Finance Officer- Amudat At ZOA

Job Title: Finance Officer (Cashier)

Reporting to: Finance & Admin Coordinator

Location: Amudat Office

Purpose of the position

The Finance Officer supports the Finance and Administration Coordinator in Amudat in executing the finance roles, practices and procedures in fulfilment of ZOA finance policy and procedures.

General

• Responsible for the quality of financial transactions [cash/bank/mobile money] of the office;
• Support the field offices with the day to day finance tasks;
• Support field offices in keeping well documented financial administration both soft- and hard-copy;
• Support management in compliance to local government regulation and ZOA regulations.

Place in Organisation

The Finance Officer (Cashier) fulfills a technical role within the Finance and Administration department and reports to the Finance and Admin Coordinator. They support project team members in implementation.

Responsibilities and main activities

Bank

• Responsible for the timely and accurate transaction bookings in both Excel & ZOA ERP;
• Maintaining Bank ledgers [Excel/ERP];
• Preparation of Bank Reconciliation;
• Preparation of the Withholding Tax schedule;
• Managing and maintaining the Accruals ledger;
• Responsible for the end month finalizations – Bank reconciliation, Withholding Tax, Work Advance maintenance, Cash reconciliation;
• Ensures timely transactions for authorized payments;
• Ensures that all payments are properly supported and authorized; ensuring receipts/proof of payment are also retrieved and filed;
• Maintain a proper filing system (soft- and hard-copy) for all payment vouchers and finance related documents;
• Ensures the availability of cash and/or bank ledgers (ERP & Excel);
• Shall timely present reconciliations of respective ledgers upon request;
• Responsible to maintain the monthly finance control sheet; responsible for generation, checks and balances, and monthly finalization before 10th of every month;
• Any other duty as assigned by the Manager or other senior Management.

Responsible for the Cash held in the field

• Collect and examine supporting documents before a cash payment is made;
• Preparing Payment Vouchers;
• Preparing Receipts;
• Maintain Cash float vouchers;
• Request for petty cash replenishment to the finance’s office;
• Support staff in understanding finance procedures and documentation.

Transaction entries for both Cash and Bank [Excel & ERP]

• Maintaining both Cash and Bank ledgers;
• Following up on advances and ensuring proper accountabilities and correctly approved by right and valid signatures;
• Sharing the work advance ledgers with Administrator for scrutiny and follow up;
• Maintain Cash Control Forms;
• Finance (technical) advice to the colleagues;
• Support program team in bulky cash payments, like: accommodation, safari day allowances (SDA) and transport refunds.

Other duties

• Proper filing and storage of documents – both hard and soft [Digital] filing;
• Payments preparation for the cash Transactions;
• Statutory remittances for field staff, e.g. LST;
• Ensures timely transactions for authorized payments;
• Ensures that all payments are properly supported and authorized; ensuring receipts/proof of payment are also retrieved and filed;
• Support the field offices with the day to day cash transactions and tasks;
• Ensure finance files (hard copies) are arranged and sent to Kampala office.

Characteristics of Role

The Finance Officer will be based at the ZOA office in Amudat. Regular field visits to the project locations, which may necessitate overnight stays. Visits to other ZOA programme locations may also be requested for coordination, training and learning.

The role is 1.0 FTE (40 hrs/ week). Working hours are outlined in the ZOA Uganda Conditions of Service. Some flexibility on working hours may be required, e.g. for travel at weekends, or during reporting times.

Contacts

Eternal contacts:

• Community leaders, members, project participants, volunteers;
• Other NGO and sector actors on relevant technical topics, local partners;
• Private sector partners.

Internal contacts:

• Members of the project team;
• Programme Manager;
• Support team including Administrator & Logistics;
• Other staff at field and country office.

Competencies

Knowledge & Experience:

• Degree in Finance, Business Administration or any related field;
• At least a minimum of three years’ experience
• Proven relevant work experience in finance and administration;
• Strong accounting skills including preparing Bank Reconciliation, Withholding Tax Schedules, Work Advance maintenance, Cash reconciliation;
• Good knowledge of financial practices;
• Fluent command of English;
• Practical experience in any of the accounting packages, Unit4(ERP) would be an added advantage.

Skills:

• Good communication, writing and facilitation skills;
• Innovative, creative and enthusiastic;
• Good computer skills: Ms Excel and Ms Word;
• Self-motivator, able to work with limited supervision;
• Able to ride a motorbike in field conditions, holding a valid driving license is an added advantage.

Attitude:

• High level of personal integrity;
• Flexibility and adaptability;
• Interpersonal and cross-cultural sensitivity;
• Able to work under pressures and meet deadlines;
• Able to work in a sometimes fluid and insecure environment;
• Commitment to ZOA’s mission, vision and values (see https://www.zoa-international.com/corporate-identity)