Expenditure Review and Reconciliation Specialist

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Our goal is to achieve food security for all and make sure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. With over 194 member states, FAO works in over 130 countries worldwide. We believe that everyone can play a part in ending hunger. The GEF-6 Green-Ag Project is the Global Environment Facility (GEF)–financed initiative implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in India. The project integrates biodiversity conservation, climate change response, sustainable land management, and sustainable forest management into agricultural systems across five priority landscapes in Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand. Implemented under the FAO–GEF Operational Partner Implementation Modality (OPIM), the project is nationally coordinated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare (MoAFW), with State Governments acting as Operational Partners (OPs) responsible for field-level implementation. The project seeks to transform Indian agriculture by mainstreaming environmentally sustainable and climate-resilient practices that generate Global Environmental Benefits (GEBs), while simultaneously supporting rural livelihoods, food security, and nutrition outcomes. In 2025, the FAO India Office was subject to an internal audit covering aspects of project implementation under the OPIM arrangement. The audit identified significant gaps in budget utilization tracking, transaction-level documentation, and expenditure reporting at the level of OPs. In particular, inconsistencies were noted between financial records maintained by OPs and the data uploaded in the Project Management Information System (MIS), including incomplete documentation and reconciliation gaps. To address these issues and strengthen fiduciary oversight, FAO India proposes to engage an Expert on Expenditure Review and Reconciliation. The assignment will focus on a detailed review of OP expenditures, verification of supporting documentation, reconciliation of financial records with MIS entries, and support to FAO and OPs in ensuring accurate, complete, and compliant financial reporting in line with FAO rules, OPIM requirements, and GEF expectations.

The overall objective of this assignment is to strengthen financial integrity, transparency, and compliance of the OPs by conducting a comprehensive transaction-level review and reconciliation of OP expenditures and ensuring that verified financial data are accurately reflected in the Project MIS. Specifically, the assignment aims to: - Identify and reconcile discrepancies between OP financial records and MIS data; - Verify the adequacy and completeness of supporting expenditure documentation; - Support FAO India and OPs in correcting historical reporting gaps; and - Contribute to improved financial management, audit readiness, and risk mitigation under the OPIM modality.

Under the overall supervision of the FAO India Assistant FAO Representative (Administration), the Expert will undertake the following tasks: - Expenditure Review and Verification o Review OP financial records, including ledgers, vouchers, invoices, contracts, and payment evidence, for the relevant implementation period. o Verify that expenditures are eligible, correctly classified, and supported by adequate documentation in line with FAO and OPIM financial rules. o Identify missing, incomplete, or inconsistent supporting documents. - Transaction-Level Reconciliation o Reconcile individual transactions recorded by OPs with entries uploaded in the Project MIS. o Identify discrepancies related to amounts, dates, budget lines, implementing units, or supporting documentation. o Prepare reconciliation statements highlighting resolved and outstanding issues. - MIS Update and Data Correction o Support the correction and completion of financial data in the MIS, based on verified records. o Ensure that reconciled expenditures are accurately reflected in the MIS, with appropriate document attachments. o Flag transactions that cannot be reconciled and provide clear justification. - Coordination with Operational Partners o Liaise with State Project Management Units (SPMUs), Green Landscape Implementation Units (GLIUs), and relevant State Government finance teams to obtain missing information and clarifications. o Provide practical guidance to OP staff on documentation standards and MIS financial reporting requirements. - Reporting and Recommendations o Prepare a consolidated expenditure review and reconciliation report for each OP, summarizing key findings, corrective actions taken, and outstanding risks. o Provide recommendations to strengthen expenditure tracking, documentation, and MIS reporting processes going forward. o Contribute inputs, as required, to audit follow-up actions and management responses. - Other Tasks o Undertake additional duties as assigned by the FAO Representative (FAOR) and Assistant FAO Representatives (AFAORs).