Individual Contractor to support Project Control activities

Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)

H (no hardship)

Family

CONS Local

2024-07-15

July 6, 2024

General Background of Project or Assignment:

Starting with the arrival of Ukrainian refugees to Bulgaria in 2022 and coupled with a continued increase in the number of asylum claims in the country, the UNHCR Office in Bulgaria has expanded its activities, budget and number of funded partners to support authorities and communities with the emerging needs. In addition, the roll-out of new corporate business systems, as well as changes in Project Control policies, have resulted in a strong increase in the workload for the Project Control function and the need to further streamline and integrate processes.

Under the supervision of the Representative and in close coordination with the Operations, Programme, Admin, Supply and Finance functions, the incumbent will support the UNHCR office in ensuring that Project Control activities, as described in section 9, take place in a timely manner and meet technical requirements.

Occupational Safety and Health Considerations
To view occupational safety and health considerations for specific duty stations, please visit this link: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel

Overall Purpose and Scope of Assignment:
The primary functions of Project Control are to complement Programme management and provide support for oversight of projects including the formulation of a monitoring plan, quality assurance, and verification. Other activities include review of project agreements, project audit and monitoring so that there is synchrony between financial and operational performance, participation in multi-functional monitoring activities and reviews, tracking project risk management, and supporting project closure.
Specific duties include:
– Contribute to reviewing the internal control systems of implementing partners.
– Contribute to reviewing that funded partner agreements are in conformity with Operations Plan and UNHCR’s rules, policies and procedures.
– Monitor that a complete record is maintained for all projects.
– Contribute to reviewing, analysing and verifying Financial and Performance Partner Reports, and to checking accuracy and consistency in accordance with project agreements.
– Support the review to ensure that the funds obligated under funded partnership agreements permit the payment of the next instalment or a disbursement, confirming the status of instalments already paid.
– Support timely project closure in coordination with the Programme function.
– Bring to the attention of the supervisor and Operations/Programme any significant variances at the office level in budget execution, percentage of project execution, time schedule, and quality of projects against specifications or terms and conditions.
– Maintain professional relationships with funded partners for the successful exercise of assigned duties.
– Keep up to date with all UNHCR rules, regulations and procedures necessary to perform these duties.
– Escalate issues with funded partners to the supervisor.
– Provide inputs on the acceptance or non-acceptance of partner reports and payment of instalments.

Required level, qualifications and work experience:
The assignment is for an Individual Consultant

Qualification and experience required (degree required, years of work experience, field of expertise, language required):
Field(s) of Education: Accounting, auditing, business administration, finance or related fields.
Language Proficiency: Fluency in both English and Bulgarian is required.
Minimum experience: At least 2 years of experience in areas relevant to the duties described in section 8.

Desirable experience: In addition to the minimum experience, good knowledge of international auditing standards. Good understanding of the workflows of major Enterprise Resource Planning financial modules (such as PeopleSoft, SAP or Oracle). Working experience with accrual accounting (such as IPSAS or IFRS).

Monitoring and Progress Controls (report requirements, periodicity, format, deadlines):
Brief monthly report describing activities undertaken during the period.

Standard Job Description

Required Languages

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,

Desired Languages

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Additional Qualifications

Skills

Education

Certifications

Other information

This position doesn’t require a functional clearance

Home-Based

No