The project implemented by “Acted”, financed to the tune of 50% by AFD, must undergo an external financial audit for the expenditure incurred within the project. The search for an external auditor is the objective of these terms of reference.

The selected auditor will be required to express a professional and independent opinion on the financial report drawn up by ” Acted ” for the expenditure implemented as part of the project. The auditor shall:

§  Follow the checklist in Appendix 2 in the ToR attached,

§  Ensure that the financial report complies with the model required by AFD,

§  Ensure the eligibility of expenditure incurred during the project and reported in the financial report

§  Give an opinion on compliance with the procedures listed in the Financing Agreement with AFD and in the methodological guide to AFD’s CSO support mechanism (https://www.afd.fr/fr/les-organisations-de-la-societe-civile)

§  Certify the financial report to be submitted to AFD

The Consultant invited to tender shall provide the following to “Acted”:

A technical proposal which must indicate :

§  The proposed audit methodology

§  The consultant’s references and experience (maximum 3 pages) ;

§  The CV of the speaker(s) and a breakdown of responsibilities;

§  A provisional timetable for the project and an estimate of the workload in man-days;

A financial proposal which must indicate :

§  Total audit costs in EUR incl. VAT

§  Payment terms (payment schedule)

Consultant profile :

§  The partner signing the report must be a qualified chartered accountant and a member of the professional associations of chartered accountants.

§  Associate staff should have experience of auditing projects financed by French public funding bodies.

§  Application of recognised professional standards (IFAC, IDEAS, etc.)

The Declaration of Integrity, Eligibility and Environmental and Social Commitment, completed and signed by the authorised person, if the contract is equal to or greater than €20,000 (see Annex X.3 in the ToR attached).

IV1. Audit methodology and approach

The consultant will propose a methodological note for carrying out this audit. In particular, this should specify the sampling methodology to ensure that the expenditure to be audited is representative at the overall level and for each budget heading.

IV2. Place of operation

Interventions will mainly take place:

At the main office: Address: 12 M. Tursunzoda Street, Dushanbe, Tajikistan

Secondary offices: 6/79 Osiyo Street, Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and 15 Maldybaev Street, Bishkek 720055, Kyrgyzstan.

The audit will take place in two stages

V1. Scoping meeting with the auditor

This meeting must be held within one month of the contract being signed. The main objective of this meeting is to ensure that the CSO has a good understanding of the scope and terms of the audit. It should enable the CSO to strengthen the internal procedures that are essential for compliance with its contractual obligations in order, in the long term, to facilitate the auditor’s work and to limit as far as possible the rate of ineligible expenditure recorded at the end of project implementation. This meeting may also enable the auditor to make recommendations to the CSO following contracting.

V2. Carrying out and reporting the financial audit

The main tasks of the examination will be to :

§  Ensure that all expenditure has been incurred in accordance with the provisions of the Financing Agreement and the methodological guide to AFD’s CSO support mechanism, with particular attention to commitments relating to procurement.

§  Check the eligibility criteria for expenditure reported in the financial report

§  Check the resources allocated to the project and the correct allocation of expenditure by donor.

The main eligibility criteria for expenditure are as follows:

§  The expenditure was actually incurred during the period covered by the Financing Agreement

§  The expenses incurred were budgeted for and are classified in the correct budget category.

§  The expenditure incurred was necessary to implement the project

§  Expenditure incurred and reported in the financial report has been recorded and allocated to the project in the accounting system of “Acted” or in that of its partners in accordance with the accounting standards applicable in the country of establishment of the latter and usual accounting practices.

The auditor will carry out all the checks mentioned in the checklist in Appendix 2 in the ToR attached. If certain points could not be checked, this should be specified and the reason given in the management letter.

Applications must be sent by e-mail, in English, with the reference: PS/03EQT/M84/05EQT/M85/06EQT/M86/AUD/TAJ/11-01-2024/003 subject line, to the following addresses with a request for acknowledgement of receipt:

tajikistan.tender@acted.org

Deadline for applications: 30/04/2024.