Dan Royal Job/Vacancies

BioInnovate Africa is a five year (2010-2014) multidisciplinary competitive funding mechanism for biosciences and product orientated innovation activities in Eastern Africa, supported by a grant from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida).

BioInnovate will be managed by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). It will be co-located on ILRI’s Nairobi campus with the BecA ILRI Hub, a biosciences research platform that is part of AU/NEPAD’s Africa Biosciences Initiative.
The BioInnovate Program Finance and Administration Officer will be part of a small Program Management Team and will in particular support the Program Manager in ensuring that adequate financial and administrative systems are established and maintained. She/he will be supported by an administrative assistant, as well as by the financial, administrative and research services of ILRI. The BioInnovate Finance and Administration Officer will report to the BioInnovate Program Manager.
This position will be based at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) Headquarters in Nairobi but it may require frequent travel throughout the Eastern Africa region.
Duties and responsibilities include:

• Establish and maintain up-to-date financial records and management systems in accordance with the financial and operational guidelines of the host institution (ILRI);
• Design financial reporting mechanisms in accordance with Sida reporting requirements and the institutional arrangements of the host institution;
• Maintain valid and accurate records pertaining to financial utilization by projects in the innovation program thematic areas;
• Prepare semi-annual and annual financial progress reports for submission to Sida;
• Manage procurement and logistics and other administrative services for the BioInnovate management team.
• Manage the administrative and contractual matters associated with the establishment of the BioInnovate competitive grants scheme.

Preferred Skills:

• A suitable candidate is expected to have the following qualifications and experience:
• A Masters degree in business administration.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English
• Demonstrated working knowledge in management of donor funds or similar.
• Well documented experience in financial management, research administration (or the like) and management of complex programmes.
• Some knowledge of BioInnovate related activities is desirable.
• Very good competence in ICT packages such as word processing, spreadsheets, database management.
• Familiarity with web page management is of great advantage.
• Excellent networking and interpersonal skills.

Terms of appointment: This is a Nationally Recruited Staff (NRS) position based at ILRI’s Nairobi campus and is open to Kenyan nationals only. The position is on a 2-year contract renewable subject to six months probation period, satisfactory performance and availability of funding. Salary and benefits will be in line with those provided within ILRI’s NRS scheme.
Applications: Applicants should send a cover letter expressing their interest (please quote current and expected remuneration), detailed CV, names and contact details (Telephone, E-mail) of three professional referees to e-mail: by Wednesday, 30th June 2010.
The position title and reference number “BIOINNOVATE FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION OFFICER-BFAO/PC/06/10” should be clearly indicated on the subject line of the email application. Due to the high volume of applications that we receive, we regret but only online applications will be considered and only short listed candidates will be contacted.
ILRI provides a gender- and diversity-friendly work environment, and particularly encourage suitably qualified women to apply.