Internal/External Vacancy Announcement Senior Finance Associate GS7 #72339 Fixed Term South Sudan ( Open to South Sudanese ONLY)

Contract

This is a G-7 contract. This kind of contract is known as General Service and related categories. It is normally only for nationals. It usually requires 7 years of experience, depending on education. More about G-7 contracts.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, Our future

II. Organizational Context and Purpose for the job

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favoritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.

Job organizational context:

The Senior Finance Associate works under the direct supervisor of the Finance Specialist and is responsible for providing variety of specialized tasks in finance by administering and executing a variety of professional and technical financial transactions as well as processes, applying theoretical skills and thorough knowledge of organizational goals, objectives, rules, regulations, policies, and procedures to complete the tasks.

The Senior Finance Associate will be responsible for monitoring and reviewing finance payment documents to verify accuracy and compliance with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), UNICEF Financial Regulations and Rules, policies, procedures, guidelines, standards of accountability, and ethics.

III. Key function, accountabilities and related duties/tasks

Summary of key functions/accountabilities: 1. Timely, quality, and smooth processing of transaction 2. Control of accounts 3. Knowledge and capacity building

1.Timely, quality, and smooth processing of transactions

Process and/or review/ ensure Service Gateway cases are created and submitted to GSSC following the guidelines and roles set for Local Focal Points (LFP) for Finance and HR. Ensure the requests from programme and operations sections are complete, accurate and have all the required proper supporting documents before cases are created for disbursements to GSSC. Follow-up with GSSC for pending cases and timely response to GSSC for returned/rejected cases. Monitor GSSC dashboard reports and ensure the Office is within the allowable KPIs for Invoicing • Monitor and analyze financial transactions, accounting reports and reconciliation of accounts to ensure accurate and current financial information for applicable compliance (e.g. IPSAS, donor reporting, internal policies) and management oversight, planning and/or action • Review financial and reputational risks in the transactions carried out by the office and raise flags when action is needed by management. • Prepare regular periodic reports related to transaction processing in finance. Ensure proper recording tool for monitoring, reporting and evaluation is instituted in the unit. Improve the efficiency of the cycle of fund releases, invoice processing and liquidations by instituting an effective follow up system. • Identify vendors that regularly work with UNICEF SSCO and create a database for such vendors. Regularly reconcile these vendor accounts and follow up on clearing of any long outstanding reconciling vendor transactions. Respond to all queries from vendors on the status of their invoice payments.

2.Control of accounts • Run vision and insight reports for different GL accounts and analyze open items to investigate reason and take the necessary action to clear the open items • Communicate with DFAM, GSSC and CO responsible staff on issues related to long outstanding GL open items to ensure they are resolved and are cleared • Review DFAM Schedules and ensure open items are cleared on a monthly basis and the year-end schedules are uploaded with proper justification and action points within the deadline set by DFAM. • Maintains general ledger and accounting records for classification and recording of financial transactions and for the reconciliation of accounts and preparation of recurring or special reports. • Monitor commitments and expenditures to ensure timely, accurate and appropriate management information

3. Knowledge and capacity building • Promote a culture of highest ethical standards and behavior in management of UNICEF’s resources. • Share knowledge and promote quality of transaction processing and other deliverables. Create understanding of organizational policies and procedures and finance principles related to processing transactions through day-to-day communications, provision of trainings based on gap identification and needs assessment, for smooth communication with programme sections, Field office and implementing partners • Support initiatives for management improvement by capturing, institutionalizing and sharing best practices and lessons learned. Recommend improvements in processes and procedures to enhance productivity and performance including implementation of cost saving strategies. • Participate and/or organize training and learning events to build capacity of staff and stakeholders/partners. • Support operations of the office as required.

IV. Impact of Results

The efficiency of the Senior Finance Associate directly impacts on due financial risk management of this office, as well as the optimum, appropriate, and effective use of resources and efficient financial recording, accounting and reporting, which in turn facilitates management oversight, decision making and quality control.

V. Competencies and level of proficiency required (based on UNICEF Professional Competency Profiles)

Core Values

 Care  Respect  Integrity  Trust  Accountability

Core competencies

 Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (1)  Works Collaboratively with others (1)  Builds and Maintains Partnerships (1)  Innovates and Embraces Change (1)  Thinks and Acts Strategically (1)  Drive to achieve impactful results (1)  Manages ambiguity and complexity (1) Functional Competencies:

VI. Recruitment Qualifications

Education: Completion of Secondary School, University level courses in finance, or any other related field of discipline relevant to the job is an asset. Diploma and certified accounting qualification such as CIPFA, CPA, ACCA, CIMA is an added value.

Experience: A minimum of 7 years of professional experience in financial management

Experience in a UN system agency or organization

Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office, especially Excel required.

Experience in database packages, web-based management systems and ERP systems (preferably SAP financial modules) is considered as an asset.

Experience with IPSAS and/or IFRS is considered as an asset.

Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language or local language of the duty station is considered as an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: https://uni.cf/UNICEFValues

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

Remarks:

UNICEF’s active commitment towards diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female candidates are encouraged to apply.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments are also subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

Eligible UNICEF International Professional (IP) Staff Members on fixed-term, continuing or permanent contracts applying to this Temporary Appointment, which is dedicated to L3 (or L2) Response, may be able to retain a lien and their fixed-term entitlements. The conditions of the temporary assignment will vary depending on the status of their post and their current tour of duty, and relocation entitlements may be limited as per the relevant policies.