Finance Officer (Sub-Grants), Uganda

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The Uganda Country Office (UCO) is currently implementing two programmes: the Netherlands-funded Access to Justice for Sustainable Development (AJSD) programme, and the Community Justice Programme (CJP II) funded by Sweden. IDLO established a physical office in 2018 and executed a host country agreement with Uganda, granting it status in 2019. The Country team is currently comprised of 14 staff (2 international and 12 nationally recruited staff) led by the Country Manager.

The AJSD programme focuses on three main areas: improving justice service delivery for Gender-Based Violence (GBV) survivors by reducing case backlogs and increasing awareness of rights; enhancing commercial and land justice services to stimulate business and investment by expediting dispute resolution; and ensuring self-reliance for refugees and vulnerable host communities through improved legal protection and access to justice.

The CJP II programme is a successor programme to CJP I, which was oriented towards legally empowering grassroots communities and enhancing the capacity of duty bearers. The CJP II focuses on building the capacity of communities to uphold their rights by raising legal awareness, strengthening dispute resolution mechanisms, and providing legal aid to vulnerable people, while also addressing emerging priorities, specifically juvenile justice, the protection of refugees, and the prevention of trafficking in persons.

THE POSITION

The Finance Team within the Department of Finance and Support Services (DFSS) is responsible for the corporate, project, and financial services which contribute to the business and operating foundation for the successful delivery of IDLO’s strategic plan. It manages the overall financial resources essential for the full implementation of IDLO’s programming and corporate activities by providing a range of services and solutions for organizational planning, budgeting, treasury, payments, payroll, financial accounting, and reporting. It furthermore maintains all accounts for IDLO by monitoring.

The Finance Officer (Sub-Grants), Uganda, is responsible for ensuring effective sub-grant financial management in assigned IDLO projects implemented in Uganda. The position will be based in Kampala, Uganda, with frequent travels within the country as necessary. Under the direct supervision of the Finance and Administration Manager, Uganda, and working closely with the Programme team, the Finance Officer (Sub-Grants), Uganda, will be responsible for the following:

Calls for applications

• In coordination with the Programmes team, prepare the full package of documents ahead of each call for applications, develop a matrix of applications received, and report on initial screening with a focus on financial-related elements;
• Ensure periodic financial content review updates including to sub-grants application documents and review criteria;
• In close coordination with the Programmes team, carry out finance-related pre-grant assessments for all recommended IPs before sub-grants contracting;
• Liaise with relevant colleagues at the Country Office and HQ on sub-grant contracts amendments and extensions;
• At all times, work with the Programmes team to produce management reports to coordinate the applications review process; and
• Ensure that tools for efficient sub-grant management, financial monitoring, and reporting are put in place and in line with the donor’s requested standards.

Financial management of sub-grants

• Coordinate with the Programme’s team on the sub-granting processes to ensure effective and timely sub-grants approvals, disbursement, financial reporting, and financial monitoring of all sub-grants;
• Serve as the focal point between IDLO and the Finance units of the sub-grantees regarding finance-related issues pertaining to the funded projects;
• Undertake regular spot checks to monitor for potential risks and quality of sub-grantees’ internal finance management processes;
• Liaise with relevant colleagues at the Country Office and HQ to ensure that funds are disbursed to sub-grantees within the agreed timelines and in full compliance with IDLO policies and procedures;
• Monitor expenditures and other financial operations of sub-grantees and report regularly to the Supervisor on compliance with sub-grant agreements, budgets, and work-plans, as well as general compliance with IDLO financial procedures;
• Ensure accounting records and supporting documents of sub-grantees are properly kept, and required sub-grants-related financial reports are prepared, with appropriate analysis of expenditures and justification for disbursement;
• Ensure that the audit of Sub-Projects, if agreed upon, is undertaken in line with Sub-Project Agreements and IDLO standards and guidelines;
• Work closely with the relevant Country team and HQ-based Programme Accountant to prepare periodic sub-grants financial progress reports against set budget-related targets and indicators; and
• Provide coaching, guidance, and feedback to sub-grantees to ensure proper financial management of funded projects.

Other sub-grants and finance roles

• Prepare sub-grants status reports, including weekly, monthly, and quarterly internal sub-grants management and risk reports, and any other documents or reports that may be requested for, to inform ongoing oversight and management of grants;
• Lead on the review of sub-grant financial reports and support the review of narrative reports; assist in the drafting of donor reports related to sub-grants;
• Working closely with the Programmes team, support the sub-grantees financial and narrative reporting and assist in the drafting of donor narrative and financial reports; and
• Support the Finance team with other aspects of office and project finance management as requested by the supervisor.