Accounting Officer (Prosper Cashew)

Job Title : Accounting Officer

Reporting Unit/Supervisor : Direct report to Senior Operations Manager, Prosper Cashew Dotted line to Senior Finance specialist

Project: Prosper Cashew

Location : Abuja - Nigeria

TechnoServe Background

Everyone deserves the opportunity to build a better future. This simple idea has been at the heart of work around the world for over 50 years. TechnoServe is a pioneer in leveraging the power of business and markets to create sustainable pathways out of poverty. The low-income communities in which we work are full of enterprising people. Their small-scale farms and businesses are the keys to economic development. But they face many challenges: low literacy, lack of access to jobs and markets, unpredictable political dynamics and, increasingly, the effects of climate change. For many women and young people, the challenges are even more daunting. Working with TechnoServe staff, people around the world are lifting themselves out of poverty. The results are amazing...when incomes increase and living conditions for families get better, they are able to access health care and education previously out of reach. Communities and even whole countries are better off.

Program/Practice/Department Overview:

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Foreign Agriculture Service through its Food for Progress (FFPr) program is anticipating funding a regional value chain improvement program for cashew production and processing in Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Nigeria for the period of 2021-2026. West Africa is responsible for 45% of the global cashew production, yet the majority of those yields are exported for processing. The project will complement other USDA investments and programs in this sector to address market barriers through technical assistance (TA) and financing solutions along the West Africa cashew value chain to improve sector productivity, increase incomes, and create jobs.

Specifically, the Prosper Cashew project seeks:

Job Summary:

The Accounting Officer will work closely with all components of the Proper Cashew team in Nigeria, in coordination with the Senior Finance Specialist, to support the financial system of the Project. This will include financial support to program staff, ensuring that financial processes are well articulated and reported.

Primary Functions & Responsibilities:

Accounting

- Keep general, analytical and budgetary accounts for the project;

- Receive invoices, check their conformity and pay suppliers;

- Transaction entry into organization’s accounting system;

- Manage and process staff expense accounts (perdiem);

- Record and process information relating to financial movements (cash flow);

- Monitor petty cash and enter it into the system;

- Draw up cash inventories and monthly bank reconciliations;

- Produce monthly accounting balances (general, analytical and budgetary) on time;

- Reconcile accounts (employees, suppliers, advances, vacations, expatriates, etc.);

- Draw up financial statements (cash-flow, expenses, tax returns, etc.);

- Prepare statutory deduction schedules and remittances (tax, pension, NSITF, NHF, etc);

- Archive documents.

Budget management

- Monitor and control expenditure of approved project budgets;

- Participate in the preparation and production of monthly, quarterly and annual financial reports;

- Support the Operations Manager in the preparation of funding requests for project requirements;

Internal controls

- Ensure the application of accounting and financial management procedures, in accordance with the organization's guide;

- Participate in the control (ordinary and unannounced) of cash registers, bank accounts, invoices and other supporting documents;

- Prepare documents for internal and external accounting audits and monitor implementation of their recommendations;

- Ensure proper filing of supporting documents for audit purposes;

Other duties :

- Carry out any other tasks assigned by line management;

Basic Qualification:

- Minimum level of education: B.Sc. in Finance or accounting with at least 2 years’ experience. Alternatively, 4 years minimum experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

- Methodical, discreet, organized, polite, courteous, of good character and punctual;

- Stress resistance;

- Proficiency in the Office package (Word, Excel, PowerPoint);

- Good command of accounting software;

- Fluency in reading and writing English;

- Experience of projects funded by the US government (USDA or USAID) would be an asset;

- Respectful of confidentiality.

Required Languages: English

Travel: Occasionally

Supervisory Responsibilities: None

Closing Statements:

We encourage all qualified individuals who share TechnoServe's vision of improving the lives of others through proven business solutions to apply.

With our commitment to diversity, we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and affirmative action employer and do not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, HIV/AIDS status, protected veteran status, disability, and all other protected classes.

We are also proud of our commitment to protecting staff, partners, and beneficiaries from abuse and exploitation and thoroughly vet all final candidates through rigorous background and reference checks.