CONSULTANCY SERVICES TO CONDUCT FINANCIAL ASSESSMENTS OF UNICEF IMPLEMENTING PARTNERS IN ZIMBABWE

The UNICEF Zimbabwe Country Office is seeking Expression of Interest (EOI) from qualified institutions to enter into a Long-Term Arrangement (LTA) to Conduct Financial Audits, Micro-Assessments and Spot Checks of the Financial Management Capacity of Implementing Partners in Zimbabwe.

Background: UNICEF is committed, in partnership with other United Nations agencies, bilateral and multilateral donors and civil society to work together with the Inclusive Government of Zimbabwe and communities to improve the situation of women and children in Zimbabwe. As part of our mission, UNICEF routinely provides technical and financial assistance to various government and non-government implementing partners (IPs) in support of our programmatic initiatives.

Pursuant to resolution 56/201 of the General Assembly of the United Nations, UNICEF, UNDP and UNFPA adopted a common operational framework, known as the Harmonized Approach to Cash Transfers (HACT), for transferring cash to government and non-government IPs. Under the HACT framework, UNICEF is required to conduct an analysis of the financial management capacity of IPs at the onset of a new programming cycle (micro-assessments), continuous verification processes to ensure proper financial management of resources provided by UNICEF (spot checks) and comprehensive assessments for IPs receiving substantial cash assistance (financial audits).

Scope of Assignment: The Institution is expected to provide an assessment of each Implementing Partner’s financial management capacity and review fund flows, staffing, accounting policies and procedures, internal audit, external audit, reporting and monitoring and information systems. The Institution will conduct and manage the following three key financial assessment activities:

• Financial audits – assess the existence and functioning of an IP’s internal controls for the receipt, recording and disbursement of cash transfers and the fairness of a sample of expenditures.

• Micro-assessments – assess an IP’s capacity development and financial management capabilities.

• Spot checks – assess the soundness of the internal controls and the accuracy of the financial records for cash transfers.

In addition, it is envisaged that the Institution will also conduct periodic financial assessment and assurance activities of UNICEF partners, contractors and/or counterparts, as and when requested by UNICEF.

Qualifications:

1. Institution should be a reputable public accounting firm, experience with conducting prior assessments of UN Agency-funded programs and familiarity with UN Agencies’ financial management policies and practices would be beneficial.

2. Institution must be completely impartial and independent from all aspects of management or financial interests in the IPs being reviewed or those of its implementing/supervising agency or directly related entities.

3. Institution should be experienced in applying international standards for audit – either ISA or INTOSAI audit standards. The Institution must employ adequate staff with appropriate professional qualifications and suitable experience with ISA or INTOSAI standards, including experience in reviewing entities comparable in size and complexity.

How to apply:

At this stage, UNICEF is requesting Expression of Interest from Institutions interested in competing for long term contractual commitments to undertake assignments of this nature, as and when required. Interested Institutions should submit detailed and complete institutional profile information and documents, together with a written “Expression of Interest” in response to this advertisement. Information provided will be reviewed to assess each Institution’s suitability to be included in the upcoming competitive Request for Proposal (RFP) process.

If your Institution is interested in participating in the planned solicitation and meets the requirements with suitable experience, please reply to this EOI with the reference: “UNICEF Zimbabwe Financial Assessments” by either email or mail no later than 5:00PM Harare local time on Thursday, 17 May 2012. We strongly encourage responses at the earliest, as Institutions that express interest may begin to receive the RFP documents prior to the closing date. Email responses should be addressed to supplyzim@unicef.org . Mailed responses can be sent to The Supply Unit, UNICEF Harare Office, 6 Fairbridge Avenue, P.O. Box 1250, Belgravia, Harare, Zimbabwe.