Terms of Reference for recruitment

CHIEF FINANCIAL & OPERATIONS OFFICER (CFOO)

• Position title: Chief Financial & Operations Officer (CFOO)
• Position level/Grade: Director (Senior Leadership)
• Reports to: Director General / CEO
• Duty station: Kigali, Rwanda
• Travels: Across Member States and partner locations
• Contract duration: The initial contract will be for a period of one year, renewable for three years.
• Applications submission deadline: 2nd Novermber 2025 at 11:00 PM Kigali time (GMT+2)

1. About Smart Africa

The Smart Africa Alliance is an intergovernmental initiative of African Heads of State and Government to accelerate socio-economic development through affordable broadband and ICTs, now bringing together 40 Member States (~1.1B people). Its vision is to transform Africa into a Single Digital Market by 2030, under four strategic pillars—Connect, Innovate, Transform, Accelerate.

2. Role Purpose & Mandate

The Chief Financial & Operations Officer (CFOO) is Smart Africa’s executive lead for integrated financial stewardship and enterprise operations, ensuring the organization is compliant, efficient, and results driven. The CFOO provides enterprise-wide strategic leadership to drive financial sustainability, operational excellence, and in-house digital transformation. The role provides strategic oversight in modernizing finance, human resources, procurement & logistics, and ICT/MIS support functions to enable Smart Africa to scale flagship programs continent-wide and mobilize resources efficiently; establishes cross-directorate operating standards; and enables Directorates to deliver continent-scale programs efficiently and compliantly. The CFOO reports directly to the Director General and collaborates closely with all Directors. 

The CFOO leads the establishment of Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) or other shared mechanisms, while Directors, as Heads of SBUs, remain the strategic owners of the programs. 

Executive remit (summary):

• Strategic financial planning, donor accountability, treasury, financial reporting, audits, and internal controls.
• Organization-wide operating model, process excellence, and digitalization of management systems.
• Governance, risk and compliance (GRC) oversight; policy custodianship for support functions.
• Cross-directorate coordination to remove bottlenecks and optimize resources toward scaling impact.

3. Key Responsibilities

A. Strategic Finance & Donor Accountability

1. Lead organization-wide medium-term financial strategy, multi-year budgeting, and periodic re-forecasting aligned to the Strategic Plan and grant agreements.
2. Coordinate, in partnership with all Directors, an institution-wide resource mobilisation strategy – covering donor engagement for grants and investment partnerships for SPVs – ensuring each Directorate mobilizes for its own programs while the CFOO structures pooled financing and SPVs for scaling.
3. Oversee grants & donor fund management (budgeting, allowable cost controls, burn-rate/absorption, donor reporting), ensuring on-time, audit-ready submissions to funding partners and governance organs.
4. Serve as the chief liaison for internal and external audits; ensure remediation plans are implemented and tracked to closure; steward continuous improvement of financial policies and manuals.
5. Manage treasury and cashflow, including runway planning, currency exposure monitoring, and reserve policies consistent with donor and governance expectations.
6. Collaborate with the Director in charge of Partnerships and the Director General to recover outstanding membership contributions and ensure sufficient cash flow to finance the projected expenses not funded by the grant.
7. Approve financial statements, grant financial reports, and management accounts for the DG/CEO, the Donors, Steering Committee and its Finance and Audit committee and Board.

B. Enterprise Operations & Process Excellence, Business Continuity and Technology

1. Provide strategic leadership for Smart Africa’s overall operating model and executive leadership to Finance, HR, Procurement & Logistics, and ICT/MIS; institute service-level agreements (SLAs) with Directorates for predictable, time-bound support as a service provider to SBUs.
2. Drive digitalization of management processes (ERP/HRIS/e-procurement), document workflows, and internal control automation as a core backbone for accountability, efficiency, and donor confidence.
3. Oversee the implementation of the organisation’s cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure, and data governance policy.
4. Champion the use of advanced analytics, AI, and cloud-based platforms to drive predictive financial planning, real-time operational visibility, and agile decision-making.
5. Establish an Operations Review cadence (monthly/quarterly) with Directors to track delivery, funded budgets execution, procurement milestones, and compliance status; with bottlenecks escalated and resolved within agreed SLA timeframes.
6. Chair or co-chair appropriate internal management committees (Budget, Procurement, HR), ensuring fair, transparent and timely decisions.
7. Ensure that operational processes (finance, HR, procurement, ICT) are designed as enablers, not barriers — delivering speed, transparency, and donor confidence.

C. Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC)

1. Serve as executive custodian of GRC frameworks (financial controls, data protection, procurement rules, code of conduct, conflict-of-interest, safeguarding, travel & per diem, asset management), aligned with donor and legal requirements.
2. Maintain the organizational risk register, lead risk appetite calibration with DG/CEO, and oversee mitigation plans across Directorates.
3. Ensure regulatory compliance (tax, labor, immigration, statutory filings) in collaboration with legal counsel/administration.

D. Procurement, Contracts & Commercials

1. Oversee annual procurement plans, sourcing strategies, and vendor due diligence; ensure transparent, competitive processes and value-for-money.
2. Approve major contracts, MoUs and service agreements for operational soundness and funded budgets availability; coordinate with Directorates for technical specifications and acceptance.
3. Track contract performance and vendor SLAs; institute post-procurement reviews.

E. People & Culture (Executive HR Oversight)

1. Oversee HR policy framework and funded annual workforce plan; ensure fair, merit-based recruitment, performance management, compensation, and staff development aligned to delivery needs.
2. Champion leadership development and team health; monitor employee engagement, inclusion, and safeguarding practices.
3. Develop succession plans for key roles and embed future-of-work practices, including remote collaboration tools and continuous learning, to foster a resilient and innovative workforce.
4. Lead, alongside HR, Finance and relevant departments successive internal transformation rounds focused on employee well-being (including work–life balance measures and continuous culture-pulse assessments) to nurture an engaged, resilient and high-performing workforce.
5. Lead change management for structural realignments (e.g., SBU model), ensuring clarity of roles, spans of control, and decision rights.
6. Embed a culture of accountability, speed, and innovation, including adoption of AI tools and modern productivity practices

F. Cross-Directorate Financial Management Performance & Scaling Enablement

1. Run a lightweight Program/Portfolio funding financial management performance dashboard that consolidates funded budget execution and procurement cycle time across Directorates for the DG.
2. Standardize project start-up/close-out checklists and donor reporting calendars across Directorates to prevent slippage and audit findings.
3. Partner with Directors to scale successful pilots (removing operational bottlenecks and aligning financing/controls to multi-country rollouts).
4. Partner with Directors to drive continuous improvement and innovation in service delivery to enhance speed, cost-effectiveness, and environmental sustainability.
5. Partner with Directors as a service provider, ensuring operational bottlenecks are swiftly resolved and projects move from pilot to scale without delay.

G. Support to the creation of SPVs 

1. Collaborate with the Directors to identify business projects with high potential for profitability, scalability, and sustainability, and prepare business studies to demonstrate their commercial viability.
2. Establish a dedicated Unit of Experts, including professionals in investment, technical, and legal fields, to support the preparation and initiation of SPVs for profit-generating initiatives.
3. Provide executive leadership for SVP by steering business modelling, operational modelling and transaction advisory processes—ensuring that expansion plans are commerciallyviable, operationally robust and aligned with Smart Africa’s strategic objectives.
4. Assist in conducting comprehensive technical and commercial feasibility studies, covering technical, market environment, investment, ROI, commercial, and operational aspects, to ensure that business case initiatives proposed for SPVs are bankable and commercially well-justified in terms of profitability, scalability, and sustainability.

H. External Engagement & Representation

1. Represent Smart Africa on finance, audit, procurement, and operations matters with development partners, Member States, and suppliers; ensure timely communication of compliance and reporting updates to stakeholders.
2. Act as a strategic leader for Smart Africa in interactions with donors, investors, and financial institutions, building trust and mobilizing resources for long-term sustainability.

I. Other Duties

Perform any other tasks aligned with this mandate as may be assigned by the Supervisor.

4. Key Deliverables (Annualized)

• Integrated annual budget & Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) (board-ready) with quarterly re-forecasts and cashflow plans.
• On-time donor financial reports with zero material audit findings; audit remediation log closed on schedule.
• Operations SLAs and process maps across Finance/HR/Procurement/ICT, with quarterly SLA scorecards.
• Organization-wide business continuity and disaster recovery plan updated annually.
• Enterprise risk register with quarterly updates and mitigation status.
• Procurement plan execution report incl. cycle times, competition ratio, realized savings.
• Portfolio performance dashboard for DG/Board (funded budget absorption, milestones, compliance).
• People & culture report (funded headcount plan vs. actual, appraisal completion, engagement pulse).
• ERP fully implemented and operational, with real-time dashboards available to Directors and DG.
• SPV operational frameworks developed for business case initiatives bankable and commercially well-justified in terms of profitability, scalability, and sustainability

5. Reporting Line & Working Relationships

• Reporting Line: The CFOO reports directly to the Director General / CEO.
• Functional supervision of: Finance, HR, Procurement & Logistics, ICT/MIS (and related internal committees).
• Collaboration and Key internal interfaces: The CFOO collaborates closely with all Directors: Digital Transformation & Services; Digital Infrastructure, Skills & Empowerment; Communications, Events & Partnerships; Emerging Technologies & AI. The CFOO provides enterprise services that enable SBUs to operate effectively, while Directors retain full end-to-end leadership of their programs until they reach SPV level where applicable.
• Governance interface: Prepares submissions for the DG to the Steering Committee and its committees, Board (e.g., Finance/Audit/Risk), and coordinates responses to partner due diligence.

6. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

i. Financial Stewardship

• Funded budgets accuracy (with variance ±5% at year-end explained); quarterly forecast accuracy.
• Donor report timeliness (100% on or before deadline) & audit outcomes (no material weaknesses).
• ROI of SPV projects vs. business case projections.
• Cash runway maintained per policy; receivables collection period and payables settlement period kept within agreed thresholds.

ii. Operational Excellence

• SLA attainment for support functions (≥90% on agreed targets).
• Procurement cycle-time reduction year-on-year; competitive sourcing ratio ≥80%.
• % of core processes digitized and in regular use (ERP/HRIS/e-procurement adoption).
• ERP implementation completed within first year.

iii. Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC)

• Risk register coverage and timely mitigation actions (≥90% on plan).
• Policy refresher courses completed annually; 100% staff completion of mandatory compliance trainings.

iv. People & Culture

• On-time completion of performance appraisals (≥95%); 
• Engagement pulse improvement.

v. Cross-Directorate Delivery & Scale

• Portfolio dashboard published quarterly; red-flag issues resolved within agreed timelines.
• % of grant funded flagship programs enabled to scale with required operational readiness (financing, controls, staffing).

7. Contract Duration

The initial contract will be for a period of one year, renewable for three years, subject to satisfactory performance, professional conduct, relevance of the position and availability of funding.

8. Required Qualifications & Competencies

i. Minimum Education

• Advanced degree (Master’s) in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, Public Financial Management, or related field.
• Professional certification preferred: ACCA, CPA, CIMA, or equivalent.

ii. Experience

• At least 20+ years of progressive leadership in finance and operations, including senior leadership roles in multi-donor, multinational, intergovernmental settings.
• Demonstrated success in donor-funded grants financial management, audits, and policy/controls implementation.
• Require IFRS familiarity
• Digital finance transformation experience.
• Proven track record leading shared services (Finance/HR/Procurement/ICT) and process digitalization (ERP/HRIS/e-procurement).
• Experience coordinating with senior program Directors to enable scale-up across multiple countries.

iii. Core Competencies

• Strategic financial management, treasury, and risk; results-oriented operational leadership.
• Governance, compliance, and value-for-money procurement.
• Stakeholder management with governments, RECs, development partners, and private sector.
• Change management, leadership and team development; excellent judgment, discretion, and integrity.
• Strong analytical and communication skills; ability to translate complex rules into workable processes.
• Familiarity with the AI-Driven finance, HR, procurement and operational tools is a competitive advantage

iv. Languages

• Fluency in English and French required; additional AU languages an asset.

9. Behavioral Expectations & Ethics

• Upholds Smart Africa’s values of transparency, inclusion, accountability, and innovation; models ethical conduct, impartiality, and confidentiality in all finance and HR matters.
• Zero tolerance for fraud, harassment, discrimination, or misuse of funds/resources; prompt escalation of suspected irregularities.
• Promotes a culture of agility, speed, and digital-first practices across the organization.

10. Application Instructions

Interested candidates fulfilling the job requirements should send the following application documents to the email address: hr@smartafrica.org, with mention of “Chief Financial & Operations Officer (CFOO)” in the subject line:

• Cover letter addressed to the Director General of the Smart Africa Secretariat 
• A detailed CV 
• Copies of academic and professional qualification certificates. 

The deadline for submitting applications is 2nd Novermber 2025 at 11:00 PM Kigali time (GMT+2).

Note: Only selected candidates for interview will be contacted.

11. Equal Opportunity

Smart Africa is an equal-opportunity employer and encourages applications from qualified women and men, including persons with disabilities, across all African States.