Audit Firm - Remote

GDN is seeking to recruit an Audit Firm to conduct an internal control review of the selected NGOs in each country. The review will aim to determine whether the NGO has the capacity to effectively manage and implement the project activities, if awarded the $200,000 grant. This will be carried out through a thorough assessment of the NGO’s institutional, administrative and financial capacity.
The audit firm is expected to provide the following services:

1. Perform an internal control assessment and an assessment of statutory compliance in the following areas:
   1.  Governance structure and oversight arrangements;
   2.  Financial Management and accountability arrangements – planning, budgeting, accounting, internal controls, funds flow, financial reporting and auditing;
   3.  Human Resources – roles and responsibilities of staff – fiduciary and others; and
   4.  Procurement Management - conformity with international procurement standards oversight and monitoring arrangements.
   5. Compliance with the World Bank’s current Environment and Social Frameworks’ (ESF) and associated Environmental and Social Standards (ESSs).
2. Perform testing of control mechanisms which must include but not be limited to the following:
   1. Examine audit reports and annual reports of last three (03) years and highlight any concerns/qualifications that might have been raised by the auditor/consultants;
   2. Review the donor review reports, if any, produced in the last three (03) years and share the outcomes;
   3. Review the staff manual, accounts manual, and accounting software to ensure that the organization has required procedures in place;
   4. Examine that the relevant accounting staff are hired with adequate qualifications; including segregation of duties
   5. Examine whether the organization has complied with the generally accepted rules of accounting and bookkeeping and have made no defaults in meeting the statutory compliance;
   6. Examine whether accounts and records maintained by the organization for the implementation of the Projects are accurate and regular, the accounts and expenditure relating to the Projects’ activities are easily traceable, identifiable and verifiable; and the costs reported are reconcilable with the accounting system and records of the organization.
   7. Verify whether it is plausible that the expenditure for a selected item was necessary for the implementation of the Project activities and that it had to be incurred for the contracted activities in any of the ongoing projects, by examining the nature of the expenditure with supporting documents;
   8. To verify that the monetary value of a selected expenditure item agrees with underlying documents; and
   9. International procurement procedures are applied.

Note: The above test of controls is expected to be performed on sample basis as per the sampling methodology agreed ex-ante (in writing) with GDN. Please note that the period covered for the sample selection shall be the last six months (at least), except for audit reports, annual reports and, the donor reports (if any).