SCOPE OF WORK

Kosovo Municipal Integrity Activity (KMI)

Project Background:

The purpose of Kosovo Municipal Integrity (KMI) activity is to address long-standing challenges related to corruption and poor-quality service delivery by the Government of Kosovo by enhancing public financial management (PFM), with a focus on municipal procurement, and by reinforcing accountability mechanisms both within government and outside of government through civil society, the private sector, and media. This activity fits into the broader efforts of USAID/Kosovo to advance self-reliance by promoting more accountable and citizen-responsive local governance. Through work with local governments, national accountability bodies, the private sector, civil society and media, USAID KMI aims to contribute to Development Objective 1 of USAID’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy (May 2020 – May 2025) namely, “Citizens are better served by accountable and effective governance institutions.”

The Kosovo Municipal Integrity Activity will focus on the following four program objectives:

1. National accountability agencies provide more effective and coordinated financial oversight,

2. Governments increase use of good practices in budget planning, public procurement, and contract management,

3. Government advances norms and practices that support internal audit and accountability,

4. Civil society, media, and the private sector improve the integrity of public and private sector actors in public procurement.

Role’s Purpose:

The Public Financial Management Advisor will be responsible for providing technical assistance to and overseeing all KMI activities related to public financial management at selected institutions. The Advisor will provide regular technical support to focus institutions and will support designated local institutions as well as key stakeholders to enable improvements to budget planning and implementation, risk management and to enhance transparency, accountability, and governance. The Public Finance Management Advisor will serve as coach and mentor for focus institutions to build enhanced public finance management capacities.

Objectives:

• Manage/oversee PFM related activities as directed by the KMI Objective Two Lead.
• Coach, mentor, and contribute to the design and lead of capacity building efforts with government and municipal staff, government, and municipal leadership (mayors, municipal department directors, municipal assemblies, ministries, etc.) and project team under the leadership of Objective Two Lead,
• Assess existing PFM systems and processes and supports their implementation, also introduce best practices to focus institutions, suggesting improvements to ensure proper PFM and risk management implementation,
• Support targeted institutions to improve budget planning, especially for capital investment projects,
• Provide coaching to improve procurement planning link with budgeting planning and increase the rigor of selection process for public investment projects and improve the costing of public investment projects,
• Support budget and finance departments/directorates and other units in focus institutions to ensure audit findings are corrected so they are not repeated the following year,
• Advise the finance departments on matters related to budget planning, implementation guidelines related to medium-term fiscal and expenditure frameworks, and budget execution. This includes coaching and mentoring on standardized financial reporting, treasury requirements, and cash-debt management,
• Guide and assist officials to further enhance ethical behaviors, conduct their work in an increasingly transparent manner, and reduce incidences of malfeasance in areas related to PFM.
• Maintain awareness of political economy and systems in focus institutions to support customized solutions,
• Develop and roll out tools for improved internal control on public finance management,
• Contribute to and oversee monitoring and evaluation of institutional level activities, including data collection and analysis in assigned focus institutions,
• Provide input and write project reports and success stories for assigned institutions or technical areas,
• Collaborate with the project team to identify successes and challenges in PFM technical activities.
• Provide recommendations on needed expert short-term technical assistance (STTA) on an on-demand basis,
• Promote knowledge sharing and foster collaboration across Kosovo municipalities,
• Other related tasks.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• More than seven years of professional experience in public finance management,
• Proven experience in coaching, mentoring and capacity building,
• Proven ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with all levels of stakeholders, including municipal counterparts, partners, the project team, and the civil society organizations,
• Relevant bachelor’s degree (master’s is preferred) in public finance, economy, or related field,
• A minimum of 7 years of relevant experience working with Kosovo municipalities is preferred,
• Experience with USAID and other Donors is preferred,
• Fluent in Albanian required. English and Serbian fluency preferred,
• Valid driving license required.

REPORTING:

This position will report to the Objective Two Lead.

Deadline: Applications must be submitted in electronic format to [email protected] no later than December 18, 2024 , at 16:00. under the title "Public Financial Management Advisor." .