Finance & Administrative Officer

jobsCareers, Careers - Nigeria, Careers - West Africa

JD Unique ID: 85394
Job Title: Finance & Administrative Officer
Company: Self Help Africa
Location: Kano State
Contract type: Fixed term contract, full-time (local recruitment)
Period: 18 months, subject to renewal
Remuneration: ₦7.5m to ₦10m annual gross
Reports to: Head of Finance and Admin

About Self Help Africa

Established in 1984, Self Help Africa is an international development organisation that works through agriculture and agri-enterprise development to address hunger, poverty, social inequality and the impacts of climate change. We believe that equitable economic development is key to lifting communities out of long-term poverty, empowering them to take control of their futures and improving their quality of life. 

In early 2023 we launched a new five-year organisation strategy, which defines shared mission as the alleviation of hunger, poverty, social inequality and the impact of climate change through community-led, market-based and enterprise- focused approaches, so that people can have access to nutritious food, clean water, decent employment and incomes, while sustaining natural resources.

Our wider organisation also includes social enterprise subsidiaries Partner Africa, which provides ethical auditing and consultancy services, and CUMO, Malawi’s largest micro-finance provider.

Our three core values are:

  • Impact: We are accountable, ambitious and committed to systemic change.
  • Innovation: We are agile, creative and enterprising in an ever-changing World.
  • Community: We are inclusive, honest and have integrity in our relationships.

Project description

Self Help Africa (SHA) is proposing a pilot to introduce chlorine dispensers in rural Kano State, Nigeria. The Dispensers for Sustainable Rural Water in Nigeria DiSuRWIN program aims to improve access to safe water and reduce the prevalence of water-borne diseases. The pilot will reach an estimated 110,000 people through the installation of 550 chlorine dispensers across communal water points. The project seeks to integrate chlorination within health functions, and within water supply service delivery and financing models in Kano State.

Job purpose

The Finance and Admin Officer will support the day-to-day financial and administrative operations of the project, including bookkeeping, verification of transaction documents, and ensuring all financial transactions are conducted in line with established guidelines. Working as part of the finance team, the Officer will provide financial support to project field staff, maintain accurate financial records, and ensure effective control systems are in place. Additionally, the Officer will be responsible for detailed asset management, including maintaining up-to-date records of all project assets, verifying their location, condition, and ownership, and ensuring proper tagging and documentation to enable accurate monitoring and control. Administrative duties will also include supporting office operations, maintaining organized records, and assisting in audits, meetings, and trainings to ensure efficient project implementation.

Key Responsibilities

Payment Processing and Documentation

  • Responsible for making payments, accounting correctly for expenditures, accruals and repayments. Checking that applicable payment procedures have been followed in accordance to donor regulations.
  • Advising the project field staff on correct financial policies and procedures to be followed during implementation of activities.
  • Ensure all payments are made in compliance with SHA’s policies & procedures e.g. that they are correctly authorized in accordance with the scheme of delegation, coded per relevant budget lines, and are supported by relevant forms and documentation.
  • Issue and monitor the program advances, ensuring they are settled/liquidated in a timely manner.
  • Monitor and liaise with staff and partner organisations to ensure that financial receipts and payments are valid, accurate, timely and appropriately handled.

Financial Transactions Records Management

  • Responsible for checking that entries are complete, accurate, appropriately authorised and auditable before entering them on the financial system.
  • Enter project’s financial transactions into the General Ledger on regular basis.
  • Provide spending information to the program team on monthly basis and giving update bi-weekly.

Cash Management

  • Ensure sufficient level of cash are available according to program/operational needs.
  • To coordinate cash projection for the project in line with budgetary requirements at field level before submission to National Office.
  • Submit monthly cash forecasts and subsequent weekly cash needs to National Office.

Assets Management and Administrative Functions

  • Assigning unique identification tags to physical assets to enable easy tracking, verification, and management.
  • Maintaining detailed records of assets, including their location, condition, and ownership, to ensure accurate monitoring and control.
  • Support project administration whenever requested by the project team and day-to-day running of the project office.
  • Oversee and support the Project drivers in conducting his duties.
  • Ensure that SHA complies with project location Internal Revenue Service obligations, making sure that PAYE tax is remitted promptly. 
  • Maintain updated records of office and project assets.
  • Support the procurement of project and office materials.

Transparency, Compliance and safeguarding

  • Employ the highest standards of openness, transparency and accountability to ensure good financial management in line with SHA’s zero-tolerance approach to fraud, bribery and corruption.
  • Demonstrate commitment to safeguarding, protection, gender mainstreaming and inclusion of vulnerable population including people with disabilities.
  • Provide support to establish feedback, complaints and response mechanism across communities of implementation to ensure programmatic and operational decisions are informed by local perspectives and priorities and contribute to the protection of program participants at the LGA level.

Accountability 

In line with Self Help Africa’s commitments under the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS), the job holder will: 

  • Actively promote meaningful community participation and consultation at all stages of the project cycle (planning, implementation, M&E).
  • Work with relevant colleagues to ensure that the Community Feedback and Response Mechanism (CFRM) is functional and accessible, that feedback and complaints are welcomed and addressed.
  • Work with relevant colleagues to ensure that information about CFRM, safeguarding and expected staff behaviour is disseminated among programme participants and communities.

Key relationships

Internal: Finance & Admin, Programme, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability & Learning, Procurement, Human Resources, Security and Communications teams.

External: Banks, FIRS, Suppliers/Vendors, Service Providers and other external stakeholders.

Knowledge, Experience and Other Requirements

Educational qualifications and requirements

  • A Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting, Business Administration, Commerce or Finance or a recognized professional certificate in accounting such as ACA or ACAA
  • At least 4 years’ project finance experience in an international organisation.
  • ICT operation, and proficiency in MS Office and Google suite.

Experience and Skills

  • Financial Accounting
  • Donor Reporting
  • Expenditure Verification
  • Experience in the development cooperation sector will be an added advantage.
  • Extensive experience in working with computerized accounting systems and standard spreadsheet.
  • Experience in working with culturally diverse teams.
  • Excellent coordination skills.
  • Effective communication, problem solving and decision-making skills.
  • Respect to cultural diversity and gender sensitivity.
  • Ability to work under pressure.
  • Commitment to SHA’s mission and values.
  • Commitment to safeguarding, including child protection, PSEA, and GBV prevention and response.

Desirable

  • Women are strongly advised to apply.
  • Knowledge of donor rules and regulations.
  • Flexible work attitude, proactive and demonstrated creativity: the ability to work productively in a team environment and the ability to problem solve creatively with minimal guidance.
  • Must seek to identify and communicate potential problems and propose solutions to the level of management appropriate to effect solutions.
  • Ability to carry out responsibilities independently with minimal technical support from within the program organization.
  • Must be a patient and good communicator who can function in an organizational environment involving a diversity of cultures, languages, and personal interests and agendas. Good at role of facilitator and team player in solving problems.

Language Requirements:

Excellent written and oral proficiency in English and relevant local language is required.

Application Procedure:  

Fill and send the attached Self Help Africa application form and also send your cover letter and CV in a single document (of not more than 6 pages) to this link.

Job description is available for download here.

The deadline for this application is 19th December 2025 . You are advised to apply early, as applications will be treated on roll-in basis. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

All candidates offered a job with Self Help Africa will be expected to sign our Safeguarding Policies and Code of Conduct as an appendix to their contract of employment and agree to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of these documents.  Specific roles may require Police/DBS/ [relevant police authority] vetting.

Self Help Africa strives to be an equal opportunities employer