Introduction:   

Church World Service (CWS) is a not-for-profit, faith-based organization transforming communities

 around the globe through just and sustainable solutions to hunger, poverty, displacement, and disaster.

 CWS does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, gender identity, genetic  

 information, age, disability, or veteran status in employment or in the provision of services.

The Grants Finance Officer is responsible for providing overall financial management, budgeting and

forecasting, preparation of donor reports, and operational support across CWS projects in DRC The

position holder contributes to maintaining internal controls and compliance with CWS and donor

requirements. The role holder will work closely with the Regional Finance and Grants Manager and project

teams to support accurate and timely financial processes. S/he will build a business partner relationship

with project implementation Teams and relevant managers in order to gain a thorough understanding of

the projects, as well as manage their challenges and expectations. The role holder will backstop the project

teams with administrative tasks, ensuring efficient operational capacity during project implementation.

This position reports administratively to the program manager with technical supervision by the Regional

Finance and Grants Manager.

Key relationships:

Internal to CWS

• Project team members in the field.
• CWS Humanitarian and Development Team
• CWS Admin and operations team
• Other team members in the programs team

External

• Vendors
• Communities
• Any other Partners in relation to his/her capabilities

Work Environment

• Office environment, Periodic travel to other field project locations as may be required.

Financial and Budget Management (25%)

• Contribute to Business Development unit by participating in concept and proposal development process and ensure that Proposal Budgets for new projects are prepared in line with CWS and donor specifications.
• Assist in the preparation of grant and project budgets in collaboration with finance and program teams.
• In consultation with the Regional Finance and Grants Manager, ensure project expenses are reasonable, allocable, and prudent and spent in accordance with the donor’s rules and regulations.
• Create accurate forecasts and manage expenses according to spending plans
• Periodically monitor the Project Budgets Performance through BVA Analysis and ensure that performance is within the expected ranges
• Monitor project expenditures against approved budgets and flag variances for review.
• Support in preparing donor financial reports and forecasts, ensuring consistency with approved budgets.

Grant Compliance and Reporting (20%)

• Support the development of guidelines, templates, and toolkits to ensure timely submission of narrative and financial donor reports
• Liaise with project implementation team to prepare and submit periodic (Monthly, Quarterly etc) high quality programmatic and financial reports.
• Maintain grant files, including coordination and preparation of documents and files for internal and external audits.
• Monitor financial exceptions reports for unusual activities or transaction, investigate anomalies and report to the supervisor conclusions and/or present recommendations for actions/decisions
• In coordination with the Regional Office, Facilitate CWS DRC internal audits, Statutory audit and project-specific audits and take guide on the implementation of recommendations.

Finance Operations (25%)

• Process all payments as per policies, e.g., supplier payments, staff advances, payroll deductions, and partner disbursements.
• Prepare monthly reconciliations to determine cash movement to facilitate refunds/reimbursements from regional office/donor.
• Prepare monthly bank reconciliations
• Review and verify financial transactions, activities, and documentation; taking corrective actions as needed and reporting any unusual activities
• Monitor cash balances per project and per donor and the respective forecast.
• Review of financial controls and liaise with Regional Finance to update policies and procedures as needed.
• Monitor and proper follow up of all the financial items in Month-end and Year-end closure instructions.
• Provide inputs and take necessary actions to facilitate timely financial project closure.
• Ensure the maintenance of up-to-date financial and administrative data in appropriate systems (Sylogist, Coupa etc.) including grant budgets, internal agreements, implementing partner agreements, etc.
• Reviews travel expense reports to ensure they are prepared correctly according to the relevant SOPs.

Administration and Procurement (30%)

• Supervise the Administrative Assistant, the Drivers and the Janitor. This will include preparation of annual performance reviews of supervised staff.
• In coordination with Regional Procurement team, Support procurement processes, including preparing requests for proposals, analysing submissions and awarding contracts in collaboration with the project team.
• Participate as required in procurement tender review committees per the set thresholds
• Review and maintain annual vehicle insurances, road licenses including routine maintenance of all CWS vehicles and equipment.
• In coordination with CWS driver, Maintains the vehicle activity schedule and ensures that all transport needs for the office are met
• Maintain an inventory of CWS property and ensure that adequate security is in place against theft or damage.
• Act as the point of contact for travel and logistics for the CWS team.
• Incoordination with the program manager, ensure there is adequate staff security and care

Additional Responsibilities (5%)

• Any other duties as assigned.

Experience:

• A minimum of 5 years of paid work experience directly related specialized experience performing the essential duties in grants and finance is required.
• Demonstrable experience in managing staff, and systems / process development experience required.
• Experience in the Non-Governmental sector is preferred.
• Proficiency in English and Swahili languages is an added advantage 

Skills:

• Knowledge of Excel spreadsheets, Sylogist, Coupa or similar accounting software.
• Knowledge in fund and accrual accounting principles.
• Excellent organizational and time management skills
• Excellent writing and oral communication skills.
• Good interpersonal skills.
• Strong computer skills, in particular Microsoft Excel, Word, and Outlook required.

Education & Certifications:

• Bachelor of Commerce degree, Accounting option required

Abilities:

The Grants Finance Officer must have the ability to:

• Follow instructions from the Supervisor with a positive and receptive attitude.
• Deal effectively and courteously with many associates, outside agencies, applicants, and members of the public.
• maintain the confidentiality and integrity of accounts and budget information;
• exercise good judgement and seek guidance as appropriate when confronted with unanticipated problems;
• Conduct oneself in a professional and courteous manner to represent the best interests of CWS Africa
• Maintain a high-performance standard with attention to detail.
• Carry out all the duties efficiently and effectively with minimal supervision.
• Take initiative in the development and completion of projects.
• Maintain strict confidentiality with CWS Africa administrative and operational information.
• Manage a large and diverse workload under pressure with competing priorities.
• Ability to work in a multi-cultural environment required while maintaining a high level of motivation,
• Effectively manage CWS Africa's resources.
• Maintain the integrity of official records.
• Analyse and solve complex problems and make sound decisions.
• Work independently and contribute to overall operations of CWS.
• Communicate in English, both written and oral.
• Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and willingness to support CWS’ Platform on Racial Justice as a CWS employee required.

Important Requirements:

• Strong English communication skills, both written and oral.
• Ability to work in a multi-cultural environment required.
• Remain alert and responsive to any child safeguarding and PSEAH (Prevention of Sexual, Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment) risks, acquire relevant knowledge and skills which will enable you to promote strong safeguarding PSEAH practices, understand the child safeguarding and PSEAH Policies and procedures, and conduct yourself in a manner consistent with the Child Safeguarding and PSEAH Policies.

• The candidate should be in good health, willing and able to travel extensively in often difficult conditions, and have a high degree of flexibility. Must have proof of Yellow Fever vaccination before traveling for CWS
• This position is based in Kananga, Kasai Centrale DRC.
• This position requires use of laptops at all time, competence in Microsoft office packages is required.
• This position may require travel in sub-Saharan Africa on short notice and under sometimes difficult conditions to meet demands of a dynamic operational program.
• Background check which includes references, and an educational and criminal check is required before the start of employment.
• A valid passport and the ability to maintain a valid passport throughout the entire appointment is required, which includes having enough passport pages for travel.
• (Internationals - International applicants must be legally eligible to work and obtain a work permit in (Kenya) OR A valid U.S. passport and the ability to maintain a valid U.S. passport throughout the entire appointment is required, which includes having enough passport pages for travel.
• Physical: This position requires bending, squatting, crawling, climbing, kneeling, sitting, standing, walking, pushing/pulling, handling objects (manual dexterity), reaching above shoulder level, using fine finger movements and lifting/carrying heavy loads.
• Environmental: Incumbents in this position will be exposed to excessive noise, marked changes in temperature and/or humidity, dust and infectious diseases, harsh weather climates, long work hours, bumpy roads, extended travel, excessive sun exposure, and non-ventilated spaces.
• The US Embassy rates DRC rates as security level 4; incumbents should exercise high level security precaution.
• This position is Full time
• All employees should be prepared to work from the CWS office within their location of hire. Remote work arrangements may vary depending on location and the governing rulings regarding the prevailing context.