Jobs - 34739- UN Women: FINANCE ASSISTANT

UN Women: FINANCE ASSISTANT - Open to Kazakhstan Nationals Only

Location :

Almaty, KAZAKHSTAN

Type of Contract :

Service Contract

Starting Date :

01-Feb-2013

Application Deadline :

18-Jan-13 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

SB-3

Duration of Initial Contract :

6 months

Languages Required :

English Russian

Expected Duration of Assignment :

6 months with possible extension

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing women’s rights at the center of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women Sub-regional office (SRO) for Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA), located in Kazakhstan, is currently operating with its large-scale multi-stakeholders programmes and projects, as well as technical assistance initiatives, in the countries of EECA region. UN Women’s programme portfolio includes holistic gender responsive interventions in the wide range of areas, such as: social protection, employment, agricultural development and land reform, financial management and budgeting, labour migration, good governance and peace building, participatory local development and civil society empowerment.

Under the overall guidance of the Operations Manager and direct supervision of the Finance Associate, the Finance Assistant is responsible for performing a variety of financial tasks and services in the SRO ensuring timeliness, accuracy and compliance with UN Women rules, regulations, processes and procedures and promotes a client, quality and results oriented approach.

The Finance Assistant works in close collaboration with the operations, program and other teams in the office and region to exchange information and ensure consistent service delivery.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of Key Functions:

Implementation of operational strategies.
Accounting and administrative support.
Control of SRO and project field assets.
Knowledge building and knowledge sharing.

Ensures implementation of operational strategies focusing on achievement of the following results:

Full compliance of financial processes and financial records with UN/UN Women rules, regulations, policies and strategies.
Input to the SRO business processes mapping and elaboration of the content of internal Standard Operating Procedures in Finance in consultation with the direct supervisor and office management.

Provides accounting and administrative support to the Finance Unit focusing on achievement of the following results:

Proper control of the supporting documents for payments and financial reports for projects; preparation of all types of vouchers for projects; PO vouchers; Pay Cycle and payment execution.
Maintenance of the internal expenditures control system which ensures that vouchers processed are matched and completed, transactions are correctly recorded and posted in Atlas; travel claims, MPOs and other entitlements are duly processed.
Timely corrective actions on unposted vouchers, including the vouchers with budget check errors, match exceptions, unapproved vouchers.
Collection of monthly expenditure plans and their validations against approved budgets; preparation of periodic balance reports.
Presentation of information on the status of financial resources as required.
Maintenance of cash receipts and petty cash.
Maintenance of VAT return.
Maintenance of the proper filing system for finance records and documents.
Provision of proper backup functions of other Assistants of Operations unit and other relevant duties as required.

Ensures proper control of SRO and project field offices Assets focusing on achievement of the following results:

Preparation of inventory reports.
Implementation of Inventory and physical verification check-up in the SRO and projects.

Supports knowledge building and knowledge sharing in the SRO focusing on achievement of the following results:

Participation in the trainings for the operations/ projects staff on Finance.
Contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice.

The key results have an impact on the execution of the SRO financial services management in terms of quality and accuracy of work. Accurate data entry and presentation of financial information and a client-oriented approach enhances UN Women’s capability to effectively and efficiently manage financial resources.

Competencies

Core values and Guiding principles:

Integrity:
Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.
Professionalism:
Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work.
Cultural sensitivity and valuing diversity:
Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff. Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating differences in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Core Competencies:

Ethics and Values:
Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity
Organizational Awareness:
Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment
Development and Innovation:
Take charge of self-development and take initiative
Work in teams:
Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multiethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds
Communicating and Information Sharing:
Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication
Self-management and Emotional Intelligence:
Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and ensure consistent behavior towards others
Conflict Management:
Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution
Continuous Learning and Knowledge Sharing:
Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge
Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making:
Demonstrate informed and transparent decision making.

Functional Competencies:

Ability to perform a broad range of finance activities related to operations resources management and services
Good organizational skills
Ability to research, select relevant information and maintain accurate records and data base
Ability to work simultaneously on a number of processes and deliver with quality and within the deadlines
Knowledge of UN/UN Women rules and best practices
Good application skills of IT tools and management systems.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

University Degree in Business or Public Administration or related field.

Experience:

3 to 5 years of relevant finance experience at the national or international level is required. Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc) and knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages, experience in handling of web based management systems.

Language Requirements:

Fluency in English and Russian, knowledge of Kazakh is an asset.

Note:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.

All online applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/P_11_form_UNwomen.doc.

Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.