Job Description

Senior Financial Assistant Job #: req34592
Organization: World Bank
Sector: Finance & Accounting
Grade: GD
Term Duration: 3 years 0 months
Recruitment Type: Local Recruitment
Location: Chennai,India
Required Language(s): English
Preferred Language(s):
Closing Date: 10/27/2025 (MM/DD/YYYY) at 11:59pm UTC
Description
Do you want to build a career that is truly worthwhile? Working at the World Bank provides a unique opportunity for you to join us to help our clients solve their greatest development challenges. The World Bank (WB) is one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries; a unique global partnership of five institutions (IBRD, IDA, IFC, MIGA, and ICSID) dedicated to ending extreme poverty, increasing shared prosperity, and promoting sustainable development on a livable planet. With 189 member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide, we work with public and private sector partners, investing in groundbreaking projects and using data, research, and technology to develop solutions to the most urgent global challenges. For more information, visit www.worldbank.org.
The WB Finance & Accounting (WFA) Vice Presidency is responsible for all aspects of the financial reporting and internal control framework for IBRD and IDA, and the extensive Trust Fund/Partnership portfolio of the WB entities. It supports an appropriate fiduciary control framework and administering disbursements for Bank lending and leads the client service function for the WB's corporate expenses.
Organizationally, WFA is comprised of three departments: (1) Corporate Accounting and Reporting, (2) Trust Funds and Loans, and (3) Financial Controls. In Controller's our mandate supports both internal and external clients while we focus on delivery, optimization, impact, and people & culture.
Unit Overview:
The WBG Trust Fund and Loan Operations Department (WFATL) in WFA provides several financial operation activities, notably financial services, compliance, disbursements, accounting, reporting, and analytics for IBRD/IDA loans and Trust Funds.
WFATF, a division within WFATL is focused on supporting the WBG's Trust Funds including Financial Intermediary Funds (FIF) portfolio, for example, providing advice on the design and implementation of new trust funds, policies, or processes, as well as many activities associated with the implementation and closure of trust funds, including account creation and maintenance, trust funds accounting and reporting and helpdesk functions.
WFATF division operates out of three locations - DC, Chennai, and Manila. The team in Chennai and Manila (WFATN), comprise three sub-teams viz., (i)Trust funds accounting clearance, (ii) Fiduciary & Controls team and (iii) Trust Funds financial reporting. Together, the Division provides end-to-end support for WBG Trust Funds, in terms of,

• Providing upstream advice to Bank teams and influence the design of new Trust funds and grant agreements to ensure compliance with fiduciary, reporting, internal control requirements and best practices.

• Support, help design, and ultimately implement and account for new and emerging trust funds products, in addition to the existing trust fund portfolio.

• Ensure the accuracy and integrity of the Trust Fund modules, financial ledgers and related interfaces, which capture all TF activities.

• Report on Trust Fund accounts at the individual account and portfolio level through, audited/un-audited financial statements, management reports, analyses and trends for corporate reporting, donor specific reports, etc.

• Maintain/enhance/develop underlying systems, tools and applications to cater to the changing business needs.

This is an advertisement for a Senior Financial Assistant, in the Trust Fund reporting team in Chennai (WFATN). This position reports to the Trust Fund's Senior Accounting Officer in Chennai.
How your contributions will help us achieve our goals
The Senior Financial Assistant will be responsible for accounting and reporting functions for Trust Fund business of the Bank. You will play a key role in maintaining a robust reporting and control environment for the Trust Fund Business and systems. You are expected to contribute to the institutional initiatives including financial accounting activities for assigned Trust Fund programs and reporting financial statements / information to the donors and program managers, new Trust Fund initiatives, Accounting Standard updates, and other system enhancements. You are expected to create efficiencies through automations and process re-engineering. You will also help meet client expectations and create impact to all stakeholders of the division.
What you will do:
Ensure the accuracy, appropriateness, completeness, and control of information for the Trust Fund accounting and reporting:

• Execute day-to-day accounting functions involving fund transfers, expense transfers, interim budget recoveries, budget updates and cancellation of funds for assigned programs within the ambit of trust funds accounting / administration policies / procedures and agreed Service Level Agreement (SLA) parameters;

• Manage expense reposting requests from clients, review and process such requests efficiently in accordance with the reposting guidelines and agreed SLA;

• Assist external auditors by providing the required supporting documentation in support of financial statements, in coordination with various Country Offices, within the agreed service level agreement (SLA) parameters;

• Initiate procedures to close assigned trust funds when due and return unutilized funds as per the procedures after completion of closure process;

• Monitor and resolve inconsistencies in master data /general ledger using exception reports;

• Compilation of the relevant legal documents and the general ledger extracts to serve as back up documents for the financial statements for trust funds requiring audit;

Process improvements & automation projects:

• Lead/Participate in automation projects and coordinate with technical teams on system changes, bug fixes, enhancements and testing.

• Contribute to the continuous improvements and process enhancement initiatives surrounding Trust Fund processes aimed at simplification and/or enhancements to process quality and controls;

• Provide inputs and actively participate in various institutional projects;

Others:

• Provide a variety of metrics / charts to be included in overall departmental operations report to measure progress of operations at Chennai vis-a-vis agreed norms for management information and action.

Selection Criteria
What you will bring:
Education & Experience:

• A graduate with professional certification -Chartered Accountant or Certified Public Accountant

• 0 to 1 year post qualification experience

• Proven working experience on accounting and reporting processes using automated accounting systems preferably SAP

• Exposure to various reporting tools like Alteryx, Power BI will be an advantage

Knowledge and Skills:

• Demonstrated good judgmental and analytical skills;

• Excellent problem-solving skills;

• Proficiency in SAP and Microsoft Office tools;

Abilities:

• Good interpersonal and communication skills (both written and oral);

• Strong client-focus and excellent team player;

• Ability to deal sensitively in multi-cultural environments and build effective working relations with clients and colleagues;

• Ability to function effectively in multi-disciplinary teams within a matrix environment.

WBG Culture Attributes:
1. Sense of urgency: Anticipate and quickly respond to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
2. Thoughtful risk-taking: Challenge the status quo and push boundaries to achieve greater impact.
3. Empowerment and accountability: Empower yourself and others to act and hold each other accountable for results.
The World Bank Group offers comprehensive benefits, including a retirement plan; medical, life and disability insurance; and paid leave, including parental leave, as well as reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities.
We are proud to be an equal opportunity and inclusive employer with a dedicated and committed workforce, and do not discriminate based on gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.
Learn more about working at the and , including our values and inspiring stories.

Skills Required