Finance Officer at African Youth for Peace Development and Empowerment (AFRYDEV)

Position Overview

• The Finance Officer supports day-to-day financial operations including transaction processing, record-keeping, payment management, financial reporting, and ensuring compliance with financial policies and procedures.

Key Responsibilities
Financial Transactions:

• Process and record all financial transactions accurately: Ensure that all income, expenditures, transfers, and adjustments are entered into the accounting system (e.g., QuickBooks, Sage, or SAP) on a daily basis with correct codes, dates, and descriptions.
• Prepare payment vouchers and ensure proper documentation: Generate payment vouchers for all approved expenditures, attaching all necessary supporting documents (invoices, receipts, delivery notes, contracts, approval forms) before submission for authorization.
• Maintain cash books, bank reconciliations, and ledgers; Keep up-to-date cash books and general ledgers; perform weekly and monthly bank reconciliations to ensure that all transactions match bank statements and identify any discrepancies.
• Process vendor payments and staff reimbursements: Prepare and process payments to suppliers, contractors, and service providers within agreed payment terms; also process staff travel advances, per diem claims, and other reimbursements upon submission of approved retirement reports.
• Ensure all transactions comply with financial policies: Cross-check every transaction against the organization’s financial manual, donor guidelines, and local statutory requirements (tax, pension, VAT) before processing.
• Maintain organized filing system for financial documents: File all financial documents (vouchers, receipts, bank statements, contracts) in both physical and electronic formats in a logical, labeled, and secure manner for easy retrieval during audits or reviews.

Budget Management:

• Track budget utilization across project activities: Monitor actual expenditures against approved budgets on a weekly or monthly basis, ensuring that spending aligns with work plans and activity timelines.
• Monitor expenditures against approved budgets: Review all requisitions and payment requests to confirm that sufficient budget balances exist before processing; flag any proposed spending that exceeds budget lines.
• Prepare budget vs. actual reports: Generate regular (monthly/quarterly) budget versus actual (BvA) reports showing variances by cost category, activity code, and donor funding line.
• Flag budget variances and over-expenditures: Identify and report any significant positive or negative variances (e.g., overspending or underspending) to the Finance Manager immediately, with clear explanations and recommendations for corrective action.
• Support budget revision processes: Assist the Finance Manager in preparing budget realignment or revision requests for donor approval by providing historical spending data and forecasting future needs.
• Assist in preparing activity budgets: Work with program staff to develop realistic activity-level budgets for trainings, distributions, events, and field visits, ensuring cost-effectiveness and compliance with donor rules.

Financial Reporting:

• Prepare monthly financial reports: Compile and produce accurate monthly financial statements including income and expenditure reports, balance sheets, and cash flow summaries for internal management use.
• Compile financial data for donor reports: Extract and organize financial data from the accounting system to support the preparation of donor financial reports, ensuring alignment with budget lines and reporting templates.
• Assist in preparation of audit documents: Organize and prepare all financial records, supporting documents, and schedules required for internal and external audits; respond to auditor queries as directed.
• Generate financial statements and summaries: Produce periodic financial summaries (monthly, quarterly, annually) showing overall project financial health, including outstanding advances, commitments, and available balances.
• Maintain financial reporting schedules: Keep a clear schedule of all reporting deadlines (donor, government, internal) and ensure that required financial reports are prepared and submitted on time.
• Support external audit processes: Liaise with external auditors during field visits by providing requested documentation, explaining transactions, and ensuring that audit recommendations are tracked and implemented.

Cash and Banking:

• Manage petty cash and cash advances: Oversee the petty cash fund, including timely replenishment, secure storage, and proper documentation of all petty cash expenditures; also manage staff cash advances, ensuring timely retirement and follow-up on outstanding advances.
• Process bank transactions and transfers: Prepare bank transfer instructions, cheques, and other payment instruments; ensure that all bank transactions are properly authorized and recorded.
• Conduct cash counts and reconciliations: Perform weekly and unannounced physical cash counts for petty cash and operational cash boxes; reconcile counts with records and report any discrepancies immediately.
• Prepare cash requisitions and retirement reports: Prepare cash replenishment requests based on projected needs; review and verify staff retirement reports for accuracy and completeness before processing final settlements.
• Monitor bank balances and cash flow: Track daily bank balances and forecast cash flow requirements to ensure that sufficient funds are available for planned activities without holding excessive idle cash.
• Maintain banking documentation: Keep an organized file of all bank correspondence, statements, cheque books, transfer confirmations, and signature mandate updates.

Compliance and Controls:

• Ensure compliance with financial procedures: Verify that every financial transaction follows the organization’s internal controls, donor regulations (e.g., ECHO, EU, USAID), and Nigerian financial laws (tax, pension, NSITF).
• Verify supporting documents for all transactions: Check that each transaction has complete, valid, and approved supporting documents (e.g., invoices, receipts, LPOs, delivery notes, minutes of procurement committee).
• Implement internal control measures: Apply segregation of duties, dual authorization for payments, and regular spot checks to prevent errors, fraud, or misappropriation.
• Flag potential financial risks or irregularities: Identify and report any unusual transactions, missing documentation, unauthorized spending, or signs of financial mismanagement to the Finance Manager immediately.
• Support internal and external audits: Provide auditors with access to records and explanations; implement agreed audit recommendations to strengthen financial controls.
• Maintain audit trails: Ensure that every transaction has a clear, documented trail from initial request to final payment and recording, allowing any transaction to be traced and verified.

Support Functions:

• Assist in procurement documentation: Support the procurement process by verifying financial documentation (e.g., quotations, invoices, payment terms) and ensuring that procurement complies with budget availability and donor rules.
• Support payroll processing: Assist in calculating monthly staff salaries, deductions (PAYE, pension, NHF), and allowances; ensure timely remittance of statutory deductions to relevant authorities.
• Maintain fixed asset register: Keep an up-to-date register of all project assets (laptops, vehicles, furniture, equipment) with details of purchase date, cost, location, condition, and disposal.
• Coordinate with program staff on financial matters: Work closely with program teams to provide budget updates, clarify financial policies, and support activity planning to ensure financial feasibility.
• Provide financial information as requested: Respond promptly to internal and external requests for financial data, including ad-hoc analysis, donor queries, or management requests.
• Archive financial records properly:At the end of each month or project phase, securely archive all financial documents (physical and electronic) according to the organization’s retention policy and donor requirements, ensuring they are protected from loss, damage, or unauthorized access.

Required Qualifications and Experience
Education:

• Bachelor's Degree / HND in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or related field; Professional qualification (ICAN, ACCA) is an advantage

Experience:

• Minimum 3 years in accounting or finance roles
• Experience in NGO or development sector (preferred)
• Experience with donor-funded projects (advantage)
• Experience with accounting software
• Understanding of financial regulations and compliance
• Experience in Northeast Nigeria (preferred)

Technical Skills:

• Strong knowledge of accounting principles and practices
• Proficiency in accounting software (QuickBooks, Tally)
• Advanced MS Excel skills
• Knowledge of financial regulations and donor requirements
• Report preparation and analysis
• Attention to detail and accuracy

Required Competencies:

• High integrity and ethical standards
• Excellent numerical and analytical skills
• Strong attention to detail
• Organizational and time management
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines
• Team player with good communication skills
• Proactive and problem-solving
• Confidentiality and trustworthiness

Specific Contextual Requirements:

• Understanding of NGO financial management
• Familiarity with Nigerian tax and financial regulations
• Ability to work in resource-constrained environment
• Willingness to occasionally travel to field sites
• Fluency in English; Hausa is an advantage.

Benefits

• Salary: Competitive, commensurate with experience
• As per AFRYDEV organizational policy (includes health insurance, pension contribution, and annual leave).