Financial Management and Control Senior Specialist

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UNOPS helps its partners in the United Nations system meet the world’s needs for building peace, recovering from disaster, and creating sustainable development. UNOPS is known for its ability to implement complex projects in all types of environments around the globe. In an effort to promote organizational excellence, UNOPS seeks highly qualified individuals for the following position:
 

Vacancy Details

Vacancy Code: VA/2011/SWOC/WSSCC/007
Post Title: Financial Management and Control Senior Specialist
Post Level: IICA-3
Position status: Non-rotational
Project Title: Global Sanitation Fund
Org Unit: Operations Centre Geneva Switzerland
Duty Station: Geneva, Switzerland
 

Duration: Approx level of effort estimated at 100 days during the period June 2011 to September 2012
Closing Date: 26 May 2011
 

Background
The Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) was established in 1990 and its mandate is expressed in United Nations General Assembly resolution A/RES/45/181. Since its establishment, WSSCC has worked to accelerate the provision of drinking water, sanitation and hygiene services for poor people in developing countries. In 2007, WSSCC began to focus on sanitation and hygiene given the extent of this issue with some estimated 2.6 billion people being deprived of access to toilets. WSSCC established a Global Sanitation Fund (GSF). This is a global grant financing mechanism dedicated to sanitation and hygiene. A full description of WSSCC and GSF activities may be found at: www.wsscc.org
 

Presently, the GSF has provided for grant programmes in five countries. This number will increase to nine before year end under current funding levels of the GSF. Thereafter the GSF anticipates a period of growth and country programmes could increase up to fifty, depending on the level of funding that it might receive in the future. Under its current operating principles, in each country the GSF appoints an Executing Agency (EA) that will administer the grant within that country. Each EA then makes sub-grants to non-government organizations (NGOs), private sector and local governments/civil society. An EA also procures service providers to carry out discrete and defined tasks (directly procured activities). The EA in turn has to submit technical and financial reports, of varying detail, quarterly, semi-annually and annually.

The GSF operations have to rely on robust financial reporting and control procedures from the EA to the sub-grantee levels of operations. Thus, a cash flow projections, financial management and control system beyond the current practices had to be devised that provides the GSF with the necessary controls and information to manage forward including managing the contracts with EAs and its sub-grantees. This system will be used with the first nine countries but should be capable of coping with larger numbers as the envisaged growth takes place.

This work will form an input to the overall GSF Operations Manual.
 

Duties and Responsibilities
The principal objective of the position is to support the management of the WSSCC-UNOPS and Global Sanitation Fund in the specification of an adequate financial management and control system beyond what is in place with the capacity to grow as the GSF increases in size and complexity in the future.

The consultant will be report to the GSF Programme Manager and work in collaboration with UNOPS.

Scope of work:

• Review GSF operational strategy with emphasis on the draft Financial Management and Accountability strategy, and other related documentation

• Review strategy and SOP(s) in place to meet financial management and accountability standards of the GSF, including but not limited to the financial management and accountability requirements of UNOPS, ability to monitor and analyze project disbursements against real-time disbursement.

• Analyze disbursement under cost components (refer to GSF Results Framework), and manage risk.

• Conceptualize and formulate an overall system including the system’s SOPs to be applied for subsequent system implementation.

• Design a GSF financial planning, monitoring and reporting system with attendant SOPs to manage information flow from sub-grantees through EAs and the GSF to the WSSCC-UNOPS management.

• Develop a clear understanding of how best to leverage the UNOPS Atlas system and how best to maximize it for GSF management, monitoring and reporting purposes and where gaps may exist propose “off the shelf” and/or develop bespoke solutions

• Develop and test necessary tools and SOPs/ guidelines for the GSF management team and programme partners to be used for the implementation of a robust financial management and accountability MIS

• Review the current range of financial reports received from EAs and sub-grantees with a view to streamline and standardize through SOPs financial reporting and analysis Liaise with the consultants responsible for design of the Management Information System, the M+E component as well as the fund/grant management component to ensure cohesiveness of the body of work done under these consultancies

• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.

The consultant is expected to complete the assignments within the contractual period and an agreed lump sum fee. If WSSCC-UNOPS requests the contractor to participate in meetings and visits outside of the duty station, all travel and communication expenses will be covered separately as per UNOPS procedures and standards.

The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.

Required Selection Criteria
Competencies

• Excellent communication(spoken and written) skills

• Excellent writing, analytical and research skills

• Excellent interpersonal skills

• Ability to work in a multicultural and international environment

• Strong attention to detail

Education/Experience/Language
a. Education
Advanced university degree (Masters and above) in economics/finance, accounting, or other relevant degree or equivalent professional certification.
b. Work Experience At least 11 years demonstrated track record at national and international levels in the area of budgeting, financial management, grant programme management, management audit and control framework design and implementation At least 5 years demonstrated experience in design and delivery of grant programme ( global and national) related financial management and control frameworks Experience with leveraging ERP systems and experience with Peoplesoft/ATLAS a definite advantage
c. Languages
Fluency in English (oral and writing)
 

Submission of Applications
Qualified candidates may submit their application, including a letter of interest, complete Curriculum Vitae and an updated United Nations Personal History Form (P.11) (available on our website), via e-mail to vacanciesgeneva@unops.org . Kindly indicate the vacancy number and the post title in the subject line when applying by email.
 

Additional Considerations
- Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
- Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
- Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
- UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a level below the advertised level of the post.

For more information on UNOPS, please visit the UNOPS website at www.unops.org .

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