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Ref.
2025/STFM/14370

Job offer type
Experts

Type of contract
Service contract

Activity sectors
Sustainable development

Deadline date
2026/01/12 23:59

Duration of the assignment
Short term

Contract
Freelancer

Duration
Period of mobilization : 15/12/2025 – 15/03/2025

Mission description

 

 

Since 2022, and its integration into the AFD Group, the projects and budgets managed by Expertise France have grown significantly. This increase in activity has required the agency's Support Divisions and Technical Departments to adapt their processes and models. 

 

In order to support these projects, particularly the decentralization of support activities from headquarters to the areas of activity, the Operation Direction is able to rapidly deploy human resources in the countries of intervention in the short and medium term.

Among other employees, the short term Finance Manager (FFM) will be mobilized to support the Accounting and Finance Teams of the Support Project Unities (SPO).

 

 

 

 

 

 

OBJECTIVES

COMMENTS

RESULTS

TFD SYNERGY? (YES/NO)

GENERAL

      

Arrival of the new CFT – Anticipation

Recruitment of the future USP CFT is ongoing. All mission actions must be carried out with the objective of anticipating his/her arrival, or preparing for collaboration should both positions be recruited at the same time.

- Mission report- Recruitment of Finance Manager and training of the team

 

Project Coordination

The Admin–Finance team has recently transitioned under the USP, yet coordination challenges with the project team persist. This mission must establish a clear framework allowing the development of reliable financial projections.

- Revised PA/BI- Structured coordination system

 

FINANCE

    

 

Overall Financial Monitoring – Monitoring Tool (RCI projects)

The USP currently lacks a financial monitoring tool for ongoing projects. The objective is to anticipate financial deliverables (RF, audit, RPP) to strengthen accountability toward project stakeholders.

- Global financial monitoring tool + user methodology for USPs- Proposed RACI between Finance team and Project team for management of financial oversight tools

 

Project Financial Deliverables – Organisation & Preparation

- Prepare PA/BI; clarify the RPP timeline and formally document it.- Prepare S2-2025 financial closure.- Review and validate projections, particularly for programme expenses, with priority on the EU FCCB project.- Clarify financial monitoring methodology for project teams (SB updates, RPP management, audit organisation, etc.).

- Global monitoring tool + methodology- Finance team RACI- Updated financial projections

 

Audit – Support to Ongoing Financial Controls

- Train Finance, Contracts and Project teams on EF procedures.- Conduct spot checks to assess risk of ineligible costs and determine need for an internal control mission.- Establish proper WIMI archiving for PNG country office across all current and upcoming projects.

- USP audit planning tool- Draft TORs for internal control mission (if needed)- WIMI structure + training

 

TREASURY

    

 

Resolution of Outstanding Payments

- Review pending payments and identify bottlenecks.- Establish a streamlined system to ensure up-to-date payment processing.

- Payment database

 

Payment Processes – Compliance with EF Procedures

- Conduct a full diagnostic of treasury workflows based on EF procedures.Note: this analysis is part of the broader assessment of expenditure processing and accounting treatment.- Launch corrective measures if needed.

- Mission report- Expenditure accounting workflow diagram- USP PNG payment schedule

 

ACCOUNTING

    

 

Annual Closure

- Support the Finance team with the 2025 annual closure, in coordination with HQ.

- 2025 annual closure completed based on FGT accounting records

 

SAGE – Feasibility Assessment

- Analyse PNG country office capacity for transition to SAGE mid-2026.

- Monthly timeline + RACI for expenditure accounting- Step-by-step accounting workflow analysis + required actions toward PCF autonomy

 

OTHER

    

 

Recruitment of Finance Manager

- Draft job description- Lead interviews- Train the recruited staff member

- Job description- Interview report

 

Archiving – Establishment of a Structured Filing System

Each project has its WIMI. The USP has a WIMI and a separate server used only by the USP. Staff do not know where to store documents and have lost the habit of systematic filing.Moreover, although financial deliverables (financial reporting, procurement/invoicing, audit elements) are normally stored in project folders (as per HQ format), some critical items (treasury documentation, supporting documents, etc.) are not accessible to relevant personnel.

- Structured “country office” filing tree- Memo on the storage of financial documentation for audits

 

Day-to-Day Support – Routine Activities

In addition to the objectives above, daily support will be provided on accounting, finance and treasury activities.

- Mission report

 

 

Project or context description

Since its establishment on 1 September 2025, the USP-PNG has been facing a set of structural challenges that undermine both its operationalization and the overall viability of the country office. The current CFT, will end his contract by the end of this year. The recruitment process for a new CFT has therefore just been launched in order to secure this critical function.

In parallel, the locally recruited Administration and Finance Manager (local RAF) will not continue her contract beyond January 2026. It will therefore be essential to launch a new recruitment process rapidly to ensure continuity of administrative and financial functions and stabilize the Support Unit in an already fragile context.

 

These challenges are compounded by the fact that the mission is implementing a flagship project whose disbursement rate remains extremely low (10%), while the annual financial closure is starting. The operational environment remains particularly demanding: the national bank account was opened only recently and is not yet fully functional; a significant debt is outstanding with the main supplier; programmatic financial projection capacity is weak; and the nine-hour time difference significantly limits the potential impact of Headquarters support during this critical period.

 

Key areas of support required include:

  • Programmatic: Support to project leads for the development of financial projections based on the PPC.
  • Accounting: Lead on the annual financial closure.
  • Treasury: Resolution of outstanding payment arrears.
  • Compliance: Training of Finance, Contracts and possibly Project teams on EF financial procedures.
  • Human Resources: Participation in and/or lead of the recruitment process for the new Finance Manager.

Required profile

-        Knowledge of financing mechanisms (public procurement, grants, contracts) and international cooperation tools

-        Knowledge of the audit processes of the main donors and proven ability to ensure quality financial and administrative monitoring;

-        Knowledge of Expertise France procedures would be a plus;

-        Excellent organization, coordination, analysis, synthesis and writing skills;

-        Ability to work on complex, multi-stakeholder and multi-country programs;

-        Professionalism and ability to preserve the confidentiality of the program’s financial operations;

-        Fluent French and English, written and spoken essential

Additional information

Please add to the application a one-page action plan plus the financial offer.

Selection criteria for applications

The selection process for candidates will be based on the following criteria :

  • Candidate’s training/skills/experience
  • Candidate’s skills linked with the expert mission
  • Candidate’s experiences linked with the expert mission

Deadline for application : 2026/01/12 23:59

File(s) attached : TDR_RAFV_PNG_1225.pdf

Expertise France is the public agency for designing and implementing international technical cooperation projects. The agency operates around four key priorities :

  • democratic, economic, and financial governance ;
  • peace, stability, and security ;
  • climate, agriculture, and sustainable development ;
  • health and human development ;

In these areas, Expertise France conducts capacity-building initiatives and manages project implementation, leveraging technical expertise and acting as a project coordinator. This involves combining public sector expertise with private sector skills to drive impactful results. 

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