COORDINATOR II- KENYA COUNTRY OFFICE

THE ORGANIZATION

The Alliance of Bioversity International (www.bioversityinternational.org) and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) (www.ciat.cgiar.org) delivers research-based solutions that harness agricultural biodiversity and sustainably transform food systems to improve people’s lives. Alliance solutions address the global crises of malnutrition, climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental degradation.

With novel partnerships, the Alliance generates evidence and mainstreams innovations to transform food systems and landscapes so that they sustain the planet, drive prosperity, and nourish people in a climate crisis.

The Alliance is part of CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food-secure future.

About The Position

The Coordinator II- Kenya Country Office position has the responsibility for providing overall administrative and finance support to the on-going Projects of the Alliance in Kenya. Coordinator II- Kenya Country Office will report to Regional Business Operations and Finance. He/She will work very closely with project leaders, individual project scientists in managing all general administrative issues of the office and field activities of on-going projects in Kenya. He/She will supervise all business operation and finance staffs at the country level. He/she works closely with the HR, Grants Management, Finance and Operations staff in the Regional office.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

 Project Support & General Administration

• Working closely with the Grants Management Unit, maintain a database of all project activities in Kenya; maintains a calendar and ensures timely reminders to the Project Leaders and assisting scientists.
• Liaising with Grants and Finance and Treasury Units support the processing of Letter of Agreements (LoAs), seeking clearances, requesting and follow-up on partner payments.
• Manage, review, and respond to the internal and external communication flow ¬drafting correspondence and responding to queries from collaborators and internal clients.
• Ensure that offices are fully set up for new staff including provision of supplies.
• Working with HR, ensure efficient processing of new and renewal of consultancy contract requests, facilitating clearances and following up on consultancy contract payments.
• Providing advice and support for visiting scientists and students to acquire necessary visa and work permit in compliance with existing Kenyan laws.
• Ensure files pertaining to the Alliance Hosting Agreement with other organizations and institutional relations are well maintained and prompt the Regional Operation Manager on expiry of agreements and/or any change of regulations.
• Coordinate audit processes in liaison with the Regional Finance Manager by continuously monitoring documentation and processes and ensure implementation of audit recommendations.
• Organize monthly country office staff meetings and ensure minutes are taken and properly filed for reference.
• Supervises Operations Associates.
  Procurement, Fleet Management, Assets, and Insurance matters
• Lead the processing of Procurement requests.
• Ensure timely processing of Pre-Import Permits and Liaison offices for all required clearances, dealing with Custom Agents and delivery and distribution of imported items (seeds, equipment etc.)
• Ensure proper scheduling of the use of vehicles and proper allocation on a daily basis for field activities.
• Review records related to vehicle movement, records and liaise with the Accounts Assistant for chargeback to projects for use of pool vehicles.
• Coordinate and follow-up of service and maintenance of official vehicles, ensuring complete documentation pertaining to official vehicles is filed in the relevant files.
• Managing the process of annual valuation for insurance renewals, follow-up on submission of valuation reports and issuance of insurance stickers
• Manage and keep an updated asset register for Kenya office.
• Manage inventory or warehouse to receive and record new stock of inputs, stationery and other project and office supplies as it is delivered and shipped out.

Travel/Conferences/Workshops/Meeting

Oversee bookings and liaison with travel agents for tickets, visas, coordinate airport transfers and hotel bookings for Alliance staff and visitors.

In collaboration with Program Administrators, oversee raising of requests for field travel and ensure adherence to travel authorization process for project staff and collaborators.

Oversee preparation and invitations for workshop participants, following up on travel and visa arrangements, accommodation, and payments to hotels, and ensure all support documents are filed both electronically and in hard copies.

Ensure workshop reports are prepared as required.

Ensure all travelers are insured in accordance with Alliance policies.

Safety and Security

Working closely with Alliance security teams, enforce safety and security protocols and procedures as outlined in the security guidelines to ensure the office and field operations are conducted in a secure environment in relation to organization duty of care.

Report all security incidents immediately they occur and manage them to mitigate on further loss.

Maintain the Risk catalogue and ensure it is up to date.

Train staff on use of ISOS and ensure that they do all the security training required by the institutions.

Treasury Management:

• Maintain good working relationships with the Alliance treasury office regarding bank operations and follow-up regularly to ensure sustainable tariffs.
• Ensure a proper/standard system of petty cash management is applied in the office, with regular reconciliations and cash counts to ensure maintenance of sufficient funds balances to support operations.
• Cross-check and approve online payments on the online banking platform in accordance with thresholds defined determined under the global panel of bank approvers.
• Work closely with Finance to ensure adequate funds securing uninterrupted office and project operations.

Facilitation of Audit:

• Coordinate station audit processes in liaison with the Finance Manager by continuously monitoring documentation and processes.
• Ensure the implementation of audit recommendations and report to the Regional Finance Manager for any material query that is likely to affect audit opinion.
• Payroll management and tax compliance oversight:
• Ensure smooth monthly payroll processes by providing timely novelties related to contract changes.
• Working closely with HR and service providers, ensure timely and accurate tax remittances and claims processes.

Payroll Management and Tax Compliance Oversight:

• Ensure smooth monthly payroll processes by providing timely novelties related to contract changes.
• Working closely with HR and service providers, ensure timely and accurate tax remittances and claims processes.

Requirements

• Degree in Business Administration, Management, or other relevant subject with proven office management skills, Masters is an added advantage
• Professional qualifications in procurement like CIPS preferred.
• Ability to handle basic accounting and finance.
• At least five (5) years of relevant work experience in a closely related field gained in an international organization.
• Professional exposure to an international institutional/program setting, including multi-cultural and interdisciplinary working environment.
• Excellent English communication skills, both written and oral, for diverse audiences. French
• Excellent knowledge of MS office applications, especially Outlook, Power Point and Excel and ability to learn new applications quickly.

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements