General Administration

This involves all administrative activities including outreach and fundraising, personal research and development, resource mobilization strategy, president's coordination and partnerships and general administrative costs. ACET’s audit of the 2018 financial year took place during March-April 2019. The successful audit was done by Deloitte. In April, ACET had a financial management review with the World Bank. By close of June, ACET’s audited account had been finalized and signed by the ACET board of Directors. ACET also submitted its 2018 tax return to United States and prepared financial reports and statements to a wide range of donors, including the Mastercard Foundation, World Bank, the government of the Netherlands, and more In addition to providing financial update for the board in q3, we prepared and submitted the next year’s budget to the board for approval. We also submitted financial reports to donors like IDRC, MasterCard Foundation, World Bank and the Government of the Netherlands In the last quarter, we: - submitted ACET’s 2020 budget to our board of directors. - Worked on a financial proposal for the NORAD fund through the Think Africa Trust Fund. - Prepared the next quarter’s forecast for TLP and CwA. - Prepared financial reports for the Mastercard Foundation, Government of Netherland and the World Bank. In Q1 2020, we prepared the annual financial statement for 2019 which was audited first week in February 2020. We also had discussions with project managers on the approved 2020 annual budget for their projects. Financial reports for Q4 2019 were prepared for donors in the likes of MasterCard Foundation, World Bank, and the Government of Netherland. The finance team also supported fundraising activities by preparing budgets for project proposals. Q2 2020 The following were achieved this reporting period: • The financial audit for 2019 financial statement was completed in April 2020 • The financial statement was approved and signed by the board this quarter • Quarter 1 2020 TAP financials were reviewed by the World Bank • Financial reports were sent to the following organizations;  MasterCard Foundation  BMZ funded Africa - Europe dialogue, via DIE  The University of Geneva-Swiss Grant  The Government of Netherland • Statutory payments, monthly payments to staff and retainer consultants were made on time. • Prepared quarterly financial update to ACET. • Monitored and review project workplan budgets Q3- we prepared and submitted financial reports to the World Bank, Government of the Netherlands, MasterCard Foundation, the BMZ-funded Africa-Europe dialogue, OSIWA and the Swiss grant from University of Geneva. General operational activities such as salary and statutory payments are on course. HR Related- ACET recruited an Executive Assistant for the President’s office and a Portfolio coordinator for the Private Sector Development team. The revision of ACET’s recruitment policy was completed this quarter by ACET and World Bank approved HR consultant. Q4 2020 We continued with the general administrative operations such as statutory payments, salary processing and preparing financial reports for donors Human Resource During the period, ACET HR focused on addressing bottlenecks within the organizational structure through strategic recruitments, updates to key policies and the Staff Handbook. The process has been initiated to fill the vacant position of Director of Research in March and the Director of Policy and Programs by the end of the second quarter. We also completed recruitment processes for a Business analyst in the Private Sector unit in November and a Senior Analyst for the President’s office in December 2020. Discussions are ongoing to onboard a content writer for the communications team by March 2021. The department will continue updating existing policies and developing new policies where gaps have been identified. The revision of our recruitment policy has been completed by ACET and the WB's approved HR consultant, and work initiated on the revision of the Remuneration Policy. Work on the staff handbook has been finalized and signed off by management. This is currently being designed by the comm's team. Finally, the annual Performance Appraisal and Performance Management process began in December and is pending management’s approval. Q1 2021 The 2020 financial statement was prepared and audited this year. The statement has since been approved and signed by ACET’s Board of Directors. We also prepared a general organizational budget and project specific ones this quarter. The review of the World Bank’s first-quarter financial report was successful as well. Additionally, we prepared and submitted financial reports to the World Bank, MasterCard Foundation and OSIWA. General operational activities such as salary and statutory payments are on course. Human Resources The Human Resource team continues to update ACET's existing Policies and Procedures and support recruitment. Policies: The Staff Handbook and Remuneration Policy are currently undergoing revision. The Staff Handbook has been designed by the Communications team, and following final updates, will be given to a legal practitioner for final review. Recruitment: The recruitment process for the Director of Research and Communication Specialist/ Content Writer has been completed, who both began their work in March. The services for Head of YES has been engaged and work is to begin by the end of the 2nd quarter. Plans to recruit a Front Desk and Administrative Officer and a Finance and Administrative Officer positions, as well as a COVID 19 Transformation Fellow, to be working in conjunction with the Ministry of Finance, is ongoing. It is expected that these vacant positions will be filled by the second quarter. Procurement The Procurement team continues to support staff teams through planning and processing of project procurements. Procurement Policy: In January 2021, the new Procurement Policy was shared with staff and presented in the staff meeting. TAP Support: An annual procurement plan was developed for submission to the World Bank team. The procurement officer also attended trainings and meetings with the World Bank ahead of this. Consultant Database: Work has also been initiated to develop a consultant database that tracks the status of all contracts Q2 2021 We prepared and submitted financial reports to the World Bank, MasterCard Foundation, Government of Netherland and OSIWA to mention a few. We also prepared budgets to support proposals for new projects and co for General operational activities such as salary and statutory payments are on course. Human Resources Recruitments: In Q2, ACET did 4 major recruitments to fill the positions of a Head of Youth, Employment & Skills, an Economist, a Front Desk and Administrative Officer and a Finance and Administrative Officer. Plans to recruit a COVID 19 Transformation Fellow, to be working in conjunction with the Ministry of Finance, is ongoing. Policy Updates: The updating of ACET policies continues with the revision of the Travel Policy and the approval by Management of the Performance Appraisal Policy & Performance Management Procedure. All other duties and responsibilities of the HR department are progressing as well. Procurement The Procurement team continues to support staff teams through planning and processing of project procurements. Q3 2021 The finance team prepared a report to be presented at the board meeting in October on the status of the organization’s actual finances for the period January – September as well as a projected financial statement for the last quarter of the year. We further submitted financial reports to the World Bank, MasterCard Foundation, Government of Netherland and OSIWA. We also supported preparations to set rolling the second phase of the Think Africa Partnership (TAP2) program while ensuring the execution of our general operational duties. Human Resources We continue to lead the routine functions of the human resource department. Recruitment: For the period July-September 2021, ACET completed recruitments for the following positions: • Program Head for Youth, Employment & Skills Program • Finance & Admin Officer • Analyst – President’s Office • Director of Communications All positions are based in Accra except the Director of Communications who will work remotely. Policies: HR finalized the Anti-Corruption and Safeguarding/Child Protection policies during the reporting period. Performance Appraisals: The mid-year staff performance appraisals were conducted and concluded with management feedback given to staff. Other human resource management activities such as onboarding of new staff, staff leave administration, maintenance of employee records among others were carried out as usual.