Procurement Officer/Senior Procurement Officer

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

ADB will be rolling-out its operating model which may result in the change of department/group and/or reporting arrangement(s). By proceeding with your application, you acknowledge and accept the possibility of such changes resulting from the new operating model (NOM).

This vacancy is a local staff position. It is open only to nationals and residents of Pakistan.

Overview

Asian Development Bank (ADB) is an international development finance institution headquartered in Manila, Philippines and is composed of 68 members, 49 of which are from the Asia and Pacific region. ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. ADB combines finance, knowledge, and partnerships to fulfill its expanded vision under its Strategy 2030.

ADB only hires nationals of its 68 members.

To view ADB Organizational Chart, please click here.

The position is assigned in Pakistan Resident Mission (PRM) within the Central and West Asia Department (CWRD). CWRD is responsible for maintaining client relations and delivering ADB assistance to countries in the Central and West Asia region. PRM works closely with government agencies, development partners, private sector partners, and other stakeholders to facilitate the successful formulation, processing, administration and monitoring of ADB-financed loan and technical assistance (TA) projects.

Job Purpose

The Procurement Officer/Senior Procurement Officer is responsible for implementing the following operational procurement related processes for the Pakistan portfolio and projects assigned, including ensuring quality assurance of procurement-related documents, coordinating procurement matters with other offices, and streamlining procurement processes in PRM. The incumbent will work under the supervision of the outposted Procurement Specialist from Procurement, Portfolio and Financial Management Department (PPFD) for procurement-related responsibilities. The incumbent will report to the Country Director, PRM and/or designated International Staff and may supervise Administrative Staff. The incumbent will also have a functional reporting line to the outposted Procurement Specialist from PPFD for procurement-related responsibilities.

Responsibilities

Review of Procurement and Consultant Recruitment Matters

• Acts as focal person for review and analysis of matters relating to procurement and consulting services for projects/TAs assigned and takes initiative to deal with related issues in proactive manner.
• As a member of project teams, reviews and approves various procurement documents including procurement plans, prequalification documents, bid documents, bid evaluation reports, expression of interest, requests for proposal, proposals for consulting services, and recommendations for contract award for projects assigned.
• Advises on complex procurement issues to both PRM staff and Executing Agencies (EAs) and suggests appropriate measures to resolve them effectively and quickly. Responds to EAs inquiries on procurement and consultant recruitment matters through the project officer. Advises EAs and implementing agencies (IAs) in strategic procurement planning. Lead in drafting and/or reviewing project procurement risk assessment and risk management plan, respectively for loan/grant projects.
• Prepares necessary Reports/Memos/electronic Procurement Approval Forms (ePAF) for processing procurement and consulting services transactions. Assists PRM staff in the hiring of individual staff/TA consultants through Consultants Management System and guides them in dealing with complex contract administration issues.
• Guides EAs and IAs in preparing various procurement documents to ensure that the EAs fully comply with ADB's procurement policies, regulations, procedures, guidelines, and loan agreements. Carries out national and provincial level procurement systems assessments as necessary to identify generic procurement issues and advises on remedial measures to address them. Keeps current with ADB's list of sanctioned firms and liaises with ADB's Office of Anticorruption and Integrity on fraud and corruption issues in delegated loan, grant and TA projects.
• Supports the development of country procurement systems, including the assessment of e-procurement systems implemented by EAs for assigned loan/grant projects, as applicable.

Project Administration

• Assists loan review missions for assigned projects to assess EAs’ procurement performance and contract award achievements against projections, identifies bottlenecks in procurement processing and non-compliance with ADB's procurement policies, regulations, guidelines, and recommends remedial measures for improving procurement performance.

Capacity Building and Knowledge Management

• In consultation with PPFD capacity building team, develops training materials and knowledge products based on practical experience gained from review of procurement and consultant recruitment in ADB projects to share the experience of frequently encountered cases and best practices towards their resolution.
• Assists PRM PAU in assessing the capacity of EAs in carrying out procurement activities and identifies specific training needs and focus areas for their capacity building.
• Acts as a resource person to give lectures/presentations in capacity building seminars/workshops to enhance EAs' capacity and skills in procurement of goods, works, consulting and non-consulting services, and project administration areas to ensure full compliance with ADB policies, regulations, guidelines, and procedures.
• Coordinates and conducts Business Opportunities Seminar (BOS) for contractors, suppliers, and consultants.
• Provides mentoring supports to project analysts in the PMU.

Portfolio Management

• Assists PRM PAU to conduct Country Portfolio Review Meetings (CPRM) to monitor and discuss procurement, consultant recruitment and project administration activities in ADB-financed projects.
• Reviews contract award and disbursement performance, identifies bottlenecks /reasons for slow procurement progress and shortfall in contract award/disbursement achievement, develops and monitors execution of action plans to address those constraints to expedite project implementation performance.
• Assists in preparing annual contract award and disbursement projections for assigned PRM delegated loan/grant projects and monitors achievements against their projections.
• Conducts detailed review of CPRM briefing sheets and background papers and review EAs' submissions on procurement-related project administration matters such as contract variations, changes in procurement plans, changes in procurement methods and thresholds, as per ADB regulations, guidelines, staff instructions on procurement, and Project Administration Instruction (PAI) procedures.
• Supports the establishment of efficient and effective project performance management system with systematic progress reporting mechanism including monitoring of contractors’ and consultant’s performance and troubleshooting mechanisms.
• Streamlines portfolio management reporting mechanism efficiently through digitalization of all requisite reports to be accessible easily such as loan signing and effectiveness, quarterly progress reports, loan savings and cancellations, status of audited projects and financial statements, financial closures, contract level monitoring.

Project Processing and TA Administration

• Assists PRM PAU in processing and administering delegated TAs.
• Assists loan/grant/ TA processing missions on behalf of the mission leader leading the strategic procurement planning, reviews contract packaging, and prepares procurement plan.
• Assists project processing mission leaders in discussions with EAs and in preparing mission documents (aide memoire or memorandums of understanding) reflecting matters relating to procurement of goods, works and consulting and non-consulting services.
• Drafts the provisions of draft Concept Papers, and Report and Recommendation of the President (RRP) on procurement and project implementation arrangements, including the sections on procurement and consulting services and the procurement plans prepared by EAs.

e-Operations Project Functions

• Acts as focal person in PRM for dealing with all technical and operational issues relating to e-Operations Project for PRM-administered loan, grant and TA projects.
• Coordinates with all PRM sector groups for retrofitting and updating all project records in e-Operations with transfer of legacy data from PPR into new PPR system, and monitors PPR ratings and technical issues, latest project progress, design and monitoring framework (DMF), LFIS financial data and loan covenants in close cooperation with PPFD procurement specialists and Information Technology Department (ITD).
• Confirms data accuracy for all project records for delegated projects and TAs; rectifies all technical and access-related discrepancies to ensure availability of all project records to PRM staff.
• Arranges training programs for PRM staff on all modules of e-Operations and resolves any technical/operational problem in consultation with PPFD procurement specialist and ITD.

Coordination with Development Institutions

• Keeps track of national and provinces' policies, laws, rules, manuals and regulations on procurement; assists PPFD procurement specialists in liaising with other donor agencies and coordinating the harmonization of procurement and consultant recruitment procedures and alternative procurement modalities adopted by them to streamline and expedite procurement progress in their projects.

Others

• Provides guidance to junior officers to facilitate work planning, work execution and quality control.
• Performs other duties that may be assigned by supervisors within the scopes of these responsibilities.

Qualifications

Relevant Experience & Requirements

• • Bachelor’s Degree preferably with advanced training
  • At least 8 years of relevant professional experience in project management, procurement and implementation
  • Familiarity with procurement policies, regulations, guidelines, and procedures, and anticorruption policies of multilateral development organization(s)
  • Sound knowledge of government administrative systems and procedures, particularly public procurement systems
  • Sound knowledge of open competitive bidding procedures and exposure to the domestic construction and consulting industries in Pakistan
  • Procurement Accreditation Skills Scheme (PASS) accreditation in both procurement and consultant recruitment will be preferred. Non-accredited applicants may be considered and will be required to complete accreditation within one year of appointment.
  • Strong conceptual skills and ability to identify issues and appropriate actions at the field office level
  • Effective report-writing and communication skills in English
  • Able to mentor junior staff to facilitate work planning, delivery, and quality review
  • Able to liaise and work effectively with government officials within own work location
  • Able to work collaboratively with teams as a constructive team member.
  • Please refer to the link for ADB Competency Framework for NS2/NS3.

General Considerations

The selected candidate, if new to ADB, is appointed for an initial term of 3 years.

ADB offers competitive remuneration and a comprehensive benefits package. Actual appointment salary will be based on ADB’s standards and computation, taking into account the selected individual’s qualifications and experience.

ADB seeks to ensure that everyone is treated with respect and given equal opportunities to work in an inclusive environment. ADB encourages all qualified candidates to apply regardless of their racial, ethnic, religious and cultural background, gender, sexual orientation or disabilities. Women are highly encouraged to apply.

Please note that the actual level and salary will be based on qualifications of the selected candidate.