Request for expressions of interest for Administrative Expenses Division (FIFC2) – Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire

Details :

Department issuing the request : FIFC.2

Place of assignment : Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire

Duration of the assignment : 6 /12 Months

Tentative Date of commencement : 1st. Sep. 2019

Detailed Terms of reference for the assignment : see below

Deadline for applications : Friday, August 9th 2019 at 5pm. Abidjan time

Introduction :

The African Development Bank (AfDB) is the leading development finance institution in Africa and the continent’s voice on global economic, financial, and development issues. It is established in 1963, with a mandate to further the economic development and social progress of African countries, individually and collectively

The Bank is accelerating the implementation of the Bank’s Ten Year Strategy (TYS) with a focus on main five priorities called the High 5s (Light up and power Africa – Feed Africa – Industrialize Africa – Integrate Africa – Improve the quality of life for the people of Africa).

The Bank has increasingly decentralized its operations to Regional Resource Centers and country offices and is fully committed and strongly determined to cut back on layers of the Bank processes, streamline and re-design related business processes, procedures and systems to drive efficiency, improve service delivery, and increase responsiveness and client orientation.

The Administrative Expense Division which is within the Financial Control Department of the Bank is in charge of processing payment of all Administrative Expenses and Capital expenditure of the bank and trust Funds managed by the bank. It is also charged with implementing and monitoring policies and procedures relating to the payment and accounting treatment of administrative expenses and Capital expenditure of the bank and all trust funds comprising of goods, works and various services rendered by external vendors as well as for travel expenses for both staff and non-staff.

With the objectives of improving efficiency, driving institutional performance and supporting the transformation agenda of the Bank, the Financial Control – Accounts Payable division has been continuously adapting to the current operational changes and improving its operations through providing efficient transaction processing services with respect to the administrative and capital expenses of the Bank and of all multilateral and bilateral funds.

Rationale and Objective :

The specific activities of the Division are :

  • prompt processing of requests for payments to consultants, suppliers and vendors for the Bank’s expenses under the capital and administrative budget of the Bank and also from multilateral and bilateral sources ;
  • timely processing of travel/mission per diem and advances for payment and processing of related claims ;
  • establish accounting systems for financial transactions of the country offices, promptly process requests for transfer of funds to the field offices and monitor their monthly expense financial reports ;
  • provide guidance on accounting treatment and classification of financial transactions ;
  • Establish procedures to identify cost savings and promote efficient use of Bank and multilateral and bilateral funds resources .

In order to discharge its responsibilities efficiently, and ensure that the overall accounts payable system of the Division is strengthened and remain robust, the Division should continuously review and updated its accounts payable policy and procedure manual including its existing internal control system and develop an improved process at HQ and Country Office level.

To achieve this overarching objective, a highly qualified Junior AP consultant is required to contribute to the Administrative Expense division delivery through the accurate and timely processing of payment / expense requests to internal and external stakeholders and the implementation of sound policies, procedures and processes related to payments / expenses to safeguard the Bank’s interests.

Tasks and Deliverables :

Under the supervision and guidance of the Division Manager, Administrative Expenses, the

AP consultant will perform the following :

More specifically, the consultant will perform the following :

  1. Monitor open items in the SAP system services rendered but not paid for ;
  2. Generate and / or prepare various SAP and other reports and follow-up of outstanding issues with other departments ;
  3. Ensure that general ledger and vendor accounts are regularly analyzed, and that required entries are made ;
  4. Carry out reasonableness checks and analytical review of Administrative Expenses by comparing expenses of one period to another, provide explanations and reports on the variances and supply input for monthly, quarterly and annual financial statements ;
  5. Perform verification of all types of payments and journal vouchers to ensure correctness and proper application of international Accounting Standards in the treatment of transactions, except for loan-related and pension payments ;
  6. Supervise and effect timely and accurate payments of invoices /expenses related to contractors and vendors, consultants, travel advances and settlements including prepayments, accruals and provisions to ensure compliance with International Accounting Standards and Bank’s policy and procedures ;
  7. Manage the payment proposals process by ensuring the accuracy and timeliness of proposal confirmations to treasury for disbursement ;
  8. Provide guidance on accounting treatment and classifications of financial transactions to all documents of the Bank ;
  9. Monitor the deadlines/ lead time for the processing of payments are respected at the level of the division and all countries offices and generate the appropriate statistic to monitor the Key Performance Indicators of payment requests ;
  10. Participate in the review and formulation of accounting procedures, policies and practices, drafting proposals or parts thereof and reviewing proposed drafts by other staff members .

Qualifications and experience required :

  1. The consultant should hold at least a Master’s Degree or its equivalent in Accounting, Audit. Professional qualification from internationally recognized professional accounting body e.g. CA, CPA, ACCA or Expert Comptable is an advantage  ;
  2. Have a minimum of six (6) years of practical experience in an accounting firm or in international financial organization. Account Payable experience in private sector is an added advantage ;
  3. Ability to visualize, articulate and solve complex problems, concepts and make decisions that make sense based on all available information, particularly problem solving in automated accounting environment ;
  4. Ability to quickly analyze accounting data structures and data interrelationships and make recommendations on process, system and control improvements ;
  5. Ability to drive for achieving and surpassing targets against internal and external standards of excellence ;
  6. Strong knowledge of accounting and International Accounting Standards (IFRS) ;
  7. Knowledge of SAP and strong data analytics skills ;
  8. Innovation and creativity ;
  9. Client orientation ;
  10. Team working and relations ;
  11. Problem solving ;
  12. Operational effectiveness ;
  13. Ability to communicate effectively (written and oral) in English or French, preferably with a working knowledge of the other language.

The Administrative Expense Division invites Individual Consultants to indicate their interest in providing the above-described services. Interested Consultants shall provide information on their qualifications and experience demonstrating their ability to undertake this Assignment (documents, reference to similar services, experience in similar assignments, etc.). The eligibility criteria, the establishment of a short list and the selection procedures shall be in conformity with the AfDB’s procedures for the acquisition of consulting services funded by the administrative or capital expenditure budget.

Please, note that interest expressed by a Consultant does not imply any obligation on the part of the Bank to include him/her in the shortlist.

The duration of the consultant’s assignment is 6 to 12 months. The assignment will be carried out in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire and housed within the offices of the Bank and the estimated starting date is September 1st, 2019

Interested Individual Consultants may obtain further information at the address below during the Bank’s working hours: 8 am to 5 pm.

Expressions of interest must be received at the address below no later than, Friday, August 9th 2019 at 5pm. Abidjan time. Abidjan time local time and specifically mentioning AP Junior Consultant

For the attention of :

Chief Financial Accountant. Administrative Expense Division African Development Bank

Avenue Joseph Anoma,01 Boite Postale 1387 ABIDJAN 01. COTE D’IVOIRE” Email: FIFC2.control@afdb.org

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