Recruitment of an internal auditor for the RCU

ECOWAS REGIONAL ELECTRICITY ACCESS AND BATTERY ENERGY STORAGE TECHNOLOGY PROJECT (BEST – P167569)

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST
(CONSULTING SERVICES – INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT SELECTION)

URC_GRH_Auditeur Interne (BEST-379887)_REOI_ENG

Recruitment of an internal auditor for the RCU  

NG-ECOWAS-DEM-379887-CS-INDV

Closing Date: 4^th, October 2023 at 5:00 pm GMT

Contract: Time base

Status: Local Recruitment

Project reference No.: P167569

1. In order to improve the population access to electricity, ECOWAS is working for the establishment of a regional electricity market through the development of power generation and transmission infrastructure, and its intensifying initiative related to the access to electricity. Thus, ECOWAS initiated, with the support of World Bank, the Regional Electricity Access Project (REAP) to be implemented in the form of a series of projects to gradually cover 11 countries including 9 of the ECOWAS.
2. Phase 1 of the REAP, entitled ECOWAS-REAP, covers The Gambia, Guinea Bissau and Mali. The objective is to allow 2.04 million people to benefit from electricity services. The funding is 225 million USD. Components of ECOWAS-REAP are (i) Design, supply and installation of the electricity distribution infrastructures, (ii) supervision of the construction and technical advisory and (iii) project coordination and technical assistance. The project has created National Project Implementation Unit (PIU) in each country involved and a Regional Coordination Unit (RCU) housed in the Directorate of Energy and Mines.
3. Then, Phase 2 of the REAP, entitled Regional Electricity Access and Battery Energy Storage Technology Project (BEST) started preparation in 2022. It covers Mauritania, Niger, and Senegal for the “Access” component and Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, and Niger for the “Battery” component. The objective is to increase people’s access to electricity and to contribute to stability and better energy flow in the WAPP transmission system. The funding is 465 million USD. All components of BEST are (i) Design, supply and installation of electricity distribution infrastructure, (ii) design, supply and installation of BEST equipment, (iii) supervision of the construction and technical advisory, and (iv) project coordination and technical assistance. National Project Implementation Units (PIU) have also been created in each country involved.
4. The RCU set up for ECOWAS-REAP was also entrusted to coordinate the BEST project, and it has become imperative to reinforce the RCU and to improve the project internal audit. In line with the above, ECOWAS Commission, in relation to the World Bank, plans to recruit an Internal Auditor for the Regional Coordination Unit (RCU).
5. The consultant’s services (“the services”) include the following, as indicated below during One (01) year period extensible based on satisfactory performance, including a probation period of three (03) months with lump sum contract.
6. The purpose of the employment:

• The Internal Auditor will assist the Project Coordinator in providing an independent assessment of the activities of the project and, where appropriate, its related entities.
• He/she will centrally coordinate all audit and compliance activities within the project and ensure strict adherence to the World Bank’s internal policies and procedures as well as regulatory and statutory requirements.
• The duties of the post holder will be undertaken with the aim of promoting transparency and accountability, adding significant value, improving risk management, governance and compliance, enhancing operational efficiency and strengthening internal control systems within the project operations.
• The incumbent will therefore assess, among other things, the extent to which there is reasonable assurance that: risks are identified and appropriately managed; important financial, managerial and operational information is accurate, reliable and timely; institutional policies and procedures are followed; resources are acquired economically and used efficiently; quality and continuous improvement are promoted; and institutional assets (physical and intellectual), records and data are safeguarded.

7. Key duties and responsibilities include but not all the following:

• Develop and implement internal audit work programs, audit plan and risk register and lead the development, roll out and update/review of the charter, manual, relevant policies and other frameworks for the internal audit function;
• Establish effective business relationships within the project and assist the Regional Coordination in understanding, applying and complying with internal control, risk management, compliance and governance principles;
• Conduct audits by reviewing physical and electronic records, assessing the level of compliance with established policies, processes, procedures, standards, laws and regulations for the control of activities in assigned functional areas/operating units, identifying control weaknesses or opportunities for process improvement and implementing workable solutions;
• Document and file working papers and audit procedures performed. Follow up on effective and timely corrective actions taken as a result of audit recommendations;
• Maintain back-up copies (physical and electronic) of all internal audit documents for easy retrieval and reference, and monitor the document management process;
• Continuously review all documents and manuals and recommend changes to reflect current resolutions, decisions and best practices;
• Promptly disclose identified irregularities to the Regional Project Coordinator and follow up on the findings of the external audit;
• Train project staff on key audit issues and proactively keep them informed of new trends, developments and practices affecting internal audit work;
• Submit timely monthly, quarterly and annual internal audit reports to the project manager and donors;
• Monitor internal and external key performance indicators (KPIs);
• Monitor and promote compliance with regulatory and statutory requirements in all areas of the project;
• Under supervision of RCU Coordinator, work tightly with the PIUs.
• Review the Interim Financial Reports (IFRs), before the report is submitted to the World Bank.
• The review process should be coordinated with the project’s team in order to ensure IFRs are submitted to the Bank within the agreed grace period.

8. Reporting requirements

The Internal Auditor will be required to prepare monthly and quarterly and ad hoc reports as required by the RCU Coordinator.

9. Performance assessment

The performance of the Internal Auditor will be evaluated annually by the RCU Coordinator. Key Performance Indicators derived from the duties and responsibilities above and agreed upon between the jobholder and ECOWAS, would be used as the basis for measuring the performance of the jobholder.

10. Qualifications skills and experience

a.        Qualification and experience

• Advanced University Degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in Business Administration, Finance, Accounting or related field
• A minimum of Five t (05) years of progressively responsible professional experience in audit;
• At least three (03) years of professional experience should have been in an internal audit role in a donor funded project, the public sector or any of the big four accounting firms;
• Experience on World Bank funded projects will be an asset.
• Professional certification as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Chartered Accountant (CA), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), DSCG, DESCOGEFF, or equivalent qualification is mandatory.

b.       Knowledge requirements

• Sound knowledge of the policies and guidelines of international institutions, such as The World Bank (WB), African Development Bank (AfDB), European Union (EU);
• Knowledge and ability to use ERP tools such as SAP or TOMPRO, together with associated sub modules;
• Strong knowledge of Microsoft Office applications and the internet.

c.        Desirable qualities, skills and competencies

• Demonstrate a high sense of professionalism, integrity and excellent work ethics;
• Ability to take initiative and work independently with very little or no supervision;
• Have knowledge of specialized IT audit applications, such as IDEA, ACL, and TeamMate;
• Possess excellent information gathering and reporting skills;
• Have critical thinking skills to identify solutions to recurrent issues;
• Conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results.

11. Language requirement
    • It is required that the Internal Auditor is proficient in English or/and French (Read, write, speak) with a good knowledge of the other language.
12. A Candidate will be selected in accordance with the Selection of Individual Consultant set out in the World Bank Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers (Fourth Edition November 2020).
13. The application documents should be composed of: Update CV, cover letter and support documents scanned in one pdf file.
14. Further information can be obtained only by mail at the following email address: ecowas-reap@ecowas.int; with copy to lkouassi@ecowas.int ; banwone@ecowas.int ;ddegny@ecowas.int; akoumoin@ecowas.int and bdabire@ecowas.int .
15. Expressions of interest must be delivered latest by 4^th, October 2023 at 5:00 pm GMT at ecowas-reap@ecowas.int; copying lkouassi@ecowas.int, banwone@ecowas.int, ddegny@int, akoumoin@ecowas.int and  bdabire@ecowas.int

NB: Female candidates are strongly encouraged. Only pre-selected candidates will be contacted for the rest of the procedure.