Senior Procurement Specialist - World Bank

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Do you want to build a truly worthwhile career? Working at the World Bank provides a unique opportunity for you to help our clients solve their greatest development challenges. The World Bank consists of two entities – the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA).

It is a global development cooperative owned by 189 member countries. As the largest development bank in the world, the World Bank provides loans, guarantees, risk management products, and advisory services to middle-income and creditworthy low-income countries, and coordinates responses to regional and global challenges. For more information, visitwww.worldbank.org.

Western and Central Africa (AFW) Region

We need the best and brightest talent focused on Sub-Saharan African countries to harness the potential and innovation happening across the continent. Africa is a continent on the move, with a young population and a growing market of nearly 1.2 billion people. We are committed to making the Africa regional teams into leading innovation hubs.

Yet, these vast opportunities are tempered by persistent gaps in education, health, and skills, which have Africa only reaching forty percent of its estimated potential. Moreover, conflict, food insecurity, population growth, and the disruptive forces of climate change threaten to curtail or even reverse the progress that has been made over the past decades.

In West and Central Africa, the World Bank is a leading partner with a growing portfolio of 350 projects totaling more than US$38 billion in areas such as agriculture, trade, and transport, energy, education, health, water, and sanitation- all to support job creation, gender equality, poverty reduction, and better lives.

Across the continent, the World Bank’s program has nearly doubled over the last 10 years. By 2030, about 87 percent of the world’s extremely poor are projected to live in Sub-Saharan Africa, so this is where our mission to end extreme poverty and to promote shared prosperity will be achieved.

Are you ready to make an impact? We are looking for dedicated professionals to join our innovative and diverse team to improve people’s lives and help countries build back better post-COVID-19.

Background

The Governance Global Practice (GGP) comprises a variety of different professional disciplines working on public institutions, public sector management, governance and anti-corruption, financial management, and public procurement.

The public procurement group convenes a leading group of practitioners focused on advancing cutting-edge practices and innovations in the fields of procurement, anti-corruption, and open government. The procurement work is delivered through two main workstreams:

• Operational procurement support to other Global Practices, including through inputs for policy-based operations, hands-on implementation advice, and direct fiduciary due diligence of investment financing.
• Active engagement in policy dialogue to help countries to reform and enhance their public procurement systems.

To enhance its capacity, the West and Central Africa Procurement Unit seeks to recruit/appoint a highly organized, energized, and experienced professional, capable of operating effectively in the region.

Institutional Arrangement

The Senior Procurement Specialist will be working under the oversight and guidance of the Region’s Accredited Practice Manager. The duty station for this position is Accra, Ghana.

Scope of Work

• Provides technical fiduciary advice on procurement activities and engage in policy dialogue to strengthen procurement systems.
• Supports clients in achieving value for money (VFM) in public procurement to enhance service delivery and development outcomes with integrity.
• Understand relevant procurement markets using analytical tools and approaches to define more effective procurement strategies.
• Participates in missions and plays a key role in developing practical approaches to procurement while simultaneously dealing with difficult policy and operational issues.
• Prepares and/or comments on draft operational directives and policy papers; produces major/complex reports.
• Develops and executes training modules on complex sector-related procurement topics.

 The work implies frequent interaction with the following stakeholders:

• Management in his duty station and some occasions in HQ or other countries.
• Government officials and equivalent contacts in other international organizations, partner entities, etc.
• Procurement specialists within the World Bank and government units.
• Counterparts in the Bank across VPUs, Global Practices, and other units involved in meeting the Bank’s business objectives.
• Other external constituencies and expert groups.

Selection Criteria

• High levels of integrity.
• Excellent command of English.
• An advanced degree with a major in a relevant discipline (e.g. business administration, engineering, commerce, law, procurement, public policy, etc.).
• A master's degree in any of the relevant areas.
• Knowledge of the concepts, principles, and practices governing international procurement, with the ability to translate concepts into operational work, including but not limited to VFM, sustainable procurement, strategic sourcing, market analysis, contract management, etc…
• Minimum of 8 years of directly relevant experience in carrying out technical duties in procurement inside or outside the World Bank.
• Ability to deal sensitively in a multi-cultural environment and build effective working relations with clients and colleagues.

General Competencies

• Good communication skills and persuasiveness in presenting, negotiating, and resolving highly complex issues, both orally and in writing.
• Client-driven and results-oriented
• Autonomous and committed to technical quality.
• Ability to solve complex problems involving multiple stakeholders and constraints.
• Analytical skills to recognize patterns, extract conclusions and strategies out of information coming from multiple sources and in a variety of forms.

Specific Specialized Skills, Knowledge, and Competencies

• Knowledge of institutions and procurement reforms in Borrower’s countries.
• Understanding of the World Bank’s business objectives, products, and project cycle.
• Understanding of political economy, public policy, public systems, and public management.
• Demonstrates knowledge and understanding of project management tools & methodologies.
• Ability to manage complex, multi-functional, cross-regional projects/programs including managing relationships with stakeholders & counterparties.
• Good understanding of risk management

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