Finance and Grants Manager

In the 19th century, that meant connecting people and trade by building roads and railways. In the 20th century, it meant building the capacity of national governments to meet their citizens’ needs, managing funds to support service delivery in difficult contexts and delivering world-class humanitarian aid. In the 21st century, we’re continuing that work and investigating the potential of frontier technologies to accelerate the pace of change for our partners.

BACKGROUND

The Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) network aims to determine and track the causes of under-five mortality and stillbirths through epidemiologic surveillance, including reporting within 24 hours, clinical sampling, and use of advanced laboratory testing and diagnostics across a network of international sites. The area selected for CHAMPS in Sierra Leone is Bombali Sebora and Bombali Siari chiefdoms in Bombali district (population 606,544). The site area has a population of 161,383 and is mostly urban, including the city of Makeni (population 125,970). 

The Minimal Invasive Tissue Sampling (MITS) procedure used by CHAMPS was developed to reduce the uncertainty regarding causes of death. The data collected from the CHAMPS Sierra Leone site will be added to that collected from other sites and will help reduce child deaths in LMICs by providing detailed evidence on the cause of death to influence policy of funders and stakeholders. 

Over the last year Crown Agents in Sierra Leone (CAiSL) has played the role of a Fiscal and Procurement Agent and provided management oversight to the Implementing Partners (IPs) for the CHAMPS Site in Sierra Leone. Crown Agents recently hired a Site Director for the CHAMPS project, who will act as the Team Leader, to manage the implementation of the programme and provide technical oversight to all CHAMPS activities.  

Finance and Grants Manager CHAMPS (Based in Makeni – One Position)

This is a 12 months’ position and will be based in Maken with frequent travels to Bo and Freetown. Reporting to the CHAMPS Director. The job holder would design the operation of grant financial management arrangements, in line with donor’s requirements and Crown Agents’ policies. Establish effective control mechanism to manage risks associated with financial disbursements and to support value for money for donor. You will be responsible to conduct financial assessments of grant applicants prior to grant signature, including scrutiny of budgets and financial plans. You will be responsible for delivering capacity building and technical assistance to grantees in financial management. Support the submission of all key deliverables to project milestones in a timely, quality assured and cost-effective manner. Develop, processes, manuals, and templates for financial reporting produce guidelines for the implementation partners. Set up the financial regulations and procedures for the CHAMPS programme and regularly manage, review, and satisfy the integrity of cashbook and other transactional records. Carry out and monitor financial planning, forecasting, budgeting, and controls of operational expenditure. Report regularly to Team Leader and Project Manager on financial progress and positions monthly. Ensure all payments are consistent with programme contract terms and that all IPs disbursements are consistent with the IPs’ contracts Coordinate the disbursement of funds to IPs, and prepare monthly disbursement forecast to be submitted to donor covering the next month (99% accurate) and subsequent months (based on IP forecasts). Regularly assess the financial risks of IPs based on quarterly reports and financial submissions, and recommend, where appropriate, remedial actions. Conduct financial audit of implementing partners where and when appropriate. You will review the CHAMPS petty cash reconciliations. Ensure accuracy of disbursement forecasting and regularly assess and verify financial expenditures of fund recipients.

Requirements.

Finance and Accounting qualification or Masters, with minimum of 5 years’ experience in project finances, accounting, and reporting. Experience in grants management, specifically working with CSOs/NGOs multiple national and local stakeholders. Demonstratable ability to support and motivate partner organisations and provide capacity building and supervision to meet needs. Ability to manage project budget and oversee partners to manage their own budgets including forecasting, expenditure in line with agreed budget and timely financial reporting. Ability to review partner financial reports, invoices, back up and liaise with partners to ensure expenditure is fully accounted for in line with requirements. Excellent interpersonal and communication skill. Able to meet tight deadlines within a fast-paced setting. Must possess excellent organizational skills and attention to detail. Willingness to work extended hours, as required and the ability to work in a diverse team. 

Interested candidates can apply by sending their updated curriculum vitae to the Email Address Below: 

sierraleonerecruitment@crownagents.co.uk Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

The closing date for receiving applications will be 5th January 2024. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. Please note that ONLY shortlisted candidates will be contacted for interviews.