Procurement and Contract Management Specialist (PCMS)

About Asian Disaster Preparedness Center

ADPC is an intergovernmental regional organization with a vision to reduce disaster and climate risk impacts on communities and countries in Asia and the Pacific by working with governments, development partners, international organizations, NGOs, civil society, private sector, media, and other key stakeholders. Established in 1986 as a technical capacity building center, ADPC has grown and diversified its expertise across social and physical sciences to support sustainable solutions for risk reduction across a broad range of specialist areas. With over 100 staff from 19 different nationalities and a wide range of professional expertise from atmospheric scientists to social scientists with experiences from all levels of engagement typically required for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Climate Resilience (CR) in an effective manner. ADPC is a competent regional resource center and has seven thematic departments: ADPC Academy, Risk Governance, Climate Resilience, Urban Resilience, Health Risk Management, Preparedness for Response and Recovery, Geospatial Information. These are supported by the Finance, the Human Resources and Administration, and the Strategic Planning departments. In addition to the departments, ADPC works on three cross-cutting themes: Gender and Diversity, Poverty and Livelihoods, and Regional and Transboundary Cooperation through permanent working committees. ADPC Strategy 2020 guides the organization in providing comprehensive risk reduction support to countries and communities in Asia and the Pacific. ADPC recognizes the importance of examining the linkages between disaster risk management, poverty reduction, gender equality, sustainability, rights-based approaches, climate change, and regional cooperation. For details please refer to ADPC website at http://www.adpc.net/

Background

Disasters take a huge toll on the development agenda of SAR countries. Between 2000 and 2017, disasters in South Asia incurred estimated damages of US$ 149.27 billion. Public expenditure is under stress by the repeated need to reallocate capital budgets away from long term development planning and towards reconstruction activities in post-disaster environments. For example, since 2005, Pakistan has suffered losses on the order of US$ 16 billion due to natural disasters. In Bangladesh, 2007 Cyclone Sidr resulted in damages and losses of US$1.7 billion or 2.6 percent of GDP. To increase resilience and achieve climate commitments, there is a need for a transformational shift towards policies and institutions that enable climate-resilient investments. Investing in more resilient infrastructure is both profitable and urgent as disruptions are extremely costly for governments, households and private sector and large ongoing investments in infrastructure assets will have long-lasting repercussions as poor maintenance and natural disasters result in a vulnerable stock. With the financial support from the World Bank, ADPC will be implementing a five years’ project, titled “Climate Adaptation and Resilience Project for South Asia” (CARE).

The project aims to create an enabling environment for climate resilience policies and investments across South Asia. This objective will be achieved through enhanced regional cooperation and knowledge exchange for climate resilience and adaptation and mainstreaming of resilience and adaptation in national policies, plans, and investments. Procurement and contract management plays a vital role in order to satisfactorily implement all the required components as planned within the fiscally agreed budget. It would involve preparation of yearly program or section procurement plans and procurement related reports to comply with World Bank regulations, for Bank-funded projects. Accordingly, a highly qualified and experienced Procurement and Contract Management Specialist will be required to consolidate an annual procurement plan linked to the annual work plan and budget. S/he will be selected on a competitive basis following World Bank Consultants Guidelines.

The objectives of this consultancy service are to:

• Strengthen the procurement and contract management capacity of ADPC in the execution of procurement and planned contracts of CARE Project through the provision of procurement and contract management expertise advice and support;
• Oversee that all contract correspondences of ADPC and actions are made in compliance with the relevant contract agreements, stipulations, documents, and international standards, in a timely manner; and
• Ensure procurement and contract management processes are carried out in accordance with ADPC’s procurement procedures and in compliance with the CARE Project requirements.

Statement of Intent

The Procurement and Contract Management Specialist (PCMS) will establish and maintain a high-quality procurement and contract management functions, able to secure maximum benefit from goods, works, consultancy, and non-consultancy services and achieving value for money in terms of economy, efficiency and effectiveness. The consultant will be based in Bangkok, Thailand, and report to CARE Project Director and work in close collaboration and coordination with the Chief of Human Resources & Administration (HRA) Department.

Note: It is not the intent of this Terms of Reference to cover every aspect of the position requirements, rather highlight the most important areas of personal and joint responsibilities.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Procurement and Contract Management Specialist shall be responsible for:

• Procurement Management:
  • Coordinate with Project Director to develop, monitor, and implement the Procurement Plan ensuring timely completion of all procurement activities.
  • Provide technical inputs to strengthening the procurement management system of ADPC. - Lead in use of the World Bank’s Systematic Tracking of Exchanges in Procurement (STEP) with appropriate technical and subject-specific assistance.
  • Assist technical teams at ADPC with the development of generic and policy-compliant TORs and specifications for procurement, as relevant.
  • Develop, prepare and (in coordination with Procurement Unit under HRA Department) issue documents required for the different stages of procurement cycle e.g. EOIs, IFBs, RFPs, bid documents, evaluation reports, minutes of negotiations, contract award, contracts, and various internal processing documents required to facilitate decision making, in accordance with ADPC procurement processes and in compliance with the World Bank’s procurement regulations.
  • Provide strategic expert advice and implementing necessary controls ensuring transparency cost-effectiveness and soundness of all procurements carried out under the program, to maximize the efficiency of the procurement cycle.
  • Support HRA Department in organizing bid evaluation meetings by (i) arranging venue and the timing of bid opening, evaluations with evaluation panel members, (ii) preparing necessary bid evaluation packages (bid documents, proposals, evaluation sheets, etc.) and distribute them to evaluation panel members, (iii) attend bid evaluation meetings as a note-taker and keep the minutes of the meetings, and (iv) provide other necessary technical supports to facilitate the procurements.
  • To address all matters associated with the procurement of goods/works/services e.g. taxation, duties clearance in cooperation with the HRA Department.
  • To monitor the progress of procurement activities by periodically updating procurement plans and maintaining and contract roster.
  • To develop appropriate procedures, controls, checks, rules, etc. preventing fraud, pilferage, etc. in the procurement process.
  • To act as key liaison person in coordinating capacity building initiatives internally. Participate in technical meetings and provide recommendations to improve the project implementation in terms of procurement based on capacity development needs; with regard to the procurement of the services, goods, and works.
  • Assist various audit/ex-post reviews by ensuring that procurement documents are efficiently filed and provide a complete track of the procurement cycle.
  • Assist ADPC to prepare an action plan to incorporate the World Bank’s and government’s commitments to anti-corruption, quality assurance, and transparency in the procurement of goods and services.
• Contract Management:
  • Act as a focal person on behalf of ADPC for contract administration issues that may accrue liabilities for the project.
  • Support ADPC in checking the quality of procured goods upon provision by Service Providers, and, if not satisfied, ensure taking action to get the equipment replaced with the equipment or materials in compliance with the specifications stated in the proposals.
  • Support the Project Director and Chief of HRA in handling all contractual aspects of the project (such as initial requests, authoring contracts, negotiating the contract, approving the contract, execution of the contract, obligation management, revisions and amendments, auditing and reporting, contract renewal).
  • Provide technical leadership for a first stage resolution in case of any dispute that ADPC may have with Consultant/s on any certification, determination, instruction, opinion or valuation related to the contract(s).
  • Support ADPC during statutory and internal audits including audits and reviews by Donors.
  • Support preparation of end of proceedings reports for ADPC after every claim incident. Such report(s) shall be drafted professionally and would facilitate any audit or other reviews.
  • Any other relevant task assigned by the Project Director.

Qualifications

The candidate should at least have:

• A master’s degree in project management, business administration or any other relevant discipline.
• Seven years of relevant work experience, after acquiring the stipulated qualification, in Procurement and Contract Administration or similar.
• Demonstrated experience of procurement of goods, works & consulting services in the private and public sector, preferably with experience in procurement following the policies and procedures of the World Bank or other multilateral development agencies.
• Excellent English language writing and communication skills.
• Excellent computer skills including MS Office (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint), familiarity with WB Procurement systems (STEP) or other similar Procurement software is a plus.

Reporting Relationships

The consultant will report to the Project Director and work closely with the Chief of HRA and Procurement Unit G. Contract Duration The contract duration will be for 18 months. The consultant’s performance will be reviewed on a quarterly basis.

Selection Method

The consultant will be selected in accordance with ADPC’s recruitment process and in compliance with the World Bank Procurement Regulations.