Finance Assistant

Background Information – Job-specific

Under the guidance and supervision of the Finance Officer, the Finance Assistant supports the provision of financial services within the support services function, ensuring high quality, accuracy and consistency of work. The Finance Assistant promotes a client-oriented approach consistent with UNOPS rules and regulations.

The Finance Assistant works in close collaboration with the Programme, Project and Support Services colleagues in the local office as well as the UNOPS HQ colleagues, to exchange information and ensure consistent service delivery.

Functional Responsibilities

Summary of Key Functions:

• Accounting and administrative support
• Implementation of operational strategies and procedures
• Knowledge building and sharing

Provide accounting and administrative support, focusing on achievement of the following results:

• Assist within proper control of the supporting documents for bank and balance sheet reconciliation and financial reports.
• Follow-up with field finance users, UN entities and financial institutes for information relating to payments and invoices.
• Prepare routine correspondence, bank reconciliation report, following standard operating procedures.
• Maintain the proper digital filing system for financial records and documents.
• Assist field offices by performing monthly bank and investment reconciliations for all their accounts.
• Assist with the preparation of monthly and quarterly reports for any unreconciled transactions at the bank level.
• Monitor the prepaid and MasterCard transactions and, in case of any suspicious payments, promptly escalate to the supervisor.
• Assist with prepaid and MasterCard monthly reconciliation and prepare the Bank to book reports for submission to HQ.
• Flag any discrepancies with bank statements or the cash book, liaising with the Treasury team to rectify issues.
• Assist with reconciliation of UN entities’ and financial institutes’ statements on a monthly basis and prepare the adjusting entries for gain and loss.
• Help improve controls and systems to help capture financial information.
• Assist BSSC by performing ad hoc administrative duties, as needed, to support the office operations.
• Follow-up on all unreconciled items and provide regular update to supervisor.
• Maintain and control the automatching rate to be at a high level.
• Provide information for reports related to Bank Reconciliation as audit’s request.
• Assist with monthly reconciliation for service clearance account and prepare the posting for an adjustment and direct charges.
• Prepare the adjusting FX gain and loss for CITI World Link Payments.
• Assist to reduce the number of unreconciled items for each period.

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

• Full compliance of financial processes and financial records with UNOPS rules, regulations, policies and strategies.
• Improvement the efficient reconciliation process through auto-matching by Kyriba system.
• Facilitation the offices to the correct Internal Standard Operating Procedures in Finance for any particular issued unreconciled transactions.
• Improvement the efficient reconciliation process for Service Clearance Account by corporation with UNDP.

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

• Participation in the Finance-focused trainings
• Contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice.

Education/Experience/Language requirements

Education:

• Completion of Secondary education is required.
• A Bachelor’s Degree or Master’s Degree, preferably in Finance, Accounting or related fields is desirable, and may substitute some of the required years of work experience.
• Specialized training in finance is desirable.

Experience:

• With a high school diploma, a minimum of 4 years of relevant accounting and financial experience is required.
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (G Suite) and knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages is desirable.
• Experience in handling web-based management systems is desirable.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in written and oral English is required.
• Knowledge of the second UN working language is desirable.

Source: https://jobs.unops.org/Pages/ViewVacancy/VADetails.aspx?id=27899#4