Procurement Assistant, Multiple positions

Background Information - Mali Programme

Mali is facing a problem of weapons and explosive hazard contamination, as a result of protracted and recent armed conflicts. The presence of explosive remnants of war (ERW), improvised explosive devices (IED) and insecure stockpiles of weapons and ammunition (obsolete, abandoned or neglected), poses a serious threat to civilians as well as to United Nations and humanitarian personnel operating in the country.

UNMAS deployed to Mali in January 2013 to conduct an emergency assessment of the situation with regard to explosive threats. In July 2013, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) was established under Security Council resolution 2100 and is currently operating under Security Council resolution 2354 (2017). In accordance with these mandates, the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) has engaged UNOPS PSC to implement a mine action programme in Mali to:

• Improve the protection of civilians and facilitate humanitarian assistance;
• Enhance national capacity to mitigate explosive threats and enable compliance with international treaty obligations;
• Reduce the explosive threat to MINUSMA and United Nations personnel.

Under the overall supervision of the Head of Support Services and direct supervision of the Procurement Officer, the Procurement Assistant is responsible for providing administrative support in the management of a variety of procurement and contracting processes and /transactions for goods, services and works for UNMAS. He/she will be responsible for:

Summary of key functions:

• Administrative Procurement Support Services
• Client Relationships/ Stakeholder Management
• Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing

a.       Administrative Procurement Support Services

Provides a variety of specialized and non-specialized transactional support services, ensuring consistency and quality of work steps completed, as well as optimal information flow:

• Assist in drafting bidding documents, evaluation reports and contract award submissions, ensuring consistency in format and content.
• Process procurement transactions in UNOPS’ corporate system OneUNOPS;
• Assist in the preparation of Purchase Orders, Contracts, LTAs or their Amendments.
• Process invoices for goods and services delivered ensuring accuracy and completeness of documentation and timely payment. Follow up to completion and inform clients.
• Monitor expenditures against allocations.
• Receive, review, log and route incoming communication and procurement requests/invoices.
• Prepare reports, tables, charts etc. applying technical skills and knowledge in formatting and presentations.
• Prepare Statistics and reports, including on Procurement volume.
• Undertake routine follow up action on procurement on behalf of the supervisor; 
• Publish procurement advertisements and awards.
• Maintain status reports on procurement activities and work in progress.

b.      Client Services

• Actively work with clients to provide and exchange information on a variety of issues in procurement processes and transactions, to deliver correct and timely services.

• Provide standardized procurement services, guidance and information to staff of the Business Unit on routine processes and procedures

c.       Knowledge building and knowledge sharing

• Undertake routine follow up action on procurement QA or Knowledge Management issues on behalf of the supervisor and inform supervisor of status.

• Administratively supports the organization and delivery of training and learning initiatives for personnel on procurement.

• Perform any other duties as requested by supervisor.

a. Education

• A University degree (Bachelor or equivalent) in Procurement, Administration or similar field  with at least one (1) year of relevant experience is required; or
• Secondary school diploma (or equivalent) with at least five (5) years of relevant experience.

b. Work Experience

• Relevant experience is defined as experience in Procurement in national or international public or corporate organizations.
• Minimum one (1) year of experience in preparation, evaluation and follow up of tenders is required;
• UN/UNOPS experience is desired;
• Experience in Contract Management is desired.

c. Language

• Fluency in spoken, reading and writing French is required.
• Intermediate level in English is required.

• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• This is a local position, and therefore only nationals of the duty station or candidates legally entitled to be employed in the duty station will be considered. Candidates from the northern regions of Mali are strongly encouraged to apply for this position.
• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns. 
• Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 4,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,000 personnel recruited on behalf of UNOPS partners spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a wide range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced, diverse workforce — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs, and continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that encourage recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.