Grants and Contracts Accountant

VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT Title: Grants and Contracts Accountant Department Name: Finance Reports to Title: Finance and Operations Manager Cross Functional Reporting Title: Project Manager Supervises: None Position Summary: The Grants & Compliance Accountant is responsible for the effective financial management, budget oversight, compliance monitoring, and donor financial reporting of assigned grants and projects. The role serves as the financial focal point for assigned grants, ensuring that project expenditures, financial records, reporting, and supporting documentation comply with donor agreements, organization policies, approved budgets, and applicable regulations. The position works closely with Finance and Project teams throughout the grant lifecycle, providing financial guidance, monitoring risks and controls, supporting audits and field monitoring, and ensuring timely and compliant grant close-out. Responsibilities: Grant and Project Financial Management

• Serve as the financial focal point for assigned grants and projects, maintaining accurate financial records, supporting schedules, and audit-ready documentation throughout the grant lifecycle.
• Monitor project expenditure against approved budgets, donor agreements, and work plans, escalating significant variances and potential compliance risks.
• Prepare consolidated budget-versus-actual reports, dashboards, forecasts, and expenditure analyses for management and donor reporting.
• Ensure all financial transactions are appropriately coded and allocated to the correct grants, activities, funding sources, and budget lines.
• Maintain complete grant financial files, donor compliance records, and supporting documentation.

Review project expenditures to ensure compliance with donor requirements, organization policies, and approved budgets. Support grant implementation, reporting, audits, amendments, and close-out activities throughout the project lifecycle. Budget Development and Monitoring

• Support the preparation, review, and consolidation of grant and project budgets during proposal development and award negotiations.
• Ensure budgets and budget narratives are aligned with project objectives, implementation plans, donor requirements, and organizational policies.
• Monitors grant financial performance against approved budgets, spending plans, and funding agreements, identifying and escalating significant variances and risks.
• Advise programme and project teams on budget management, donor budget restrictions, allowable costs, and financial compliance requirements.
• Support budget revisions, realignments, and donor-approved modifications as required during project implementation.
• Collaborate with programme teams to forecast resource requirements and ensure optimal utilization of grant funding.
• Provide timely recommendations to management on budget risks, corrective actions, and opportunities for improved financial performance and compliance. Compliance Monitoring
• Lead grant compliance monitoring activities to ensure adherence to donor regulations, grant agreements, HFH policies, and applicable statutory requirements.
• Conduct risk-based compliance reviews of financial transactions, procurement processes, and supporting documentation.
• Review expenditure for eligibility, allowability, allocability, reasonableness and proper authorization.
• Maintain and periodically update grant financial compliance checklists and support the Finance and Operations Manager in tracking open compliance and audit findings and monitoring implementation of agreed corrective actions.
• Assess expenditures for eligibility, allowability, allocability, reasonableness, and compliance with approved budgets and donor conditions.
• Maintain compliance monitoring frameworks, risk registers, and action trackers for grants and projects.
• Identify, assess, and communicate compliance risks and control deficiencies, recommending practical mitigation measures.
• Coordinate the implementation and follow-up of corrective actions arising from internal reviews, donor assessments, compliance reviews, and audits.
• Provide ongoing compliance advice, training, and technical support to programme and project teams.
• Escalate significant compliance breaches, potential fraud indicators, and material non-compliance issues to management.
• Support donor audits, monitoring visits, and compliance assessments, ensuring all required documentation is accurate, complete, and audit ready.
• Promote a culture of accountability, compliance, and sound grant stewardship across project teams.
• Provide compliance briefings and guidance to project staff. Month end and year end closure
• Prepare monthly bank reconciliations and supporting schedules in accordance with the monthly financial close timetable and submit them to the Finance and Operations Manager for review.

Formation / Diplômes

• Capture financial transactions and support information in Sun Systems or its successor system for assigned grants/projects, ensuring transactions are complete, accurately coded and supported, and submit captured transactions to the Senior Finance & Operations Officer or designated independent reviewer for posting.
• Monitor the accuracy of project coding and classification.
• Support month-end and year-end project closing.
• Review project reconciliations and investigate material or unusual balances.
• Work with the Senior Finance & Operations Officer to strengthen project financial controls. Audit and Assurance
• Coordinate the preparation and submission of financial records, schedules, reconciliations, and supporting documentation required for donor, internal, and external audits and reviews.
• Serve as the primary focal point for audit and donor compliance queries relating to assigned grants, ensuring timely and accurate responses.
• Conduct periodic compliance reviews and field verification visits to assess adherence to donor requirements, organizational policies, and approved project budgets.
• Track, monitor, and report on audit findings, compliance observations, and agreed management actions to ensure timely resolution.
• Work closely with the Finance and Operations Manager, programme teams, and budget holders to implement and verify corrective actions arising from audits and compliance reviews.
• Identify recurring control weaknesses, compliance risks, and process improvement opportunities, and recommend measures to strengthen grant management and accountability. Capacity Building and Field Monitoring
• Conduct training and awareness sessions for programme and project staff on donor financial requirements.
• Provide guidance on eligible expenditure, budget management, supporting documentation and financial controls.
• Participate in field visits to verify project implementation, expenditure and documentation.
• Work with programme teams to identify and resolve financial management weaknesses.
• Promote a strong compliance culture across project teams. Grant Close-Out and Asset Management
• Coordinate grant close-out activities with project teams and finance staff to ensure all donor requirements, reporting obligations, and close-out deadlines are met.
• Review and monitor the settlement of project expenditures, advances, commitments, asset records, and reconciliations to ensure completeness, accuracy, and compliance with grant agreement requirements.
• Ensure grant and asset documentation is complete, accurately filed, and retained in accordance with donor, statutory, and organizational record-retention requirements. Success Criteria : Indicate the metrics or other standards that will be used to measure success in this role. Timely and accurate reporting Grant and donor compliance Effective budget management Audit readiness Strong financial controls Risk identification and mitigation Timely grant close-out Effective program team support Typical Training and Experience (Minimum Required): Qualifications
• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, CA Zambia, ACCA or equivalent
• ZICA membership / registration Experience Minimum 3 years relevant experience Experience in grants/donor-funded projects Proficiency in Excel and accounting systems Good knowledge of Zambian financial regulations Strong analytical and communication skills Willingness to travel to project sites ——————————————————– Active support of HFHI Values: Humility – We are part of something bigger than ourselves Courage – We do what’s right, even when it is difficult or unpopular Accountability – We take personal responsibility for Habitat’s mission Safeguarding : HFH requires that all employees take seriously their ethical responsibilities to safeguarding our intended beneficiaries, their communities, and all those with whom we work. Managers at all levels have responsibilities to support and develop systems that create and maintain an environment that prevents harassment, sexual exploitation, and abuse, safeguards the rights of beneficiaries and community members (especially children), and promotes the implementation of Habitat for Humanity’s code of conduct.

[Click the Apply button below to apply, and Create my CV to build a CV tailored to this offer, professionally]