Project Finance Associate at United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the United Nations' global development network. It advocates for change and connects countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life for themselves. It provides expert advice, training and grants support to developing countries, with increasing emphasis on assistance to the least developed countries. It promotes technical and investment cooperation among nations.

Headquartered in New York City, the status of UNDP is that of an executive board within the United Nations General Assembly. The UNDP is funded entirely by voluntary contributions from UN member states. The organization operates in 177 countries, where it works with local governments to meet development challenges and develop local capacity.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Project Finance Associate (NPSA7)

Job Identification: 8446
Location: Lagos, Nigeria
Job Schedule: Full time
Contract Duration: 1 Year with Possibility for extension
Vacancy Type: National Personnel Service Agreement
Practice Area: Effectiveness
Bureau: Regional Bureau for Africa
Grade: NB3

Job Description

• Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country with an estimated population of 206 Million and an annual population growth rate of 2.6%2. By 2050, the country’s population is expected to have doubled, reaching more than 400 million and thereby becoming the third largest country in the world. More than half of its population will be under the age of 30 years.  
•  At the same time, unemployment and under-employment are one of the key development challenges facing young people in Nigeria and undermining the prospects of the country to achieve its development aspirations and fulfil its potential as the continent’s largest economy.
• According to the National Bureau for Statistics’ report of 2018, over 13.9 million youth are unemployed. The highest unemployment rate was recorded for youths between 15 - 24 years standing at 40.8%, followed by those aged between 25 - 34 years at 30.7%4. Investing in Nigeria’s youth is therefore becoming more urgent than ever.  
•  The Jubilee Fellows Programme will expand opportunities for learning to work transitions for fresh graduates in Nigeria through placement opportunities, job market information, skills transfer and facilitated learning.
• It is designed as a partnership platform that brings together private and public sector actors – including learning institutions to co-create and deploy to scale a viable solution that enhances youth employability, entrepreneurship and retention of national talent.
• To this end, UNDP Nigeria is seeking a Project Finance Associate to ensure effective delivery of programme finance services and transparent utilization of financial resources ensuring the integrity of financial services.
• The Project Finance Associate contributes to the effective implementation of financial monitoring and evaluation policies, works with the operations finance team and ensures the financial integrity of the Jubilee Fellowship.
• With proper and accurate project financing, the incumbent, supports the design, planning and management of the Jubilee Fellowship.
• In doing so, s/he works in close collaboration with project staff, other staff of the Unit, operations team, Programme and projects staff in the CO and UNDP HQs staff for resolving complex programme and operations-related issues, ensuring successful CO performance in Finance.

Scope of Work

• The Project Finance Associate will be responsible for the following functions and tasks:

Summary of Key Functions

• Support in project finance tracking and management.
• Ensure effective information management and reporting.
• Ensure proper financial tracking controls and risk management mechanisms.
• Ensure implementation of operational and financial management strategies and adapts processes and procedure.

Duties and Responsibilities
Support in project finance tracking and management:

• Provide financial analyses and reporting for resources ensuring full compliance with UNDP rules, regulations, policies, and strategies;
• Prepare cost estimates for different activities of the Jubilee Fellowship according to the needs of programme management;
• Monitor the financial performance of Jubilee Fellowship project activities;
• Support annual audits of the Principal Recipient (PR) and Sub-recipients (SRs) as required by UNDP and ensure that external auditors have all relevant information;
• Ensure that advance payments and direct payments are properly reviewed and recorded in a timely manner into Atlas;
• Follow up on the disbursement of funds to facilitate timely review of cash position to ensure sufficient funds on hand for disbursements.

Ensure effective information management and reporting:

• Prepare regular analysis and reporting on the Jubilee Fellowship project funds and Country Office budget approvals, including on the delivery of programme activities.
• Support the preparation of annual project workplans, agreements, and budgets;
• Submit timely and accurate required financial reports to the donor, as relevant;
• Maintain information flows between non-finance actors to effectively link programmatic results to work plan expenditure and budgets agreed with the donor;
• Respond to HQ requests to resolve financial data issues or to provide information required.
• Prepare forecasts necessary to support disbursements requests;
• Conduct verification and posting of disbursement requests, expenditure reports, and supporting documentation;

Ensure proper financial tracking controls and risk management mechanisms:

• Develop and support the PMSU to maintain risk management and mitigation approaches relating to finance.
• Design and implement effective internal controls and financial resources management system.
• Map, establish and maintain standard operating procedures in the project finance unit, implementing improvements where possible.

Ensure implementation of operational and financial management strategies, and adapts processes and procedures:

• Full compliance of financial activities, financial recording/reporting system and audit follow up with UN/UNDP rules, regulations, policies and strategies; implementation of the effective internal control, proper design and functioning of the financial resources management system;
• Routinely monitors financial exception reports for unusual activities, transactions, and investigates anomalies or unusual transactions. Informs supervisors and other UNDP staff at Headquarters of the results of the investigation when satisfactory answers are not obtained;
• Preparation of cost-recovery bills in Atlas for the services provided by UNDP.
• Continuous analysis and monitoring of the financial situation, presentation of forecasts for development and management projects;
• Implementation of cost saving and reduction strategies in consultation with office management;

Institutional Arrangement:

• Under the direct supervision of the direct supervision of the Project Team Lead (Jubilee Fellows Programme) with matrix reporting to the Operations Manager, the Programme Finance Associate will support and work in close collaboration with the operations and programme teams within the Country Office and the field office in Lagos.

Required Skills and Experience
Education:

• Completion of Secondary Education preferably with specialized certification is required or Bachelor’s Degree in Business or Public Administration, Economics, Political or Social Sciences and other relevant fields is desirable.

Experience:

• Minimum of 7 years with Secondary Education or 4 years with Bachelor’s Degree of progressively responsible administrative or programme experience is required at the national or international level.

Required Skills:

• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and advance knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages, experience in handling of web-based management systems and ERP financials, preferably PeopleSoft;
• Working knowledge of UN principles, SDGs and international development in Africa;
• Demonstrate the ability to showcase cross-disciplinary and cross-functional experience and expertise.
• Knowledge of UN/UNDP Financial Resource Management is desirable;
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills;

Language:

• Fluency in spoken and written English.

Competencies:
Core Competencies:

• Achieve Result:  LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline;
• Think Innovatively:  LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements;
• Learn Continuously: LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback;
• Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible;
• Act with Determination:  LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident;
• Engage and Partner: LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships;
• Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination.

Cross-Functional & Technical Competencies:
Business Management - Operations Management:

• Ability to effectively plan, organize, and oversee the Organization's business processes in order to convert its assets into the best results in the most efficient manner.
• Knowledge of relevant concepts and mechanisms.

Business Management - Customer Satisfaction/Client Management:

• Ability to respond timely and appropriately with a sense of urgency, provide consistent solutions, and deliver timely and quality results and/or solutions to fulfil and understand the real customers' needs.
• Look for ways to add value beyond clients' immediate requests.
• Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns.
• Provide inputs to the development of customer service strategy.

Business Direction & Strategy - Strategic Thinking:

• Ability to develop effective strategies and prioritized plans in line with UNDP's objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, potential risks and opportunities; linking the vision to reality on the ground, and creating tangible solutions.
• Ability to leverage learning from a variety of sources to anticipate and respond to future trends; to demonstrate foresight in order to model what future developments and possible ways forward look like for UNDP.

Business Direction & Strategy - Business Acumen:

• Ability to understand and deal with a business situation in a manner that is likely to lead to a good outcome.
• Knowledge and understanding of the operational frameworks in the organization  and ability to make good judgments and quick decisions within such frameworks.

Business Direction & Strategy - Entrepreneurial Thinking:

• Ability to create clarity around UNDP value proposition to beneficiaries and partners and to develop service offers responding to client needs based on UNDP's organizational priorities and mandate.

Business Development - Communication:

• Ability to communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience.
• Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media,  social media and other appropriate channels.

Business Development: Integration within the UN:

• Ability to identity, and integrate capacity and assets of the UN system, and engage in joint work.
• Knowledge of the UN System and ability to apply this knowledge to strategic and/or practical situations. 

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply

Application Deadline  2nd March, 2023 (05:59 AM).

Note

• UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.
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