Accounting AssistantECOWAS

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  Assist in the year-end closing of accounts and preparation of the financial statements.
• Monthly exports and review of the trial balance of the year in review and note areas with issues.
• Assist in analyzing of all general ledger accounts (Payables, receivables, Income & expenses) and adjust/propose corrections where necessary.
• Preparation of journal vouchers and post into the accounting system.
• Amortization/expensing of utilized prepaid accounts.
• Clearing of General Ledger open items.
• Respond and provide requested information/documents to external auditors on issues raised during the year-end audit and recommend/ propose ways to correct them.
• Assist the Administrative Officer in liaising with external auditors in closing of accounts and preparation of reports.
• Assist other accounting activities like accounts payables, bank reconciliation, receivables etc and with issues/proposed adjustments raised during the financial year audit.
• Receive vendor invoices, scan/import the images, verify data extraction is accurate, and route the documents into electronic workflow for processing.
• Verify and post scanned invoices using appropriate transaction codes in SAP.
• Identify and prevent duplicate invoice processing.
• Identify missing vendor workflow and initiate the vendor creation process.
• Process invoices in accordance with SAP requirements and ECOWAS financial policies and procedures.
• Obtain and attach additional documentation as required for special expenditures including capital expenses.
• Monitor opportunities to optimize timing of payments, based on payment terms.
• Process disbursements in accordance with schedule.
• Reconcile supplier statements and monitor vendor account balances.
• Enter and post cash receipts into accounting software system (SAP) using the appropriate transaction codes.
• Post all payments made or received by wire transfer timely and accurately.
• Prepare accurate bank reconciliation statements on a monthly and timely basis.
• Respond to internal and external queries in a timely and in a professional manner.
• Assist in resolving invoice discrepancies with the vendor.
• Process payable documents in accordance with their legal and compliance policies.
• Process and release cheques for related invoices and claims promptly.
• Verify outgoing cheques for accuracy.
• Assist in the archiving of department documentation.
• Process staff expense claim and travel return forms in a timely manner.
• Provide general filing and administrative support to the finance department.
• Assist in maintaining detailed records of budget estimates, obligations, and available balances, producing forecasts of expenditure; reconcile divisional accounts with central accounts.
• Perform any other duty assigned by the supervisor.
• Monitor customer (donors & community levy) accounts for non-payment and delayed payment.
• Analyse discrepancies and unpaid invoices
• Assist in the preparation of budgets.
• Verify all claims submitted by contractors and projects for approval, in compliance with the terms of the relevant contracts and budgets.
• Balancing the petty cash in daily basis
• Compile the documents necessary to prepare a monthly report.

Academic Qualifications and Experience

• Brevet de Technicien Superieur (BTS) / Ordinary National Diploma (OND) or equivalent certificate in Finance and Accounting or a related field from a recognized University.
• Five (5) years of progressively more responsible work experience in finance, budget, accounting, or related area.
• Demonstrated professional competence to extract, interpret, and analyse a wide variety of accounting data and to resolve data discrepancies and other problems.
• Knowledge of transactional based accounting activities such as budgeting, payroll, vendor claims processing, reconciliation, and financial reporting as related to assigned responsibilities.
• Ability to identify and resolve accounting data discrepancies and operational problems.
• Applied knowledge in the use and application of ECOWAS’ financial regulations and rules as well as accounting policies and practices related to assigned tasks.
• Working knowledge of financial accounting principles and concepts including the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS).
• Experience extracting, interpreting, analysing, and formatting accounting data across a full range of finance and budget functions, including programme development and database management, claims, and treasury operations.

Age Limit:

• Be below 50 years old. This provision does not apply to internal candidates.

ECOWAS Key Competencies:

• Ability to assume a credible presence when explaining rules, standards, and expectations (e.g. deadlines) to ensure compliance and work expectations are met.
• Ability to motivate self and/or others to engage in discussions that will result in recommendations to improve processes, templates, or other work tools.
• Ability to engage in positive approaches to teamwork, participate actively in discussions and the achievement of team goals.
• Ability to take responsibility for own career and performance with the occasional guidance from the supervisor/mentor.
• Ability to build capacity of self and others by sharing knowledge, tools, expertise, and experience with others to remain proficient and well informed in the execution of assigned role.
• Interpersonal, listening, and multitasking skills with a good understanding of client service responsibilities and role in representing ECOWAS values in all interactions.
• Ability to take initiative to resolve routine problems associated with assigned tasks using good judgment in involving colleagues or superiors as required.
• Ability to work as part of a team to resolve concerns, and problems and improve services.
• Ability to manage own time effectively and organize own work area in a manner that will meet performance expectations related to assigned client services.
• Ability to direct people to the appropriate source for further information and ask for help when overwhelmed with client demands.
• Ability to apply culturally relevant and appropriate approaches with people from diverse cultural backgrounds.
• Good diversity management skills to interact with individuals in a manner that is culturally appropriate and in accordance with ECOWAS rules/policies.
• Ability to recognize preconceived notions and stereotypical views of certain groups and individuals and to successfully adopt inclusive and culturally appropriate behaviors.
• Ability and responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.
• Knowledge of diversity management as it relates to daily work expectations and assigned tasks.
• Knowledge of the ECOWAS mandate and operational goals of relevance to assigned responsibilities.
• Ability to keep up to date with Departmental activities, schedules and goals of pertinence to own work team, functional area.
• Knowledge of ECOWAS procedures relevant to assigned work and the ability to apply sound judgment in their application.
• Demonstrated strong interest and commitment to ECOWAS values and activities in daily assumption of duties.
• Excellent ability to maintain, process and provide accurate information as part of assigned tasks.
• Ability to organize files and information for easy retrieval and record keeping.
• Ability to spot mistakes, act promptly to correct them and learn from experiences.
• Knowledge and ability to challenge and question fundamental assumptions regarding accepted ways of doing things in the spirit of improvement.
• Ability to use current technology to communicate effectively e.g. office software programs, including spreadsheets, word processing and graphic presentation software; ability to type and format presentations, reports, manuals, newsletters, website content and proficiency in information communication technologies (ICT).
• Well-developed information sharing skills using technology and in accordance with established processes and practices.
• Advanced verbal assertiveness and communication skills with a demonstrated ability to acknowledge and understand the validity of others’ viewpoints and to respond in a constructive manner.
• Fluency in oral and written expressions in one of the ECOWAS official languages of the Community (English, French & Portuguese). Knowledge of an additional one will be an added advantage.
• Ability to allocate time for specific tasks in a manner that will meet deadlines and quality/quantity expectations.
• Good organizational skills with an excellent ability to break down work into smaller parts and focus on the most important steps first.
• Ability to contribute to maintaining organizational performance standards throughout the implementation of new processes, practices and plans adopted by the Department and of relevance to assigned tasks.
• Ability to monitor progress and to consider new goals in the context of assigned responsibilities.
• Ability to follow through with commitments made to others.