Donor Finance & Grant Compliance

• Oversee donor grant finance, ensuring strict adherence to donor restrictions.
• Provide accurate and timely donor financial reports and statements of expenditure.
• Maintain robust cost allocation methodologies and manage restricted vs. unrestricted funds.
• Support proposal development with budgeting, pricing, and value-for-money analysis.

Audit & Assurance

• Lead the annual organisational audit, preparing schedules, financial statements, and disclosures.
• Ensure compliance with charity accounting standards (SORP).
• Oversee financial donor audits, providing timely, accurate responses and evidence.
• Strengthen audit trails across all offices and functions.

Risk Management

• Contribute to the organizational risk register, presenting financial risks to the Board and Finance & Audit Committee.
• Lead fraud prevention, detection, and investigation standards.
• Ensure compliance with AML (Anti-Money Laundering) legislation and act as the Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MRLO).
• Implement due diligence on donors, suppliers, and country operations to meet policies.

Oversight of International Operations

• Ensure strong financial management of new country programmes, updating and renewing narratives where required.
• Support secondees in new countries, managing payments and operational directives.
• Guide financial system development in geographically dispersed operations.
• Oversee financial arrangements for countries where the NGO lacks a legal entity, including fiscal hosts, secondee payments, and contract structures.
• Manage multi-currency obligations, FX exposure, and cashflow forecasting.

Leadership, Management & Culture

• Lead, mentor, and develop the finance team to drive operational excellence.
• Foster a culture of integrity, accountability, and financial literacy.
• Provide training and guidance to programme teams and non-finance staff.
• Align financial operations with organisation values, safeguarding principles, and anti-corruption commitments.

Person Specification

Essential

• Proven experience as a Finance Director or Head of Finance with board-level reporting autonomy.
• In-depth understanding of charity accounting standards and relevant regulatory requirements.
• Senior-level finance experience in an INGO, charity, or multi-country organisation, preferably with operations in the Global South.
• Fully qualified accountant (ACCA, CIMA, ACA, CPA, or equivalent).
• High ethical standards, sound judgment, and commitment to NGO values.
• Demonstrated donor compliance experience.
• Experience leading annual audits and preparing financial statements.
• Strong leadership and team management skills with experience developing staff.
• Expertise in budgeting, forecasting, and financial analysis.
• Experience managing multi-currency environments and international financial operations.
• Ability to simplify and communicate financial information to non-specialists, senior leaders, and Board members.

Desirable

• Experience working with local partners and capacity-strengthening initiatives in the Global South.
• Knowledge of risk management frameworks and counter-fraud systems.
• Familiarity with digital financial transformation projects.
• Experience using grant management systems and cloud-based accounting tools.
• Understanding of tax, registration, and legal considerations for INGOs operating without in-country entities.
• Prior living and working experience in Sub-Saharan Africa.