Career Opportunities: SUPPLY CHAIN OFFICER - United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)

General
Description of assignment title
Supply Chain Officer

Assignment country
Cameroon

Expected start date
01/05/2024

Sustainable Development Goal
2. Zero hunger

Volunteer category
International UN Volunteer Specialist

Host entity
WFP

Type
Onsite

Duration
24 months
(with possibility of extension)

Number of assignments
1

Duty stations
Maroua

Details
Mission and objectives
The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change. Created in 1961 as an experiment to provide food aid through the UN system, WFP is enshrined in 1965 as a fully-fledged UN Programme.

Powered by the passion, dedication and professionalism of our 20,000 staff worldwide, the World Food Programme (WFP) works in over 80 countries to bring life-saving food to people displaced by conflict and made destitute by disasters, and help individuals and communities find life-changing solutions to the multiple challenges they face in building better futures.

Social protection is an increasingly prominent strategy for governments to reduce extreme poverty, hunger, and inequalities and promote access to essential needs. As a global leader in fighting hunger and malnutrition worldwide, often in very difficult contexts, the World Food Programme (WFP) is increasingly called upon by governments to support national social protection systems.

WFP is partnering with governments across over 75 countries to strengthen their national social protection systems, making support in social protection an integral part of its activities in most of the countries where it operates. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, lives and livelihoods of the most vulnerable are put at risk across the globe, undermining decades of progress towards the SDGs. In response to this, many governments are currently adapting and/or putting in place new social protection policies, systems and schemes.

Context
Cameroon is a lower-middle-income country with a population of 23.3 million people of diverse ethnic and two linguistic groups. Ranked 153rd of 188 countries in the 2016 Human Development Index, the average life expectancy is 58 years; 24% live on less than USD 2 per day and poverty is concentrated in the Northern and Eastern regions, where 90 percent of people requiring humanitarian support reside. At least 75 percent of the people over 15 years of age are illiterate, with wide disparity between men and boys (78 percent) and women and girls (65 percent).

Cameroon is confronted with three major complex crises: the crisis in the Lake Chad basin impacting the Far North region; the consequences of the influx Central African refugees in the east and the crisis in the Northwest and Southwest (SW/NW). More than one million people are displaced, and 4.5 million people have humanitarian needs. These challenges are reinforced by structural factors and chronic vulnerabilities that aggravate the impact of crises and affect people's resilience capacity.

The World Food Programme (WFP) is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. WFP’s current Country Strategy Programme (2018-2021) contributes to all four United Nations Development Assistance Framework pillars: (i) increase employment opportunities and measures to protect women, young people, children and socially vulnerable people in target areas; (ii) improve the health of target populations and prevent child malnutrition in all its forms; (iii) improve access to education and quality vocational training; and (iv) strengthen the resilience of target populations addressing food insecurity and environmental, social and economic shocks.

WFP Cameroon is currently seeking for International UN Volunteers to provide support and technical expertise to the Field Offices with the design and management of programmes of moderate size or complexity that effectively meet food assistance needs or contribute to policy formulation and / or provide technical advice or oversight on programme strategy and implementation.

Task description
Under the general supervision of the Head of Field Office, and the technical supervision of the CO Head of Supply, the incumbent UN Volunteer will perform the following tasks:

1. Participate in the development and implementation of supply chain plans and procedures, in line with the global WFP supply chain strategy and regional/functional strategies, policies and plans, to achieve operational cost efficiency, agility, reliability, quality and to support national capacity strengthening.
2. Analyze regional/country context, and design and manage end-to-end operational supply chain and retail networks, to proactively mitigate and/or address dynamic supply chain challenges and obtain operational optimization.
3. Plan and manage implementation of innovative supply chain operations, initiatives and services to ensure timely, cost-effective and integrated approach with core activities and services and in close cooperation with key supply chain stakeholders.
4. Provide technical advice and identify opportunities for improvement and innovation initiatives analyzing best practices from the humanitarian and development fields, academia and private sector.
5. Plan, monitor and manage resources to maximize effectiveness of supply chain operations.
6. Build productive partnerships and collaborate with counterparts in the key supply chain functions to ensure an integrated supply chain approach to food assistance and cross functional operational alignment.
7. Identify and build productive partnerships with counterparts amongst government and other national organizations, UN agencies, NGOs and private sector to share operational knowledge and resources and build capacity to ensure coordinated and cost-effective supply chain operations.
8. Perform in-depth market analysis and supply chain network mapping to inform the selection of an appropriate operation modalities to improve supply chain performance.
9. Manage supply chain operations to ensure compliance with the established supply chain strategies, policies, procedures, and controls, and following corporate standards, with special emphasis on quality control, loss prevention, risk mitigation and cost effectiveness.
10. Constantly monitor the performance of supply chain operations to ensure that appropriate internal controls are in place.
11. Manage service providers/vendors, port, fleet and warehouse operations to promote safe, efficient planning and execution of WFP operations and safeguard WFP’s interest.
12. Manage accurate and timely reporting including provision of substantial analysis of supply chain activities and trends to enable informed decision-making and consistency of information presented to a wide range of stakeholders.
13. Manage, motivate and develop a team providing coaching, training and career guidance as required to ensure appropriate development and enable high performance.
14. Contribute to preparedness actions, providing technical recommendations and guidance and monitoring the management of specific supply chain risks to enable WFP, governments and other partners to quickly respond and deploy food and resources at the onset of the crisis.
15. Other as required.


Eligibility criteria
Age
27 - 80

Nationality
Candidate must be a national of a country other than the country of assignment.

Requirements
Required experience
3 years of experience in
• Experience in managing an area of supply chain operations including coordination with internal and external stakeholders.
• Experience in implementing operational supply chain strategies in a country;
• Experience in designing and implementing supply chain, retail, and partnership networks;
• Experience in managing relationships and national capacity building initiatives with UN agencies, NGOs, private sector and/or government organizations;
• Experience evaluating and selecting service providers and/or suppliers;
• Experience identifying operational risks and maintaining documentation on emergency preparedness;
• Experience in implementing approved corrective actions to improve performance and monitoring progress;
• Experience supervising professional staff.

Area(s) of expertise
Logistics and Inventory, Security and protection, Procurement and contracting

Driving license
-

Languages
English, Level: Fluent, Required
French, Level: Fluent, Required

Required education level
Master degree or equivalent in Supply Chain Management, Engineering, Economics, Business Administration, Logistics, or other related field, or First University degree with additional years of related work experience and/or training/courses.

Competencies and values
• Professionalism: demonstrated understanding of operations relevant to WFP; technical capabilities or knowledge relevant or transferrable to WFP procedures and rules; discretion, political sensitivity, diplomacy and tact to deal with clients; ability to apply good judgement; ability to liaise and coordinate with a range of different actors, especially in senior positions; where appropriate, high degree of autonomy, personal initiative and ability to take ownership; resourcefulness and willingness to accept wide responsibilities and ability to work independently under established procedures; ability to manage information objectively, accurately and confidentially; responsive and client-oriented;
• Integrity: demonstrate the values and ethical standards of the UN and WFP in daily activities and behaviours while acting without consideration of personal gains; resist undue political pressure in decision-making; stand by decisions that are in the organization’s interest even if they are unpopular; take prompt action in cases of unprofessional or unethical behaviour; does not abuse power or authority.
• Teamwork and respect for diversity: ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries; excellent interpersonal skills; ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, mixed-gender environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity; sensitivity and adaptability to culture, gender, religion, nationality and age; commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of UN operations; ability to achieve common goals and provide guidance or training to colleagues;
• Commitment to continuous learning: initiative and willingness to learn new skills and stay abreast of new developments in area of expertise; ability to adapt to changes in work environment.
• Planning and organizing effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner; ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work; ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities;
• Communication: proven interpersonal skills; good spoken and written communication skills, including ability to prepare clear and concise reports; ability to conduct presentations, articulate options and positions concisely; ability to make and defend recommendations; ability to communicate and empathize with staff (including national staff), military personnel, volunteers, counterparts and local interlocutors coming from very diverse backgrounds; capacity to transfer information and knowledge to a wide range of different target groups;
• Flexibility: adaptability and ability to live and work in potentially hazardous and remote conditions, involving physical hardship and little comfort; to operate independently in austere environments for protracted periods; willingness to travel within the area of operations and to transfer to other duty stations within the area of operations as necessary.
• Genuine commitment towards the principles of voluntary engagement, which includes solidarity, compassion, reciprocity and self-reliance, and commitment towards WFP’s mission and vision, as well as to the UN Core Values.

All applications must be submitted ONLINE at :  https://app.unv.org/opportunities/1752104885728512