Procurement Officer

The Procurement Officer will provide technical and operational procurement support to the UNESCO Office in Doha, including donor-funded projects and regular programme activities. The role involves procurement planning, solicitation, contract administration, vendor management, quality assurance, monitoring, and reporting, ensuring compliance with UNESCO rules and procedures.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain procurement plans for projects and office requirements in accordance with guidance from ADM/OPS, approved budgets, workplans, and applicable UNESCO rules and procedures.
• Review procurement requests to ensure completeness, accuracy, appropriateness of specifications, availability of budget, and compliance with established procurement procedures before initiating the required approvals.
• Coordinate solicitation processes, including preparation of requests for quotations, invitations to bid, requests for proposals, announcements, evaluation documentation, and related procurement correspondence.
• Support bid receipt, evaluation, and selection processes, ensuring transparency, fairness, competitiveness, confidentiality, and proper documentation of decisions.
• Maintain and update the vendor database, support supplier registration where required, and liaise with vendors and service providers on quotations, delivery schedules, invoices, delivery notes, and other required documentation.
• Monitor procurement implementation against approved workplans, budgets, purchase orders, and contracts, and maintain accurate records of commitments, delivery status, resource allocation, and pending actions.
• Provide technical guidance and orientation to programme and project colleagues on UNESCO procurement policies, procedures, documentation requirements, and contract management practices, with particular attention to high-value or high-risk procurements.
• Prepare and review procurement-related documents, including contracts, purchase orders, amendments, communications, guidelines, briefing notes, tracking sheets, and periodic or ad hoc reports.
• Maintain an effective tracking and filing system to monitor contractual obligations, supplier performance, delivery timelines, payment documentation, contract amendments, extensions, and closure of procurement files.
• Coordinate with internal and external stakeholders, including programme sectors, administration, finance, suppliers, implementing partners, and relevant service providers, to ensure timely and efficient procurement service delivery.

Requirements

• Advanced university degree in Business Administration, Procurement, Supply Chain Management, Project Management, Accounting, Finance, or another relevant field.
• Minimum of five years of progressively responsible professional experience in procurement, contract management, contract administration, logistics, supply chain management, or a closely related field.
• Sound knowledge of internationally recognized procurement standards and all stages of procurement for goods and services.
• Strong understanding of contract management, supplier performance monitoring, and procurement documentation requirements.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, organizational, and prioritization skills, with attention to detail and accuracy.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with internal and external stakeholders, including colleagues, partners, suppliers, and service providers at national, regional, and international levels.
• Excellent communication and drafting skills, including the ability to prepare clear procurement documents, reports, and correspondence.
• Very good information technology skills, including advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office applications, particularly Word and Excel.
• Knowledge of enterprise resource planning systems, including SAP, would be an advantage.
• Knowledge of results-based management and experience in procurement within the United Nations system or other international organizations are desirable.
• Excellent command of English, both written and spoken.
• Very good command of Arabic, both written and spoken.
• Knowledge of another official language of the United Nations would be an asset.
• Professional certification in procurement or supply chain management, such as CIPS or an equivalent qualification, is highly desirable.
• Experience in public procurement is desirable.
• Experience working with the United Nations system, intergovernmental organizations, or international development partners is an asset.

Skills

• Procurement Management
• Contract Management
• Contract Administration
• Supplier Performance Monitoring
• Procurement Documentation
• Procurement Planning
• Vendor Management
• Quality Assurance
• Procurement Reporting
• International Procurement Standards
• Supply Chain Management
• Logistics Management
• MS Word
• MS Excel
• Enterprise Resource Planning
• SAP
• Result-Based Management
• Public Sector Procurement
• Specialized Procurement Certification
• UN Procurement Policies

Languages

English, Arabic