National Professional Officer (Administration)

Organizational Setting

FAO's Subregional Office for Central Asia (SEC) is responsible for developing, promoting, overseeing and implementing agreed strategies for addressing food, agriculture and rural development priorities in the subregional, including countries of the subregion. It develops and maintains relations with subregion-wide institutions including Regional Economic Integration Organizations (REIOs). The Subregional Office is a subsidiary of FAO's Regional Office for Europe (REU).

The position is located in the FAO Subregional office for Central Asia (SEC) and based in Ankara, Turkiye.

Reporting Lines

The National Professional Officer (Administration) reports to the Administrative Officer, SEC.

Technical Focus

Programme administration and financial management, including accounting and personnel administration.

Key Results

Effective and efficient provision of administrative support to the programme and project activities of the Subregional Office.

Key Functions

• Advises, organizes and supports the office on financial and administrative matters, including personnel;

• Reviews accounts and ensures proper payment authorization including the preparation of appropriate expenditure documents;

• Manages and supervises the administrative team;

• Manages all financial records, administrative correspondence and tracking systems of the office; monitors and advises on the financial status of projects and programmes;

• Ensures the maintenance of up-to-date financial records, including the preparation of bank and other reconciliation statements, and supervises and conducts the year/biennium end closure of accounts;

• Coordinates the retrieval, entry, selection and analysis of data from a wide variety of sources, including FAO's corporate administrative systems and databases;

• Administers, controls and disburses funds within the approved budgetary allocation in accordance with established rules and regulations and within the delegated authority;

• Prepares and reviews ad hoc reports on programme, project and office accounts; coordinates and provides special reports for periodic budget preparation and audits; and liaises with local banks and financial institutions;

• Liaises with host Government for the maintenance of premises and ensures that all procurements and custom clearances for programmes, projects and the office are properly requested and obtained;

• Leads the implementation of streamlining of administrative procedures and liaises with other UN Offices for common practices;

• Ensures the compliance with the Organization's security guidelines (Minimum Operational Security Standards - MOSS).

Specific Functions

• Leads interagency collaboration for tangible contributions to various initiatives of UN Efficiency Agenda, including membership in the FAO’s Global Business Operations Network (BON) and the Operations Management Team (OMT) in Turkiye;

• Acts as member of the Operations Management Team in Turkiye and leads the implementation of streamlining of administrative procedures and liaises with other UN entities for common/best practices;

• Acts as security focal point ensuring close collaboration with the United Nations Department of Safety and Security ( UNDSS) in Turkiye and the FAO Security Services.

• Acts as focal point for the business continuity management, and overall activities linked to support the Head of Office in discharging the Organization’s duty of care;

• As member of the FAO’s Global Business Operations Network, contributes to development of corporate guidelines and participates in activities related to efficiency initiatives;

• Manages high level protocol matters and acts as liaison officer with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for relevant official documents and permits, ensuring compliance to Host Country Agreement (HCA) and privileges and immunities of UN entities;

• Performs other duties as required.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• National of Turkiye

• Advanced university degree in a field related to business or public administration.

• Five years of relevant experience in in office management, administration, accounting and/or audit, budget or finance.

• Working knowledge (proficient - level C) of English.

• Working knowledge of Turkish.

Competencies

• Results Focus

• Teamwork

• Communication

• Building Effective Relationships

• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions.

• Extent and relevance of experience in the field of office management and administration including supervisory experience.

• Extent of knowledge of UN or standard operational rules and procedures and project/programme administrative management procedures.

• Extent of knowledge of FAO's corporate systems and database, or knowledge of other accounting or financial modules or applications relevant to accounting procedures or project budget management would be considered an asset.

• Demonstrated analytical and judgment skills and ability to apply rules and regulations in the subject field.

• Extent of experience in the interagency collaboration, specifically in areas of business operations and UN Efficiency Agenda.