POSITION INFORMATION
Reports to: Program Operations Manager (with functional supervision from Finance Administrator We Lead)
Scope: Guatemala, Honduras
Location: Guatemala or Costa Rica Office
Hours: Fulltime / 40 hours a week
Modality: Hybrid 3 days work from home, 2 days presencial
About Hivos
Hivos is an international development organization guided by humanist values. Together with citizens and their organizations, we aim to contribute towards just, inclusive and life sustaining societies where people have equal access to opportunities, rights and resources. We work in partnership with others in the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Latin America on three impact areas: civic rights; gender equality, diversity and inclusion, and climate justice. Our approach is solution driven, and we build wider movements for change by amplifying and connecting voices.
JOB CONTEXT
We Lead is a new, inspiring, innovative and far-reaching program aiming to improve the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRH-R) of young women from four specific groups: who live with HIV, that have a disability, who identify as lesbian, bisexual, trans or intersex, and who are affected by displacement. The program truly puts these young women rights holders in the driving seat, while supporting them to impactful and sustainably advocate for their SRH-R.
The program is implementing in nine countries in Africa, the Middle East and Central America. The We Lead consortium consists of six civil society organizations (Positive Vibes, Restless Development, Marsa, FEMNET, the Central American Women’s Fund, Hivos). The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also part of the partnership. Hivos is the lead party.
The We Lead program supports young women’s’ groups and organizations. We connect these rightsholders with one another in local Communities of Action (CoAs) and support and coach them, so that they are better able to advocate for, claim, protect, and promote their SRH-R. For a start, they will localise the overarching We Lead Theory of Change. A local CoA-facilitator will guide the CoAs. We Lead supports with funding (through an innovative participatory grantmaking mechanism) and capacity strengthening and coaching initiatives.
The program started on January 1st, 2021 and is funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, under the SRHR Partnership Fund, which is part of the Strengthening Civil Society subsidy framework. The five-year program has a budget of EUR 40,7 million.
MAIN GOAL OF THE JOB
The Finance Officer is responsible for the finance and administration of the Central American region of the We Lead program, especially the budgets of Guatemala, Honduras. In addition, she will support the Finance Manager in the tasks assigned. The person will also assist the Project Manager and the Program Officer for Guatemala and Honduras in the implementation of the program. This includes maintaining oversight of financial and contractual compliance of a portfolio of grants, monitor and evaluate financial performance, compliance and risks of grantees. Tasks include ensuring that among others: payments are processed timely and correctly, ensure monthly, quarterly, semi-annual and annual budget comparisons are prepared and variance analysis reports provided. Support in the preparation of the Forecast and Depletion report.
Internal Context:
Line Manager: Program Operations Manager (with functional supervision from Finance Administrator We Lead)
External Context:
Project partners: To make requests for financial information, schedule follow-up visits or financial monitoring.
External auditors: To support the programming of external audits.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Project Implementation
- Overseeing finance and project administration of We Lead Centro American Region Program and also maintaining oversight of financial and contractual compliance of partner grants.
- Conduct onsite visits for expenditure verification of partner records.
- Maintain a permanent relationship with the Host organizations, the organizations that receive grants from Hivos, and the facilitators of the Community of Action to ensure the correct financial implementation of the program.
- Ensure budget tracking, sound financial management, including programmatic budgeting, quarterly spending projections, monthly spending reviews, and monitoring of payments;
- Set up and implement the monitoring, evaluation and finance systems for partners and provides reports on financial progress of grantees.
- Maintain proper records of all sub-award documents on the corresponding data bases.
- Conduct regional programmatic forecasting and ensure the correct filling of corresponding template.
- Prepare project salary cost monthly and ensure properly approval and recording in All Solutions system.
- Ensure grants are administered in the All Solutions system according to HIVOS policies and guidelines.
- Document the highlights and agreements of key activities with partners and stakeholders.
- Follow up on the implementation tasks of other We Lead regions that are assigned by the Financial Manager.
Project budget execution review
- Generate and review all financial transactions are in accordance with the relevant grant agreement and are properly recorded in All Solutions.
- Review physical and digital accounting documentation of the expenses identified in All Solutions report; to verify that: amounts match, to established guidelines have been followed, and that necessary documentation is provided.
- Fill information on expenses in the corresponding report template.
- In case the donor has established more rigorous contractual terms that imply additional activities, carry out these activities before entering the information in the template.
- In the event that partners participate in the project, obtain information on the amounts executed to consolidate it in the expense report template.
- For the corresponding cases, incorporate the cash reconciliation in the expense report.
- In the event that it is not appropriate to perform the cash reconciliation, include the budget execution in the expense report.
- Carry out budgetary execution of the project.
- Monitors monthly project spending prepares monthly financial reports and ensure budget comparisons are prepared and variance analysis reports provided
- Review the established resource allocation in the Project Wizard to verify if Hivos' human resources have been assigned as established in the project planning. After the above, assess whether it is possible to reallocate resources and make the corresponding recommendations.
- If necessary, incorporate the necessary corrections into the budget execution report.
- Follow up on the budget execution review tasks of other We Lead regions that are assigned by the Financial Manager.
Undertake due diligence and capacity assessments of potential sub grantee partners.
- Justify the proposed method of financial evaluation of the partners, when it is less rigorous. And send justification to the Finance Administrator.
- Carry out the Financial Intake Assessment. And, in case an exception has been approved, analyze the financial information or the evaluations to the partner carried out by other donors.
- Based on the results of the previous evaluation, draw up the Hivos action plan.
- Enter results of both the result of the Financial Intake Assessment and the Hivos action plan in AS.
- Meet virtually or physically with the Project Manager to discuss the results of the Financial Intake Assessment and the Hivos action plan.
- Review draft contract regarding dates, disbursement scheme amounts and reports to be submitted by the partner.
- Once the contract is approved, by all the corresponding parties, standardize the project budget accounts with the Hivos accounting accounts.
Review financial reports submitted by the sub grantee partners and make recommendations to the Program Manager for payments and further disbursements.
- Verify the minimum aspects that the financial report must meet in order to be subjected to an exhaustive review and record the result in the financial report evaluation template.
- In the event that the report does not meet the minimum requirements, inform the partner and indicate the aspects that must be corrected.
- Evaluate the reasonability of the expenses based on a sample of expenses, which can be a percentage or a sample size established in the Hivos-We Lead policies and the Hivos Framework for Project Expenditure Verification.
- Fill in the Hivos Expenditure Verification Control Worksheet template based on the documentation provided by the partner.
- Evaluate the results of the audit according to the assessments established by Hivos.
- Register in All Solutions the findings and recommendations of the evaluations carried out.
- Book the accounted for value in All Solutions.
Project closure
- Verify that the latest financial report has been reviewed and approved.
- Coordinate the corresponding external audit and notify the Regional Financial Officer about the results.
- Complete the Contract Closure Assessment at All Solutions.
Financial
- Carry out feasibility analysis of projects through the Project Wizard.
- Coordinate external audits (review, contracting, preparing samples, approval of reports, follow-up of findings).
- Attention of financial consultations related to projects.
- Attend meetings as requested.
Project coordination:
- Coordinate at all times with the We Lead implementation team, especially with the Program Officer for Honduras and Guatemala, with the Financial Manager, with the Program Operations Manager, and with the rest of the administrative and technical team.
- Participate in the finance Working Group in the Hivos regional management team and other mechanisms that the program requires.
PROFILE
Knowledge
- Bachelor's Degree in Accounting or Administration with an emphasis in Finance
- ERP and Excel (pivot tables)
- Project management
- English (CEFR) B2
- International accounting standards
- Update on tax issues
- MS Office (Word, Excel and PowerPoint)
Experience from 1 to 3 years in:
- Having worked in international organizations, particularly in the development cooperation sector
- Project management
- Cash flow analysis
- Analysis of internal control procedures, policies and standards
- Financial functions associated with project development and implementation
- Management of the complete accounting cycle (registration, classification, preparation of financial statements reports)
- Ability to communicate clearly and effectively; good command of oral and written English and Spanish.
Others
- Incorporation to the College of Public and Private Accountants
- Sensitivity to management in multicultural and diverse environments
- Availability to travel in the region.
- Flexible attitude, creative, supports Hivos’ and We Leads values, has a progressive and positive view on SRH-R and the leadership of rightsholders.
- Ability and willingness to work in a team
COMPETENCES
Level
- Professionalism
- Analytical ability
- Results-oriented
Job
- Customer service
- Independence
- Accuracy
We particularly welcome applications of women and/or persons that belong to one or the rightsholder groups.
WHAT WE OFFER
We offer a stimulating work environment in a professional international organization with very dedicated staff. We offer a national contract based on Hivos local labor conditions, with a remuneration commensurate with the experience and expertise.
WANT TO APPLY
You are welcome to submit your application on the apply button located on the right side tab. You must submit both a letter of motivation and resume/CV (3 pages maximum) in English before 04 June 2023.
Candidates are highly encouraged to provide a clear track record in their CV that matches the requirements of the position elaborated above. The person must be a national of Costa Rica or Guatemala or have a residence permit.
Background check for final candidates
If you are selected to go to the final stage of the selection process, please note that professional references and criminal record certification will be requested due to our Safeguarding Policy*. Exceptions will only be made if there is a prohibition due to local legislation or when the candidate cannot obtain the police records certificate due to activities in LGBT + and Human Rights. We may screen social media (unless applicants indicate that they do not want us to do so). The accuracy of the information in the resume will also be verified.
(*) https://america-latina.hivos.org/quienes-somos/nuestra-organizacion/integridad