Compliance and Grants Manager - Damascus

Job Title: Compliance and Grants Manager

Job location: Syria – Damascus

Reports to: Syria Country Director

Job Style : Full Time

JOB SUMMARY

The Compliance and Grants Manager leads the grants management cycle and the compliance function of the UITYD Syria country programme. The position ensures that every award is implemented in line with its agreement, that donor and regulatory obligations are met without exception, that internal controls are consistently applied across departments, and that the country programme remains audit-ready at all times.

The Syria portfolio combines institutional and pooled funding — UN agencies (UNICEF, UNFPA, WFP, WHO), OCHA-managed pooled funds, the Aid Fund for Syria (AFS), and pass-through funding from international NGOs such as the International Rescue Committee (IRC) under bilateral donor agreements — with private funding raised in the United States through foundations, institutional philanthropy, and individual and diaspora giving. Each stream carries distinct eligibility, reporting, procurement and screening requirements.

The position works in close and continuous coordination with the Finance Department, which is the primary counterpart for budget monitoring, financial reporting, cost eligibility and allocation, audit preparation, and donor financial compliance. Grants and finance outputs are expected to be reconciled and jointly quality-assured before any submission to a donor.

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Grants Management and Donor Compliance

·        Maintain the country grants portfolio tracker covering all active and pipeline awards, including budgets, burn rates, reporting calendars, modification history and closeout status, reconciled monthly with the Finance Department.

·        Review all grant agreements, amendments and partnership agreements before signature; extract donor-specific requirements and translate them into practical operational guidance for programme, finance, supply chain and HR colleagues.

·        Prepare and maintain a compliance matrix for each award covering eligible costs, procurement thresholds, asset rules, branding and visibility, prior-approval triggers, budget flexibility margins and reporting obligations.

·        Lead the preparation, quality assurance and timely submission of all donor narrative reports, ensuring full consistency between the narrative, the financial report issued by Finance, and MEAL data before submission.

·        Coordinate budget realignments, no-cost extensions and modification requests jointly with the Finance Department, and ensure donor prior approvals are obtained and documented before any change is implemented.

·        Manage award closeout, including final reporting, asset disposition, records consolidation and donor clearance.

·        Act as the country focal point for donor communication on contractual and compliance matters, under the direction of the Country Director.

Donor Portfolio Management

·        UN agencies and pooled funds: maintain partner profiles, capacity assessments and project agreements on donor platforms; track partner performance and follow up on assurance activities including spot checks, micro-assessments and programmatic visits.

·        OCHA-managed pooled funds and the Aid Fund for Syria (AFS): manage submissions and revisions through the relevant grant management systems, respond to review panel comments, and ensure compliance with allocation-specific and disbursement conditions.

·        INGO pass-through funding, including IRC-administered awards under bilateral donor rules: manage vetting and due diligence submissions, partner background reviews, sub-award compliance and the correct flow-down of donor terms.

·        Foundations and US-based private and diaspora fundraising: ensure restricted funds are tracked to their designated purpose in coordination with Finance, that donor intent is documented and honoured, and that foundation and major-donor reporting is accurate and timely.

·        Advise management on the compliance implications of the funding mix, including cost-sharing, double-funding risk and the allocation of shared costs across awards.

Compliance, Risk and Internal Controls

·        Verify, together with Finance, that procurement, payroll, and operational transactions charged to donor funds comply with both UITYD policy and the applicable donor rules, and escalate deviations promptly.

·        Ensure counter-terrorism, sanctions and anti-money-laundering obligations are met, including screening of staff, suppliers and partners where required, and maintain the screening evidence for audit purposes.

·        Maintain the country risk register, monitor mitigation measures, and report emerging compliance risks to the Country Director.

·        Lead preparation for internal and external audits, donor verifications, spot checks and assurance visits; coordinate the collection of supporting documentation with Finance and draft management responses to audit findings.

·        Track implementation of agreed audit and assessment action points through to closure, and prevent the recurrence of repeat findings.

·        Support the application of safeguarding, PSEA, anti-fraud and whistleblowing policies across the grants and partnership cycle, and ensure required policies are flowed down to partners.

Partnership and Sub-Award Management

·        Lead due diligence and capacity assessment of local implementing partners and maintain the partner assessment file.

·        Draft and manage sub-award agreements, ensuring correct flow-down of donor terms, and monitor partner reporting, financial documentation and compliance performance jointly with Finance.

·        Plan and conduct partner monitoring and verification visits with finance and programme colleagues, and issue documented follow-up actions.

·        Design and deliver capacity-strengthening support to partners on donor compliance, reporting and documentation standards.

Business Development Support

·        Coordinate proposal development with programme, MEAL and finance teams, ensuring alignment between the narrative, logframe, budget and donor guidelines.

·        Review proposal budgets with Finance for cost eligibility, realistic assumptions and correct treatment of shared and indirect costs.

·        Maintain the country capacity statement, registration files, institutional documents and standard annexes required for donor submissions and vetting processes.

·        Track relevant funding opportunities for the Syria portfolio and support go / no-go analysis.

Team Management and Capacity Building

·        Supervise, coach and appraise the grants and compliance team, and manage workload distribution across a multi-award portfolio.

·        Deliver induction and refresher training to country staff on donor rules, documentation standards and internal controls.

·        Establish and maintain a complete, well-organized and retrievable grants filing system, in physical and electronic form, consistent with donor retention requirements.

QUALIFICATIONS AND SKILLS

Should have the following skills, education, and experience:

Essential

·        Bachelor’s degree in international development, public health, business administration, law, finance, accounting or a related field; a Master’s degree is an advantage.

·        A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in grants management, compliance or award management with an international NGO or a UN agency, of which at least three years at a managerial or supervisory level.

·        Demonstrated working knowledge of the rules and reporting requirements of a range of donors, including UN agencies, OCHA-managed pooled funds, and institutional donors channelled through INGO prime partners.

·        Proven experience managing sub-awards and local implementing partners, including due diligence, flow-down of donor terms and compliance monitoring.

·        Proven experience preparing for and responding to audits, donor verifications and capacity assessments, including drafting management responses.

·        Strong budget literacy and the ability to work daily with the Finance Department: read a budget against a narrative, identify eligibility issues, and analyse burn rates and variances.

·        Excellent written and spoken English and Arabic, with the ability to produce donor-quality documents in English without substantial editing.

·        Advanced command of Microsoft Excel and Word, and familiarity with donor grant management platforms and portals.

·        Based in Damascus, with the ability to travel to field governorates as required, and a full understanding of the operating environment.

·        High personal integrity and sound judgement, with the confidence to raise compliance concerns constructively and at the appropriate level.

·        Strong planning and organizational skills, and the ability to manage multiple deadlines across a complex portfolio without loss of quality.

Desirable

·        Experience in the Syria humanitarian response and familiarity with its coordination architecture and regulatory environment.

·        Familiarity with health sector programming.

·        Experience with foundation reporting, restricted private donations or US-based fundraising compliance.

·        Working knowledge of ERP systems and of counter-terrorism screening tools and processes.

·        Prior experience establishing or professionalizing a grants and compliance function.

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ABOUT UITYD

UITYD is a global humanitarian non-profit organization providing medical and health education services to people in need, including refugees and displaced persons, in disaster and underserved regions. The organization is composed of medical and public health professionals from diverse backgrounds.

CODE OF CONDUCT

UITYD Code of Conduct reflects the profession’s core set of beliefs and values of care, respect, trust, and integrity. These beliefs and values are fundamental to UITYD employees, volunteers, interns, consultants, and contractors to guide their practice and conduct. The Code is organized into categories, as follows:

·        Always act with fairness, honesty, integrity, and openness; respect the opinions of others and treat all with equality and dignity without regard to gender, race, color, creed, ancestry, place of origin, political beliefs, religion, marital status, disability, age, or sexual orientation.

·        Provide a positive and valued experience for those receiving services within and outside UITYD.

CHILD PROTECTION POLICY

Child abuse in all forms is unacceptable to UITYD, which recognizes its responsibility to protect children from harm in all areas of its work. UITYD is committed to ensuring a child-safe environment and is applying a zero-tolerance approach towards any kind of child abuse and exploitation.

DISCRIMINATION, ABUSE AND HARASSMENT POLICY

UITYD provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and expressly prohibits and will not tolerate any form of discrimination, abuse, harassment (sexual or otherwise), based upon race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, citizenship status, disability, or military status. UITYD employees and related personnel must under no circumstances take part in any form of discrimination, harassment, or abuse (physical, sexual or verbal), intimidation or exploitation, or in any other way infringe the rights of others inside or outside the organization.