Kyrgyzstan: Compliance and Finance Controller Intern - Kyrgyzstan

Department: Audit

Position: Compliance and Finance Controller Intern - Kyrgyzstan

Contract duration:**6 months**

Location: Kyrgyzstan

Starting Date ASAP

I. Background on ACTED

ACTED is a French humanitarian NGO, founded in 1993, which supports vulnerable populations, affected by humanitarian crises worldwide. ACTED provides continued support to vulnerable communities by ensuring the sustainability of post-crisis interventions and engaging long-term challenges facing our target populations, in order to break the poverty cycle, foster development and reduce vulnerability to disasters. Our interventions seek to cover the multiple aspects of humanitarian and development crises through a multidisciplinary approach which is both global and local, and adapted to each context. Our 3,300 staff is committed in to responding to emergencies worldwide, to supporting recovery and rehabilitation, towards sustainable development.

Our teams in the field implement some 340 projects in 34 countries covering the following sectors emergency relief, food security, access to health, education and training, economic development, microfinance, advocacy, institutional support, and regional dialogue, cultural promotion.

Based on considerable experience addressing the needs and situations of vulnerable communities, ACTED contributes to the international agenda towards reaching the Millennium Development Goals, through a wide range of partnerships, innovative initiatives, and campaigns.

II. Country Profile

Projects: 15

National staff: 184

International Staff: 11

Capital Office: Bishkek

Total number of direct beneficiaries: 758,095

Budget: 7,6 M Euros

ACTED has been active in Kyrgyzstan since 2000, and operates in the Jalalabat, Osh, Batken, and Naryn regions with a staff of over 150 people. ACTED in Kyrgyzstan contributes to poverty reduction by decreasing the impact of the world recession through adding value to labour migration, improving the food security of vulnerable people, supporting local initiatives for development, reducing the risks to natural disasters to decrease socio-economic damage and resolving cross border conflicts for stable socio-economic development.

In June 2010, a violent crisis broke out in the Ferghana valley, Southern Kyrgyzstan, whereby close to 1,900 houses were burnt and approximately 400,000 people were displaced. Following a year of providing predominantly emergency assistance, 2011 has seen ACTED Kyrgyzstan continue to give emergency aid while also assisting in the recovery phase of the country’s development. This has included involvement in health, education, and economic development – partly concerning food distributions and housing constructions for those whose homes were lost. Throughout, ACTED has supported the humanitarian agencies with REACH – an online interactive mapping tool that incorporates socioeconomic data and highlights potential sources of disputes.

Today, ACTED continues the shift from emergency and reconstruction towards peace-building, conflict mitigation, Disaster Risk Reduction and long term development working with local communities.

III. Position Profile

The Internal Audit Department has been created to provide for an independent assurance perspective with regard to all ACTED operations.

The Internal Audit has to be an independent and objective assurance activity designed to add value and improve the organization’s operations. Amongst many other things, Internal Audit helps to ensure that all assets and interests are properly protected from any loss or harm and that existing resources are used in the most economic and efficient way.

The procedure that integrates the information coming from the different departments in ACTED is called the FLAT. FLAT stands for Finance Logistics Administration Transparency. The FLAT aims at centralizing, integrating and harmonizing the information coming from Finance, Logistics, Administration and Programme for each project (including the Implementing Partner information).

It is crucial internally in terms of knowledge management for each project as this is the main source of information available for each stakeholder of a project. This is a valuable internal control tool.

Furthermore, the general aim behind FLAT is linked to audit of projects. FLAT folders are our main tool to be ready for audits by donors.

1. Supervise the whole FLAT process :

· Support the FLAT officer in compiling and filing all project related financial, logistics, administrative, and programme information in the designated project Compliance folder. During this time it should ensure that all Compliance folders are duplicated (photocopied) regularly with any arrival of a new document;

· Follow-up of the Compliance process at base level by ensuring the regular (fortnightly) transfer of the project(s) Compliance documentation to the capital office;

· At the end of the project, ensure the centralization of all Compliance folders at the Capital office;

· Facilitate the country Compliance review process once the project has been terminated and ensure the accurate documentation of costs/expenses allocations within the documentation;

· Submit the completed Compliance folder (final version) to Coordination once the Compliance review process has been completed and ensure that the Compliance folder is securely archived.

2.*\**Ensure the external audit preparation***

· Facilitate the preparation for country external audits and regularly update the Country Director, the Regional Audit Manager and the Audit Manager of the progress through the relevant follow-up memo;

3. Contribute to ACTED compliance and accountability:

· Provide timely supplementary quality control of the Compliance documentation by checking the accuracy and consistency of the information between the related documents and report discrepancies immediately to the department concerned for corrective action;

• Facilitate and report compliance of all audit recommendations/action plans under the authority of the Country Director and provide accurate feedback immediately;
• Conduct a quarterly market-price survey of the materials/services identified the current country market basket (frequently procured items/services). The data gathered should then be tabulated against the actual prices paid by ACTED in the transactions incurred during that month. The actual pricing should be retrieved from the contracts or payment vouchers filed in the Compliance folders.
• Comply with the Audit Department Code of conduct.

4. Reporting:

• Support the FLAT compliance officer in preparing a Monthly Compliance Report giving as much detail as possible for all existing projects that are ongoing and completed but are yet to be reviewed and submitted to the Regional Office. The Compliance report is both a narrative report and includes annexes with specific analytical information and should be submitted to both the country director and the regional audit team;
• Report the updates of the Compliance situation for all projects during the country compliance meetings.

Functions in terms of Finance Control

1. Cost Analysis:

· ACTED [Country]’s monthly running cost;

· Conduct a market survey upon the request of the CFM;

ð Monthly output (i): Memo on Presentation of [Country]’s cost analysis to CFM and Country Coordination for the decision making on control of costs.

2. Allocations Controls:

· Follow up of ACTED’s resources allocation on projects at country level;

· Cross-check of allocations with Human Resources and Logistics departments;

ð Monthly output (ii) Memo on Presentation of [Country]’s resources allocation to CFM and Country Coordination.

3. Budget and Financial Reports Controls

· Cross-check Saga, Budget Follow-up, Contract Follow-up, Debt follow up, etc.

· Review of Financial Report: accounting data, cross-check between annexes to the financial report and Saga (staff list, assets, stock, significant procurement contracts, crosscheck financial vs. narrative info, draft narrative financial report etc.).

ð Monthly ouput (iii): updated BFU/CFU/allocation tables submitted to CFM for approval.

4. Links with other departments

· Ensure that Log/HR procedures are respected (Payroll, Contract Follow-up, …)

· Reinforce links with these departments and create transversal follow up tools.

5. Funding Structure:

· Analysis of ACTED resources to be funded on new proposals;

IV. Qualifications:

• Postgraduate diploma in Finance/ Audit or International Relations

• Previous related work experience, preferably in the humanitarian field w/knowledge of finance and logistics

• Postgraduate diploma in relation to the position
•Excellent English writing and communication skills
• Ability to work efficiently under pressure
• Ability to work in an unstable security environment moving
•Willingness to work and live in often remote areas under basic conditions
• Ability to work independently and creatively about the land and capital

V. Conditions:

Field Intern benefits include: a 300 USD per month living allowance, coverage of all accommodation, food, guesthouse and travel costs, a luggage allowance of 50 kg, and the provision of medical, repatriation, and life insurance.

VI. Submission of applications:

Please send, in English, your cover letter, CV, and three references to jobs@acted.org

Ref: FLATI/KIRG/SA

For more information, visit us at http://www.acted.org

Please send, in English, your cover letter, CV, and three references to jobs@acted.org

Ref: FLATI/KIRG/SA

For more information, visit us at http://www.acted.org