Supply Chain Manager (Systems Strengthening), P-4, Nairobi, Kenya (Eastern & Southern Africa Regional Office), Fixed Term

The Eastern & Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO) needs to be well positioned to strengthen systems in a holistic manner from production to End User Monitoring with national governments at the forefront of leadership involving all actors at the highest levels. This will require engagements at high level to advocate and influence the necessary changes for resilience building in the region. This high-level engagement is also necessary to facilitate country and regional engagement /partnership with regional blocks such as AU, Africa CDC and SADC that are seeking for an effective collaboration and partnership including capacity building. It is necessary to elevate the supply function beyond the traditional transactional and operational approach to a more strategic support to governments such as institutionalizing of supply chain interventions and local production which is increasingly becoming a frequent request from national governments and a priority in ESARO.
A new position of Supply Chain Manager (Systems Strengthening) has been established to support the supply systems strengthening activities in the region with a focus on Local production. If you believe that you have the experience and skills for this role, we would like to hear from you.

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. 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 personal and professional development that will help them develop a fulfilling career while delivering on a rewarding mission. We pride ourselves on a culture that helps staff thrive, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

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

For every child, future…

How can you make a difference?

• Support development and implementation of a supply chain strengthening advocacy strategy for HQ, ROs, COs and government counterparts to raise awareness around supply chain issues for essential lifesaving commodities, possible solutions, innovations, networks, and support that is available.
• Overall coordination of SCSS and supply chain resilience in 21 countries in the ESA region and high-level engagement and representation of UNICEF when dealing with governments, advocating for Systems strengthening activities including localization and resilience activities.
• In coordination with SD, lead UNICEF ESARO’S Local Production agenda in ESA region, develop a local production strategy and lead the implementation of the regional and local production approach focusing on market analysis, access, intelligence, communications, and shaping including on special contracting, implementation, monitoring and reporting.
• Advocate for Increased access to essential supplies by supporting the diversification of global supplier base (Market surveys/assessments/ scanning).
• Create and maintain a dashboard containing the potential manufacturers, their product categories, their geo-localization, and their adherence to quality standards.
• Collaboration with UNICEF Supply Division, Program Group, Regional Offices (ROs) and concerned Country Offices (COs) to drive market influencing strategy for vaccines & associated products including other supplies for children in the Region.
• Local and Regional Partners Mapping: Engage with key local and regional partners to support supply chain initiatives, conducting partner landscape analysis and establishing partnership frameworks.
• Co-ordinate with internal and external partners to ensure collective understanding, collaboration, coordinated progress and avoidance of overlap in the capacity development support provided to countries.
• In collaboration with the global hub in Addis, Ethiopia and the UNICEF Office to the African Union, Coordinate with other UN agencies and key stakeholders e.g., the African Union, Africa CDC, African Medicines Agency, government, donors, communities etc. to position UNICEF as a key strategic and institutional partner
• Technical Assistance to assessments and development of national capacity development strategies and implementation plans, support to the implementation of interventions and capturing lessons learned for continuous improvement.
• Capacity Building in Supply Chain Systems Strengthening: Contribute to implement the SCSC capacity building agenda in the region, ensuring programs and workshops, agora, and other training opportunities are disseminated to build capabilities in supply chain management, in collaboration with SD and PG colleagues.
• Support to Establish a Community of Champions: Cultivate a network of supply chain champions to advocate for improvements, organizing community events and fostering peer learning.
• Oversee the implementation of supply chain and SCSS in COs and provide technical guidance to assess their impact, monitoring and track progress, and update evaluation frameworks.
• Documenting Best Practices: Collect and disseminate knowledge on effective supply chain practices, setting guidelines and preparing case studies.
• Any other duties as requested by the supervisor.

Link to the full Job Description:  Supply Chain Manager (Systems Strengthening) P-4.pdf

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

The following minimum requirements:

Education: An advanced university degree (equivalent to a Master’s) from an accredited institution is required in Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Procurement, Business Administration, Management, Economics, Contract/Commercial Law, International Development, Health or related social science field.

Work Experience: At least 8 years of relevant work experience at the national and international levels, in supply, logistics, procurement, contracting, administration, Supply Chain strengthening and/or other directly related technical fields is required.

Skills: 

• Ability to resolve difficult, complex, and sensitive situations often under pressure.
• Ability to initiate and manage change in a diverse environment.
• Ability to clearly and concisely express ideas and concepts in written and oral form.
• Ability to manage and monitor the effective use of financial and material resources.
• Ability to supervise and direct a team of professional and support staff.
• Ability to allocate appropriate time and resources for successful achievement of goals and foresee risks and allow for contingencies when planning.
• Ability to implement clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies, identify priority activities and assignments, adjust priorities as required.
• Ability to work strategically to realize organizational goals, develop strategies, set clear visions.
• Advanced communication and negotiation skills to establish and maintain trusted partnerships for achievement of objectives and to develop close and effective working relationships with diverse stakeholders.
• Skill in the identification of new opportunities or requirements to meet challenges in the field and propose changes.
• Strong understanding of supply chain processes, from programme needs assessment, through planning, procurement and contracting, logistics and delivery, monitoring and evaluation.
• Strong overall knowledge and understanding of UNICEF programmes, public procurement principles, financial and legal aspects of supply chain issues, ethics, and risk management of supply chain operations.

Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

The following desirables:

• Understanding of development and humanitarian work.
• Emergency experience an advantage.
• Health supply chain management experience an advantage.
• Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language.

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

The 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  (8) Nurtures, leads and manages people 

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

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, and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. 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.

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 may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

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’s active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

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.

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.