Mission and objectives

UNICEF is an international humanitarian agency for children created by the United Nations Charter in 1946. The organization is present in more than 192 countries and works in the areas of health, education, water and sanitation, child protection, HIV and AIDS, nutrition, policy, and social protection. UNICEF operates in both humanitarian and development contexts, responding to the needs of children and women, particularly girls and the most vulnerable.UNICEF has been present in Cameroon since 1975. The organization works in the areas of education, water and sanitation, child protection, and HIV and AIDS. Its upstream efforts focus on advocacy and lobbying for budgetary conditions favorable to children and women and on formulating policies to promote their growth and development. At the operational level, UNICEF Cameroon focuses on strengthening the capacity of stakeholders, service delivery, and creating partnerships to improve services for children and women. The Child Protection Program aims to ensure that children, particularly adolescent girls in vulnerable areas, are better protected against violence, exploitation, and harmful practices, including in humanitarian emergencies. The program contributes to strengthening government and community child protection systems in order to more effectively identify and combat violations of children's rights. Particular attention is paid to birth registration, prevention and response to physical and sexual violence, and the elimination of child marriage, based on evidence.

Context

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favoritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations. Supplies are essential to fulfill children's rights. Supporting child survival and development programmes around the world, UNICEF-procured supplies are critical in providing for children's health, education and protecting them from abuse, exploitation, and neglect and rapidly respond to emergencies. UNICEF also procures and supplies essential commodities on behalf of governments and other partners in their efforts. These procurement services can also include in-country logistics, capacity building, and project management. With projection of the procurement and contracting workload in WASH and Education, and the high expectation in managing complex and demanding requests from partners, this job profile complement the current staffing issues in the supply and logistics unit to support program implementation. The impact of work directly affects the perceived professionalism of the incumbent and the overall reputation of the Supply and Logistics Section for high quality work for mitigating the public procurement principles of integrity, fairness, transparency and value for money. This in turn contributes to the effective and efficient management of UNICEF CCO programmes and maintaining/enhancing the credibility of UNICEF as an effective and responsible manager of funds entrusted to the organization and to furthering UNICEF image as a competent organization for delivering cost effective and sustainable program results for children.

Task Description

Under the direct supervision of Supply & Logistics Manager, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:  Ensures all procurement activities are in compliance with the UNICEF Financial Rules and Regulations, Supply Divisio Manual, and all other applicable procurement procedures.  Works closely with programmes and partners on project/TOR design, work plan and coordination, issues of long term forecasting of procurement plan and funding availability.  Ensure and coordinated planning of procurement and demand of the required supplies and services, including coordination on Local Procurement Authorization (LPA) if it is required.  Review the requirements for supplies and services, such as specification, TOR, evaluation criteria, pricing structure, taxation and appropriateness of supply requests (Purchase Requisitions - PO and Supply Orders - SO). Ensure terms and conditions are well understood by bidders / proposers. To take preventative measure to secure value for money, efficiency and timely completion of the project.  Issues UNICEF tender invitations to acceptable suppliers, evaluates quotations, clarifies offers, and negotiates with suppliers as appropriate.  Makes recommendations for finalization of contracts, adjudicates offers in consultation with technical unit.  Prepares and defends submissions to Contract Review Committee (CRC). Oversight for quality contract / PO and Long Term Arrangements (LTAs). Scope of work, deliverables and payment schedule should be clearly described in these documents. Ensure integrity with solicitation.  Monitor and identify issues related to ongoing contract. It includes to ensure monitoring the execution of contract as per terms and conditions stated in contract, appropriate timing (e.g. not opening after contract duration is overdue) and cost effectiveness. Work for complex cases of contract management. If it is necessary, it requires coordination with local partners, legal department, field visit etc.  Ensure to place professional monitoring at site (for construction) / progress of deliverables.  Maintain system for supplier / contractor performance evaluations. Establish Key Performance Indicators (KPI) for the effectiveness and efficiency of Local Procurement.  Define, establish and implement quality control procedures on contract documentation, storage and follow up; approve all functional group standard operating procedures.  Ensure provision of the updated data related to contracts from established data source. The data will be used for programme meeting, Country Management Team (CMT) etc.  Compile and analyse historical data and forecasts of programme requirements. It includes supply planning and monitoring.  Assists with logistics planning, and arrangements through ensuring that the clearance is efficient on storage and distribution of supplies and equipment to end-users from ports to entry to UNICEF warehouses and the like.  Establish and/or maintain logistics and Inventory Control systems for all pogramme supplies and prepares logistics reports, required for donor reports, budget reviews, programme analysis, annual reports, etc.

Competencies and values

Accountability ☒ Adaptability and Flexibility ☒ Building Trust ☒ Client Orientation ☒ Commitment and Motivation ☒ Communication ☒ Ethics and Values ☒ Integrity ☒ Judgement and Decision-making ☒ Planning and Organizing ☒ Respect for Diversity ☒ Technological Awareness ☒ Working in Teams

Living conditions and remarks

The national capital, Yaounde, a family duty station (B classification). Cameroon is called ‘Africa in miniature,’ due to its large diversity of climates and cultural diversity. It is a country where one can live well and discover the culture but at the same time experience one of UNICEF’s most complex programming – this due to a mix of development and humanitarian response with three very distinct humanitarian crises to respond to. This makes Cameroon an ideal place for a UNV to live in a safe place but at the same time be exposed to all of UNICEF’s programming. Yaounde is a lively city with all the needed amenities such as sports facilities etc. The country is with a tropical climate. There are two rainy seasons (April-May and September-October). The average temperature is 25 degrees Celsius. The security level in Yaounde is 2. There are no specific threats apart from the typical risks of petty crime as in any big city. Health: UN Volunteers should be aware that they may be exposed to a few tropical diseases and should complete all medical formalities specified in the offer of assignment before travelling and bring with them sufficient and appropriate medical supplies. The following vaccinations are required and/or recommended prior to travel or upon arrival: Covid-19, yellow fever (required for travellers arriving), polio, rabies, tetanus/diphtheria, measles-mumps-rubella (MMR), malaria (prophylaxis is recommended for almost all the country). UN staff has 24-hour access to a fully operational UN medical clinic, run by the UN Doctors, during office hours. There is also a selection of other health facilities available in Cameroon. Accommodation: The UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing. Different types of long-term accommodation are available in Yaounde: standalone houses, houses in gated compounds, apartments. These could be furnished and/or fully serviced, or unfurnished. Power and water: in most regions, including Yaounde, both electricity and water is readily available. Most hotels have secured water and generators in the event of a power failure. Food and diet: fresh food is seasonal but varied. Most staple foods are common in the supermarkets. Yaounde has a selection of reasonably priced restaurants with good health standards. Restaurants can be found in the provinces as well, but the standard, the quality of food and the level of hygiene may be limited, while availability of certain foods may be limited or seasonal as well. The usual precautions need to be taken when eating outside the home: no salads, bottled water and all meat to be thoroughly cooked. Minor stomach upsets are almost inevitable at some stage. Communication: You can purchase SIM card in Cameroon from any of the leading telephone companies for your personal use; if required (based on your working requirements), you can be issued an official SIM card by the Office (upon request of your respective section).