Project Administration, Finance and Accounting Officer (PAFCO)

Background

The Hailemariam & Roman Foundation (HRF) is a non-profit international NGO established by the Former Prime Minister of Ethiopia, H.E. Mr. Hailemariam Dessalegn & the Former First Lady of Ethiopia, H.E. Mrs. Roman Tesfaye. It strives to support the efforts of government, communities and partners in bringing socioeconomic transformation in Ethiopia and the broader continental Africa.

With its programmatic focus areas- maternal & child health and nutrition, climate-smart conservation and ecotourism, agricultural transformation, and economic empowerment of women and youth, synergizing each other, the foundation envisions seeing A healthy and economically empowered community in a well-conserved environment. Geographically, its support focuses on areas with the highest disparities where the foundation could add value.

Job summary

The Climate Smart Conservation and Ecotourism (CSCET) program of HRF is a flagship initiative with the main goal of ensuring collaborative and community-based response measures towards addressing the two interrelated problems of biodiversity loss and lack of secure community livelihoods in a way that mitigates the persistence of both anthropogenic and climatic impacts on the biodiversity stock. To attain this goal, the program adheres to a community-based sustainable conservation approach whereby local communities and their institutions work closely with the park officials while ensuring sustainable benefits from their conservation endeavors by creating various alternative livelihoods, including ecotourism. Ultimately, the program work is meant to create as many alternative livelihood strategies as possible for all of the community members around the national parks who depend on these resources to support their living (food, fuel, fodder, etc.) and empower them to be in full charge of protecting the resources from further depletion.

The Maze conservation and community livelihoods project, entitled The Preservation of Maze National Park and its Watershed in Ethiopia is a five-year (2024-2028) project fully funded by the Agence franaise de dveloppement (AFD) and implemented by Hailemariam & Roman Foundation (HRF). The project is aimed at ensuring the long-term integrity of Maze National Park for the benefit of nature and communities around the park with three key components: a) Maze National Park (NP) is functional and achieves its conservation objectives; b) a win-win approach regarding natural resources management is in place between communities and the park; and c) the water flow in the park's rivers is ensured and sufficient. For the implementation of this project, HRF has set up a project Management Unit (PMU) located in Maze NP, Morka Town, Gamo Zone. The PMU has been set up to coordinate the implementation of the five-year project through mobilizing and engaging local communities, park management, local government offices, and other relevant partners towards the realization of the stated project goal.

Effective implementation of this project calls for a project management unit whose internal administrative and financial works are led by a professional staff that can deliver timely and diligent supporting services to the project staff and other stakeholders in line with the project document and project implementation manual, as well as HRFs HR policy. Thus, a Project Administration, Finance and Accounting Officer, directly reporting to the Project Coordinator concerning internal administration and to the HRFs Finance and Operations Department in terms of financial management, is responsible for the administration of human, physical and financial resources of the project management unit while providing support services to the project coordinator and the PMU staff. The Project Administration, Finance and Accounting Officer (PAFAO) is responsible for two sets of activities. He/she is entitled to organize and manage the human resource profile, documents, archives, related performance-related evidence, staff personal files and transactions, and manages the office facilities, hardwires, spaces, and inventories. In this regard, the officer directly reports to the project coordinator. Second, the officer is a project accountant and manages the project cash flow and documents, which he/she receives directly from HRFs headquarters or HRFs Finance and operations department. In terms of financial management, the officer is required to work directly with and report to the HRFs finance and operations head while providing complete and the same evidence and copy of financial reports to the project coordinator.

Specific roles and responsibilities of the Project Administration, Finance and Accounting Officer

• Prepare financial and physical resource demands for internal works of the project office and implement upon approval by the HRFs HQ.
• Organize human resource documentation and files for project staff and manage it accordingly
• Prepare a conducive workplace, office spaces, and facilities for the project staff.
• Prepare necessary financial documents for proper and authentic utilization of the project finance.
• Prepare payment vouchers and documents to utilize project finance as acquired from the HQ.
• Undertake withdrawals from designated project bank and issue payments for salaries and project recurrent costs upon approval by the project coordinator.
• Facilitate the timely completion of performance appraisal of each staff by the project coordinator and record the findings, as per the HRFs HR policy.
• Organize project archive for easy retrieval and document reference.
• Manage and control the deployment and efficient use of project vehicles, adhering to the HRFs asset management guidelines.
• Prepare and submit periodic financial reports to the HRF HQ.
• Undertake other assignments as assigned by the PC and the Finance and Operations Department of HRF.

Job duties:

• The job holder should work in line with the New Labor Proclamation - Proclamation No. 1156/2019, at least eight hours daily (Monday to Friday). The position requires physical presence in the workplace (Gamo Zone, Kucha Wereda, Moka Town).

Quantity: 1

Sex: Both and female candidates are encouraged to apply.

Duration of contract: for one year with the possibility of extension.

Vacancy number: HRF- CSCET-PO-002/2024

Required qualifications and competencies

• The Project Administration, Finance and Accounting Officer (PAFAO) must have a Masters in Accounting and Finance, Financial Management, or Business Management, with 4 years of relevant experience, or a BA degree in one of the fields mentioned-above of studies with 10 years of proven experience in project accounting.
• Experience in human resource management, documentation, inventory management, and office management.
• Excellent facilitation and coordination skills, the ability to manage the timely and effective delivery of quantity and quality work on time.
• Familiar with and working efficiently on Office 360 and other project management software, as well as Accounting and Finance using smart technologies.
• Strong communication and presentation skills and an ability to prepare appropriate and timely reports.
• Proven command of written and spoken English and being conversant with the local language of the project area community and culture is mandatory.