National Project Procurement & Operations Officer

Background   Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP:  we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.  
  UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Timor-Leste is a small half-island country, one of the top ten counties most vulnerable to climate change. Approximately 70% of Timor-Leste’s rural population (840,000 people) is highly susceptible to climate changes, particularly increasing rainfall variability and extreme weather events. Lives and livelihoods in the country's remote interior and coastal regions are highly exposed. Impacts of intensified extreme events include damage and degradation of decentralized small-scale critical infrastructure, particularly water supply and drainage structures, embankments, and feeder roads and bridges. Damages leave rural populations isolated, lacking essential services. According to climate change scenarios and risk models, occurrences of climate extremes and related damages will at least double towards mid-century. 

The project objective is to safeguard vulnerable communities and their physical assets from climate change-induced disasters. It aims to address existing institutional, financial, and legislative barriers, increasing the climate resilience of vulnerable small-scale rural infrastructure. Six municipalities, mainly Baucau, Ermera, Aileu, Viqueque Lautem, and Liquica, were selected for the project interventions.  The project has the below two interrelated outputs that aim to achieve the impact potential and create an enabling environment/condition for scaling up/replicating the impact beyond the immediate target areas. 

• Output 1: Climate risk information is developed, monitored, and integrated into policies, regulations, and institutions to inform climate-resilient small-scale rural infrastructure planning and management
• Output 2: Climate risk reduction and climate-proofing measures for small-scale rural infrastructure are implemented to build the resilience of vulnerable communities in six priority districts.

Duties and Responsibilities
1. Procurement and Operational Management   

A. Manage procurement processes for goods and services according to the Procurement Plan, which includes: 

1. Ensure all necessary preparations for procurement are finalized, such as Terms of Reference for technical specifications of goods/services, Evaluation Criteria, Cost Estimates, Market Research, and Evaluation Panel set-up. 
2. Advertise Invitation for Bids/Quotations.
3. Prepare documents for the Evaluation Panel. 
4. Liaise with the procurement unit to support preparing bidding documents/requests for quotations and bids/quotation evaluation reports.
5. Review and certification of submissions to the Contract and Procurement Committee (CAP), Regional Committee on Procurement (RACP), and Advisory Committee on Procurement (ACP). 
6. Implement the internal control system that ensures purchase orders are duly prepared and dispatched, with timely corrective actions on POs with budget check errors and other problems. 
7. Monitor contract implementation, including issues of claims and disputes, compensation events, and so on.
8. Successful implementation of e-procurement, including e-tendering module.
9. Identify sources where potential suppliers can be reached, including using social media, industry forums, business directories, and networking events to expand the vendor pool and enhance procurement efficiency.

b.  Facilitate the procurement process for goods and services, including recruiting consultants and equipment (IT equipment, etc.). 

c. Maintain lists of the potential suppliers and performance of previous suppliers;

d. Liaise with Procurement Analyst/Officers in the UN organizations as needed; 
 e. Maintain a repository in UNDP SharePoint Drive for various Terms of References, Contracts, Reports, and other relevant documents for the Procurement processes, ensuring easy access, version control, and compliance with documentation standards.