Background

Project Description

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UN’s global development network, advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. We are on the ground in 170 countries and territories, working with governments and people on their own solutions to global and national development challenges to help empower lives and build resilient nations.

UNDP is a founding co-sponsor of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), a partner of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and a co-sponsor of several other international health partnerships. UNDP’s work on HIV, health and development leverages the organization’s core strengths and mandates in human development, governance and capacity development to complement the efforts of specialist health-focused UN agencies. UNDP delivers three types of support to countries in HIV, health and development.

First, UNDP helps countries to mainstream attention to HIV and health into action on gender, poverty and the broader effort to achieve and sustain the Millennium Development Goals. For example, UNDP works with countries to understand the social and economic factors that play a crucial role in driving health and disease, and to respond to such dynamics with appropriate policies and programmes outside the health sector. UNDP also promotes specific action on the needs and rights of women and girls as they relate to HIV.

Second, UNDP works with partners to address the interactions between governance, human rights and health responses. Sometimes this is done through focused or specialized programmes, such as promoting attention to the role of legal environments (law and access to justice) in facilitating stronger HIV responses, including the use of flexibilities in intellectual property and human rights law to lower the cost of drugs and diagnostics and to increase access to HIV-related treatment. UNDP also works to empower and include people living with HIV and marginalized populations who are disproportionately affected by HIV - also known as key populations - such as sex workers, men who have sex with men, and transgender people. Beyond these focused efforts, UNDP plays a key role in ensuring attention to HIV and health within broader governance and rights initiatives, including support to district and municipal action on MDGs, strengthening of national human rights institutions and increasing access to justice for marginalized populations.

Third, as a trusted, long-term partner with extensive operational experience, UNDP supports countries in effective implementation of complex, multilateral and multisectoral health projects, while simultaneously investing in capacity development so that national and local partners can assume these responsibilities over time. The UNDP/Global Fund partnership is an important part of this work, facilitating access to resources for action on SDG 3 by countries that face constraints in directly receiving and managing such funding. UNDP partners with countries in crisis/post-crisis situations, those with weak institutional capacity or governance challenges, and countries under sanctions. When requested, UNDP acts as interim Principal Recipient in these settings, working with national partners and the Global Fund to improve management, implementation and oversight of Global Fund grants, while simultaneously developing national capacity for governments or local entities to be able to assume the Principal Recipient role over time.

Under the supervision of the Team leader, HIV, Health and Development in Bangkok and the overall guidance and technical supervision of the Global Fund/Health Implementation Support PSM team leader (Geneva), the Consultant will focus on supporting government and other health projects in the Asia and Pacific region within the framework of the specialized health procurement and supply chain work of UNDP’s partnerships with the Global Fund and on health implementation. The PSM Consultant shall play a key role in PSM support to selected countries, with a range of responsibilities related to PSM. This includes assisting in UNDP partnerships with governments on PSM support in the health sector,  reviewing health products lists, supporting capacity development in health PSM, reviewing procurement action plans and ensuring their timely implementation, and also contributing to PSM reporting to partners and donors, supporting in-country PSM implementation, liaising with national counterparts and technical partners to improve service quality, and identifying opportunities and strategies to overcome implementation bottlenecks to maximize efficiencies and impact.

The PSM Consultant will work in close collaboration with UNDP Country Office staff, governments, UN agencies in the areas of their expertise.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work

1)  Advisory and support services to UNDP Country Offices in the area of health procurement and supply management, with the following key responsibilities:

• Provide technical support in health procurement and supply chain capacity development for governments and partners.
• Participate in planning and development of health products procurement lines and supply programmes, involving the coordination of contracts and sub-contracts with partners;
• Provide technical support to Country Offices with feasibility and risk analysis of initiatives and programme development, including review and verification of lists with medicines and other health commodities and identify risk items, quality lists, optimal treatment and accuracy of technical specifications and act as PSM focal point for these countries;
• Support the UNDP - Global Fund and Health Implementation Support Team in collaboration with the Procurement Support Office for procurement support to Country Offices;
• Provide support to Country Offices in drafting of agreements and project documents, and in coordination with the Global Fund and Health Implementation Support Team and matrix unit based in Copenhagen, support setting up Long-Term Agreements for product lines, prepare and implement procurement plans and PSM capacity development plans for business lines, monitor progress and communicate the results;
• Prepare and analyze information on UNDP procurement activities and the pricing structure to catalyze health procurement initiatives.

2)  Advisory and support services for health procurement and supply management, with the following key responsibilities:

• Provide technical assistance to Country Offices and government counterparts on pharmaceutical supply chain management to ensure programme delivery with a focus on health procurement;
• Provide technical assistance to Country Offices and government procurement counterparts in the formulation of Procurement planning including development of related documents (procurement action plans, lists of health products, specifications, etc.);
• Provide technical assistance to Country Offices in collaboration with government counterparts in the formulation of key documents including Procurement Planning Tools, to ensure compliance with international procurement standards;
• Provide technical assistance to Country Offices in collaboration with government counterparts for the development, monitoring and implementation of capacity building plans around health PSM staff and structures;
• Coordinate and/or support technical assistance to Country Offices on intellectual property, international trade and regulatory issues in accordance with international standards;
• Advise Country Offices on the pathways for procurement and the selection of the procurement strategy for specific list of health commodities.

3) Partnership development to foster establishment of new procurement and supply chain initiatives, with the following key responsibilities:

• Support development of partnerships with international and national stakeholders on health PSM capacity development;
• Support the coordination and liaison with Geneva-based key partners including WHO, GAVI, UNICEF, UNFPA, Stop TB, RBM and the Global Fund related to health procurement and supply chain initiatives.

4) Knowledge Sharing on health procurement and supply chain management with UNDP Country Office staff and HIV, Health and Development Group with the following key responsibilities:

• Ensure systematic knowledge sharing on procurement with Country Offices
• Assist in the preparation of health procurement related tools and approaches.
• Draft presentations and training materials for use by Country Offices on detailed procurement and supply chain management.
• Actively participate in UNDP and other relevant external networks to promote capacity development in health procurement.

These services will be provided in close consultation and agreement with the UNDP – Global Fund and Health Implementation Support Team in Geneva. The Geneva PSM team leader will provide technical guidance and quality assurance for the PSM services provided.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables

• Documented support for effective health PSM programme implementation and optimal use of financial resources entrusted to the programmes and projects.
• Activities documented on UNDP’s capacity for managing the specialized health procurement requirements and supply management;
• Mission reports with clear recommendations and outcome
• Documented list of activities in PSM support, training, tools developed or capacity developed to create tools etc
• Monthly progress reports and updates per country
• Country portfolios described and lessons learned from country portfolios that did not materialize or expired.

Institutional Arrangements

The PSM Consultant will report directly to the Team leader, HIV, Health and Development in Bangkok and work under the overall guidance and technical supervision of the Global Fund/Health Implementation Support PSM team leader (Geneva)

The PSM consultant will be expected to provide a monthly report outlining tasks performed in the reporting period.

The PSM Consultant will work in close collaboration with UNDP Country Office staff, governments, UN agencies in the areas of their expertise.

The PSM consultant is expected to use his/her own computer. When working in UNDP BRH, UNDP will provide desk and internet connection.

Duration of Assignment :

The duration of this assignment is up to 140 working days from 01 June 2017 – 31 December 2017.

Duty Station and Expected Places of Travel :

To carry out this assignment the PSM Consultant will be based at the UNDP Regional Hub, Bangkok, Thailand.

At least five trips during the assignment are envisaged however the countries of destination will be based on the need. The PSM Consultant will manage the travel at his/her end and get reimbursement by UNDP. Payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between UNDP and the PSM Consultant, prior to travel and will be covered and paid for by UNDP. The fare will always be “most direct, most economical” and any difference in price with the preferred route will be paid for by the PSM Consultant.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
• Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Treats all people fairly without favouritism.

Technical Competencies:

• Analytic capacity and demonstrated ability to process, analyse and synthesise complex, technical information;
• Proven ability to support the development of high quality knowledge and training materials, and to train technical teams;
• Proven experience in the developing country context and working in different cultural settings.

Communication:

• Communicate effectively in writing to a varied and broad audience in a simple and concise manner.

Professionalism:

• Capable of working in a high pressure environment with sharp and frequent deadlines, managing many tasks simultaneously;
• Excellent analytical and organizational skills.

Teamwork:

• Projects a positive image and is ready to take on a wide range of tasks;
• Focuses on results for the client;
• Welcomes constructive feedback.

Required Skills and Experience

Degree of Expertise and Qualifications

• Master’s Degree or equivalent in Pharmacy, Logistics or related field. Complimentary qualifications in public health, medicine or business administration is a strong asset.
• A minimum of 7 years of PSM experience.
• That experience should be in majority in public health procurement and supply management, including at least 3 years of international experience involving high value pharmaceutical and other health commodity procurement.
• Experience of UN or UNDP procurement policies and procedures is a key asset
• English language fluency and strong writing skills required.
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and advance knowledge of web based management system.

Payment Terms

• The PSM consultant will be paid as a daily rate (based on the number of days worked);
• Payments will be based on the Certificate of Payments that will be submitted on a monthly basis;
• Time Sheet will be attached and verified by the direct supervisor; and
• Final tranche upon performance evaluation from the direct supervisor.

Consultant shall quote an all-inclusive Daily Fee for the contract period. The term “all-inclusive” implies that all costs (professional fees, communications, consumables, etc.) that could be incurred by the IC in completing the assignment are already factored into the daily fee submitted in the proposal. If applicable, travel or daily allowance cost (if any work is to be done outside the IC’s duty station) should be identified separately. Payments shall be done on a monthly basis based on actual days worked, upon verification of completion of deliverables and approval by the IC’s supervisor of a Time Sheet indicating the days worked in the period.

 In general, UNDP shall not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources

In the event of unforeseeable travel not anticipated in this TOR, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and the Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed.

Travel costs shall be reimbursed at actual but not exceeding the quotation from UNDP approved travel agent.  The provided living allowance will not be exceeding UNDP DSA rates. Repatriation travel cost from home to duty station in Bangkok and return shall not be covered by UNDP.

Criteria for Selection of The Best Offer 

Only those applications which are responsive and compliant will be evaluated.  Offers will be evaluated according to the Combined Scoring method – where the educational background and experience on similar assignments will be weighted at 70% and the price proposal will weigh as 30% of the total scoring.

 Technical Criteria for Evaluation 70 Point

•          Criteria 1 Seven year of experience in PSCM Max 30 points

•          Criteria 2 Experience in public health procurement Max 15 Points

•          Criteria 3 experience in UNDP procurement Max 15 points

•          Criteria 4 Master’s degree in logistics or equivalent Max 10 points

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% of the total technical points would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Required Documents 

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications. Please group them into one (1) single PDF document as the application only allows to upload maximum one document

a) Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided in Annex III.;

b) Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references;

c) Brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment, and a methodology, if applicable, on how they will approach and complete the assignment. A methodology is recommended for intellectual services, but may be omitted for support services [Note: this is optional for support services];

d) Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs, as per template provided.  If an Offeror is employed by an organization/company/institution, and he/she expects his/her employer to charge a management fee in the process of releasing him/her to UNDP under Reimbursable Loan Agreement (RLA), the Offeror must indicate at this point, and ensure that all such costs are duly incorporated in the financial proposal submitted to UNDP.

Incomplete proposals may not be considered.

Relevant Documents

It is recommended that the PSM consultant studies the work of UNDP in Asia and the Pacific particularly the work of HIV, Health and Development Team by visiting the UNDP Asia and the Pacific Website at http://www.asia-pacific.undp.org/content/rbap/en/home.html

Annexes

Annex I - TOR_ PSM Consultant : http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_file.cfm?doc_id=107683

Annex II- General Condition of Contract: http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_file.cfm?doc_id=107685

Annex III - Financial proposal and Offeror's Letter To UNDP Confirming Interest and Avail for IC: http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_file.cfm?doc_id=107684

All documents can be downloaded at : http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=37454