Regional Procurement & Operations Manager , Regional Office at International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) – July 2025

MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Under the overall supervision of the Regional Head of Finance and Administration, ESARO (direct line manager) and the Senior Procurement Officer, HQ (matrix manager), the incumbent will support the implementation of IUCN’s global procurement policy throughout the Eastern and Southern Africa Region and acts as the procurement & operations focal point in the region.

SPECIFIC DUTIES:

PROCUREMENT;

• Act as procurement focal point for ESARO. Provide advice and training as necessary and liaise with Senior Procurement Officer at HQ regarding changes and improvements in procurement procedures, templates and tools.
• Act as Super-User for IUCN’s e-Tendering Portal.
• Conduct overall needs assessment and help establish annual procurement plans for the entire region and for individual projects as required by the project agreements. Identify logistical bottlenecks and propose the ways to fill in the gaps. Develop a strategy to optimize purchasing power.
• Set up a procurement monitoring system to follow up the implementation of the procurement plan. Participate in regular portfolio review meetings with programme and project officers.
• Conduct the process of selection of preferred vendors in all the countries on specific services and procurements such as travel agencies, hotels, office supplies, etc…
• Collect information and provide explanations to the enquiries from the annual compliance review of procurements conducted by the Headquarters.
• When necessary, liaise with donors to resolve differences that occur between the donors’ procurement policies and IUCN’s.
• Assist the Senior Procurement Officer at HQ in the review and assessment of Single Tender Requests.
• For projects having dedicated Procurement Officers, the Senior Procurement Officer conduct quality control of all the procurement process and will help as necessary and final approval.
• For the other projects and costs centers:
• Manage the entire process for all Requests for Proposals, their evaluation, negotiation and contracting in full compliance with IUCN, and donors’ rules and regulations,
• Procure goods and services above a value of 25.000 CHF on behalf of projects and cost centres in the region:
• Identify service providers; evaluate information regarding legal status and performance (quality, prices, delivery performance) of existing and prospective suppliers.
• Ensure that all required approvals are obtained internally (Country office, Regional Office, Headquarters) as per delegation of authorities and IUCN procurement procedures and externally with the donor as per the relevant conditions in the project agreement.
• Assist administrative/programme/project officers in procurements of lower value as deemed necessary. Review procurement documents and contracts and ensure quality control.
• For the Regional Office-related procurements:
• Prepare all contracts and purchase orders, and all required documents and processes for the tax exemption and customs clearance.
• Oversee adherence to contractual agreements, recommend amendments and extensions of contracts, and advise concerned parties on contractual rights and obligations.
• Provide guidance to new staff. May supervise junior staff.
• Perform such other duties as may be assigned.

OPERATIONS;

• Provide technical support, oversight, and capacity building to administration staff in country offices to promote consistency and efficiency.
• Ensure consistent application of policies and systems across the region.
• Facilitate onboarding of new country operations teams, especially during project start-up or scaling phases.
• Ensure operations adhere to internal controls, IUCN standards, and donor compliance frameworks.
• Identify, manage, and mitigate operational risks, including security, asset loss, and procurement irregularities.
• Monitor operations activities across ESARO country offices to ensure alignment with internal controls and donor requirements.
• Coordinate with auditors and support internal and external reviews of operational functions.
• Coordinate training and knowledge sharing on Procurement, operations, admin, IT & security procedures, and tools.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date records on contracts, assets, and procurement.
• Provide operational data and analysis for donor reports, regional reviews, and strategic evaluations.
• Act as a key liaison with HR, IT, Finance, and Procurement units to streamline operations.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY;

• Ensure IT systems across country offices are aligned with organizational standards and support operational needs.
• Ensure coordination between IT, procurement, and admin for technology planning, sourcing, and budgeting.
• Ensure adherence to global IT policies, data protection protocols, cybersecurity standards, and donor requirements in all offices.
• Support countries in developing and maintaining IT disaster recovery and business continuity plans.
• Oversee cross-country or bulk IT procurements (e.g. laptops, networking equipment, software licenses).
• Champion the use of technology to enhance operational efficiency (e.g., digitizing asset management, cloud adoption, mobile tools for field operations).

SAFETY & SECURITY;

• Oversee security planning and management in the region and ensure that all offices have developed standard operating procedures (SOPs), and contingency preparedness plans to support business continuity.
• Oversee the implementation of regional security protocols and incident reporting.
• Ensure SOPs and contingency plans are updated periodically.
• Coordinate responses with Country Security focal point persons during emergencies, relocations, or civil unrest situations.
• Ensure all IUCN offices maintain insurance policies to protect themselves from all risks, including office, vehicle, and assets coverage.

POSITION REQUIREMENTS:

Education;

• Master’s degree in Business Administration, Project Management or other related fields from an accredited academic institution.

Work Experience;

• A minimum of 10 years’ relevant professional experience in the field of procurement.
• A minimum of 5 years at senior level position in procurement and contract management with programmes or projects funded by major multilateral and bilateral donors, such as European Union, World Bank and other UN Agencies, USAID, is mandatory.
• Experience in supervising local procurement and logistics.
• Experience in processing tax exemptions and customs formalities.
• Familiarity with the context and local laws and regulations in Eastern and Southern.
• Demonstrated track record of achieving value for money.