The United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON) is the United Nations headquarters in Africa and the representative office of the Secretary-General. We support programme implementation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) globally, as well as other United Nations offices in Kenya, by providing administrative, conference and information services (www.unon.org) This position is located in the United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON), Human Resources Management Service (HRMS), Staff Pay and Benefits Section (SPnB).
Under the direct supervision of the Unit Chief, the incumbent will perform the following:
Responsibilities
Scrutinizes source documents for completeness, accuracy and validity of entitlements;
Investigates erroneous entitlements and takes appropriate corrective accounting actions.
Communicates with client offices regarding missing documentation or any other issues related to discrepancies between their entitlements and claims.
Reconciles and reviews suspense accounts and ensure proper clearance procedures have been followed.
Consolidates data into financial statements.
Assists with the monitoring of expenditures to ensures they remain within authorized levels.
Prepares worksheets and assists with the preparation of financial statements.
Audits various accounting transactions, e.g., payroll, education grants, final payments, income tax returns, travel claims, etc., to ensure correctness of disbursements and adherence to relevant
staff rules, financial regulations and rules, ST/AI issuances or practices.
Provides guidance and training to colleagues as required.
Supervises other General Service staff as required.
Drafts/prepares memoranda and/or cables to various offices, departments and client offices.
Responds to queries from staff members and third parties.
Provides information to individual participants and pensioners/beneficiaries as well as administrative staff of the member organizations of the Pension Fund on participation, entitlements and
benefits.
Routes relevant requests to appropriate parties within the Fund’s secretariat.
Undertakes necessary research in order to provide accurate information; ensures responses to queries conform to the provisions and rules and regulations of the Pension Fund and the Pension
Adjustment System.
Assists in the determination of eligibility, enroll new entrants and activities related to separation cases.
Prepares separation notification forms and submits to pension fund with supporting documentation.
Performs other duties as may be required.
Competencies
Professionalism: Ability to apply knowledge of various United Nations administrative and human resources rules and regulations in work situations. Ability to perform a broad range of administrative/personnel actions, entitlements and benefits. Ability to identify issues, apply good judgement and formulate opinions/recommendation and conclusion. Demonstrates use of initiative and makes appropriate linkages in work requirements and anticipates next steps. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of work.
Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.
Teamwork: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.
Client orientation: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.
Education
High school diploma or equivalent is required. Additional training in finance, administration, project management is desired. Passing the Global General Service Test (GGST) is a prerequisite for recruitment consideration in the General Services and related categories in the United Nations Secretariat. Applicants who have not passed the GGST at the time of application may be invited for the test after submitting an application.
Work Experience
A minimum of of seven years of experience in finance, budget or related area is required.
Working experience with the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and finance system such as Oracle or SAP and experience with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) is desirable.
Experience in Excel, Access and other analytical tools is desirable.
Languages
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in written and oral English is required. Knowledge of another UN official language is an advantage.
Assessment
Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.
Special Notice
Appointment against this post is on a local basis. This is a project post funded for an initial period of one year and may be subject to extension. External candidates will be considered only when no suitable candidate from the duty station is identified. The candidate is responsible for any travel expenses incurred in order to take up the appointment.
Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures.
“Internal Applicants: When completing the form, ensure ALL fields, ALL professional experience and contact information are completed and up to date. This information is the basis for the hiring manager to assess your eligibility and suitability for the position and to contact you. ”
All applicants are strongly encouraged to apply on-line as soon as possible after the job opening has been posted and well before the deadline stated in the job opening. On-line applications will be acknowledged where an email address has been provided. If you do not receive an e-mail acknowledgement within 24 hours of submission, your application may not have been received. If the
problem persists, please seek technical assistance through the Inspira “Need Help?” link.
United Nations Considerations
According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.
Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.
Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.
The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.
