UN Finance Assistant Job in Kenya,Salary over Ksh200,000

United Nations Core Values: Integrity, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity

Org. Setting and Reporting

The United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON) is the UN headquarters in Africa and the respective office of the Secretary-General. UNON supports programme implementation of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the UN Human Settlements Programme UN HABITAT) globally, as well as other UN offices in Kenya, by providing administrative, conference and information services www.unon.org).This post is located in the office of Budget and Financial Management Services (BFMS), Division of Administrative Services (DAS). Under the direct supervision of the incumbent will be responsible for:

Responsibilities

ACCOUNTING and PAYROLL:
1. Process financial documents in line with the financial rules and regulations; 2. Review and analyze various accounting data and assist in the review and analysis of financial statements; 3. Scrutinize supporting documents for completeness, accuracy and validity of requests in line with applicable policies, procedure, rules and regulations; 4. Verify accuracy of postings and process corrections as appropriate; 5. Analyse open item managed accounts (OIM) in the ERP system (Umoja) and initiate corrective action and processing of returned/rejected payroll payments; 6. Perform Payroll comparison and data validation of simulation runs (in HANA Payroll Analysis Tool); Prepare Payroll data for monthly mass upload files (direct payroll deductions/payments); 7. Reconcile and review suspense accounts and ensure proper clearance procedures have been followed; 8. Audit various accounting transactions, e.g., payroll, education grants, final payments, income tax returns, etc. to ensure correctness of disbursement and adherence to relevant staff rules, financial regulations and rules, ST/AI issuances or practices.

BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION:
1. Provide information to Pension Fund participants and beneficiaries on participation entitlements and benefits; 2. Prepare pension Separation Notifications and route them to the Pension Fund’s secretariat; 3. Prepare responses to the annual Pension Fund exception report; 4. Prepare Pension Fund year end schedules; 5. Monitor all insurance transactions including those involving participants not on Headquarter payroll but covered under Headquarters insurance plans; 6. Coordinate together with HRMS, activities in connection with the Annual Insurance Enrolment Campaign.

GENERAL:
1. Prepare and analyse reports with a view to identifying anomalies and unusual trends and recommend corrective action as appropriate; 2. Perform data extraction and prepare various reports for management review; 3. Respond to queries and draft correspondence to clients and other stakeholders in a timely and effective manner; 4. Ensure that accurate and complete accounting, reporting and internal control systems are in place and functioning; 5. Ensure that all relevant records and audit trails are maintained; 6. Act as deputy to team leader and back up for other team members; 7. Performs other related duties as required.

Competencies

PROFESSIONALISM: Knowledge of, and ability to apply financial rules, regulations and procedures in the UN environment. Knowledge, skills and ability to extract, interpret, analyse and format data across the full range of finance and accounting functions. Ability to identify and resolve data discrepancies and operational problems. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of work.

TEAMWORK: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

ACCOUNTABILITY: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent is required. Additional qualification in finance, administration or project management is highly desired. Good knowledge of SAP Excel, Access and other analytical tools would be an asset. Must pass the United Nations Administrative Support Test (ASAT) or the Global General Service Test (GGST) at Headquarters or at Offices Away from Headquarters (OAHs).

Work Experience

A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in finance, budget or related area. Working experience with the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and finance system such as Oracle or SAP and experience with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in oral and written English is required. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is an advantage.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

Notes: This is a temporary job opening. Appointment against this post is for a limited duration of 364 days and not carry any expectancy, legal or otherwise, of renewal.

A current staff member who holds a fixed-term, permanent or continuing appointment may apply for temporary positions no more than one level above his or her current grade. However, a current staff member who holds an appointment at the G-6 or G-7 level may also apply to temporary positions in the Professional category up to and including the P-3 level, subject to meeting all eligibility and other requirements for the position. A staff member holding a temporary appointment shall be regarded as an external candidate when applying for other positions, and may apply for other temporary positions at any level, subject to section 5.7 below and staff rule 4.16 (b) (ii). Therefore, a staff member holding a temporary appointment in the General Service or related categories may only apply to positions within those categories. For full information on eligibility requirements, please refer to section 5 of ST/AI/2010/4Rev.1 on Temporary Appointments. In its resolution 66/234, the General Assembly further “stressed that the Secretary-General should not recur to the practice of temporarily filling posts in the Professional and higher categories with General Service staff members who have not passed the General Service to Professional category examination other than on an exceptional basis, and requests the Secretary-General to ensure that temporary occupation of such posts by the General Service staff shall not exceed a period of one year, effective 1 January 2013…” Consequently, eligible candidates in the General Service or related categories for temporary job openings in the Professional category that have not passed the competitive examination may be selected only on an exceptional basis endorsed by the Office of Human Resources Management where no other suitable candidate could be identified.

Upon separation from service, including, but not limited to, expiration or termination of, or resignation from, a fixed-term, continuing or permanent appointment, a former staff member will be ineligible for re-employment on the basis of a temporary appointment for a period of 31 days following the separation. In the case of separation from service on retirement, a former staff member will be ineligible for re-employment for a period of three months following the separation. This equally applies, mutatis mutandis, with respect to a former or current staff member who has held or holds an appointment in another entity applying the United Nations Staff Regulations and Rules and who applies for a temporary position with the Secretariat.

Retirees above the mandatory age of separation who wish to be considered for the current temporary job opening must indicate the reason for their last separation as “retirement.” Such retirees shall not be employed by the Organization, unless (a) the operational requirements of the Organization cannot be met by staff members who are qualified and available to perform the required functions; and (b) the proposed employment would not adversely affect the career development or redeployment opportunities of other staff members and represents both a cost-effective and operationally sound solution to meet the needs of the service.

Subject to the funding source of the position, this temporary job opening may be limited to candidates based at the duty station.

While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post. An external candidate selected for this position is bound by the prevailing condition of the staff selection system under ST/AI/2010/3, as amended, and ST/AI/2010/4/Rev.1. A staff member holding a temporary appointment who is recruited in the Professional and above categories on a temporary appointment, and placed on a position authorized for one year or longer may not apply for or be reappointed to his/her current position within six months of the end of his/her current service. This provision does not apply to staff members holding temporary appointments and placed on positions authorized for one year or more in duty stations authorized for peacekeeping operations or special political missions.

The expression “Internal candidates”, shall mean staff members who have been recruited after a competitive examination under staff rule 4.16 or after the advice of a central review body under staff rule 4.15.

Please note that candidates will be required to meet the requirements of Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter as well as the requirements of the position. The United Nations is committed to the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity for all its human resources, including but not limited to respect for international human rights and humanitarian law. Candidates may be subject to screening against these standards, including but not limited to whether they have committed, or are alleged to have committed criminal offences and/or violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law.

For information on special post allowance, please refer to ST/AI/1999/17. For more details on the administration of temporary appointments please refer to ST/AI/2010/4/Rev.1.

The Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and administrative issuances governing staff appointments can be viewed at: http://www.un.org/hr_handbook/English

Staff members of the United Nations common system organizations who will reach the mandatory age of separation or retirement within the duration of the current temporary need period are not eligible to apply.

Staff members are not eligible to apply for the current temporary job opening if they are unable to serve the specified duration of temporary need before reaching the mandatory age of separation. Submitting an application or selection for the current temporary job opening does not delay or increase the mandatory age of separation.

Click here to apply