Project Accountant at IITA - International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

Duties
Reporting, Audits and Filing:

• Prepare detailed monthly, quarterly and annual internal financial reports for supported projects and Initiatives highlighting issues on over/under expenditure, commitments and project end dates.
• Identify any incorrect entries and liaise with PM and PI for approval to pass adjusting journal entries in the system.
• Track donor reporting timelines to ensure timely preparation of reports.
• Use appropriate templates to prepare donor financial reports/statements in collaboration with PM and PIs for Finance Manager's (or designate) review.
• Raise invoices & follow-up on reimbursements and transfer advices from donors.
• Compute project accruals annually and during project close outs and ensure they are captured in the system at the right accounting period.
• Identify projects to be audited at least four months before scheduled start date and liaise with Finance Officer for planning.
• Work closely with internal and external auditors in facilitating effective project audits by availing required documents and responding to queries (in collaboration with the Finance Officer) to ensure all issues are resolved and clean (unqualified) report provided.
• Maintain proper financial records of projects - both soft and hard copies.
• Perform other post-award functions in relation to receivables and payables reconciliation, budget revisions and project closeout functions.

Collaborators Support and Accounting:

• Prepare projects payment requests for partners in collaboration with Project Manager (PM) and Project Leaders.
• Ensure project partners' financial reports are received on time and sample supporting documents are requested and reviewed for compliance with contractual obligations.
• Support in building the capacity of partners to enhance compliance to ILRI and donor guidelines.
• Make necessary follow-ups to ensure timely payments to collaborators and ensure transfer advices are shared.
• Enter partner expenditure in Agresso and ensure relevant supporting documents are uploaded.

Budgeting and Proposal Development:

• Provide advise, especially in unit costs etc. towards development of proposal budgets.
• Prepare proposal budgets for review by PM and Project Leader before submission to Finance Manager.
• Support PM during institutional budgeting.
• Share project budgets (in recommended format) for uploading on Agresso.
• Review BvA reports frequently and share proposals for budget adjustments.

Review of Staff and Consultant Payments:

• Review travel advance requests for compliance with ILRI policies.
• Review travel expense reports to ensure that supporting documents (attendance lists, payment lists, per diem calculator, trip reports, original receipts etc.) are attached.
• Ensure the validity and accuracy of all submitted receipts by periodically sampling receipts/payments and clarifying sampled expenses with vendors/ payees.
• Review consultant ToRs to ensure all proposed payments are legitimate and fully supported and making the necessary entries in the financial system.
• Prepare reports on status of project staff and consultant accounts for P(g)Ms review.

Qualifications

• MSc Degree in Accounting, Finance, or other relevant fields of study with a minimum of six (6) years’ experience performing similar role in a well-structured environment.
• Professional certifications such as ACA, ACCA, CPA is required.

Competencies
The ideal candidate must:

• Have a strong command of Microsoft Office suite.
• Have strong attention to details.
• Have knowledge of Computerized accounting software, preferably Agresso.
• Have experience in Project Finance Management.