Stretch Assignment: Procurement Specialist P3 - Ouagadougou - 2 months (onsite)

The UNICEF Burkina Faso Country Office manages a large and increasingly complex procurement portfolio supporting regular programmes, humanitarian response and operations. The portfolio includes goods, specialized equipment, institutional services and high-value or technically complex procurement, placing significant demands on procurement planning, market assessment, quality assurance and contract management.

These challenges are compounded by Burkina Faso’s operational context, including limited local market capacity, reliance on regional and international sourcing, import lead times, price volatility, security and access constraints, supplier capacity limitations and tight funding deadlines.

To ensure business continuity, timely delivery and robust internal controls, the Country Office seeks to temporarily reinforce its Procurement function through the deployment of an experienced P-3 Procurement Specialist for a period of two months. The assignment will focus on accelerating priority and complex procurement cases, reducing processing delays, strengthening the quality and compliance of procurement processes, maintaining appropriate segregation of duties, and providing hands-on technical support to the team.

Given the complexity of the portfolio and the need for immediate operational impact, the selected P-3 staff is expected to be fully operational from the outset, work with a high degree of autonomy, and bring solid experience in the procurement of both goods and institutional services.

Under the direct supervision of the Supply & Logistics Manager, the incumbent will provide enhanced technical and operational support to the Procurement function. The incumbent will manage selected procurement cases end-to-end, strengthen quality assurance, improve visibility and oversight of the procurement pipeline, and contribute to knowledge and skills transfer within the team. The assignment will pursue the following specific objectives:

• Accelerate the processing of priority procurement cases without compromising applicable procedures, internal controls, compliance requirements, or the quality of procurement decisions.
• Lead and/or strengthen the management of complex, high-value, time-critical, or high-risk procurement cases, ensuring timely and compliant completion.
• Strengthen the quality of procurement processes and documentation, including sourcing and procurement strategies, solicitation documents, bid/proposal evaluations, negotiations, contract award recommendations, submissions to review committees, and contracts.
• Improve procurement planning and pipeline management, including lead-time monitoring, identification and resolution of bottlenecks, proactive risk management, and effective coordination with requesting sections.
• Strengthen the capacity of the Procurement team through hands-on coaching, practical tools, documentation and dissemination of good practices, and structured knowledge and case handover.

Detailed Scope of Responsibilities

Initial Assessment, Prioritization and Pipeline Management:

• Conduct, at the outset of the assignment, a structured review of the ongoing and planned procurement portfolio.
• Prioritize procurement cases based on value, programmatic urgency, complexity, required delivery date, funding expiry, market risk, supplier risk, and compliance considerations.
• Develop a two-month work plan identifying priority cases to be completed, key milestones, responsibilities, required decisions, and associated risks.
• Identify ageing, stalled, delayed, or insufficiently prepared procurement cases and recommend practical corrective actions to accelerate their completion.
• Establish a weekly review of critical, exceptional, and high-risk procurement cases, particularly those requiring management attention or decisions.
• Put in place a clear escalation mechanism for delayed specifications, technical inputs, evaluations, approvals, or other decisions that may affect procurement timelines.

• Substantial and progressively responsible professional experience in procurement, supply chain management, or contract management, preferably within UNICEF, another United Nations agency, an international organization, or a comparable environment.
• Demonstrated experience in the procurement of both goods and institutional services.
• Hands-on experience in managing RFQ, ITB and RFP processes, including technical and financial evaluations, negotiations, contract award recommendations, and contracting.
• Proven experience in managing complex, high-value, high-risk, and/or time-sensitive procurement cases.
• Experience in the preparation and/or quality review of CRC/eCRC submissions, or equivalent procurement review mechanisms.
• Strong competencies in market research and analysis, commercial analysis, price reasonableness assessments, supplier management, and contract monitoring.
• Practical knowledge and experience in the use of ERP systems and procurement planning, monitoring, and reporting tools.
• Demonstrated ability to work with a high degree of autonomy, manage competing priorities, identify procurement risks and bottlenecks, and drive complex cases through to timely completion.
• Previous experience in coaching, mentoring, knowledge transfer, and capacity building is desirable.

Core Values

• Care
• Respect
• Integrity
• Trust
• Accountability
• Sustainability

Core Competencies

• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (1)
• Works Collaboratively with others (1)
• Builds and Maintains Partnerships (1)
• Innovates and Embraces Change (1)
• Thinks and Acts Strategically (1)
• Drive to achieve impactful results (1)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)

Funding arrangement
This is a temporary development opportunity and there will be no changes to the staff member’s status (position number, level, etc.).

The Office will cover the ticket for economy class travel and 100% of the UN DSA rate during the first 30 days, and 50% DSA for the remaining time.

Interested UNICEF staff should discuss this opportunity with their supervisor and seek the approval of their management before applying.

Candidates considered potentially well-matched for the stretch assignment will be contacted for an informal interview. Supervisors may also be contacted for references.

This assignment is not linked to a vacant position and subsequently, the selected candidate would not be eligible to a Special Post Allowance (SPA).  Stretch Assignment Procurement Specialist.docx

Advertised: 04 Nov 2026 Greenwich Standard Time
Applications close: 13 Nov 2026 Greenwich Standard Time

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