Finance Assistant

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

ABOUT WFP

The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity, for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

At WFP, people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse, committed, skilled, and high performing teams, selected on merit, operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment, living WFP's values (Integrity, Collaboration, Commitment, Humanity, and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.

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WHY JOIN WFP? 

• WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.

• WFP offers a highly inclusive, diverse, and multicultural working environment.

• WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training, accreditation, coaching, mentorship, and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.

• A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country, regional and global offices around the world, and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.

• We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).

JOB TITLE:                        Finance Assistant

TYPE OF CONTRACT: Service Contract
JOB GRADE:                   L5 (SC5)
SUPERVISOR:               Finance/Budget and programming Officer
DUTY STATION (City, Country): Thimphu, Bhutan 
DURATION:                    1 year (renewable)

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT: 

The World Food Programme (WFP) has been in Bhutan since 1974. WFP’s country strategic plan (2024–2028) aims to strengthen and support government efforts to deliver equitable and inclusive economic growth and  support human capital development. All WFP’s activities are implemented in partnership with the Government. A prominent feature of the country strategic plan is expanding WFP’s capacity strengthening of government institutions and engagement of private sector partners while adopting a sharper gender focus. Under the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (2024–2028), WFP supports the Government’s 13th Five-year Plan (2024-2029) to support the national school nutrition and feeding programme with nutrition and supply chain optimization, linking farmers to schools, and school infrastructure development. WFP is applying a systems approach to agriculture value chain development from demand creation for local food, to support production, marketing and mitigating post-harvest losses. For disaster risk management, WFP supports the Government in setting up national platforms to guide disaster preparedness and response. WFP also supports policy and inter-agency coordination, including assistance on enhanced cost efficiency and knowledge management. WFP seeks to recruit a Finance Assistant to provide effective financial support to Country Office. At this level, job holders are expected to demonstrate responsibility and initiative to respond independently to various queries with only general guidance. There is a requirement to use judgment in dealing with unforeseen operational problems on a daily basis. Job holders are expected to manage resources and coach and coordinate support staff.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES (not all-inclusive, nor exhaustive): 

The Finance Assistant will be responsible for performing the following functions: 

• Assist in providing the procedural and technical support to staff within the areas of finance and budget, to ensure compliance with WFP financial policies, rules and regulations. 
• Monitor monthly expenditure forecasts and provide expenditure reports to facilitate informed  decision making.
• Perform bank reconciliations, disbursements, clearance of receivables, overall cash management and monthly financial closures on a regular basis in accordance with corporate requirements. Monitor the sub-imprest bank and petty cash accounts regularly to ensure that adequate funds are available and appropriately disbursed.
• Verify vendor claims, advances and other receivables to ensure that suppliers are paid in a timely manner and in conformance with WFP finance rules and regulations.
• Retrieve, format and validate information obtained from various financial information systems and bring any discrepancy or inaccuracy to the attention of the supervisor and follow up corrective actions.
• Perform administrative duties related to the monitoring and recording of fixed assets, spend on fuel and spare parts for vehicles and generators, to ensure that the databases are accurately updated.
• Maintain the web-based register for all invoices and payment transfers and record paperwork, to ensure that all documents are maintained and filed in compliance with WFP standards and guidelines.
• Monitor and record all expenses in line with the approved budget in order to ensure that correct expenditure costs are charged and payments to external suppliers, cash grants and other suppliers invoices are processed in a timely manner.
• Provide financial support to other projects of WFP with Royal Government of Bhutan. 
• Provide administrative and logistical support in various activities as well as workshops and meetings/missions.
• Contribute to improvement of business procedures and processes.
• Performs other tasks as required by supervisor.

STANDARD MINIMUM ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS: 
Education: 

• Completion of secondary school education. A post-secondary certificate in finance, accounting, business administration or relevant fields is desirable.

Work Experience: 

• A minimum of 5 years of progressively relevant work experience in finance, accounting, or related administrative roles.
• Proven experience in budgeting, planning, and financial reporting within the frameworks of Royal Government of Bhutan.
• Experienced in analysing financial management performance and providing actionable recommendations for improving service delivery.
• Proven ability to communicate effectively with government, partners and other stakeholders.
• Experience working in collaboration with a diverse array of humanitarian actors, including governments, NGOs, U.N. agencies, civil society, etc. 
• Experience in conducting trainings and coordination and facilitation of general meetings. 
• Has experience participating in procurement/budgeting process. 

Knowledge & Skills:

• Demonstrated skills in statistical analysis, with the ability to identify insights and present data in different ways for reporting, communication and use. 
• Good communication skills to provide specialized monitoring support services to a wide range of individuals and transfer knowledge to technical and non-technical stakeholders. 
• Ability to build relationships with a variety of individuals across functions.
• Experience in coordinating the work of others and self, and training/supporting others.
• Desirable: Tableau and other data visualization software packages and systems.
• Creative, innovative mind, comfortable testing and learning new technologies. 
• Provide problem solving and critical thinking skills. 
• Proficiency in using Microsoft Office programmes and other related tools.
• Proficiency in ERP systems, including SAP and Workday, is highly desirable.

Language: Fluency in both oral and written communication in English and Dzongkha. 

WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK

WFP Leadership Framework guides to the common standards of behavior that guide HOW we work together to accomplish our mission.

Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION

WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation, please contact:  global.inclusion@wfp.org

NO FEE DISCLAIMER

The United Nations does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.

REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

• We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete, and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, language skills and UN Grade (if applicable).

• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application.

• Please make sure you upload your professional CV in the English language

• Kindly note the only documents you will need to submit at this time are your CV and Cover Letter

• Additional documents such as passport, recommendation letters, academic certificates, etc. may potentially be requested at a future time

• Please contact us at global.hrerecruitment@wfp.org in case you face any challenges with submitting your application

• Only shortlisted candidates will be notified

All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs, job requirements, merit, and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse, all forms of discrimination, any kind of harassment, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. Therefore, all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.