Finance / Accounts Officer at Sahel Capital

Reports to: Chief of Party (CoP)
Travel: Limited travel across project States in Nigeria

About the Program

• Sahel, in collaboration with other partners, seeks to catalyze the local dairy sector in Nigeria in an inclusive way through a program that will improve the livelihoods, productivity, nutrition, and empowerment of smallholder female dairy farmers and the communities in which they live. The program will span 5 years and will:
• Advocate for an enabling environment for local sourcing through engagements with the government and relevant private sector stakeholders.
• Increase demand for locally sourced milk through partnerships with dairy processors currently or interested in sourcing locally.
• Improve smallholder dairy farmers’ productivity by increasing their access to technical support services and appropriate inputs.
• Empower women dairy farmers and enable them to improve their livelihoods and that of their households.
• Improve nutrition outcomes among smallholder dairy households through innovations in food systems.

Duties and Responsibilities
The Accountant’s primary responsibilities are outlined below. The Accountant is however expected to perform any tasks that are necessary within the context of the evolving needs of the program:

• Financial Management & Oversight: Establish and maintain sound and transparent accounting and fiscal control procedures for internal operations and sub-award and contracts. Ensure compliance of financial and operations systems with Sahel policies and procedures, donor rules and regulation, terms and conditions, award requirements, and the laws of the Government of Nigeria (including PAYE, VAT, Withholding Tax, Pension, and NHF).
• Budgeting: Manage the program annual budget development process that includes managing the annual work plan, life-of-project and activity budgets and ensuring compliance of program expenditures with approved budgets; ensure the consistency, inclusion and accuracy of costs and compliance with agreed policy and practices, and work with staff in developing budgets for technical activities as necessary. Revise overall and sub-budgets as needed throughout the work plan year.
• Cash Flow Management: Manage the program’s cash flow and prepare cash flow forecasts on a regular basis. Maintain complete and accurate supporting documentation for all financial transactions
• Reporting: Compute key business metrics and provide weekly, monthly and quarterly reports to management; create additional analyses and reports as requested. Prepare and submit periodic financial and accrual reports to the funding partners as required by the contract. Contribute to the development of high-quality work plans, quarterly and annual reports, financial reports, and any other reports required by the donor.
• Grant Management: Work with Accountant on the administration of all grants, leases, contracts, and other financial obligations.
• Compliance and Risk Management: Ensure that strong internal control systems are in place. Actively monitor all systems and ensure that staff act in full compliance with the terms and conditions of contract/award and donor requirements, local laws, and Sahel policies and standard operating procedures. Assist the Chief of Party to conduct regular and thorough operational risk assessments in country, and monitor success of risk mitigation and risk control activities. Coordinate execution of financial reviews or audits and ensure timely follow up to review or audit conclusions and recommendations in close collaboration with the project team.
• Administration: Supervise other program-based finance and accounting staff. Ensure appropriate segregation of duties in all procurement and payment activities from initiation to final payment. Handle the acquisition of capital assets and ensure they are properly recorded, amortized, and disposed of as appropriate.

Minimum Required Skills & Experience
Professional Qualifications:

• Degree in Accounting, Finance, Economics, Business Administration or related field is strongly preferred.
• 5+ years of relevant experience in administrative and financial management,

Technical Expertise:

• Knowledge in generally accepted accounting, budgeting and fiscal control principles.
• Experience with preparing financial reports for development partners
• Relevant skills in automated accounting software systems and database spreadsheets
• Experience in tax and audit preparation according to Nigerian laws
• Experience building capacity in financial management of, and demonstrated ability to create and maintain effective working relations with partner organizations

Communication & Interpersonal Skills:

• Ability to translate complex financial concepts to individuals at all levels including finance and non-finance managers and team members.
• Fluency in the English language, and excellent writing and presentation skills
• Personal Characteristics and Other Requirements:
• Excellent judgement. Ability to understand current issues quickly and make wise decisions
• Ability to work under pressure, plan personal workload effectively and delegate
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook.