Job profile
Dakar is the regional office for West and Central Africa of IMPACT Initiatives. The position is based in Dakar, Senegal. It is dedicated to the financial management of regional projects, financial support of country missions covered by the regional office. It has a deployment capacity (mission) in countries when relevant.
Under the supervision and direct responsibility of the Regional Office Representative for West and Central Africa and under the functional/technical supervision of the Finance Department at Headquarters, the Finance Officer ensures efficient and timely financial management of activities managed by the Regional Office. The RFO also supports country missions, including those in charge of the financial aspects of IMPACT (Country Coordinator/Representative or Country Finance Officer) through the provision of financial management tools and relevant training.
He/she ensures regular communication with all levels of communications: country coordination/finance team, regional program/support/coordination team and IMPACT headquarters (in particular the finance department). He/she ensures an excellent level of communication with his/her direct manager in Dakar as well as his/her functional/technical manager of the Finance department at headquarters.
During his/her assignment, the Finance Officer will be hosted and hosted by ACTED, IMPACT’s global partner, and will be under the responsibility of his/her delegates for all administrative, security, logistics and financial matters. He/she will therefore have to fully comply with ACTED’s rules and regulations regarding security, human resources, administration, logistics and finance.
MANAGEMENT OF FINANCIAL FUNCTIONS AND FINANCIAL REPORTING
Coordination of financial functions at regional level
- Accounting and financial management
- Ensure monitoring and validation of expenses, allocations and their compliance, in close collaboration with the head of support departments in Senegal.
- Support the head of support departments in Senegal in the proper management of cash flow, by providing her with the necessary financial information.
- Budget management
- Management of budget monitoring and revision of forecasts, including scheduling, in close collaboration with the direct manager, via suitable tools.
- Submit necessary information to IMPACT Headquarters/IMPACT Finance Department in a timely manner for financial reporting purposes, in accordance with specific IMPACT and donor guidelines.
- Multi-country project submission
- Provide proactive and tailored support in budget preparation, ensuring coordination of financial aspects with country finance focal points and IMPACT headquarters in the context of multi-country project submissions.
- Provide tailor-made support for financial aspects, adapted to the needs of country teams, at all stages of the project cycle: during project submission, during projects (financial monitoring), at the end of projects, in close collaboration with Country Coordinators / Representatives.
- Support the creation of monitoring tools, in conjunction with the country and headquarters finance teams. Review monitoring tools, provide tailored support to countries in understanding and monitoring the tools.
- Conduct country visits to support countries in managing the financial visibility of their project.
INTERNAL KNOWLEDGE SHARING, LEARNING AND CAPACITY BUILDING
- Assess the capacity of current finance teams and make recommendations on training needs, organizational structure and staff changes (in line with the development of support tailored to country needs)
- Develop training for financial staff, as well as program and other staff, on financial processes and the importance of financial compliance;
- Provide suggestions and inputs to the continued development of regional financial administration procedures, routines and memoranda of understanding.
EXTERNAL COMMITMENT
- Support any external communications for monitoring financial aspects, in close collaboration with the Regional Partnerships and Project Development Manager and the direct manager.
Qualifications and skills required
- Professional/academic qualification in finance or accounting (master’s degree, audit or relevant field)
- At least three to five years of relevant experience in financial management and programming within an international NGO or international organization in the region
- Experience in preparing budgets, cash flow statements and financial plans
- Experience in preparing financial reports
- Excellent proven knowledge of accounting software (SAGA, SAGE) and Microsoft Office
- Excellent interpersonal communication
- Ability to work independently in a dynamic and fast-paced environment
- Attention to detail and a proactive approach to problem solving are required
- Ability to travel internationally 20-30% and/or ability to accept temporary assignments to support country offices
Compensation and benefits
- For this position, the salary is between 1’980 CHF and 2’040 CHF per month (before income tax), etc. as well as a monthly living allowance of 300 USD. NB – IMPACT salaries are strictly determined by our salary scale based on the grade of the position and the education level of the staff. A location-dependent security and/or isolation adjustment is then applied to account for the fact that some staff members have to work in difficult locations where living and working conditions are much more difficult than elsewhere.
- Accommodation and food in a guesthouse. Depending on the country situation, a contribution to a housing allowance of up to 75% of the country-specific benchmark may be considered instead. NB
- Membership in a Swiss private pension fund (Swisslife – approximately 9.975% of staff gross salary), health insurance, life insurance and repatriation assistance
- Airfare every 6 months and visa fees covered (in-country travel and business expenses are fully covered)
- Contribution to baggage transport: between 20 and 100 kg, depending on the duration of the contract (+ baggage and personal property insurance)
- Annual leave of 36 days per year. Public holidays of the country of assignment. Leave for family or compassionate reasons, if applicable.
- Pre-departure initiation – 3 days at IMPACT Initiatives headquarters in Geneva + one week of pre-departure training at ACTED headquarters in Paris, including a 4-day on-site security training;
- Enrollment in the IMPACT Initiatives Research Foundational Learning Programme within the first 3 months of contract start.
- IMPACT prioritizes the psychological safety of its staff and the health insurance provided covers, among other things, up to €1,000 per year in psychosocial counseling costs.
