Finance and Accounts Officer - Payables

The Finance and Accounts Officer - Payables is responsible for processing approved cash payments for operational expenses, preparing payment vouchers, maintaining accurate cash-payment records, supporting supplier reconciliations, and ensuring that all payments are properly approved, supported, coded, recorded, reconciled and reported. The role supports the Finance Manager in maintaining effective control over cash payments, supplier balances, operating expenses and payables documentation.

Key Responsibilities

1. Receive, verify and safeguard cash allocated for approved operational purposes.

2. Review approved cash-payment requests for operational expenses, including fuel, spares, repairs, maintenance, branch expenses and other approved company costs.

3. Verify that all cash-payment requests are properly authorized in line with the company's approval procedures before processing.

4. Confirm that each payment request is supported by approved requisitions, invoices, receipts, quotations or other required documents.

5. Prepare cash-payment vouchers for all approved and properly supported payment requests.

6. Ensure that cash payments are correctly coded by branch, department, cost centre, vehicle, supplier or expense category, where applicable.

7. Process approved cash payments and ensure that recipients acknowledge receipt.

8. Maintain an accurate daily cash-payment schedule showing the date, payee, purpose, amount, supporting documents, approval status and payment reference for review by the Finance Manager.

9. Ensure that daily cash closing balances are reconciled, properly documented and securely retained at the end of each working day.

10. Receive, verify and record supplier invoices, credit notes and related payables documents.

11. Prepare weekly cash-payment and payables reports for review by the Finance Manager, covering payments processed, pending payments, unsupported items, supplier balances and key expense summaries. 

12. Prepare supplier reconciliations and follow up on supplier account differences, missing invoices, credit notes and supplier queries.

13. Perform any other payables, cash-payment, accounting, reconciliation, reporting or administrative duties assigned by the Finance Manager from time to time. 

Required Qualifications and Experience

1. A diploma or degree in Accounting.

2. A partial professional qualification, such as ACCA, CIMA, ZICA, CA Zambia or equivalent, will be an added advantage.

3. At least two (2) years' experience in accounts payable, cashiering, accounting, finance operations or a related finance role.

4. Experience in processing cash payments, preparing payment vouchers, maintaining payment schedules and supporting supplier reconciliations.

5. Experience in a multi-branch, courier, logistics, transport, retail or cash-handling business will be an added advantage.

6. Good knowledge of Microsoft Excel and accounting systems.