BACKGROUND:

Fairtrade Africa (FTA) is the umbrella organisation representing Fairtrade certified producers in Africa.

FTA aims to effectively represent and provide services to producers within the International Fairtrade system and to contribute to livelihood improvement of African producers by increasing access to markets. Established in 2005, the FTA directs policy and strategic development of the organisation. FTA has four (4) regional networks – Eastern, Southern, West and North Africa supporting producer activities.
 
JOB PURPOSE AND REPORTING:

Reporting to the Head of Region, s/he is responsible for performing administrative and logistics tasks to support the Head of Region, the Regional Team and the Board to efficiently manage  West Africa Network  and the smooth running of the regional office.

Specific Tasks

Office facilities and Admin (10%)

•   Providing administrative/secretarial support such as assisting visitors and resolving a range of administrative problems and inquiries.
•   Maintaining an up to date office asset register and corresponding Asset Insurance
•   Coordinate office equipment maintenance and repairs to ensure equipment are in good working conditions
•   Timely payment of utility bills (water, electricity, internet,) and Office occupancy ie rent and service charge
•   Manage adequate supply of office supplies ie stationery, kitchen supplies and monitor usage so as to be within budget and encourage efficiency in usage.
•   Sort, review, screen and distribute incoming and outgoing mail; prepare, compose and ensure timely responses to a variety of routine written inquiries.
•   Establish rapport with suppliers and prepare engagement contracts
•   Manage office procurement processes by ensuring that competitive bidding has been done; prepare contract with vendor and maintain contract after award, ensuring that all documents are kept current and complete. Confer with suppliers regarding delivery, quality, etc. to ensure that the requirements are met;

Admin and logistics support for Head of Region, Regional Team (15%)

•   Gathering and collating information for tasks initiated by the Head of Region
•   Liaising with staff and external contacts on behalf of the Head of Region
•   Arranging both national and international travel and organization of producer visits for the Head of Region and any visitors
•   Supporting logistics for all travel for the Regional Team and Regional Support Team based in the region.
•   Under direction and guidance of the HoR and Member and Partnerships Manager provide administrative assistance to Board of Directors including organizing itineraries for partner Directors coming from outside Ghana.
•   During Regional Board meetings ensuring availability of meeting rooms, external venues, equipment, and materials as required
•   Arranging travel and accommodation for members of the Board and assistance during their stay
•   Making catering arrangements for all above meetings and serving refreshments.

HR Support (20%)

•   Ensure compliance with relevant labour legislation and Human Resources and Administration policies, procedures and guidelines;
•   Administer the office payroll and ensure statutory deductions are administered in time
•   Support field recruitment exercises by setting and organizing interviews appointments, interview folders, and sending out regret letters.
•   Liaise with the HR Manager to ensure timely renewal processes for contracts and prepare employment contracts and other documents relating to terms and conditions of employment and joining formalities for new local staff
•   Monitor closely staff leave status (all types of leave), ensuring regular updating of the leave database and status report sent out to line managers, track leave in coordination with line managers and advice accordingly.
•   Update and ensure staff medical, Group life & Group personal accident insurance eligibility lists are current.
•   Creating and maintaining employee files, including CVs, employee certificates, employees bio-data, performance management forms, exit interview and leaver forms and ensure that all staff files and records are up to-date at all times.
•   Responsible for reporting monthly payroll changes e.g. new hires, exits, change in salaries, promotions, etc.
•   Process Liaison Officer’s monthly payments and invoices
•   Update and maintain the organizational chart and staff lists as and when changes occur and share with HR Manager
•   Support in pension administration by maintaining all pension records, including information on employer and employee contributions.
•   Application for work permits, Special passes and dependent passes for the international staff.
•   Prepare & submit HR & payroll reports to the HR Manager

Finance Support (50%)

•   Maintain and advise the Head of Finance on updating cash controls
•   Maintain, reconcile and advise on updating the general ledger
•   Monitor cash reserves and investments
•   Prepare and reconcile bank statements
•   Issue cheques for all accounts due and maintain the purchase ledger
•   Issue invoices, receive payments and maintain the sales ledger
•   Ensure security for all credit cards and verify charges
•   Ensure transactions are properly recorded and entered into the computerised accounting system
•   Prepare monthly, quarterly and yearly financial statements as required by FTA Board, policies and procedures.
•   Prepare periodic reports on variances as required by Projects, Management and Board of Directors
•   Assist with the regional annual audits
•   Maintain the computerised accounting system
•   Maintain financial files and records to substantiate transactions and audit
•   Maintain the office petty cash and staff imprest systems
•   Safeguard assets by ensuring proper recording keeping
•   Assist with preparation and consolidation of FTA budget
•   Assist in development and regionalization of FTA financial policies and procedures
•   Responsible to ensure local tax laws and regulations are adhered by withholding, remitting and paying all taxes due and in due time. Advise and update the Head of Finance on all matters relating to local tax laws and regulations.

IT Support (5%)

•   Works with support contacts and FTA IT Officer to resolve IT problems in a timely manner and on agreed terms
•   Ensures the IT user policy (manual) is followed by regional staff
•   Monitor IT usage in the region and provides reports as appropriate
•   Act as first point contact to staff in the region on IT problems
•   Support train and orient staff on hardware and software
•   Assist with contacting vendors and service providers of IT equipment and supplies for efficient and effective office operations
•   Assist with procurement computers and other related computer equipment.
•   Perform software installations and organize for repairs and preventative maintenance on staff computers and other related equipment e.g. printers, fax, projector etc
•   Provide user level technical support for end users, computers, printers, etc.
•   Provide user level training on daily applications used, including, MS Word, MS Excel, MS Outlook, MS Publisher, Adobe Acrobat, and other basic computer related skills.
•   Assist with end user by ensuring backup of data files to the server.
•   Monitor printers, copiers, and fax machines to make sure they are working properly and getting regular maintenance.
•   Provide assistance and training to staff on remote access via VPN and remote troubleshooting
•   Perform system upgrades as necessary for software and hardware related components if needed

Qualification Required & Experience

Required

•   At Minimum, a degree in Business Administration, IT, Finance or related courses
•   At least 3 years experience of providing administrative support, HR and Finance
•   Analytical and financial skills with qualification in accounting being an added advantage
•   Proven ability to write clear and concise letters, papers and reports for internal and external use
•   Experience of collating information to provide initial short briefing documents for staff
•   Experience of, and interest in, working for an NGO
•   Demonstrable skills in using MS Office applications especially Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint
•   Excellent verbal and written communication in English
•   Practical knowledge of French

Desired:

•   Experience of providing HR and Finance administrative support
•   Knowledge of Ethical Trade and Fairtrade in particular
•   Strong background in IT

Skills

•   An organized and methodical approach and the ability to juggle competing priorities, both in terms of forward planning and reactive work in relation to unplanned occurrences
•   Excellent communication skills with the ability to create a positive impression of FTA in person, writing or by telephone
•   Able to organize and plan work on own initiative, as well as working with a variety of different people
•   Able to handle varied, demanding and complex tasks
•   A flexible and enthusiastic approach to work with the ability to be part of a team
•   Calm disposition, flexibility and proactive approach
•   Trustworthy and responsible

Competencies

The following are core competencies required for the role:

•   Passionate commitment – This competency shows you have a passion, dedication, and proactively can show your support for FTA.
•   Working together -This competency is about how we all relate to one another – either as Line Manager and Team, the Team itself, or colleague to colleague.
•   Delivering results – This competency is about achieving a high quality of measurable results while at the same time maintaining or even raising, the quality of work.

Location: Accra

How To Apply For The Job

An application form (CVs will not be accepted) can be found on the jobs and volunteering page of our website www.fairtradeafrica.net

If you have any queries, please e-mail:-

recruitments@fairtradeafrica.net or call +254202721930 /  +254202721930 and ask to speak to a member of the HR team.

Qualified applicants will be subjected to background checks as a condition of employment. The final hiring decision is anticipated Mid–April. Completed applications should be e-mailed to recruitments@fairtradeafrica.net All applicants should state how they meet essential requirements of the post and include their email address, telephone contacts and three referees with contact details on the application form.

Closing Date: 02 April, 2014