Finance Officer at Search For Common Ground’s International

Position Summary

• Search for Common Ground seeks a Finance Officer to offer financial support. This role involves close collaboration with the Admin & Logistics department and the finance team to maintain accurate records. Additionally, the Finance Officer will liaise with the housekeeping staff to ensure the office operates smoothly.
• The position holder will be responsible for a range of bookkeeping responsibilities as well as providing support on finance and project budget management functions. Carrying out and recording relevant financial transactions as well as coordinating the financial coding of these transactions will all be part of your daily routine. You will oversee the maintenance and reconciliation of bank records and, as SFCG receives funding from a number of donors. You will also be responsible for maintaining ledgers and contributing to the regular financial reporting.

This position is based in Plateau, Nigeria with frequent field visits.

Roles and Responsibilities

Major duties and responsibilities

• Support the Finance Lead in effective financial management of the project.
• Ensure proper documentation of vouchers and receipts, financial reporting, proper coding of expenses, distribution of payments, tracking petty cash distribution and bank deposits;
• Work closely with the Admin and Logistics unit to ensure timely payments for goods and services rendered to SFCG;
• Support Finance Lead to strengthen financial and accounting systems - identifying gaps, weaknesses, and issues and recommending and implementing solutions;
• Ensure compliance with SFCG and donor accounting requirements.
• Undertake regular reconciliation and other expenditure and income, according to agreed timeframes and standards.
• Collaborate with SFCG finance teams in order to fulfill payments and other project expenditure.
• Ensure that all expenditure is charged to the correct budget line.
• Liaise with the Finance Lead to ensure smooth and proper coordination related to regular payments and purchases
• Ensure overall financial compliance and management within the office,
• Follow up with a partner for financial tracking and spending rate
• Conduct internal verification within the office to ensure cost eligibility and compliance
• Maintain regular communication and provide support to finance teams of Search’s partner
• Support the reporting process by ensuring all documents supporting transactions are collated, reviewed, and reconciled before submission to the Finance Lead for upload to the system.
• Support the Finance Lead to maintain a tracker of all subcontracts and other activities under grants.
• Review and monitor budget performance by analyzing variances between approved budgets and actual expenditures.
• Manage transactions effectively and efficiently to ensure quality reporting.
• Carries out tasks in support of assigned activities, such as photocopying, processing paperwork, and organizing meetings.
• As job descriptions cannot be exhaustive, the position holder may be required to undertake other duties that are broadly in line with the above key duties.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting & Finance. An ICAN/ANAN Certification plus Master’s Degree in Accounting would be an added advantage.

Required Experience

• 3-5 years ́ professional experience providing finance, administrative, logistical and/or operational support
• Experience working in an NGO or civil society is a plus
• Experience working with little or no supervision

Other Relevant Requirements

• Proven interest & commitment to humanitarian and development principles and a demonstrable understanding of conflict/post conflict development contexts
• Excellent in English (oral and written)
• Ability to plan, organize work, communicate and reports effectively (both in writing and verbally)
• Proven ability to prioritize tasks and meet deadlines; team player and effective communicator,
• Strong IT skills (Email, Microsoft Office applications, Google Drive, Google Docs, Sheets, Presentation).
• Good reporting capacity and experience
• Ability to function effectively under stressful conditions such as heavy workloads, and deadlines.