Career Opportunities: Procurement Officer at WFP Tanzania

WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles.

Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis, and we are committed to promoting diversity and gender balance.

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide.  The mission of WFP is to help the world achieve Zero Hunger in our lifetimes.  Every day, WFP works worldwide to ensure that no child goes to bed hungry and that the poorest and most vulnerable, particularly women and children, can access the nutritious food they need.

Manage, lead on and provide oversight to procurement operations, partnering with the key supply chain functions, such as logistics, to ensure an integrated supply chain approach to meeting the food assistance needs of beneficiaries.

1. Design procurement strategy to buy food from traders and smallholder farmers (SHF) as well as non-food items (NFI) to ensure smooth operations in Tanzania and in the neighbouring countries
2. Provide oversight, guidance and support to the Country Offices procurement team to implement best practice procurement policies and procedures, ensuring a strategic and proactive approach to procurement in compliance with wider WFP policies, standards and regulations.
3. Support the head of supply chain in implementation of the supply chain strategy, and lead and participate in actions of national capacity strengthening
4. Consolidate and analyze data to inform Country sourcing strategies or plan specialist procurement initiatives that support effective and cost optimizing purchase decisions, whether from traditional suppliers or off-takers.
5. Lead the procurement of food and non-food items (NFI) and manage operational activities for the Country Office including issue tenders, evaluate offers and negotiate/award contracts).
6. Collate information and draft appropriate responses to recommendations to support auditing of procurement activities and ensure conformity with compliance rules.
7. Conduct supplier performance evaluation evidenced by procurement data and other relevant factors
8. Maintain a pool of reliable suppliers for all procurement items; Identify, develop and maintain strong relationships with all relevant suppliers and vendors.
9. Manage and coordinate effective relationships with inspection and superintendent firms to ensure quality control, specification conformity, volume assessment, monitoring and verification of deliveries.
10. Work in close collaboration with cross-functional counterparts including regional bureaus (Johannesburg and Nairobi) and HQ procurement to align procurement activities and promote an integrated supply-chain approach to food assistance.
11. Provide active support to cash-based transfer (CBT) activities by identifying and contracting retail stores, where needed.
12. Coordinate and prepare accurate and timely reports of procurement activities to contribute to a WFP wide view that enables informed decision making and consistency of information presented to stakeholders, leading to performance optimization.
13. Manage the procurement teams ensuring appropriate development and enable high performance
14. Perform other duties as assigned

1. Timely, cost-effective and efficient procurement of food, goods and services.
2. Procurement operations and staff are managed, and leadership and oversight provided on procurement issues
3. Effective partnership is maintained with the key supply chain stakeholders and functions, such as logistics, to ensure an integrated supply chain approach to meeting the food assistance needs of beneficiaries.
4. Innovative projects initiated and/or supported for smallholder farmers (SHF).
5. Timely, concise and effective procurement report (corporate, periodic and ad hoc) for informed decision making.

Education: Advanced University degree in Economics, Commerce, Business Administration, Engineering, Legal or Accounting or other relevant field, or First University degree with an additional relevant work experience and /or training / course

Experience: 5 years or more of relevant progressive work experience in providing oversight to procurement operations, partnering with the key supply chain functions, such as logistics, to ensure an integrated supply chain approach to meeting the food assistance needs of beneficiaries.

Knowledge & Skills: Proven Experience communicating and coordinating with UN agencies/ large international conglomerates. Experience working with food commodity markets (incl. experience with freight markets) as well as goods and services needed in support of WFP’s Operations and its related market intelligence. Experience working with vendors and Experience with budgeting, pipelines and related issues in WFP Corporate Systems.

Languages: Fluency (level C) in English language. Intermediate knowledge (level B) of a second official UN language: Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish, and/or WFP’s working language, Portuguese.

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. 

The application deadline 31  July 2020

Female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.