The Grants & Operations Officer will be responsible for the Full Grant Management cycle within Component 2. She/He will report to the Project Lead of SANKOFA II. She/He will contribute directly to the financial execution, partner coordination, and results monitoring of the project.

This includes overseeing Calls for Proposals, grants contracting, fund disbursement, risk mitigation, compliance with European Union and Expertise France regulations, and coordination with partners and selected applicants. The Grant Officer will also support capacity-building efforts for financiers and ecosystem stakeholders.

The Grants & Operations Officer will also provide administrative and operational support to the Project Lead in the day-to-day management of the project, including document preparation, meeting organization, filing, and other routine project management tasks.

1.      Key Responsibilities (non-exhaustive)

 Grant Management & Financial Compliance

• Lead the operational and administrative management of grants, by ensuring compliance with Expertise France’s internal procedures and European Union regulation: call preparation, selection processes, contracting, and closure;
• Monitor grant expenditures, ensuring strict alignment with European Union eligibility criteria and financial regulations;
• Set up an operational and optimised mechanism for the reporting between the Civil Society Organisations and Expertise France, backed by an appropriate monitoring and verification of expenditure;
• Guarantee compliance with all contractual and donor obligations throughout the implementation cycle;
• Prepare interim and final financial reports for submission to the European Commission, ensuring accuracy and consistency;
• Maintain a comprehensive and audit-ready filing system for all financial and contractual documents;
• Coordinate with internal legal and financial departments, and liaise with external auditors when required;
• Provide a reliability grant financial reporting in line with the department's financial coordination requirements. 

Partner Support & Risk Mitigation

• Support implementing partners in adhering to European Union financial, administrative, and reporting procedures;
• Provide training session to the partners on managing the grant contract following the donor's procedures;
• Identify potential risks (e.g. ineligible expenditures) and implement appropriate mitigation measures;
• Review and validate expenditure reports submitted by grantees and organize financial follow-ups: on-site visits, committees, and feedback loops;
• Ensure effective monitoring of the grant execution and timely detection of any procedural deviations;
• Promote best practices and ensure alignment across all project stakeholders.

Capacity-Building & Strategic Coordination

• Deliver tailored trainings and continuous technical assistance to partners on financial compliance and grant management;
• Facilitate coordination between project teams - technical, financial, administrative - and ensure coherence of actions particularly under Component 2;
• Contribute to the design and implementation of innovative financial instruments (e.g., repayable advances, angel investment schemes);
• Support capacity-building initiatives for local financiers and investors, with particular attention to gender-responsive and environmentally sustainable investment practices;
• Participate in the tracking of project results and support the monitoring & evaluation framework.

Project Support & Administration

• Provide administrative and operational support to the Project Lead in the day-to-day implementation of the project;
• Assist in the preparation of meetings, workshops, missions and project events (agenda preparation, logistics, participant lists and supporting documents);
• Take meeting minutes and support the follow-up of action points;
• Assist in drafting and formatting project documents, including Terms of Reference (ToRs), concept notes, meeting reports and other operational documents;
• Prepare and update project templates, trackers and filing systems in line with Expertise France procedures;
• Support the compilation and formatting of technical and administrative reports and other project deliverables;
• Ensure proper filing and archiving of project documentation, both electronically and in hard copy where required;
• Provide administrative support for routine project management tasks as requested by the Project Lead.