Financial Officers at the World Bank Group

The World Bank, a member of the World Bank Group, is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. Our mission is to fight poverty with passion and professionalism for lasting results and to help people help themselves and their environment by providing resources, sharing knowledge, building capacity and forging partnerships in the public and private sectors.

In 2015, the World Bank Group launched a recruitment mission to attract Sub Saharan African professionals to its work force. The initiative was the first of its kind for the institution and resulted in numerous hires into business areas such as Education, Health, Development Economics, Information Technology Systems, Social Urban/Rural & Resilience and Governance. The World Bank Group continues its commitment to hiring Sub-Saharan African professionals and announces its latest recruitment mission to again attract highly qualified Sub-Saharan African professionals who are looking for an exciting career, where their effort will contribute to the institution's goal of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity.

Applications are invited for the position below:

Job Title: Financial Officer

Location: Africa
Area: Development Finance

Job Summary

• Are you a passionate advocate for education? Do you want to make a difference in the lives of children in the world’s poorest countries? The Global Partnership for Education would like to hear from you.
• The Global Partnership for Education (GPE) is the only global organization focused exclusively on improving basic education in developing countries. GPE is a global fund and a partnership whose members include over 60 developing country governments, over 20 donor nations, multilateral development and humanitarian agencies, as well as organizations from the private sector, philanthropy, civil society and the teaching profession.
• The GPE Secretariat of over 80 full-time staff is hosted by the World Bank with headquarters in Washington DC. A constituency-based Board of Directors sets policies and strategies and approves performance-based funding grants to improve learning outcomes and equity through building stronger education systems.  In recent years, GPE has disbursed approximately US$500 million annually.
• GPE’s new five-year Strategic Plan, GPE 2020, aligns with the new global development agenda. While its vision mirrors Sustainable Development Goal 4, ‘to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’, GPE recognizes that education is the foundation for reaching the full suite of agreed global goals. It works through inclusive partnership, focusing on increasing financing and building effective and efficient education systems that can deliver equitable, quality education and learning for all.
• Note: If the selected candidate is a current Bank Group staff member with a Regular or Open-Ended appointment, s/he will retain his/her Regular or Open-Ended appointment. All others will be offered a term appointment.
• GPE is committed to achieving diversity in terms of race, gender, nationality, culture, and educational background. Individuals with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply.

Duties and Accountabilities
The position reports to the Senior Financial Officer within the Finance and Operations group of the secretariat. The position has the following responsibilities:

• Support the quality assurance process for GPE grants with particular emphasis on the fiduciary aspects of the process. More specifically:
  • Reviews grant proposal documentation and under the guidance of the Senior Financial Officer
  • Engages with relevant partners to ensure that fiduciary risk has been appropriately addressed
  • Ensures that the grant budget is consistent with the grant targets, that the budget is reasonable, and implementable in the time frame proposed.
• Responsible for monitoring financial performance and compliance of GPE funded programs. More specifically:
  • Ensures that financial reporting requirements related to GPE grants are complied with
  • Reviews relevant reports (implementation status reports, audit reports, annual reports etc.) for overall portfolio monitoring and analysis
  • Analyzes progress on grants and identify at risk grants
  • Engages with relevant stakeholders under the guidance of the Senior Financial Officer and in coordination with relevant Secretariat teams, to diagnose the issues and support corrective action
  • Ensures appropriate documentation of monitoring activities is complete and accessible per GPE’s standard operating procedures.
• Conducts financial analysis of GPE funded programs. More specifically:
  • Develops a database on unit costs of common GPE activities and identifies and explains trends and discrepancies
  • Works with other internal and external stakeholders as appropriate to benchmark costs of GPE funded programs (particularly overhead costs)
  • Performs ad hoc analysis of GPE grants and portfolio to support internal and external stakeholder queries and to contribute to GPE reports (e.g. Annual Report, Portfolio Review, CEO monthly reports etc).
• The Finance Officer will also fully participate in activities outlined in GPE’s Operational Risk Framework including the identification and assessment of fiduciary risk, and contributing to the development and implementation of Country Risk Management Plans
• The Finance Officer may be called upon to contribute to Secretariat-wide activities or ad-hoc tasks as required (e.g. supporting replenishment work, development of GPE's information systems, or other task specific working groups etc.)

Selection Criteria

• Master's degree in a relevant Finance discipline, or professional Accounting qualification combined with a bachelor’s degree in a relevant Finance discipline is acceptable.
• At least 5 years’ prior relevant experience working in the field of financial management (public financial management, auditing, consulting etc.)
• At least 3 years relevant work experience in international development
• Experience in the education sector is preferable
• Experience in budget review and financial analysis of grants essential
• Knowledge and experience of working with multi-lateral and bilateral agencies, International NGOs, and developing country partner governments is highly desired
• Familiarity with cross-cultural dynamics, and good negotiation skills
• Willingness to work in a complex environment and travel occasionally
• Ability to work under pressure
• Ability to function in a flexible manner, where persuasion and facilitation skills are strongly valued
• Excellent communication skills in English and French, both written and verbal
• Strong knowledge of and commitment to the principles of the Global Partnership for Education.

Competencies:

• Lead and Innovate Develops innovative solutions.
• Deliver Results for Clients Proactively addresses clients’ stated and unstated needs.
• Collaborate Within Teams and Across Boundaries Collaborates across boundaries, gives own perspective and willingly receives diverse perspectives.
• Create, Apply and Share Knowledge Applies knowledge to strengthen solutions for internal and/or external clients.
• Make Smart Decisions Interprets a wide range of information and pushes to move forward.

Recruitment Timeline
End of July - September 2016 - Review applications and update application status to candidates
August - September 2016 - Contact all shortlisted candidates and conduct interviews in Washington, D.C. and locations in Africa

Application Closing Date
7th August, 2016.

Method of Application
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Note

• Shortlisted candidates may be contacted as early as August 2016 for interviews which may be conducted in Washington, D.C. or locations in Africa. Interviews will be conducted through September 2016. Based on the availability of interviewers and candidates some interviews may be conducted virtually.
• Candidates who have previously submitted applications through the Recruitment Drive for African Nationals in 2015 must submit a new application to be considered for opportunities in this year's campaign. We apologize that we are unable to consider previously submitted applications.