The Project Coordinator might or might not be directly involved in the various phases of Financial Planning. Yet, it is crucial that the Project Coordinator monitors the activities of the Financial Team to ensure continuity and consistency with the other phases of planning and implementing the project.
In particular, the Project Coordinator must ensure that:
- The list of planned activities matches the list of projected budgets for each activity
- All the members abide to the Manual of Conduct drafted to monitor and regulate the financial expenses of the organisation
- A consistent review of all the expenses is done every month and discrepancies are justified and explained
- Ad hoc strategies are implemented in emergency cases such as when the projected budget is not sufficient to cover the project’s expenses
- There is consistency between the Financial Reports and the Project Reports. For instance, for each completed activity there is a projected budget and a spent budget with justifications in case the two budgets do not match.
Financial reporting requirements
Financial reporting requirements vary. It is important to understand what your donors ask for before starting drafting reports. Generally, donors will ask for:
- A final report in which there is an explanation for all the expenses occurred, the projected budget for each of the project’s activities and their effective cost. A Budget Narrative could be added. The Budget Narrative describes in words the overall success of the financial management, problems you have encountered – especially if the allocated budget was not sufficient to cover the real costs – and lessons learnt from the Financial Team Management. Not all donors accept Budget Narratives but main international development agencies require a Budget Narrative with the Financial Report (see table above for further reference)
- Copies (photocopies or scanned copies) of all supporting documents. Supporting documents could be receipts given when purchasing goods to be used in the project, invoices signed by people contracted by the project, bills paid to run the office and other facilities needed for the development of the project. This is a quite laborious task. It is recommended to file all the relevant documents as soon as they reach you office and to make a copy of each document immediately. This will create the archive of financial documents ready to be submitted at the end of the project.
- Original documents. All the original documents must be filed and archived by a member of the Financial Team Management. Remember that at the end of the project – and this is particularly valid in the case of having an international development agency as a sponsor – someone will be sent to check your books. You will be asked to share all the documents with those in charge of assessing the work of the Financial Team Management and also to provide explanations in case problems arise (for instance when a receipt is not found or a sum of money has been spent without written authorisation). This is the most crucial part of the End of the Project phase. If your organisation is poorly judged your possibilities to get funding in the future could be compromised. Remember that all donors ask for a track record of implemented projects and proven administrative skills!
