Background
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP: we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.
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.
Office Description
The UNDP Country Office in Papua New Guinea was established in 1982 following the signing of the Standard Basic Assistance Agreement (SBAA) with the Government.
The Country Office provides a range of policy, programmatic and operational services to Government. These are provided at national and sub-national levels provincially, locally, and in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville.
Over the last four decades, the Country Office has consolidated its assistance in a select number of sectors. These are:
- Environment and Climate Action.
- Governance and Rule of Law.
- Peace and Resilience Building.
- Disaster Preparedness and Response.
- Women’s Empowerment and Gender Action.
The Country Office has refined several service offers that development partners and the Government have drawn on extensively. These include:
- Policy and technical advisory services to develop capacity, deliver technical assistance and/or advise on public policy.
- Programme delivery expertise that Government lacks or is unable to access effectively.
- Peacebuilding assistance and advice that requires neutrality and impartiality that national stakeholders and other development partners cannot readily offer.
- Knowledge platforms and global expertise that draws on national, regional, and international experience and best practices.
- Operational and procurement services to Government and development partners to deliver development assistance programmes, projects and other such initiatives.
The Country Office has maintained a solid and productive relationship with Government and remains one of its most important development partners.
UNDP’s posture responds to several considerations, the most important is limited institutional and human capacity. A longitudinal assessment highlights a limited ability of Government to develop responsive policy and deliver services. This extends to the delivery public investments. UNDP (and the UN) fills several critical ‘gaps.’ As a trusted partner this often sees UNDP act as an extension or supplement Government capability in Papua New Guinea.
The Country Office delivers activities across national and sub-national levels. It also works closely with civil society organizations, community groups, and faith-based organizations who partner with UNDP in some of the country’s most challenging contexts.
UNDP’s current Country Programme Document has consolidated an integrated programmatic approach across four pillars, these being: women’s empowerment; governance and peace; economic transformation; and environment and climate. All are of critical importance to Papua New Guinea, and all were UNDP adds and its able to further add, immense value as a principal UN organisation.
The Country Office is in Port Moresby. It oversights field offices in Mendi (Southern Highlands) and Buka (Bougainville), with project offices in Wewak (East Sepik Province), Wabag (Enga Province), Kimbe (West New Britain Province), and Kundiawa (Simbu Province) with a sub-office in Tari (Hela Province).
There are currently 105 personnel attached to UNDP in Papua New Guinea. This number if expected to grow over the next three years and along with it, the value of services delivered by the Country Office which is on track to reach $30 million per annum by 2028.
The Operations Division of the Country Office is critical to the smooth, successful and timely delivery of a range of services across the Office, to other UN agencies and external stakeholders.
Under the overall guidance of the Operations Manager and direct supervision of the Finance Analyst, an Operations Associate will provide services ensuring the effective and transparent utilization of financial resources.
The Operations Associate promotes a client-oriented approach consistent with UNDP rules and regulations. The Operations Associate is expected to display initiative and a positive approach and will, from time to time, be required to undertake other emerging tasks and additional duties as required by direct supervisor or the Country Office’s Senior Management team.
The successful candidate will be engaged under a National Personnel Service Agreement or NPSA modality. This be at level 6 and offers a competitive package.
UNDP is an equal opportunity employer and strongly encourages women to apply for this position.
Duties and Responsibilities
The Operations Associate, as part of the finance unit, will contribute to the successful functioning of Papua New Guinea Country Office. She/he will do so by carrying out the following key tasks under supervision:
a. Ensuring the administration and implementation of operational strategies, processes and procedures by:
- Ensuring full compliance with UN/UNDP rules, regulations, and policies of financial activities financial recording/reporting system and follow-up on audit recommendation.
- Implementing effective internal controls, proper functioning of a client-oriented financial resources management system.
- Overseeing finance business processes including mapping and elaboration of internal Standard Operating Procedures in Finance in consultation with Country Office management.
- Developing proposals and implementing cost saving and reduction strategies in consultations with Country Office management.
b. Providing accounting and administrative support to Operations units ensuring:
- Proper control of supporting documents for payments and financial reports for NEX projects.
- Preparation of all types of vouchers.
- Pay Cycle and payments execution including maintaining of the internal expenditures control system which ensures that vouchers processed are matched and completed and that transactions are correctly recorded and posted in the Financial Information Management Systems (Quantum).
- Proper year-end closure activities.
- Timely corrective actions on unposted vouchers, including the vouchers with budget check errors, match exceptions, unapproved vouchers. Timely response to HQ requests to resolve financial data issues.
- Supporting the Finance Analyst in assessing staff Accounts Receivables for UNDP projects and follow up.
- Tracking expenditure for UNDP projects, follow-up with projects or UN Agencies on payment requests for cost recovery actions.
c. Liaison with Global Shared Services Centre (GSSC) by:
- Reviewing all request submitted for finalization and submission for approval of senior management.
- Liaising with GSSC for voucher approval and responding to any query.
- Reviewing and finalization of pay-cycle file and sharing remittance advise with suppliers.
- Ensuring that the voucher payment method and vendor bank accounts are appropriately selected.
- Timely review of bank statements and submission of bank statement to GSSC.
- Coordinating with GSSC for timely identification and recording of receipts for income application.
- Following up with GSSC on the payment requests to ensure the requests are processed within the timeline.
d. Facilitating knowledge building and knowledge sharing in the Country Office by:
- Ensuring facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing in the CO and guidance to all stakeholders on financial matters focusing on achievement of the following results:
- Organising/conducting training for the operations/programme/project staff on financial management.
- Reviewing lessons learned and best practices in Operations.
- Providing sound contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice.
Institutional Arrangement
The Operations Associate will report directly to the Finance Analyst.
Core Competencies
Achieve Results: LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
Think Innovatively: LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements
Learn Continuously: LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback
Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible
Act with Determination: LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
Engage and Partner: LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships
Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination
Cross-Functional & Technical Competencies
Business Management: Customer Satisfaction/Client Management
- Ability to respond timely and appropriately with a sense of urgency, provide consistent solutions, and deliver timely and quality results and/or solutions to fulfil and understand the real customers’ needs.
- Ability to anticipate client’s upcoming needs and concerns.
Business Management: Digital Awareness and Literacy
- Ability and inclination to rapidly adopt new technologies, either through skillfully grasping their usage or through understanding their impact and empowering others to use them as needed.
Finance: Accounting (General)
- Knowledge of accounting concepts, principles, frameworks, standards, regulations, policies and trends, and ability to apply this to strategic and/or practical situations
Finance: Finance business partnering
- Able to support business units and add value by innovating and providing solutions to financial issues/queries, including through FAQs, financial tools, advisory, etc. Influences and appropriately challenges non-finance colleagues for whom the service is being provided. Understands the operations, opportunities and challenges of the organization. Holds a commercial outlook, demonstrating accountability towards organizational goals.
Finance: Financial risk management
- Ensures financial resilience through proactive assessment of risk, implementation of controls and taking mitigating action. Understands risk and reward in relation to collaborative and commercial projects. Ensures a culture of positive risk management
Finance: Audit risk management
- Ability to address audit issues raised in the course of an audit and propose solutions in order to ensure a true and fair audit opinion is achieved
Ethics: UN policy knowledge-ethics
- Knowledge and understanding of the UN Staff Regulations and Rules and other policies relating to ethics and integrity.
Minimum Education Requirements:
- Secondary education is required.
- University Degree (Bachelor’s Degree) in Accounting, Finance, Business or related fields will be given due consideration, but it is not a requirement.
Minimum years of relevant work experience:
- 6 years (with Secondary Education) or 3 years (with Bachelor’s Degree) of relevant working experience in operations, finance and accounting at the national or international level.
- Experience with UN and international organization would be an advantage.
Required Skills:
- Proven experience with the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.);
- Experience in handling of web-based management systems is required;
- Experience in financial management system of UN/NGO/large enterprise;
- Creates and promotes an environment for open communications;
- Shares knowledge across the organization and builds a culture of knowledge sharing and learning.
Desired skills:
- Advanced Excel skills are highly desirable;
- Experience working in a international development space is an advantage;
- Experience working with diverse and multi-cultural teams is desirable.
Required Language(s)
- Fluency in written and spoken English language.
Disclaimer
Applicant information about UNDP rosters
Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.
Non-discrimination
UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.
UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.
Scam warning
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.