Vacancy: Senior Administrative Assistant

Deadline: 15 February 2012. The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) works at the crossroads of livestock and poverty, bringing high-quality livestock science, communications and capacity building to bear on poverty reduction and sustainable development. ILRI is one of 15 centers supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). ILRI has campuses in Kenya (headquarters) and Ethiopia, with other offices located in other regions of Africa (Mali, Mozambique, and Nigeria) as well as in South Asia (India, Sri Lanka), Southeast Asia (Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam) and East Asia (China).

Purpose: The Senior Administrative Assistant will provide Program support (Administrative/Financial) to the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) teams and update key program monitoring tools.

Location: The position is based at ILRI headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya

Scope: The Senior Administrative Assistant will report to the Programme Management Officer (PMO) and work closely with other Program Assistants within the wider PLE Theme and CCAFS.

Key areas of accountability: To provide administrative, follow-up and monitoring support to the PMO on program activities based on the overall programme goals and objectives. The Administrative Assistant will be part of CCAFS team, and will specifically ensure that administrative and financial systems are working consistently according to the existing policies guidelines.

Responsibilities

General Administrative support

• Provide administrative support and program backstopping to PMO;
• Assist in filing and maintaining a filing system and data base for program documentation, including concept notes and proposals, project agreements, and contracts among others.

Contracts

• Assist the PMO in monitoring contract deliverables and financial disbursements;
• Assist in follow-up on contracts submitted for signing or any other agreements entered into by the Programme within/out ILRI;
• Assist in drafting consultancy and contract requests.

Finance

• Assist in reviewing of CCAFS financial transaction listings and follow-up on any financial queries;
• Prepare payment requests;
• Monitor and flag up any contractual reports of partners for review and
• Perform any other administrative and financial tasks from time to time as may be assigned by the PMO and CCAFS Scientists.

Requirements

• A Diploma or Bachelor’s degree in Project or Business Management;
• Certified Project Associate with CPA Part II;
• A minimum of 2 years’ relevant work experience;
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office packages;(Excel use a must)
• Excellent communication skills; written and verbal communication in English, including web based communications;
• Administrative and financial management skills for project monitoring and program management;
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work within a multicultural environment; and
• Superior multi-tasking skills with the ability to coordinate prioritize and organize tasks to meet deadlines with minimal supervision.

Terms of appointment: The position is a 6 months contract non-renewable level 2A with a starting salary of KES. 38,899.80 This is exclusive of other benefits provided by ILRI.

Applicants should send a cover letter and CV explaining their interest in the position, what they can bring to the job and the names and addresses (including telephone and email) of three referees who are knowledgeable about the candidate’s professional qualifications and work experience to the Human Resources Director by registering here before 15 February 2012. The position title and reference number SAA/CCAFS/02/12 should be clearly marked on the subject line of the online application.

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