Regional Finance Coordinator - Danish Red Cross

Job Duties and Responsibilities

Regional Finance Coordinator Key responsibilities:

Assisting and Quality assurance the DRC MENA Country Teams to prepare project and program budgets, activity plans, financial reports, and in undertaking external audit processes in compliance with DRC Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and, where applicable, satisfying other specific donor requirements.

Supporting DRC MENA Country Teams and National Societies (NS) in developing their internal financial management capacity in due recognition of and respect for their capacity, best practices, DRC financial management and administration procedures (SOP), and other specific donor requirements.

Assist the Regional Finance Manager on communication and operationalization of standardized country office finance setups and practices across the region.

Support 5 countries finance staff with troubleshooting financial problems / issues, seeking to limit their impact and rectify their cause so they do not recur.

Together with RFM to Lead roll out of DRC new financial software (ERP D365) to countries, provide training and support to country finance staff on ERP functions in order that it is optimally used for project accounting and reporting.

Provide surge capacity support for country office finance functions to cover gaps in finance staffing and or support emergency response activities (within current 5 countries and or newly introduced countries).

Manage the finances of the DRC MENA RO, in terms of cash flow, executing payments, booking entries in the DRC HQ accounts and monthly reconciliation as per DRC standards template.

To communicate and follow up with DRC HQ office (mainly International finance controllers) to ensure availability of timely support to MENA financial processes, participate on organized meeting and discussion at HQ level to ensure MENA involvement and contribution as necessary. Plan for IFO visits to the region and to travel to HQ as required.

Strengthening of finance systems, procedures and capacities in MENA 25% - in support / coordination with RFM

Together with RFM, conduct assessments of financial capacities in country offices to identify risks and gaps, and propose working solutions, in close consultation with RFM, HoR & Country Managers

Orientate, train and advise country finance staff on DRC SOPs, finance/accounting requirements, Audit instructions and donor (ie. DFID / EU /ECHO / Danida) finance regulations

Lead and support on roll out of ERP system to countries and provide training and support to country finance staff on ERP D365 functions in order that it is optimally used for project accounting and reporting.

Provide hands on training and ongoing guidance to country finance delegates / officers including postings, reporting, data analysis to ensure they can produce project finance reports and variance analysis

Provide guidance/advice to country finance staff on monthly cost allocation policies for shared resources, ie. delegates/office expenses

Provide technical advice and oversight to country finance staff for compliant closure of projects, including final financial reporting, external audit, closure in the DRC accounts, equipment / NFI handover / donation certificates and appropriate physical and electronic filing of relevant project financial documents.

Support the general finance capacity development of National Society (NS) finance staff across the region as per the identified needs and in coordination/consultation with the country team.

Gather feedback from the NS staff and DRC delegates on the operational challenges of complying with DRC SOPs, finance/accounting requirements and make proposals for improvement.

MENA Regional Office finance activities – 35%

Assist the RFM with maintaining a financial overview and monitoring of all projects in the region and preparing effective regional finance overviews. Tasks are the following but not limited to :

Regional Budget preparation, Discussion and submission

Program Consolidated Financial Reports preparation and controlling

Country Offices master budgets, review and QA

Provide input and advice for preparation of regional / consortium program budgets and financial reports that consolidate funds from several donors or cover activities across multiple countries.

As directed by DRC HQ / HoR or RFM, undertake investigations or internal audit missions for specific projects / countries when required.

Maintain financial records/documentation and an appropriate and efficient financial filling system.

Processing DRC MENA RO and DRC MENA Country Team payments and, if applicable, workflow (internal) invoices.

Booking of all DRC MENA RO entries into the DRC accounting system.

Manage DRC MENA RO cash flow, including preparing and processing transfer requests from DRC Headquarters (HQ).

Prepare and maintain an allocation formula to cover shared resources.

Ensure timely monthly reporting on the DRC MENA RO accounts, including reconciliations.

Provide inputs to the DRC MENA RO budget, follow-up on and revise it as necessary.

Follow-up on time registration on project budgets by staff at DRC HQ and the DRC MENA RO on a monthly basis.

Plan, organize and support the external audits of the DRC MENA RO accounts.

Assist with the recruitment of finance staff for country offices.

Conduct other assignments as directed by the HoR/RFM

MENA Financial Management and QA of countries financial products – 30%

Provide guidance and review of new project budgets prepared by country finance staff following DRC budget guidelines, templates, formulas and donor requirements.

Regular QA and provide feedback on the submitted Quarterly and donor financial reports from different countries.

Undertake quality control of cash requests and subsequently facilitate the execution of transfers in accordance with DRC SOPs.

Proactively support development of and revisions to contracts and agreements, activity plans, and budgets.

Coordinate with DRC Controller at DRC HQ, the creation of regional and country-level grants and projects within the DRC accounting system.

Plan, ensure, and support, in close collaboration with the DRC MENA Country Teams and NSs, external audit of DRC MENA projects and programs that is both timely and in compliance with requirements, including supporting the NS’s tender process to select local auditors, the review of draft audit reports, and follow-up on the findings by the auditor.

Periodically visit countries covered to provide on-site face-to-face support, monitor DRC MENA project budget and expenditure, and to facilitate, support and ensure compliance with DRC SOPs and other donor procedures, where applicable.

Other tasks – 10%

Keep updated on major donor (e.g. EU DEVCO, ECHO, Danida etc) financial guidelines and requirements

Provide field finance input to the International financial meetings and groups

Be available to assist with ad-hoc and emergency tasks related to the global operation, including temporary country finance management responsibilities and finance surge missions

Act as Regional Finance Manager during his absence or whenever requested

Education

University degree or equivalent qualification in accounting / finance / business administration / auditing or relevant field - Required

Professional membership qualifications such as CPA, CMA, CIA - Preferred 

Experience

7 years plus, of relevant experience in the financial management aspects of humanitarian/development programming and project cycle and oversight of large program budgets - Required    

Experience with EU/ECHO/DANIDA funded projects - Required    

Extensive experience in developing project Budget, implementation, Budget modifications and financial reporting - Required    

Proven staff management and leadership experience including mentoring and facilitation of finance professionals - Preferred 

Knowledge, Skills and Language

Recognized accounting/finance/business management qualification and training - Required     

Full proficiency in an Enterprise Resource Planning / electronic Accounting system -  Required    

Full proficiency in Microsoft Office functions including Advance excel - Required

Excellent analytical skills, particularly concerning complex financial documents - Preferred

Fluently spoken and written Arabic & English - Required    

Good command of another IFRC official language (French) - Preferred

Competencies:

Accountability, Integrity, Diversity, Professionalism

Building Trust, Teamwork, Communication, Managing Performance