Grants and Finance Specialist, Cities

This will be a hybrid position based in Nairobi, Kenya. Existing work authorization is required at the time of application submission. WRI is unable to sponsor any visa work sponsorship for this position.

About the Program:

In Africa, WRI’s Cities Program covers several initiatives in various African cities. Mobility, Urban Water Resilience, Cities4Forests and Air Quality are among these initiatives. The Urban Mobility Program works in key solution areas including sustainable integrated public transport, road safety, walking and bicycling, new mobility, transport demand management, mobility planning and accessibility. The Urban Water Resilience Initiative works with city stakeholders to help address their water risks and vulnerabilities through research, spatial analysis, technical assistance, capacity building to undertake strategic planning and identify place-based interventions and securing funding and financing resources to implement solutions. The Cities4Forests Initiative is a global alliance of more than 90 cities acting to conserve, restore, and sustainably manage nature, especially the world’s forests, for human well-being. Our member cities catalyze major nature-friendly policy changes, facilitate the flow of finance for nature-based projects, and advocate for gender and social equity, tropical forest conservation, and restoration on the global stage.

Together these initiatives partner with cities and experts to enhance capacity and demonstrate solutions (policy, program and infrastructure solutions), and support collective action to improve enabling environments. As a key component of this work the initiative aims to help cities better utilize and coordinate public sector funds and climate development aid to leverage private finance to increase access to safe water services and reduce exposure to water and climate hazards. The African Cities Water Adaptation Fund (ACWA Fund) and the NBS Accelerator are two sub-programs jointly initiated by the Urban Water Resilience program and the Cities4Forest program dedicated to help cities improve and scale financing for building climate resilience. The Air Quality initiative of WRI focuses on the identification of the sources of pollution as well as suggesting solutions. Clean Air Catalyst is one of the initiatives of the WRI’s Air Quality work. Clean Air Catalyst is a global consortium of organizations that complements traditional efforts to strengthen air quality management capacity. The project achieves this by tackling two critical bottlenecks that hinder clean air action: the gap between recognizing a problem and awareness of the solution; and the often-high cost of reducing emissions, with is unevenly distributed alongside the benefits of action.

Job Highlight:

As Grants and Finance Associate, you will provide administrative, finance and operational support for the Cities team, coordinating with program and support staff in WRI’s Africa & Global offices. In this role, you will be responsible for executing financial and administrative tasks with a major focus (60% of your time) on the implementation of two projects: i) Scaling Urban NBS for Climate Adaptation in Sub-Saharan Africa (SUNCASA) and ii) Accelerating Just, Inclusive, Resilient and Nature-Positive Cities Transition (funded by DANIDA). You will handle the financial activities of Cities program in WRI Africa, focusing on Kenya and South Africa. You will be responsible for supporting the Cities Program team with capacity in all necessary aspects of financial administration, procurement, accounting, event coordination and logistics, grants and contracts execution to ensure strict adherence to internal controls, donor guidelines, mandated laws, proper record keeping, and efficient administration. You will work closely with the Cities Program team, the WRI Africa Finance Manager and the Global Operations and Finance teams, including the Cost and Pricing team, Grants and Contracts team, and Accounting team.

What will you do:

Financial Management (50%):

• Develop annual program budgets with the Project leads, Program Coordinator, Cities Program Director and the WRI Africa Finance and Operations Manager
• Develop project budgets, notes and narratives for funding proposals on a need-by-need basis following different donor requirements while following WRI cost and pricing rules and regulations
• Regularly review, update, and monitor all transactions, commitments, and revenue flows for the Cities Program and projects to support healthy financial management
• Prepare quarterly projections and reviews to be discussed with the respective project managers while advising on any risks and providing risk mitigation strategies or course correction
• Update and maintain project budgets utilizing WRI’s budgeting and forecasting software (TM1)
• Lead grant finance aspects of the projects for grant close-outs
• Lead on financial reporting to donors
• Create and implement financial best practices for the projects, in line with WRI and donor policies for effective operational efficiency
• Lead audit processes for the project providing detailed feedback to audit queries on financial matters of the grants
• Monitor sub-grants including budgets and financial reports and provide relevant advice for effective operational and financial efficiency
• Perform periodic financial analysis on projects to detect and resolve problems
• Process documentation for project commitments (i.e., agreements, contracts, payment requests and invoices)
• Processes invoices and pay applications for projects in compliance with established governance
• Liaise with the Program Coordinator to advise the team on budget management and grants and contract related deadlines. Raise and address any financial issues in coordination Project Managers
• Responsible for managing credit cards issued to staff. Ensure expenses are reported on time and reconciliations prepared
• Ensure that invoices are properly supported before any payment consideration
• Support the submission of expense reports, timesheets, cash advances, and other transactions

Grants and Contracts Management (30%):

• Review draft contracts and provide advice on financial compliance
• Monitor program/project performance against grant and contract requirements and deliverables and ensure compliance with the terms and conditions of grants and contracts
• Ensure financial contract requirements are fully understood and met by all partners/sub grantees
• Provide training and support as needed to project partners on grant compliance and financial reporting
• Support in conducting due diligence exercises for potential sub grantees/project partners

Administration and Event Logistics (20%):

• Support the team on program administrative tasks and events coordination
• Support the coordination of conference and event logistics for domestic and international meetings and workshops, including venue and catering, equipment or translators, travel and visa support for team
• Support coordination of event participant travel, accommodation, and any per diem support, including the proper documentation and compliance with any grant terms
• Carry out procurement processes in line with the WRI laid down policies as well as donor regulations and the local laws
• Routinely sensitize the projects staff on procurement processes
• Responsible for developing, facilitating, implementing, monitoring, and reviewing the assigned project’s procurement plans.

What will you need:

• Education: You have completed a Bachelor’s degree in business administration, finance, accounting, management or a related field
• Experience: You have 3+ years of relevant, full-time work experience in accounting or finance
• You have experience in budgeting
• You have experience in administrative management, project coordination support, conference and event management or other nonprofit operations
• You have experience in grant compliance and managing contract relationships
• Experience working with CRM database (Salesforce) and budgeting software desirable
• Experience working in the international NGO sector and donor funded projects desirable
• Languages: Proficient in written and spoken English
• Requirements: Existing work authorization is required where this position is based. WRI is unable to authorize visa work authorization.

Potential Salary:

Salary is commensurate with experience and other compensable factors.

How to Apply:

Please submit a resume with cover letter by November 20 2023.

You must apply through the WRI Careers portal to be considered.

What we offer:

• A competitive salary
• Access to the WRI global network with the opportunity to exchange with and learn from passionate colleagues working at the cutting edge of their fields across Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America and the US
• The chance to have an impact and to develop your career within a mission driven organization with access to varied learning and training opportunities.
• A workplace that strives to put diversity and inclusion at the heart of our work
• The opportunity to join and get involved in different working groups and affinity groups to shape the future of WRI
• Commitment to hybrid working model with flexible working hours
• Generous leave days that increase with tenure.

About Us:

Founded in 1982, World Resources Institute (WRI) is an independent, nonprofit global research organization that turns big ideas into action at the nexus of environment, economic opportunity, and human well-being. We are working to address seven critical challenges that the world must overcome this decade to secure a sustainable future for people and the planet: climate change, energy, food, forests, water, sustainable cities, and the ocean. WRI has a global staff of over 1,800 people with work spanning 60 countries. We have offices in Africa, Brazil, China, Europe, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Colombia and the United States, as well as a growing presence in other countries and regions.

The foundation of our work is delivering high-quality research, data, maps, and analysis to solve the world’s greatest environment and international development challenges and improve people’s lives. We work with leaders in government, business, and civil society to drive ambitious action and create change on the ground. Equally important, we bring together partners to develop breakthrough ideas and scale-up solutions for far-reaching, enduring impact.

Our mission and values:

WRI’s mission is to move human society to live in ways that protect Earth’s environment and its capacity to provide for the needs and aspirations of current and future generations.

Our values are shared ideals that bind us together: Integrity, Innovation, Urgency, Independence and Respect.

Our culture:

WRI is committed to advancing gender and social equity for human well-being in our mission and applies this principle to our organizational and programmatic practices. We are committed to providing equal opportunities in employment; we embrace all diversity and encourage women, the LGBTQ+ community, persons with disabilities, Afro-descendants, and Indigenous people to apply. Recognizing our strong commitment to gender equality, WRI has also been awarded EDGE certification.

Our team in Human Resources carefully reviews all applications.

Keywords

Citiesadministrativefinanceoperational supportfinancial activitiesprocurementaccountingevent coordinationlogisticsfinancial managementgrant financefinancial reportingfinancial analysiscontracts managementadministrationevent logistics