Overview
The Finance Manager will lead the financial management of the GPE-STG-FLIP portfolio, ensuring efficient, accurate, and compliant use of funds. The role involves financial planning, budget management, and providing strategic financial guidance for grant delivery.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the financial management of the GPE-STG-FLIP portfolio.
- Lead the preparation of annual and quarterly financial plans and budgets.
- Monitor financial performance against budgets and provide variance analysis.
- Support program managers and MoES counterparts in budget forecasting, revisions, and alignment.
- Ensure expenditures are in line with approved budgets and donor requirements.
- Play a key role in budget planning, financial monitoring, capacity building for MoES finance teams and ensuring internal controls.
- Provide strategic and operational financial guidance.
- Ensure financial transactions are recorded accurately and in accordance with SCI policies and GPE donor regulations.
- Maintain robust internal controls and financial risk management mechanisms.
- Review and approve financial documents, journals, and payment vouchers.
- Ensure adherence to SCI’s procurement and financial authorization limits and donor audit requirements.
- Coordinate with internal and external auditors.
- Prepare high-quality, timely, and accurate monthly, quarterly, and annual financial reports.
- Consolidate financial data from SCI, MoES, and subnational implementing partners.
- Prepare financial statements and donor-specific expenditure reports.
- Support management in presenting financial performance during joint review meetings.
- Oversee cash flow management for the STG project.
- Prepare fund requests, disbursement schedules, and cash forecasts.
- Ensure timely fund transfers to partners and districts.
- Monitor bank reconciliations and cash balances.
- Provide financial training, mentoring, and coaching to MoES finance and accounting staff.
- Support MoES in strengthening systems for budget tracking, expenditure monitoring, and reporting.
- Contribute to the development of simplified tools, templates, and SOPs for financial management.
- Work with MoES implementing units to ensure proper documentation, filing, and accountability for expenditures.
- Serve as the key financial focal point for the STG.
- Participate in joint planning, implementation, and review meetings.
- Provide technical inputs to ensure financial considerations are integrated into project design and decision-making processes.
- Identify, assess, and mitigate financial risks.
- Ensure compliance with SCI anti-fraud, anti-bribery, and safeguarding policies.
- Maintain complete and organized financial documentation to ensure audit readiness.
- Follow up on audit findings and ensure timely implementation of corrective actions.
Required Experience
- At least 7 years of relevant experience in financial management for large-scale donor-funded programs.
- Proven experience managing grants from multilateral donors (e.g., GPE, UNICEF, EU, World Bank, USAID).
- Strong knowledge of financial control systems, compliance standards, and audit requirements.
- Demonstrated ability to manage multiple budgets and complex financial reporting requirements.
Qualifications
• Bachelor or master’s degree in finance, accounting or any related field.
