Regional Finance and Sub-Awards Specialist Jobs – Mercy Corps

Job Title: Regional Finance and Sub-Awards Specialist

Organisation: Mercy Corps

Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda

About Organisation:

Mercy Corps is an international non-profit organization which implements high-quality, analytical development programmes in very difficult places. Mercy Corps has been operating in Uganda since 2006. It has and continues to implement programs in Acholi and Karamoja sub regions. Mercy Corps is taking a community-led, market driven approach to address poverty and food insecurity needs through interventions that get to the root causes and contributing factors of economic vulnerability.

Job Summary: The Finance and Sub-Awards Specialist is responsible for providing high-quality financial management and sub-award oversight for the PROPEL Program. The position will ensure that program funds and sub-awards are properly budgeted, disbursed, monitored, accounted for and reported in compliance with Mercy Corps policies, donor regulations, applicable laws and contractual requirements.

The Specialist will work closely with the PROPEL Finance, Operations and technical teams in Senegal, Liberia, Tanzania and Uganda to strengthen financial accountability, partner capacity and fiduciary risk management throughout the sub-award lifecycle. The position will play a key role in ensuring that financial management supports—not constrains—effective program implementation and achievement of PROPEL results.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT AND PROGRAM SUPPORT

• Provide day-to-day financial management support to the PROPEL Program.
• Monitor programme expenditure against approved budgets and workplans.
• Prepare and analyse budget-versus-actual reports.
• Identify significant variances, under-spending, over-spending and emerging financial risks.
• Support programme teams in developing realistic budgets, forecasts and spending plans.
• Review payment requests and supporting documentation to ensure compliance with Mercy Corps policies and donor requirements.
• Ensure accurate and timely recording of programme transactions.
• Support month-end, quarter-end and year-end financial close processes.
• Prepare financial analyses and reports for the PROPEL leadership team including for use during the steering committee meetings
• Provide financial advice to the Programme Management Unit (PMU) and Country Management Teams to support informed programme decisions.
• Support cash-flow forecasting and financial planning.
• Promote value for money and efficient use of programme resources.

SUBAWARD FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

• The Specialist will provide financial oversight across the full sub-award lifecycle, including:

Pre-Award

• Participate in the financial due diligence and assessment of prospective sub-award partners.
• Review partner financial systems, accounting procedures, internal controls and organisational capacity.
• Assess partner financial and fiduciary risks and recommend appropriate mitigation measures.
• Review proposed partner budgets for accuracy, reasonableness, allowability and alignment with programme activities.
• Recommend appropriate financial reporting, monitoring and control requirements based on partner risk.
• Support the development and review of sub-award budgets and agreements.

Award Management

• Monitor partner financial performance against approved budgets.
• Review partner financial reports and supporting documentation.
• Verify that reported expenditures are allowable, reasonable, allocable and adequately supported.
• Monitor partner advances, liquidations and outstanding balances.
• Track sub-award disbursements and expenditure against approved ceilings.
• Ensure that financial reporting deadlines are monitored and met.
• Review budget amendments and ensure that required approvals are obtained.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date sub-award financial records.

Post-Award and Close-Out

• Support timely financial reconciliation and sub-award close-out.
• Review final financial reports and expenditure documentation.
• Ensure all partner advances are liquidated.
• Follow up on unsupported, questioned or disallowed costs.
• Ensure return or appropriate disposition of unspent funds and programme assets where applicable.
• Maintain complete sub-award close-out documentation.

FINANCIAL COMPLIANCE AND INTERNAL CONTROLS

• Ensure compliance with Mercy Corps financial policies and procedures.
• Ensure compliance with applicable donor rules and regulations.
• Review transactions and sub-award expenditures for compliance with approved budgets and agreements.
• Strengthen segregation of duties and other internal control mechanisms.
• Identify potential fraud, misuse of funds and financial control weaknesses.
• Escalate significant financial and fiduciary risks promptly.
• Support implementation of fraud prevention and anti-corruption measures.
• Ensure appropriate financial documentation and audit trails are maintained.
• Monitor implementation of financial corrective actions.
• Support internal control reviews and risk assessments.

PARTNER FINANCIAL CAPACITY STRENGTHENING

• A major responsibility of the position will be strengthening the financial management capacity of PROPEL partners.

The Specialist will:

• Identify financial management capacity gaps among sub-award partners.
• Develop partner financial capacity-strengthening plans.
• Provide coaching and technical assistance on Budget preparation and management;
• Financial reporting; Accounting procedures; Internal controls;
• Documentation and record keeping; Cash management; Procurement controls;
• Asset management; Donor compliance and Fraud prevention
• Develop practical financial management tools and templates for partners.
• Follow up on agreed partner capacity-strengthening actions.
• Promote sustainable improvements in partner financial management systems.

DONOR COMPLIANCE AND REPORTING

• Ensure programme and sub-award financial management complies with relevant donor requirements.
• Interpret donor financial requirements and communicate them to programme and partner teams.
• Support preparation and review of donor financial reports.
• Maintain documentation required for donor verification and audits.
• Review partner expenditures against donor eligibility requirements.
• Support responses to donor financial queries.
• Maintain an effective audit trail for programme expenditure and sub-awards.
• Support donor and external audits.

AUDIT AND ASSUARANCE

• Support internal, external and donor audits.
• Prepare financial schedules and supporting documentation.
• Coordinate responses to audit requests.
• Track audit findings and agreed management actions.
• Follow up with partners on outstanding audit issues.
• Ensure corrective actions are implemented within agreed timelines.
• Maintain audit-ready programme and sub-award files.

SAFEGUARDING RESPONSIBILITIES

• Actively learns about safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work.
• Practices the values of Mercy Corps including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members.
• Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options.

Supervisory Responsibility: None

Accountability

Reports Directly To: PROPEL PROGRAM DIRECTOR

• Works Directly With: The Finance and Subawards Specialist works closely with the PROPEL Program Management Unit;
• Country Field Teams including Finance Managers, Country Directors, PROPEL Country Program Managers, International Finance, Program Operations, Internal Audit and HQ Accounting.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

• Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work.
• We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, Economics or a related field.
• Professional accounting qualification such as ACCA, CPA, CIMA or equivalent is highly desirable.
• At least 8–10 years of progressive experience in financial management, grants, sub-awards or donor-funded programmes.
• Demonstrated experience managing or overseeing financial aspects of sub-awards.
• Experience conducting partner financial assessments and compliance reviews.
• Strong knowledge of budgeting, financial reporting, internal controls and financial analysis.
• Experience working with international NGOs or development organisations.
• Experience working with institutional donors.
• Strong Excel and Financial Analysis Skills.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with programme and partner teams.
• Experience working with Mercy Corps or similar international NGOs.
• Experience with complex, multi-partner / multi country programmes.
• Experience with Foundations or other institutional donor-funded programmes.
• Experience with risk-based sub-award management.
• Experience strengthening the financial management capacity of local organisations.
• Experience with Market Systems Development, private-sector development, livelihoods, youth employment or economic development programming.
• Familiarity with Mercy Corps financial and grants management systems is an advantage.

How to Apply:

All suitably qualified and Interested applicants should apply online at the link below.

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Deadline: 9th September 2026

NB: Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

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Level of Education: bachelor degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: 96