The Project Management Officer Senior Officer (Grant) will work under the supervision of the Programme Management Office Specialist. The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS THMCO. S/he will collaborate closely and engage actively with other UNOPS team members and the programme/technical team for managing grants and assisting in programme activities.
Specific tasks will include:
Grant management
Prepare grant awards requests, draft grant agreements and amendments thereof, using the approved templates, ensuring that all agreements and amendments are constructed and issued in line with UNOPS legal and financial rules and regulations;
Monitor expenditures, and budgets in grant proposals, and verify their consistency with prevailing market rate; assist in discussing/negotiating fee/cost as required;
Verify reporting requirements are adhered to (including monitoring due dates for project progress status reports and submission by UNOPS of financial utilisation reports to the donors), and liaise closely with the programme/technical team and the supervisor on any delays or other difficulties;
Review payment requests;
Communicate with the IPs directly on grant-related and financial matters;
Resolve routine operational and process problems, and refer complex issues to the supervisor with recommendations for courses of action;
Assist with the administration and monitoring of all aspects of project with IPs including financial, budgetary and administration;
Take part with the programme/technical team to joint monitoring visits to IP field offices and project field sites;
Liaise closely with the UNOPS Finance team;
Contribute to the coordination and follow up on the audits of Implementing Partners (IPs);
Highlight risks and delays to the team as appropriate;
Coordinate the process of the financial and operational closing of projects.
Capacity assessment and Capacity building
Conduct financial and operational capacity assessments of the IPs, and follow-up actions identified in the assessment reports;
Provide day-to-day help and guidance to the IPs and coordinate with Programme team to ensure IP understanding of, and compliance with relevant operational guidelines, terms and conditions of the grant agreement, and UNOPS requirements;
Actively compile lessons learned and best practices, and share knowledge and best practices within the Programme and with IPs, on financial and organisational management;
Contribute to the overall knowledge sharing and collaboration within the grant management team, PMO, and UNOPS in general.
Documentation:
Ensure all the record are maintained both hard and electronic copies of financial transactions for easy reference and retrieval, and monitor information related to contractual arrangements – on audits, inventories, utilisation and all such elements in the contracts and grants;
Ensure a database/archive of all grant-related documentation of all the implementing partners in the programme are maintained in a proper way;
Keep the supervisor updated on progress and issues, and prepare briefing materials as requested for discussions on project status.
Perform other duties, as required.
Monitoring and Progress Controls
The Grant Management Senior Officer will report to the PMO Specialist, who will monitor his/her performance as per these ToR. Monitoring will look in particular at the following:
Efficient, timely execution and follow-up of tasks as per the scope of responsibilities detailed above;
Proactive and professional interaction with colleagues at UNOPS to exchange information and feedback on requests in an effective and efficient manner;
Demonstration of UNOPS competencies and behaviours at the expected level when interacting with IPs, stakeholders, and colleagues from the PMO, and the UNOPS Country Office.
Education/Experience/Language requirements
Education
Master's degree in Business Administration, Public Administration, Economics, Project Management, Social Sciences, Political Sciences, Development Studies or related field is required.
A Bachelor’s Degree in combination with four (4) years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of a Master’s Degree.
Work Experience
A minimum of two (2) years of relevant experience in grant management in combination with the Master's degree or equivalent is required;
Previous successful involvement with, and a good knowledge of the development and humanitarian sector/working with UN, Donors, or NGOs is required;
Prior experience with UNOPS and understanding of UNOPS systems is an advantage;
Demonstrated experience in working in sensitive partnerships is desirable;
Additional experience of project administration or project support is a bonus;
Experience in capacity-building is a bonus;
Experience in field monitoring visits of partners is a bonus;
Good knowledge of contractual and accounting principles and modalities is a bonus;
Strong computer skills, including internet navigation and Google-based office applications;
Familiarity with multi-donor funds is an advantage.
Language:
Fluency in both written and spoken English is required;
Knowledge of one of the languages spoken in Southeast Asia is an advantage.
