Position: CoST Tanzania Financial Audit - Dar es salaam
Job Summary
Organisational Purpose
CoST works globally with members spanning four continents. In addition
to working with CoST members at the national level, CoST works
internationally with key anti-corruption organisations to facilitate the
global exchange of experience and knowledge on
transparency and accountability in public infrastructure. CoST’s international partners include,Article 19,Open Contracting Partnership,Transparency International and Hivos. CoST promotes transparency through its core features of Disclosure, Assurance, Multi- Stakeholders and Accountability. To support member countries realize value for money and transparency in the sector, CoST members establish country programmes/national secretariats that are overseen by Multi-Stakeholder Groups of 9 members with three representatives from each sector; i.e. Government, Private Sector and Civil Society. National Secretariats are managed by Country Managers who implement, document,
transparency and accountability in public infrastructure. CoST’s international partners include,Article 19,Open Contracting Partnership,Transparency International and Hivos. CoST promotes transparency through its core features of Disclosure, Assurance, Multi- Stakeholders and Accountability. To support member countries realize value for money and transparency in the sector, CoST members establish country programmes/national secretariats that are overseen by Multi-Stakeholder Groups of 9 members with three representatives from each sector; i.e. Government, Private Sector and Civil Society. National Secretariats are managed by Country Managers who implement, document,
coordinate
stakeholders and report on country experiences, lessons learned and
challenges in the implementation of CoST core features.
- Minimum Qualification: Masters
- Experience Level: Management level
- Experience Length: 5 years
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Job Description
Introduction
CoST
– the Infrastructure Transparency Initiative, seeks to engage the
services of a qualified auditor to audit the accounts of its CoST
Tanzania programme for the period of 1st January2017 to 30thJune 2019.
This will be a step by step audit process of the CoST Tanzania programme
in respect to CoST International policies. Details are found below.
Background
CoST
– the Infrastructure Transparency Initiative (CoST) is the leading
global initiative improving transparency and accountability in public
infrastructure. CoST works with government, industry and civil society
to promote the disclosure, validation and interpretation of data from
infrastructure projects. This helps to inform and empower citizens and
enables them to hold decision-makers to account. Our experience
indicates that informed citizens and responsive public institutions help
drive reforms that reduce mismanagement, inefficiency, corruption and
the risks posed to the public from poor quality infrastructure.
Management of CoST Tanzania
The
technical and management of CoST Tanzania is the responsibility of the
Country Manager. The Country programme is implemented under the guidance
of the Host
Organization, the National Construction Council and
the Multi-Stakeholder Group (MSG). The Secretariat and MSG receive
technical and policy guidance and support from the CoST International
Secretariat, and the Board.
The main duties of the Country Manager in respect to the country programme are:
a. Planning and management of project processes
b. Monitoring of project implementation
c. Coordinate and supervise the implementation of new activities
d. Establishing and maintaining contact with key stakeholders
e. Coordinating the recruitment and supervision of project consultants and experts
f. Periodic reporting to the Board of Directors/ Governing council and donors
g. Financial management of project activities
h. Reporting to the International Secretariat any redflags, incidences of bribery/corruption or safeguarding issues.
The main duties of the Multi-Stakeholder Group in respect to the country programme are;
a. Provides oversight of the work of the Secretariat
b. Formulate all policies and plans of CoST Tanzania Chapter for submission to and adoption by the General Assembly.
c. Present the annual report and audited books of accounts for the financial year.
d. Recruit and remove CoST Country Manager and Administrative Assistant from the secretariat; and endorses other staff recruitment by the Manager, forms executive sub-committees for the purpose of addressing day to day specific items as may be required.
e. Ensures financial and technical sustainability of CoST Tanzania Chapter.
f. Approve Terms of Reference, procurement process and contract award for the Assurance Team, the qualification and mode of appointment of members of the Assurance Team and other consultancy services.
g. Reviews annual work plan and budget for approval by the Annual General Meeting.
h. Identifies funding for CoST Tanzania Chapter.
i. Provides feedback to the public Organisations, the Annual General Meeting and other desired Technical Meetings.
j. Provides an interface between those with specialty and detailed knowledge of the structure and workings in the construction sector and a wider set of interested and affected stakeholders
k. Identifies and builds upon existing structures, procedures and initiatives relating to the provision of transparency.
l. Selects projects for disclosure by setting transparent criteria in consultation with the line ministries.
m. Establishes information templates that define the nature and extent of information to be disclosed by procuring entities.
n. Identifies similar initiatives locally, regionally and internationally for Complementarities and synergies.
o. The MSG shall be responsible for convening the General, Annual, or extra-ordinary meetings of the General Assembly and for preparing the agenda for the same as the chairperson may guide.
p. Report to the International Secretariat any incidences of bribery, corruption and or financial mismanagement and safeguarding.
q. Review the role and contribution of members and recruit new members on the MSG/and AGM.
Funding for CoST Tanzania
To enhance their operations, country programmes and MSGs are required to engage various stakeholders at the national level, to raise awareness of CoST, implementation of the core features, adoption of and action of CoST recommendations and fundraising for national activities. The additional funds support as top up to the grants from the CoST International Board. CoST Tanzania has received funding from CoST International since acceptance of its membership. This audit will cover the period 1st January 2017to 30th June 2019.
Audit Services Required
The auditor will be required to conduct an audit of accounts of income received and expenditures for the period 1st January 2017 to 30th June 2019.
It will cover funds disbursed to CoST Tanzania during this period by the CoST International Secretariat and any other funding from other sources including in-kind support.
The audit will be carried out in accordance with international auditing standards (for instance ISA1 or INTOSAI2).
Audit Objective
This is the first audit CoST International Secretariat is instituting on CoST Tanzania. The overarching objective of the exercise is to provide CoST International Secretariat and the MSG and its key stakeholders with assurance as to whether the resources are being properly used to meet intended objectives and; advise on best ways to further strengthen the financial management system. To achieve this, the audit will;
Financial aspects
a. The auditor will verify the mathematical and accounting accuracy of expenditures described in supporting documentation and will verify how these expenditures are reconciled in financial documents and reports.
b. The auditor will state in the audit report if the audit was not in conformity with generally acceptable standards and indicate the alternative standards or procedures followed.
c. The auditor will verify financial management, human resource recruitment and filling of all management/governance records of CoST Tanzania in reference with accountabilities presented.
d. The auditor will provide an opinion as to the overall financial situation of CoST
Tanzania for the period 1st January 2017 to 30th June 2019 and will certify:
both the nature and amount of the possible effects on the financial statements.
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a. Review expenditures made by CoST Tanzania and assess whether they are in accordance with grant documents, work plans and budgets;
b. Review the process for procurement/contracting activities and assess whether it was transparent and competitive;
c. Review the use, control (for instance log-books) and disposal of nonexpendable equipment and assets and also whether the equipment procured met the identified needs and whether its use was in line with intended purposes.
d. Review the process for recruiting programme personnel and consultants and assess whether it was transparent and competitive;
e. Review accounting records and assess their adequacy for maintaining accurate and complete records of receipts and disbursements of cash; and for supporting the preparation of the six months/quarterly financial report;
f. Review the records of requests for payments and ensure that they were signed by authorized persons.
Audit Report and Management Letter
Audit Report
A comprehensive audit report covering all sources of income and expenditure with an annex of individual donor project summary income and expenditure reports should be presented where applicable. The audit report should clearly indicate the auditor’s opinion. This should include at least the following:
a. That it is a special purpose report and its intended use;
b. The audit standards that were applied (INTOSAI standards, ISAs, or national standards that comply with one of these in all material respects);
c. The period covered by the opinion.
d. Whether the Statement of Expenditure for the period from 1stJanuary 2017 to 30th June 2019 is adequately and fairly presented. The disbursements made are in accordance with the purpose for which funds have been allocated to the activities and approved budget lines
e. Reviewed the cash book and confirmed the accuracy of the bank reconciliation in support of the reported bank and bank balances as at 1stJanuary 2017to 30th June 2019.
f. Vouched and verified the authenticity of all the supporting documents for the transactions.
g. Whether the Statement of Assets and Equipment is fairly and adequately presented as at 30th June 2019 and;
h. Whether the Statement of Cash Position reported by the country programme is fairly and adequately presented as at 1st January 2017 to 30th June 2019.
Management Letter
The management letter should cover the following topics/issues:
a. A general review of the progress of activities, timeliness in relation to progress milestones and the planned completion dates, both of which should be stated in the project document or Work Plan. This is not intended to focus whether there has been compliance with specific covenants relating to specific performance criteria or outputs; however, general compliance with broad covenants such as implementing the programme with economy and efficiency should be commented upon.
b. An assessment of the programme’s internal control system with equal emphasis on (i) the effectiveness of the system in providing the secretariat, host organization and MSG with useful and timely information for the proper management of the programme
and (ii) the general effectiveness of the internal control system in protecting the assets and resources of the programme (verify the work done and value for money throughout programme processes and activities).
c. An assessment of the financial procedures and of the adequacy of the disbursements occurred in respect to the programme objectives and activities (“cost-efficiency”)
d. A description of any specific internal control weaknesses noted in the financial management of the programme and the audit procedures followed to address or compensate for the weaknesses. Recommendations to resolve/eliminate the internal control weaknesses noted should be included.
Recommendations for Improvement
Recommendations should be directed to a specific entity so there is no confusion regarding who is responsible for implementation. The response of the entity should be included in the
management letter, immediately following the recommendation. Also, the auditor may wish to comment on “good practices” (if any) that were developed by CoST Tanzania that should be
documented.
Available Facilities and Right of Access
The Country Manager with the assistance of the Finance/Administrative Officer will prepare a list of the information and description of the nature and the location of all records belonging to
CoST Tanzania. The Auditor will have full and complete access at any time to all records and documents (including books of accounts, legal agreements, correspondence, reports, correspondence with local/central government authorities, minutes of meetings, bank records, invoices and contracts etc.) and all employees of the audited entity. The auditor has a right of access to banks, consultants, MSG, Host Organization, contractors and other persons or firms engaged by CoST Tanzania in respect to projects being audited.
Audit commissioner, qualifications of the auditor, offer submission deadline and audit timeframe
Qualification of the auditor and offer submission deadline
-The auditor must be completely impartial and independent from all aspects of management or financial interests to CoST Tanzania, MSG, Secretariat and or Host Organization. The auditor
should not, during the period covered by the audit nor during the undertaking of the audit, be employed by, serve as director for, or have any financial or close business or family relationships with participants in the management of CoST Tanzania.
-The auditor should have at least five years post qualification practicing experience. In addition the candidate should have experience in applying either ISA or INTOSAI audit standards.
-The auditor should be a registered member of Tanzania Institute of Certified Accountants which in turn must be associated with the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC).
-Together with an offer, a curriculum vitae (CVs) should be provided by the auditor/ firm. If additional staff will take part in the audit their CVs have to be provided. CVs should include
years of professional experience of the auditor(s) carrying out the audit, together with details on major audits carried out, indicating his/her capability and capacity to undertake the audit of
the projects.
-The audit will be conducted during the period in October 2019.
-The offer and the audit reports should be submitted in English.
-The estimated audit duration is 5- 8 working days. Tentative timeframe breakdown:
CoST International Secretariat is the audit commissioner.
The CoST International Secretariat and the CoST Tanzania MSG are the rights bearers of the audit report and management letter. Any circulation of the document should be first approved by the CoST International Secretariat.
The offer and draft audit report should be submitted by e-mail to Olive Kabatwairwe, CoST
Africa Regional Manager (o.kabatwairwe@infrastructuretransparency.org) and Tumaini
Lawrence (tanzania@infrastructuretransparency.org). The Deadline for application is 14th October 2019.
b. Formulate all policies and plans of CoST Tanzania Chapter for submission to and adoption by the General Assembly.
c. Present the annual report and audited books of accounts for the financial year.
d. Recruit and remove CoST Country Manager and Administrative Assistant from the secretariat; and endorses other staff recruitment by the Manager, forms executive sub-committees for the purpose of addressing day to day specific items as may be required.
e. Ensures financial and technical sustainability of CoST Tanzania Chapter.
f. Approve Terms of Reference, procurement process and contract award for the Assurance Team, the qualification and mode of appointment of members of the Assurance Team and other consultancy services.
g. Reviews annual work plan and budget for approval by the Annual General Meeting.
h. Identifies funding for CoST Tanzania Chapter.
i. Provides feedback to the public Organisations, the Annual General Meeting and other desired Technical Meetings.
j. Provides an interface between those with specialty and detailed knowledge of the structure and workings in the construction sector and a wider set of interested and affected stakeholders
k. Identifies and builds upon existing structures, procedures and initiatives relating to the provision of transparency.
l. Selects projects for disclosure by setting transparent criteria in consultation with the line ministries.
m. Establishes information templates that define the nature and extent of information to be disclosed by procuring entities.
n. Identifies similar initiatives locally, regionally and internationally for Complementarities and synergies.
o. The MSG shall be responsible for convening the General, Annual, or extra-ordinary meetings of the General Assembly and for preparing the agenda for the same as the chairperson may guide.
p. Report to the International Secretariat any incidences of bribery, corruption and or financial mismanagement and safeguarding.
q. Review the role and contribution of members and recruit new members on the MSG/and AGM.
Funding for CoST Tanzania
To enhance their operations, country programmes and MSGs are required to engage various stakeholders at the national level, to raise awareness of CoST, implementation of the core features, adoption of and action of CoST recommendations and fundraising for national activities. The additional funds support as top up to the grants from the CoST International Board. CoST Tanzania has received funding from CoST International since acceptance of its membership. This audit will cover the period 1st January 2017to 30th June 2019.
Audit Services Required
The auditor will be required to conduct an audit of accounts of income received and expenditures for the period 1st January 2017 to 30th June 2019.
It will cover funds disbursed to CoST Tanzania during this period by the CoST International Secretariat and any other funding from other sources including in-kind support.
The audit will be carried out in accordance with international auditing standards (for instance ISA1 or INTOSAI2).
Audit Objective
This is the first audit CoST International Secretariat is instituting on CoST Tanzania. The overarching objective of the exercise is to provide CoST International Secretariat and the MSG and its key stakeholders with assurance as to whether the resources are being properly used to meet intended objectives and; advise on best ways to further strengthen the financial management system. To achieve this, the audit will;
Financial aspects
a. The auditor will verify the mathematical and accounting accuracy of expenditures described in supporting documentation and will verify how these expenditures are reconciled in financial documents and reports.
b. The auditor will state in the audit report if the audit was not in conformity with generally acceptable standards and indicate the alternative standards or procedures followed.
c. The auditor will verify financial management, human resource recruitment and filling of all management/governance records of CoST Tanzania in reference with accountabilities presented.
d. The auditor will provide an opinion as to the overall financial situation of CoST
Tanzania for the period 1st January 2017 to 30th June 2019 and will certify:
- The financial reports and Statement of Expenditure for the period from 01st January 2017 to 30th June 2019.
- The cash position reported by CoST Tanzania as at 1 January 2017 and at 30th June 2019 and;
- The status of assets held by CoST Tanzania as at 30th June 2019.
- The financial management procedures, recruitment procedures and risks associated with these procedures.
both the nature and amount of the possible effects on the financial statements.
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Management Aspects
The
auditor is expected to conduct a general assessment of internal
controls according to established internal control standards. In
addition to the above general assessment, additional specific steps
could include the following:a. Review expenditures made by CoST Tanzania and assess whether they are in accordance with grant documents, work plans and budgets;
b. Review the process for procurement/contracting activities and assess whether it was transparent and competitive;
c. Review the use, control (for instance log-books) and disposal of nonexpendable equipment and assets and also whether the equipment procured met the identified needs and whether its use was in line with intended purposes.
d. Review the process for recruiting programme personnel and consultants and assess whether it was transparent and competitive;
e. Review accounting records and assess their adequacy for maintaining accurate and complete records of receipts and disbursements of cash; and for supporting the preparation of the six months/quarterly financial report;
f. Review the records of requests for payments and ensure that they were signed by authorized persons.
Audit Report and Management Letter
Audit Report
A comprehensive audit report covering all sources of income and expenditure with an annex of individual donor project summary income and expenditure reports should be presented where applicable. The audit report should clearly indicate the auditor’s opinion. This should include at least the following:
a. That it is a special purpose report and its intended use;
b. The audit standards that were applied (INTOSAI standards, ISAs, or national standards that comply with one of these in all material respects);
c. The period covered by the opinion.
d. Whether the Statement of Expenditure for the period from 1stJanuary 2017 to 30th June 2019 is adequately and fairly presented. The disbursements made are in accordance with the purpose for which funds have been allocated to the activities and approved budget lines
e. Reviewed the cash book and confirmed the accuracy of the bank reconciliation in support of the reported bank and bank balances as at 1stJanuary 2017to 30th June 2019.
f. Vouched and verified the authenticity of all the supporting documents for the transactions.
g. Whether the Statement of Assets and Equipment is fairly and adequately presented as at 30th June 2019 and;
h. Whether the Statement of Cash Position reported by the country programme is fairly and adequately presented as at 1st January 2017 to 30th June 2019.
Management Letter
The management letter should cover the following topics/issues:
a. A general review of the progress of activities, timeliness in relation to progress milestones and the planned completion dates, both of which should be stated in the project document or Work Plan. This is not intended to focus whether there has been compliance with specific covenants relating to specific performance criteria or outputs; however, general compliance with broad covenants such as implementing the programme with economy and efficiency should be commented upon.
b. An assessment of the programme’s internal control system with equal emphasis on (i) the effectiveness of the system in providing the secretariat, host organization and MSG with useful and timely information for the proper management of the programme
and (ii) the general effectiveness of the internal control system in protecting the assets and resources of the programme (verify the work done and value for money throughout programme processes and activities).
c. An assessment of the financial procedures and of the adequacy of the disbursements occurred in respect to the programme objectives and activities (“cost-efficiency”)
d. A description of any specific internal control weaknesses noted in the financial management of the programme and the audit procedures followed to address or compensate for the weaknesses. Recommendations to resolve/eliminate the internal control weaknesses noted should be included.
Recommendations for Improvement
Recommendations should be directed to a specific entity so there is no confusion regarding who is responsible for implementation. The response of the entity should be included in the
management letter, immediately following the recommendation. Also, the auditor may wish to comment on “good practices” (if any) that were developed by CoST Tanzania that should be
documented.
Available Facilities and Right of Access
The Country Manager with the assistance of the Finance/Administrative Officer will prepare a list of the information and description of the nature and the location of all records belonging to
CoST Tanzania. The Auditor will have full and complete access at any time to all records and documents (including books of accounts, legal agreements, correspondence, reports, correspondence with local/central government authorities, minutes of meetings, bank records, invoices and contracts etc.) and all employees of the audited entity. The auditor has a right of access to banks, consultants, MSG, Host Organization, contractors and other persons or firms engaged by CoST Tanzania in respect to projects being audited.
Read Also:
Audit commissioner, qualifications of the auditor, offer submission deadline and audit timeframe
Qualification of the auditor and offer submission deadline
-The auditor must be completely impartial and independent from all aspects of management or financial interests to CoST Tanzania, MSG, Secretariat and or Host Organization. The auditor
should not, during the period covered by the audit nor during the undertaking of the audit, be employed by, serve as director for, or have any financial or close business or family relationships with participants in the management of CoST Tanzania.
-The auditor should have at least five years post qualification practicing experience. In addition the candidate should have experience in applying either ISA or INTOSAI audit standards.
-The auditor should be a registered member of Tanzania Institute of Certified Accountants which in turn must be associated with the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC).
-Together with an offer, a curriculum vitae (CVs) should be provided by the auditor/ firm. If additional staff will take part in the audit their CVs have to be provided. CVs should include
years of professional experience of the auditor(s) carrying out the audit, together with details on major audits carried out, indicating his/her capability and capacity to undertake the audit of
the projects.
-The audit will be conducted during the period in October 2019.
-The offer and the audit reports should be submitted in English.
-The estimated audit duration is 5- 8 working days. Tentative timeframe breakdown:
- Consultation with CoST Tanzania: 2-3 days;
- Preparation deskwork: 1-2 days;
- Analysis and draft report: 1-2 days
- Comments integration and final report: 1 day
CoST International Secretariat is the audit commissioner.
The CoST International Secretariat and the CoST Tanzania MSG are the rights bearers of the audit report and management letter. Any circulation of the document should be first approved by the CoST International Secretariat.
How to Apply?
Please manually apply for this job using the details below:The offer and draft audit report should be submitted by e-mail to Olive Kabatwairwe, CoST
Africa Regional Manager (o.kabatwairwe@infrastructuretransparency.org) and Tumaini
Lawrence (tanzania@infrastructuretransparency.org). The Deadline for application is 14th October 2019.
