Contracts Specialist (Medicines), P-3, Temporary Position, 364 days, Supply Division, Copenhagen, Denmark, #00138800

How can you make a difference

UNICEF Supply Division (SD) works to ensure equitable and inclusive access to essential supplies and services for children and their families, in development, humanitarian and fragile contexts. These supplies are critical to saving lives, supporting children’s health and education, and protecting them from abuse, exploitation, and neglect. As the UN’s largest end to end supply chain entity, UNICEF leverages its global reach, market influence, supply chain expertise and partnerships with governments, civil society, private sector, industry, and other stakeholders to meet children’s needs and protect their rights around the world.

SD focuses on three result areas to maximize impact, scale, and effectiveness: strategic procurement; supply preparedness and response in humanitarian and fragile contexts; and supply chain optimization. To facilitate and accelerate progress toward these results, SD employs three change strategies: financing for supply and services, supply chain digitalization and supply chain localization.

Procurement centres are responsible for the supply operation, including strategic market intelligence, forecasting, procurement, delivery, innovation and analysis of product groups and procurement strategies. The contracting function leads in expertise on the supply landscape, markets, value for money and interaction with global partners to increase access and sustainable supply which can be accessed by government buyers. The incumbent provides support to optimization projects and is responsible for technical assistance and knowledge management, including knowledge sharing via communication pieces on key products/markets and publication of information.

• Ensures all procurement activities for pharmaceuticals for project countries are in compliance with the UNICEF Financial Rules and Regulations, SD Manual, and all other applicable procurement procedures.
• Manages procurement of materials; including proposal of supply strategy and procurement modality: LTA's, Regional Procurement, Direct Order, LPA etc.
• Issues international tender invitations to acceptable suppliers, evaluates quotations, clarifies offers, and negotiates with suppliers as appropriate.
• Makes recommendations for finalization of purchases, adjudicates offers in consultation with Technical Unit and QA centres. Prepares and defends submissions to CRC. Establishes supply arrangements.
• Conducts contracts management to ensure supplier compliance to LTA’s and purchase order terms and conditions.
• Works closely with project countries and partners providing procurement input for project planning, design, work plan and procurement coordination and integration, including development of long-term forecasting of quantities.
• Ensures adequate and coordinated planning of procurement and demand of pharmaceuticals, manages specific procurement projects for pharmaceuticals in the project countries, including for evaluation or scale up.
• Reviews and provides recommendations for Local Procurement by Field Offices.
• Reviews material specifications and requirements with the Technical and QA Centres to ensure completeness and appropriateness.
• In partnership with Technical and QA centres, evaluates suppliers with respect to delivery performance, product acceptability, and commercial acceptability.
• Establishes work plans and priorities, monitors achievements and evaluates performance of support staff.
• Any other duties or assignments as requested by the supervisor

Minimum requirements

• Experience in procurement / contracting of pharmaceuticals.
• Experience in commercial activities with the public or private sector in developing and industrialized countries.
• Experience from analytical work and negotiations.
• Experience and ability to manage and monitor the effective use of financial and material resources.
• Experience in use of computer applications, including internet navigation and various office applications.

Desirables

• Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) is an asset.
• Project management certification and/or health product supply management certification
• Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, discrimination, fraud, corruption and other forms of serious misconduct.UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference, safeguarding and background verification checks. These checks may include verification of academic credentials and employment history, screening against relevant United Nations misconduct databases, and requests for misconduct disclosures from current and former employers, professional associations, other relevant organizations and participating organizations under inter-agency safeguarding initiatives, including the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme (MDS), where applicable.Appointment, selection and continued engagement are subject to the satisfactory completion of all required checks. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information and consent to enable UNICEF to undertake these checks.Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments are conditional on the selected candidates willingness to comply with current or future vaccination requirements, should UNICEF mandate it for personnel. Failure to comply with such requirements, where applicable and without a duly approved medical exemption from the relevant UN authority, will result in the cancellation of the selection or may lead to other administrative measures, including separation from service.

Remarks

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants' bank account information.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF's Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.