Job Description

CONSULTANT: TERMS OF REFERENCE: STATUTORY AUDIT FISCAL YEAR 2026 FOR CHILDFund SRI LANKA COUNTRY OFFICE

Background

ChildFund International is a non-sectarian, non-profit and non-political International Non-Governmental Organization founded in 1938 that exists to help deprived, undeserved and vulnerable children to improve their lives. ChildFund International works in over 60 countries with partners and programmes aimed at helping children and families to overcome poverty and achieve their full potential.

ChildFund Sri Lanka was established in 1985 as part of the international child development and sponsorship programs operating around the world. Through community-based, culturally grounded, participatory program approaches, ChildFund Sri Lanka works with 5 local partners in the country and currently works in 12 districts providing support to over 400,000 children, their families and communities in the country. ChildFund Sri Lanka – Country Office is an organization registered under the Voluntary Social Service Organization Act No. 31 of 1988 amended by Act No. 08 of 1998. The registered office and principal place of operation are situated in No. 44/3, 1-1, Narahenpita Road, Nawala, Colombo.

Objective

The objective for ChildFund to conduct its regular external audit is to determine, among others, the overall objectives of the audit are:

• The auditor will perform work in accordance with applicable Accounting and Auditing Standards, which encompasses financial controls, safeguarding of assets, compliance with ChildFund policies and procedures, national laws and regulations, reviewing administrative controls in the areas of program and sponsor services, and assuring that appropriate controls are in place and functioning effectively.
• The auditor will provide a complete audit report in accordance with local statutory requirements, as applicable.
• To review:
  • Financial records and documents maintained by the organization at its / Country office.
  • Compliance with project agreements and other requirements by the donor agencies.
  • Compliance according to accepted accounting principles and practices and accounting standards issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka for NGOs, wherever applicable and accounting standards.
  • Other relevant records and documents required to fulfil all the statutory compliances with concern departments Inland Revenue Department and National secretariat for NGO, etc.
• To express an opinion on the financial statements of the organization.

Audit Period

The expected audit period shall be covered from July 2025 to June 2026. The draft report of the audited financial statements, the management letter and the Audit checklist should be submitted on or before 15th October 2026. Nevertheless, the exact timeline of implementation of external audit may be realigned subject to understanding between ChildFund Sri Lanka and the external auditor.

Audit Scope

The ChildFund audit will focus on financial controls, safeguarding of assets and compliance with established policies, procedures, reporting practices, laws and regulations. The ChildFund audit will enable the auditors to express an opinion on the accuracy of the financial statements and adherence to the ChildFund own or reasonable policies, procedures, laws and regulations. In addition, administration controls are reviewed in the areas of programs and sponsor services to assure appropriate controls and verification of records, files and data.

• Fund requisitions and disbursement of funds by the donor agencies.
• Disbursement of funds to vendors and all concern party's transactions where applicable.
• Organization expresses an opinion as per rules and regulations of the organization.
• Overall accounting and reporting.
• Issue of utilization certificate with Financial Statements for individual Grant Projects.
• The Statement of Financial Position as of 30 June 2026 and the Statement of Comprehensive Income, the Statement of Changes in Reserves and Statement of Cash Flows for the year ended 30 June 2026, and a Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and other Explanatory of ChildFund Sri Lanka - National Office.

Methodology and Deliverables

The Audit will be conducted in the following manner:

1. Annual Audit of Financial Statements on which the Auditor will provide their professional opinion whether the financial statements show a true and fair view.
2. Deliverables
   • Compliance of any legal issue with the concerned department wherever applicable and necessary.
   • Provide help & guidelines for financial management of organization where necessary for smooth functioning of organization based on audit of organization.
3. Access to Documents: The statutory auditor will be given access to all records, reports and documents that may be required during the course of the review and audit to arrive at his opinion. The documents will be comprised:
   • Accounting books and records.
   • Agreement, contract and guidelines of each project.
   • Previous fund utilization certificate or any financial report to donor agencies (audited/unaudited).
   • Report or documents submitted to all concerned departments NGO Secretariat, EPF, EFT and Inland Revenue Department etc.
   • Any other relevant documents and records where applicable and necessary during the course of audit to arrive at audit opinion.
4. Management Letter

Findings Requiring Immediate Attention

In the course of the review the auditor may encounter significant issues or situations requiring immediate disclosure and action. They are defined in the paragraph, reporting the Results of the ChildFund Audit, in the Section, ChildFund Audit and Procedures, and may include fraud and illegal acts, misappropriation of funds and/or misdirection of funds, audit scope limitations, unusual transactions, conflicts of interest, and other matters that require attention.

Other Documents

The following documents have to be submitted by the auditor before performing the audit:

• Certification of Professional Standing
• Documentation certifying the professional standing of the selected auditor must be obtained and reviewed every year prior to the engagement. Auditors must be accounting professionals who meet national and/or local government standards and possess the necessary educational background and professional accreditation.
• Conflict of Interest Statement (COI)
• There are no conflicting businesses or personal relationships existing between the national office, the Affiliated Entity to be audited and the independent audit firm. Further the conflict-of-interest statement should indicate that the independent audit firm assures that the auditors used will likewise have no personal or business conflict of interest.

Qualification of the External Auditor

Auditing firms with proven track records in conducting external audits of international NGOs will be invited to the bidding process. Such firm is preferably not limited to international firm or affiliated with offices in Colombo. The lead external auditor(s) assigned to conduct external audit of ChildFund Sri Lanka shall be qualified Chartered Accountants with experience in auditing international NGO bodies such as Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Association of International Accountants (AIA), Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountability (CIPFA) or other internationally recognized qualifications. The external auditor team shall be knowledgeable and at least equipped with 5 years' experience about auditing, accounting, and financial reporting matters.

Duties of the External Auditor

The external auditor is independent and expected to uphold principles of objectivity, integrity and free of conflicts of interest with the ChildFund Sri Lanka and hence, encourages third parties to confidently use the audited financial statements. Among the duties of the external auditor is to prepare an audit opinion and perform an audit to obtain reasonable assurance about the financial statements that are free of material error and fraud. The external auditor is also expected to be examining ChildFund Sri Lanka's accounts, collecting and interpreting figures and identifying any fraudulent or problems in risks to the operations.

Interested firms

Interested firms shall study the TOR and submit the proposals including financial figures to email MSamanaranayake@ChildFund.org & srilankaprocurement@childfund.org on or before 05th June 2026.

Please mention the “STATUTORY AUDIT FISCAL YEAR 2026” in the subject line when applying.

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