UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, the right to a Calling

UNICEF Supply Division (SD) works to ensure equitable and inclusive access to essential supplies and services for children and their families, in development, humanitarian and fragile contexts. These supplies are critical to saving lives, supporting children’s health and education, and protecting them from abuse, exploitation, and neglect. As the UN’s largest end to end supply chain entity, UNICEF leverages its global reach, market influence, supply chain expertise and partnerships with governments, civil society, private sector, industry, and other stakeholders to meet children’s needs and protect their rights around the world.

SD focuses on three result areas to maximize impact, scale, and effectiveness: strategic procurement; supply preparedness and response in humanitarian and fragile contexts; and supply chain optimization. To facilitate and accelerate progress toward these results, SD employs three change strategies: financing for supply and services, supply chain digitalization and supply chain localization.

SD’s key priorities are providing timely and effective service delivery, including for emergencies, programmes and procurement services partners, creating healthy markets and sustainable national supply chain systems, and providing supply financing solutions.

The position is located within the Child Survival Centre in Supply Division. Through applied technical, contractual and operational expertise, the Centre supports UNICEF country programmes and procurement services partners.  This position is part of the Diagnostics & Vector Control Unit.

How can you make a difference?

The Procurement Associate performs highly skilled work on UNICEF supply chains, and manages the more complex cases and client requests, which frequently requires the evaluation of difficult situations and adaptation of procedures and processes to resolve such cases. This is the senior GS level for specialized supply chain work and requires advanced specialized knowledge acquired through formal training and experience.

The function is characterized as highly independent and provides opportunities for Associates to lead and carry out responsibility for end to end supply chain management from the beginning to the end of the process and provide input into the design and development of improved supply chain services and delivery mechanisms.

Key Functions, accountabilities and related duties:

Under the supervision of the Contracts Specialist, the following duties and responsibilities will be met:

1. Planning
2. Procurement/contracting
3. Data Management
4. Other duties/responsibilities

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here:  JD - Procurement Associate_GS6.pdf

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

• Education: Completion of secondary education is required, preferably supplemented by technical or university courses related to supply chain, business administration, contract/commercial law, or another relevant technical field.
• Work Experience: Minimum of 6 years of relevant Procurement experience in supply chain management or a commercial context with experience handling health markets (Pharmaceuticals, Health Technology or Vaccines).
• Skills:
• Thorough knowledge of a range of specialized topics, including the relevant supply chain policies, partnership mechanisms, rules and regulations.
• High level of proficiency or skill is required in the interpretation and application of specialized rules and regulations to the particular circumstances of complex individual cases.
• Experience using MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and other UNICEF office tools.
• Demonstrated understanding of the relevant supply chain processes and ability to consistently apply relevant policies, procedures and good practices in the daily work. Good judgement in order to handle complex cases including considerations for exceptions.
• Ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships with clients, suppliers and colleagues and gain the assistance and cooperation of others in a team endeavor.
• Ability to use supply related modules within UNICEF ERP system.
• Ability to establish priorities and plan his/her own work and plan, coordinate and monitor the work of those under his/her supervision.
• Ability to draft clear and concise reports or rationale for supply related decisions on key issues.
• Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables:

• Language: Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.
• Understanding of development and humanitarian work is an advantage.
• Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF's Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships
(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
(3) Drive to achieve results for impact
(4) Innovates and embraces change
(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity
(6) Thinks and acts strategically
(7) Works collaboratively with others

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, discrimination, fraud, corruption and other forms of serious misconduct.

UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference, safeguarding and background verification checks. These checks may include verification of academic credentials and employment history, screening against relevant United Nations misconduct databases, and requests for misconduct disclosures from current and former employers, professional associations, other relevant organizations and participating organizations under inter-agency safeguarding initiatives, including the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme (MDS), where applicable.

Appointment, selection and continued engagement are subject to the satisfactory completion of all required checks. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information and consent to enable UNICEF to undertake these checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments are conditional on the selected candidates' willingness to comply with current or future vaccination requirements, should UNICEF mandate it for personnel. Failure to comply with such requirements, where applicable and without a duly approved medical exemption from the relevant UN authority, will result in the cancellation of the selection or may lead to other administrative measures, including separation from service.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants' bank account information.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF's Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

Visa residence requirements: i.e. UNICEF shall not facilitate the issuance of a visa and working authorization for candidates under consideration for positions at the national officer and general service category.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.