Project Finance And Administrative Assistant

Under the overall authority of the Director of the UNESCO Almaty Office and direct supervision of the GLOFCA Project Officer, the incumbent shall provide financial and administrative assistance to the implementation of the UNESCO-Adaptation Fund Project (hereafter “Project”) on “Reducing vulnerabilities of populations in the Central Asia region from glacier lake outburst floods in a changing climate” (GLOFCA).

In particular, the incumbent shall perform the following key functions:

Provide support to the effective Project management, budgeting and administration. The tasks include the following:

• Making all the necessary logistical arrangements for seminars, workshops, meetings and other events, including communication with partners/participants, drafting invitation letters and news items, coordinating travel arrangements, visa support, local transportation, conducting competitive bidding for contractors providing lodging/venue/translation services/etc., organizing any other necessary activities for the successful and smooth conduct of events.
• Providing administrative and financial support in Project procurement activities, in liaison with the Office’s Administrative Unit: preparing procurement work plan, making cost estimates, drafting contracts’ assignments/terms of reference, identifying proper contract modalities, organizing and following up on tenders/biddings, searching and selecting vendors, coordinating with contracted organizations.
• Processing contracts in UNESCO’s computerized system DUO, prepare/submit/follow up with payment requests, coordinate contract timelines and follow-up with contractors, as necessary, or with Project staff to ensure effective and timely implementation of Project activities, all other procurement-related actions.
• Monitoring budget status of implemented activities on Project funding, such as budgets for events, contracts, travels, and staff.
• Preparing and analyzing budget proposals, evaluations, audit, and operational and financial closure of the contracts, in coordination with the Project team.
• Preparing reports on budget revisions, expenditures and obligations, verification of the availability of funds and documentation in the budget system and in reporting process to the donor.
• Preparing memos and correspondence related to administrative and budgetary matters, as well as to the overall Project implementation, obtaining necessary clearances, processing and follow-up on administrative actions related to the project implementation, e.g. recruitment and appointment of personnel, travel arrangements, training/study tours, authorization of payments, disbursement of funds, procurement of equipment and services, security compliance.
• Maintaining appropriate records of programme and financial expenditure both at the UNESCO Almaty Office and country levels and reporting on them. Also, collecting and reporting on the financial and progress reports of the implementing partners.
• Contributing to other necessary financial and administrative activities related to the Project implementation.
• Facilitate travel arrangements: Prepare travel requests and files for official travels of the concerned staff as well as Project stakeholders; organize them, and ensure follow-up in close cooperation with the Administration Unit.
• Undertake any other related tasks or assignment requested for the successful implementation of the Project, provided those tasks are consistent with the incumbent’s professional qualifications. The contract holder undertakes to carry out the tasks with care and diligence and due attention to detail.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

• Completed higher education degree in international relations, economy, finance, administration, management, or another related field

Work Experience

• Minimum 3 years of relevant work experience in programme/project support, financial, and/or administrative service acquired at the national or international level
• Experience in handling web-based management systems

Skills and Competencies

• Ability to work as part of a multi-cultural team, to take initiative and to provide quality and timely support and services
• Good interpersonal and communication skills, including ability to draft correspondence and correct documents
• Good organizational, coordination skills and flexibility
• Ability to take ownership of given tasks and demonstrate proactivity
• Ability to interpret rules and manage priorities in order to meet tight deadlines
• Discretion and capacity to deal efficiently and tactfully with people of different cultural and social backgrounds
• Ability to work under stress and cope with multiple tasks
• Good ICT skills with proficiency in the use of MS Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)

Languages

• Excellent knowledge of English and Russian (oral and written)

Source: https://careers.unesco.org/job/Almaty-PROJECT-FINANCE-AND-ADMINISTRATIVE-ASSISTANT-(SB-2-SC5-Min)-(extension)/793898702/