Financial Specialist

With funding from the World Bank and in the framework of the water and waste water sector reform program PWA is looking for experienced:

Background:
In the framework of the water and waste water sector reform the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) has applied for co-financing from the World Bank, Sida and AfD towards the implementation of an Emergency Capacity Building Project entitled Technical, Planning and Advisory Team (TPAT). The project aims to facilitate the implementation by PWA of Sector Reform processes, update water supply, sanitation and water resources management strategies towards more effective infrastructure development, improved service provision, and sustainable resource management and develop PWA’s capacity for implementation of water supply, sanitation and water resources management strategies, action plans and programs.
The PWA has been mandated by the Council of Ministers of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) to lead the reform in the water sector in Palestine. The PWA has established a Reform Coordination Unit (RCU) to oversee the implementation of the reform process, of which the TPAT represents a key component, under the supervision and guidance of the Minister of PWA.
The RCU is mandated to oversee the reform program implementation. The RCU will provide day-to-day support to the implementing agencies drawing on in-house expertise but is also planning to hire contractual staff in order to insure a smooth and proper implementation of the TPAT program through the constitution of a Project Management Team (PMT). The PMT will include a Project Manager, a Financial Specialist, a Procurement Specialist and Secretary. The team will be based in the West Bank.

Assignment Objective:
The PWA is considering the appointment of a qualified Financial Specialist knowledgeable of World Bank guidelines i.e. IFR, Audit, and disbursements guidelines,…etc. S/he will be responsible for i) the financial management of the program; ii) provide support to the PWA financial department; iii) monitoring and supervision of the financial plans as related to the TPAT program; and iv) provide on-job training to PWA financial staff as related to the WB financial procedures.

Tasks and Responsibilities:
Under the general direction of the PMT coordinator, the financial specialist will be required to
familiarize himself/herself with all aspects of the execution of the Project. More specifically

s/he will be responsible for the following:
-customization of the PWA financial system to fit the WB requirements as regarding the reporting system;
-follow up on the project financial transactions and bank accounts;
-review, payments requests and bills related to the program ensuring proper supporting documentation;
-entering all daily entries and posting all related entries to the system;
-follow up the budget implementation in accordance with the pre-set plan;
-managing the financial resources of the project through the follow up of the legal agreements;
-preparation of the periodic financial reports both internally and externally, and contribute to the discussion with donors when needed;
-preparation of the bank reconciliation of the bank accounts;
-follow up with external and internal auditors for the issuing of the audit reports;
-contribute to the semiannual reports and the forecasting of the upcoming period for the PSC including cash flow statements, statement of financial position and statement of budget actually;
-working with PWA financial department staff to enhance their capacities through on-job training to ensure they are capable of taking over full responsibility of the needed financial capacities by the end of the assignment; and
-performing other duties as may be assigned by the PMT Manager.

The Financial Specialist will be hosted at the PWA headquarters in Ramallah, and will be accountable to the PMT coordinator.

Essential Required Qualifications, Skills, knowledge and Competencies:
-A Bachelors degree from an accredited university in accounting, finance, business administration or another relevant field;
-At least 7 years of previous relevant experience in FM of projects including TA programs out of which at least three years with a World Bank financed project;
-good knowledge of financial accounting software, bisan accounting system is preferable;
-Excellent communication and facilitation skills;
-Fluency in English and excellent report writing;
-Excellent computer skills; and
-The ability to work under pressure.

Time Frame and Contract
The duration of the assignment is one year on a full-time consultancy basis, extendable to the full length of the program. The expected start date for the position is between March 1 and April 1, 2011, dependent on the official commencement date of the TPAT project.

CVs and letter of interest have to be submitted to PWA no later than the 15th of March, 2011 to:

Mohammad Shoabi, Acting DG of Admin and Finance

at the following address:

Palestinian Water Authority
Al-Balou`- Baghdad St
2174
Ramallah - West Bank Occupied
Tel. +972 22429022
Fax. +972 22429341