Project Finance Analyst United Nations Development Programme Experience: 3 to 5 Years Suva, Fiji Apply By: 24-12-2024

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Job Description

UNDP is the leading United Nations organization in fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet.

UNDP contributes to public health and development partnerships through collaborations with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (the ‘Global Fund’), Roll Back Malaria, Stop TB Partnerships, and special programmes on human reproduction and infectious diseases that disproportionately affect poor populations. As part of its wider engagement with the United Nations, the Global Fund has partnered with UNDP since 2003 to ensure that grants are implemented, and services are delivered in countries facing complex challenges. The partnership focuses on three closely linked areas of work: implementation support, capacity development, and policy engagement.

For implementation support UNDP serves as an interim Principal Recipient (PR) (currently in 25 countries) in a variety of settings including countries that face capacity constraints, complex emergencies, poor governance environments, political upheaval, or donor sanctions. It does so upon request by the Global Fund and/or the Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) and when no national entity is able to assume the role at the time. UNDP’s role as PR is an interim arrangement until national entities can assume full responsibility for implementation and the capacity of national partners (Government and CSOs) is also strengthened to ensure long-term sustainability of health outcomes.
The Pacific Islands Regional Multi-Country Coordinating Mechanism (PIRMCCM) has entrusted the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to serve as the Principal Recipient for GC7 grant cycle from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund). The three-year (2024- 2026) grant cycle aims to strengthen national responses to HIV and tuberculosis (TB) in the Western Pacific region.
The Multi-Country Western Pacific Integrated HIV/TB Programme supports national and regional efforts across 12 Pacific islands countries (PICs): Cook Islands, Fiji, Federal State of Micronesia, Kiribati, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu to scale up and improve the delivery of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and tuberculosis (TB) prevention, treatment, care and support services, with special attention to key and vulnerable population groups, and to mitigate against the emerging emergency health risks.

The programme objective is to:

Strengthen comprehensiveness and quality of HIV prevention, treatment and care service-delivery models with a view to programmatic sustainability.
Provide early rapid and quality diagnosis of TB, DR-TB and comorbidities with specific focus on hard to reach, vulnerable groups across 12 Pacific Island countries.
Sustain high quality treatment for all forms of TB including drug-resistant TB and HIV-related TB with patient support; and 4) build up the resilience of healthcare systems, including community systems, to deliver integrated people-centered models of HIV and TB care.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Project Finance Analyst will report to the Programme Manager. The Project Finance Analyst supervises and leads support staff of the Finance Unit.
Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Programme Manager, the Project Finance Analyst supervises and leads support staff of the Finance Unit and ensures strong coordination with programme and procurement staff of the PMU for the effective management of the programme budgets.
The Project Finance Analyst works in close collaboration with the Sub-Recipients (SRs) of the Global Fund project, the Country Office Operations unit, and project teams in the Country Office in ensuring successful implementation and oversight of GF programme resources and Country Office performance in finance. In addition, the Project Finance Analyst will play the lead role in the capacity development of the financial management systems of the national counterparts for the transition of the programmes. This will be done in accordance with UNDP rules, policies and procedures, the grant agreements and corporate agreements with the GF, and working in partnership with national stakeholders, and close coordination with the GF (including Local Fund Agent – LFA), CCM, technical partners and UN entities, and the GF/HIST.

Summary of Functions:

Ensures effective and accurate financial resources management and oversight
Ensures implementation of operational strategies and procedures
Manages the programme budgets and ensures proper control of programme accounts
Ensures close monitoring of the Sub-Recipients and other implementing partners
Ensures facilitation of knowledge building and sharing
Any other duty(s) assigned by the Programme Manager

The detailed scope of work for the Project Finance Analyst is outlined below:

Ensures effective and accurate financial resources management and oversight, focusing on achievement of the following results:
Leads on financial analysis and oversight for all resources managed by the Global Fund programmes and provision of high-quality technical financial advice to the Programme Manager and other PMU staff members and Country Office senior management.
Ensures proper planning, expenditure tracking of financial resources in accordance with UNDP rules and regulations, policies and procedures, grant agreements and corporate agreements with the Fund and Global Fund financial management rules.
Maintains robust internal financial management controls over all financial processes.
Maintains adequate financial management arrangements including reviews and reconciliations, to support the deployment of grant resources in an economic, efficient and effective manner to achieve the desired objectives, ensuring expenditures incurred are reasonable and allowable against budgetary allocations and that inappropriate payments and non-compliant expenditures are prevented;
Ensures an efficient financial flow process is developed and implemented and amended to reflect the programme financial management requirements which are guided by risk assessments;
Establishes and maintains a reporting system for internal and Global Fund needs, including Sub-Recipients, contractors, service providers, and technical assistance providers;
Ensures an effective information flow between finance and non-finance actors (Country Co-ordinating Mechanism (CCM), Global Fund, Local Fund Agent and Sub-Recipients) in order to effectively link the programmatic results to expenditures, as required by Global Fund;
Develops and maintains an organizational structure for the Finance Unit, and leads on the recruitment of staff, fostering diversity, equity and inclusion and builds the technical, management and leadership capacity of staff for promotion of organizational excellence.
Monitors the financial performance of supply management systems/procurement.
Prepares cost estimates for different activities according to the needs of programme management;
Develops, tracks and reports to management key financial performance indicators; and
Maintains a document management system for UNDP, including Sub-Recipients, contractors, service providers, and technical assistance providers records.

Ensures implementation of operational strategies and procedures, focusing on achievement of the following results:

Establishes and/or ensures robust financial procedures: e.g. receipts, payments, disbursements and bookkeeping, filing procedures for the GF projects of Sub-Recipients;
Ensures that financial procedures in place comply with the financial/accounting and procurement requirement of the Global Fund and UNDP;
Performs a continuous analysis and monitoring of the financial situation, presentation of forecasts for the Global Fund programmes;
Ensures the timely closure of programmes and compliance with Global Fund and UNDP rules, policies and procedures, including the transfer of assets;
Ensures oversight for the transparency of the financial processes and use of funds and compliance with Global Fund and UNDP financial guidelines;
Leads on the preparation of the donor reports, monthly Cash Flow and annual Cash Flow Forecasts, statement of sources and uses of funds in compliance with the Global Fund requirements;
Leads on the preparation of other financial reports to be submitted to the LFA/Global Fund, acting as the Focal Point for financial management information for the LFA/Global Fund;
Elaborates and implements cost savings and reduction strategies under the guidance of the Programme Manager;
Under the guidance of the Programme Manager facilitates audits and investigations by the Office of Audit and Investigations and audits of Sub-Recipient(s)) and by the Office of Inspector General in line with corporate agreements with the Global Fund and UNDP rules and regulations and policies and procedures and ensures timely implementation of audit recommendations and findings as they relate to financial, asset and Sub-Recipient management;
Routinely monitors financial exception reports for unusual activities, transactions, and investigates anomalies or unusual transaction and informs supervisors of the results of the investigation when satisfactory answers are not obtained; and
Leads on preparing timely and quality monthly cash flow forecasts for use by the Programme Manager in liaison with other Implementing Partners.

Manages the programme budgets and ensures proper control of programme accounts focusing on achievement of the following results:

Leads on managing financial resources through planning, guiding, monitoring, and controlling of the resources in accordance with UNDP rules and regulations;
Prepares and monitors programme budgets in Quantum and ensures that the budget in Hyperion Planning and Budgeting Cloud system is in line with the approved detailed budget;
Elaborates proper mechanisms to eliminate deficiencies in budget management;
Ensures that contributions from the Global Fund are properly transferred to UNDP on a timely basis;
Leads on ensuring compliance with the internal expenditures control system, which ensures that vouchers processed are matched and completed, transactions are correctly recorded and posted in Atlas;
Leads on arranging quarterly financial management review meetings with Sub-Recipients in coordination with other PMU staff across functional areas (programme, PSM, M&E);
Ensures timely corrective actions on unposted vouchers, including the vouchers with budget check errors, match exceptions, unapproved vouchers and ensures timely responses to HQ requests to resolve financial data issues.

Ensures close monitoring of the Sub-Recipients and other implementing partners focusing on achievement of the following results:

Assesses financial management capacities of Sub-Recipients and develops an action plan to close identified gaps;
Provides guidance and capacity building of Federal Ministry of Health, partners, and Sub-Recipients on issues of financial and asset management – from contracting and banking issues to budgeting, accounting and reporting;
Ensures advance payments and direct payments for Sub-Recipients vendors are properly; reviewed, processed, and retired, as well as ensuring that payment information is properly recorded into the Atlas system on a timely basis;
Harmonizes reporting and accounting practices of Sub-Recipients, including budgeting and key financial performance indicators;
Plans and ensures the Finance Unit team undertakes verifications of Sub-Recipients’ expenditures, and promptly follows up on non-compliant expenditures;
Ensures coordination with the Sub-Recipients’ auditors to finalize the reports to ensure the final audit reports comply with the approved Sub-Recipients Terms of Reference, and follows up in a timely manner to ensure finance related audit recommendations are properly addressed; and
Ensure continuous support for the financial managers of SR organizations.

Ensures facilitation of knowledge building and sharing focusing on achievement of the following results:

Leads on the development of training plan/curriculums for the Sub-Recipients financial and accounting staff and conducts regular trainings on GF performance-based funding and financial reporting requirements management system;
Organizes training for the PMU on financial management and oversight;
Actively participates in UNDP and other relevant external networks to promote the programmes and represents UNDP in relevant technical meetings and working groups at country, regional and global level and gathers lessons learnt to apply to the programmes;
Identifies and supports development of communications (print, video) highlighting key financial management achievements, best practices, and lessons learnt and contributes to information sharing with the Ministry of Health, Sub-Recipients, UN entities, financial and technical partners, the GF and the CCM.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

A professional accounting qualification from an internationally accredited institute of accountancy, and/or Advanced (Master’s) University Degree in Finance and/or Accounting is required.
Or a first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas mentioned above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.
Candidates with professional accounting qualifications from an internationally accredited institute of accountancy will have a distinct advantage.
Candidates with no professional accountancy qualifications, but with degrees that major in accountancy and/or finance must complete the Finance Training and Certification Programme (FTCP), if recruited.
Candidates satisfying the two above criteria are exempted from undertaking the UNDP Advanced Accountancy and Finance Test (AAFT).
Candidates with MBA or master’s in finance with no accountancy qualification but with relevant experience must successfully undertake the UNDP Advanced Accountancy and Finance Test (AAFT) to be eligible for shortlisting.

Experience:

Minimum 2 years (with master’s degree) or 4 years (with bachelor’s degree) of relevant experience in providing financial management services, and/or managing staff and operational systems is required.
Experience in the use of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and advanced knowledge of spreadsheets and web-based management systems such as ERP financials and database packages is required.
Experience of IPSAS and/or IFRS is required for external candidates is required.
Experience with donor funded projects will be an added advantage.
Experience in preparation of financial reports and budget variance analysis is desired.
Experience in an international setting with the UN or with international organizations is an asset.
Experience working with government counterparts building national capacities is an asset.
Ability to work effectively and harmoniously with other colleagues from various cultures and professional backgrounds is desired.
Knowledge of UN rules and regulations is an asset.

Required languages: