Various Position

Vacancy Announcement

Legal Aid and Consultancy Center (LACC)

Job location: Lalitpur

Apply before (deadline): 21st April, 2024 office time (5:00 pm)  

About Legal Aid and Consultancy Center (LACC):

Legal Aid and Consultancy Centre (LACC) is an NGO registered in Nepal under Organization Registration Act 2034. The goal of the organization is to create an equitable and just society. It strives to create a society free from discrimination. It has been providing free legal aid and paralegal support to promote rule of law with a focus on indigent women and individuals from marginalized communities. The organization is dedicated to putting an end to violence against women and girls. Additionally, it is committed to upholding the rights and dignity of children, marginalized groups, and women with intersectional forms of gender identity, including the protection of human rights in Nepal. To promote equality and rule of law, the organization has also engaged in legal/human rights education and awareness programs, policy advocacy, networking and collaboration with like-minded organizations and coordination with relevant stakeholders.

LACC has provided free legal aid to more than 55,000 women and girls survivors of GBV and discrimination since its establishment. It has covered more than 60 districts with its services since its inception, reaching more than a million people as direct beneficiaries. LACC has also contributed to developing capable female lawyers through clinical legal education, mentoring, and leadership training.

About The Project and Job: LACC is seeking a Finance Manager, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Manager and Grant officer to lead an anticipated USAID-funded USAID Community Justice project. The 5-year project with focus on 1) Strengthen local institutional capacity and justice sector coordination and oversight to improve access to justice and justice delivery for women, youth, and marginalized groups; 2) Strengthen civil society capacity to improve community legal literacy, local justice sector accountability, and access to legal aid for women, youth, and marginalized groups in eight districts of Lumbini and Madesh Province.

Basic Job Description

1. Job Category: Finance Manager

Job Level: Senior

No. of Vacancy: 1

The Finance Manager will be responsible for ensuring financial controls, management, financial planning, annual budgeting, consolidating report received from partners  and reporting to the USAID for the program including capacity building; implementing efficient & effective processes; improving and ensuring compliance with internal control systems. The Finance Manager will be responsible to ensure cost-conscious, efficient spending and compliance with all USAID regulations, including financial reporting requirements. The Finance Manager works closely with the procurement team for the procurement of equipment and supplies for the project, program team, MEAL team, partners with the supervision of Chief of Party and LACC’s ED.

S/he will develop and oversee the implementation of policies, procedures, and systems for administration and financial support services, ensuring the project's support interventions comply with national standards, LACC internal policies and procedures, and USAID financial compliance standards and regulations. In addition, s/he will be responsible for financial management and review of project sub-contractors, and provide oversight of project operations, procurement, and logistics.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversees all aspects of project financial management and operations, including financial and accounting systems implementation; forecasting; budgeting; procurement; payroll expenditure tracking; and financial reporting and grants under contract (GUC) management.
• Prepares a financial report and ensures timely submission to USAID, as per award requirements.
• Report to executive director of LACC and Chief of Party on matters including, but not limited, to: operational field accounts, bank reconciliation/statements, office advance requests, and other day-to-day project administration issues
• Develop annual work plan budgets; oversee effective budget planning; develop and implement budgeting and financial reporting processes to meet project financial management, forecasting, and USAID award reporting requirements.
• Ensure project expenses are reasonable, cost-effective, and comply with LACC and USAID procurement rules and regulations, support donor auditing procedures.
• Ensure that award deliverables are achieved within budget while effectively managing fiduciary risk within the project as well as downstream among sub-recipients and suppliers; promptly advise the Chief of Party and LACC executive director of all potential fiduciary risks; develop monitoring and troubleshooting strategies to address risks and financial management.
• Validates and approves all financial transactions.
• Oversees the maintenance of financial records and ensures there is appropriate supporting documentation.
• Draft, review, and negotiate contracts (including service agreements, purchase orders, etc.), ensuring all required contractual terms and conditions are included while obtaining the best value to the project.
• Support and provide guidance on grants and monitor sub-recipient to ensure sound financial management, operations, and compliance; contribute to capacity building of sub partners in administration and financial management.
• Initiates procurement of office space, office equipment, vehicles, and other items, in compliance with USAID and LACC procurement regulations.
• Support and provide guidance to team members on logistical operations, including transport and staff travel requests and payments.
• Oversee project financial deliverables, including ensuring high-quality report preparation and timely submission.
• Direct preparation of annual work plan budgets, and other project-related communication and reporting materials
• Ensure compliance with USAID and LACC rules and regulations

Qualifications and Experiences

• Minimum of a Master's degree in business administration, finance, accounting, or related field
• Minimum of Seven years of progressively responsible administrative and financial management experience on financial and accounting systems development, financial monitoring, budget development and analysis, procurement, operations and logistics, IT, and human resources management and administration.
• Minimum of five years of leadership/supervisory experience managing finance, accounting, operations, and administrative staff and teams.
• Strong understanding of USAID compliance rules and regulations and Cost Accounting Standards.
• Extensive experience overseeing project operations, procurement, and logistics, development and management of large project budgets.
• Experience and knowledge in financial management of USAID funded projects as prime recipient and demonstrated experience with USAID financial reporting requirements is desirable;
• Experience overseeing management of multiple sub-grants or sub-contracts.
• Strong communication skills, including both written and oral presentation skills; proven ability to develop and communicate a common vision among diverse partners.
• English fluency with professional proficiency in writing required; knowledge of local languages of the selected provinces is an asset.
• Strong leadership, team building and management skill.
• Willingness to learn from and consult with colleagues for inputs and information sharing.
• Willingness and ability to travel to project sites within Nepal. 

2. Job Category: Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Manger (MEAL) 

Job Level: Senior

No. of Vacancy: 1

About The Job: LACC is seeking a Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Manger (MEAL) to lead an anticipated USAID-funded USAID Community Justice project. The MEAL Manager will be responsible for development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation strategies, frameworks, and tools.  In coordination with the Program team, the MEAL Manager will design the project's MEAL Plan and Performance Measurement Plan. S/he will be responsible for designing and leading the development and day-to-day supervision of MEAL system to track data of the project performance framework targets and indicators to measure progress toward project objectives and expected results. The MEAL Manager will ensure quality routine data collection, data entry, data analysis, and timely reporting, under the project Performance Measurement Plan, inclusive of subcontractor data collection. In addition, the MEAL Manager will oversee routine data quality assurance exercises and participate as needed in MEAL supervisory visits with USAID and LACC executives, with the focus on improving monitoring systems, data quality and data use at project sites. Coordinating closely with project staff, partners, and other key stakeholders, the MEAL Manager oversees the data and project analysis, interpretation, and tracking of all project data as well as documents and disseminates lessons learned, best practices, and other project deliverables. The MEAL manger will also be responsible on capacity building of partners in MEAL, that will ensure accurate, timely  and  quality planning and  reporting.

Key Responsibilities:

• Design and development of quantitative and qualitative tools and implementation of robust context-appropriate MEAL systems for monitoring project activities, data collection, quality assurance, analysis and reporting on activity outputs/outcomes and progress towards anticipated results.  
• Ensure accountability, facilitate learning, and improve program design and implementation
• Provide day-to-day implementation of all MEAL related activities under the project to track progress and make adjustment.
• Oversee team that conducts data collection, entry, verification, analysis and reporting on actual achievements against set targets, highlighting emerging patterns and offers clear reports on findings and conclusions. Ensures high quality data is reported.
• Operationalize a project collaborative learning and adaptive (CLA) approach by leading its implementation as per the MEAL plan.
• Ensure high quality data, integrity and security standards and procedures are in place and are aligned with USAID monitoring and evaluation guidelines, protocols, information, and reporting systems.
• Conduct analysis and contribute to preparation of required, periodic project reporting by capturing performance results and ensuring that lessons learned are integrated into project implementation to continuously improve quality of interventions and outcomes.
• Monitor implementation of learning agenda for identification of best practices and lessons learned and for adaptive and knowledge management.
• Provide data use training, mentoring, and coaching to project and partner’s staff.
• Engage with technical and implementing partners and local stakeholders to monitor the progress and success of activities.
• Design a reporting system that ensures regular data flow and utilization and provides insights on activity performance and areas, contributing towards strategic decision-making and project planning with project leadership.
• Work closely with project team, including partners and local stakeholders, to develop and implement a robust learning agenda for continuous learning, collaboration, and adaptation to further the project's learning agenda.
• Contribute to quality documentation, development and sharing of information and knowledge products with all relevant stakeholders in a timely manner.
• Lead annual workplan preparation for MEAL activities.
• Work closely with program and finance team and reporting to Team Leader and Executive Director of LACC 

Experience and Qualification

• A minimum of a Master Degree in a development related field, research methods, statistics, quantitative/qualitative data analysis, social sciences, or other relevant discipline.
• A minimum of 7 years directly applicable experience, of which at least 5 years, in providing management advisory services, hands-on experience in design and implement of MEAL tools at the systemic level in the field of access to justice, gender-based violence, women empowerment and leadership development.
• At least 3 years of experience with USAID's Collaborative Learning and Adoptive (CLA) approach, including developing and integrating the CLA approach within project frameworks and leading CLA approaches across partners and technical focus areas to yield successful collaboration and integration 
• Extensive experience with MEAL design, management, and reporting systems
• Experience working within USAID MEAL systems consistent with USAID protocols or significant experience working in collaboration with USAID.
• Demonstrated experience in working with technical and implementing partners and other agencies, experts and host lead and partner’s staff in planning of monitoring activities
• Willingness to learn from and consult with colleagues for inputs and information sharing
• Knowledge of the access to justice situation and community justice context in Nepal desired
• Excellent interpersonal, team building and negotiating skills
• English fluency with professional proficiency in writing
• Willingness and ability to travel to project sites within Nepal

3. Job Category: Grant and Procurement Officer

Job Level: Basic

No. of Vacancy: 1

Job Description

LACC is seeking a Grant and Procurement Officer for an anticipated USAID-funded USAID Community Justice project. The Grants and Procurement Officer will be responsible for assisting the Finance Manager, based in Lalitpur with the administration of grant activities and procurement of goods and services for Lalitpur, Lumbini and Madhesh Province offices. This position requires occasional travel to districts. 

Grants Responsibilities:

• Develop Requests for Applications (RFAs) and other solicited and unsolicited proposals, as outlined in USAID Community Justice Project Under Contracts Manual
• Facilitate the review and evaluation of grant applications and budgets to ensure cost reasonableness in compliance with USAID Community Justice Project Under Contracts Manual, referenced USAID and LACC policies, procedures, systems, and internal controls
• Ensure compliance with contract terms and conditions in accordance with the LACC contract and policies and applicable to Rule of Government of Nepal.
• Handle accounting software
• Provide orientations on compliance for strategic and district implementing partners on USAID assistance regulations and LACC grant policies and procedures
• Maintain accurate grant documentation and facilitate the timely processing of grants
• Assist Chief of Party with grant implementation from execution and signing of the award, monitoring of and documenting grantee activities, administrative actions as necessary, and ensuring final reports
• Review grant deliverables and vouchers for payment prior to disbursement
• Assist the Finance Manager with grant closeout procedures
• Submit progress and status reports as required
• Facilitate the timely processing of grants

Procurement Responsibilities

• Aid the procurement team in database entry, procurement tracking, and reporting
• Solicit bids and quotes from vendors in adherence with program policies for items needed
• As required, serve on procurement evaluation committees in accordance with LACC policies/procedures and thresholds, ensuring that the committee works collaboratively to make a final selection of vendors, suppliers, and sub-contractors
• Maintain the integrity of the procurement system and files in compliance with LACC practices and policies, and USAID rules and regulations
• Contribute to the procurement activity tracker and provide regular updates on its status to the Finance Manager and relevant technical staff
• Review procurement documents
• Report accurate financial data to the Finance Manager on planned procurement activities
• Preparation of source selection memos to provide clear justification for the selection of vendor/local subcontractor
• Help other USAID Community Justice staff in becoming more familiar with and understanding LACC policies and procedures related to procurement 
• Assist activity staff in coordinating meetings, facilitating discussions, and developing briefings in support of the source selection process
• Assist the Chief of Party in ensuring integrity, fairness, and openness in the procurement process as well as adherence to policies, procedures, and controls
• Identify and qualify potential suppliers (and products/services) through market research efforts
• Ensure that beneficial, ethical and open supplier relationships are created and maintained according to procurement policies
• Monitor, track and expedite all USAID Community Justice Project activities and delivery status of goods/services, and communicates with vendors as needed
• Evaluate vendor performance
• Provide accurate information for inventory management
• Willingness and ability to travel to project sites within Nepal
• Perform any other duties as assigned by the Chief of Party.

Experience and Qualification

• Master in business studies or other relevant areas with 5 years of years of professional work experience
• Grants and procurement experience, preferably with an international donor-funded organization
• Experience with USAID grants and procurement policy and regulations is strongly preferred 
• Ability to perform high-level duties and maintain privacy and discretion with minimum supervision 
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
• An energetic, forward-thinking, and creative individual with high ethical standards and appropriate professional image
• An extremely well organized and self-directed individual with sound technical skills, analytical ability, good judgment, and strong operational focus
• Ability to respond effectively to time sensitive demands & inquiries
• Demonstrated exceptional customer relations (both internally & externally)
• Commitment to values: integrity, responsibility, excellence, and global citizenship
• Excellent writing, speaking and reading skills in English and Nepali are required

How to apply

Please e-mail your updated CV and a cover letter with your expected salary to, Please mention post in subject line.

info@laccnepal.org or laccnepal@gmail.com

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Telephone enquiries will not be entertained.

Note: Actual hiring is contingent upon signed agreement and USAID approval.

LACC is committed to promoting equal opportunities and diversity in its recruitment process. Women, LGBTIQ+, marginalized groups, and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.