and project personnel.
• Advises the Project Director on budgets and cash flow, as well as on financial implications of new projects.
• Contributes to the real time oversight function of the Country Office ensuring budgetary, procedural and policy compliance, working systematically with the Project Director, Logistics staff, Programs’ Officer and HR Officer.
• Update the JRS financial system (Navision), ensuring that all financial transactions are validated, and all accounts reconciled on time.

Specific Tasks:

a. Financial Management:

• Oversees preparation and systematic review of projects and Country budgets, in close collaboration with the Programs Officer.
• Prepares financial proposals and reports working with relevant field staff and the Programs Officer.
• Prepares and develops monthly and quarterly progress reports for the Country Director/Senior Management Team.
• Identifies administrative and financial related risks, concerns, and constraints, and proposes mitigation measures through the implementation of best practices.
• Acts as a point of contact for enquiries of financial nature from institutional and private funders, regional and international office.

b. Compliance and Internal Control:

• Ensures compliance with all finance, procurement, and asset management policies.
• Reviews, elaborates, and ensures compliance with the country specific finance policies, in consultation with the Project Director and the International Office, and ensures careful adherence to JRS Finance Policy at all levels as well as donor rules and regulations.
• Verifies monthly payroll for the staff in coordination with the Project Director and Human Resources Officer.
• Establishes and adhere to sound internal controls to ensure compliance, prevent fraud and streamline operations.
• Supervise Finance and operations team to ensure delegation of functions and timely quality performance.

c. Accounting

• Establish and maintain comprehensive and transparent accounting system and fiscal control procedures for financial and grants management activities of the country.
• Ensures timely payment and accounting of staff salaries, contractors, and other expenditures.
• Verifies supporting documents and relevant approvals to ensure completeness or process before payments.
• Ensure remittance of taxes and levies as per the national laws and regulations.
• Maintains proper records supporting operations based on the relevant retention time, ensuring that documents are properly filed and cross referenced with transactions in the accounting.
• Maintains updated accounting in the relevant software and all other records as required.
• Ensures Donor budgets are set up in the accounting system and related incoming funds are tracked upon receipt.
• Works with the Project Director and the Assistant Programs Officer to identify and allocate incoming donor funds and maintain updated receivable accounts and deferred income account.
• Ensures that donor contracts and other relevant documents are in place to support incoming funds.
• Oversees the inter-company reconciliation with other JRS entities.

d. Treasury

• Manages bank and cash accounts, ensure sounds liquidity plan and ensures bank and cash reconciliations are done systematically.
• Co-ordinates and maintains a cash flow.
• Monitor strategic and financial risks providing accurate information to the Country Director/Senior Management Team and proposing risk mitigation and reduction strategies.
• Is responsible for the overall technical management of finance staff, working together with Project Directors and the HR Officer to develop capacity strengthening plan for each and monitor the performance of each.

e. Grants Management

• Lead and Participate in the preparation of budgets of each project and financial proposals for donors.
• Produces monthly Budget vs. Actual reports for ongoing grants, flags potential issues (over/under spending, cash flow, compliance) to the Country Director and Country Programs Officer.

Qualifications and Experience

Education

• A university undergraduate degree or master’s degree in finance and other related fields.
• At least two years practical working experience in finance management.

Experience

• Experience (at least 2 years) working with International NGOs
• Experience in managing people/teams.
• Demonstrated experience and commitment to working with marginalized communities.

Language

• Fluency in English (written and spoken) and excellent writing skills.
• Speaking Swahili, French, Kirundi would be of a great added value

Technical Skills

• Strong analytic, reporting, strategic thinking and planning skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft office and all its applications/ Microsoft 365 and all its applications/ finance related managerial types of software, etc.
• Being skilled in the use of Navision software is of a great value

Core values and ethics

• Good understanding(of) and compatibility with the values of JRS.
• Very good pastoral sense and listening abilities and communication/inter-personal skills.
• Demonstrated ability and experience of working in a multicultural environment with good multicultural sensitivities and in a flexible environment.
• Willingness and ability to travel to the Country offices, when appropriate, for financial monitoring visits and live a simple lifestyle.

How to apply for the Job

Interested candidates are requested to submit their applications only and only Online to the following email address: [email protected]

The submitted file must be composed with the following compulsory scanned documents:

• A copy of the national ID
• A letter of motivation not exceeding one page
• A full curriculum vitae not exceeding two pages.
• Two certificates of service rendered from recent employers.
• A certified copy of the original academic degree(s)
• Three referees, their e-mail addresses and phone numbers
• A valid Police Clearance and it is compulsory.

The deadline for applications is on Friday, the 4th, of August 2023 at 17:00 TZ Time. Every application submitted must have the position one is applying for as the name of the submitted 7 documents