Lead Biomedical Engineer

Please note that this VA is also open to Nationals of Cameroon, a Cameroon Citizen selected will be contracted under a Local Individual Contractor Agreement at LICA-11 (ICS-11) level. The Cameroon Citizen who fulfils the requirements stated in this job are strongly encouraged to apply.

The UNOPS office in Cameroon opened in December 2019, and has several active projects, whose nature varies from construction, technical studies in different sectors, WASH activities, human resources management for other entities, and procurement including in the medical field (COVID-19).

The office is constantly working to expand its activities in order to support its partners in the implementation of their development programs and projects.

The Ministry of Health (MoH) has requested UNOPS support for several projects:

Purchase and installation of medical equipment including three (3) oxygen plants and a LINAC (medical linear accelerator).

Based in Kinshasa, the UNOPS Multi country Office (CDMCO) in Central Africa covers eleven countries including Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Angola, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Comoros, Gabon, Rwanda, Burundi, and Madagascar. The office has developed strong working relations with the international partners, UN agencies including UN Missions and Governments across Central Africa over the years. It provides technical support and capacity building in strategic development areas including infrastructure construction and rehabilitation and development across health, education, public works, governance/public administration sectors; procurement, project management, amongst others.

CDMCO also implements more and more projects of procurement and distribution of various equipment and therefore needs Logistics skills to properly implement and monitor these projects. 

 
 

The main objective is to support the implementation (and development) of the projects by providing all technical expertise for the purchase of the equipment (from site assessment to installation of the equipment and staff training if required), working closely with the Ministry of Health and UNOPS team.

The specific tasks and duties s/he will be responsible includes:

• Communicate with the Ministry of Health in order to know their requirements well and define the best purchase plan in collaboration with the procurement department.

• For this, he/she will need to review, advise on and help consolidate the equipment lists, make recommendations to Project Manager and MoH on specifications and other substantive/technical elements required to effectively develop, plan, launch and implement these projects.

• Advise Project Manager & MoH on requirements based on beneficiary needs, as well as national and international certification requirements and standards for equipment, associated services and works, including the relevant best practices.

• Launch a market analysis in collaboration with the procurement department & UNOPS team on the ground when necessary.

• Help prepare the tender documents of the medical equipment, supplies, and preparatory works  ensuring compliance with UNOPS procurement standards and policies.

• Support in the installation of the equipment with the supplier’s technicians if required.

• Prepare the training (installation, usage, maintenance) with the supplier’s technicians (when provided) for the Ministry of Health staff.

Performance and monitor control

• Participate in the Technical Evaluation of bids/ tenders / proposals received from prospective suppliers 

• Provide inputs and advice to the procurement team concerning the technical compliance (or non compliance) of equipment proposed by suppliers.

• Escalate risks and Issues to the Project Manager in a timely fashion.

• Assist in the final acceptance and handover of the commissioned equipment in coordination with the project team and MoH.

• Provide timely inputs to the Project team.

In general, the Lead Biomedical Engineer is expected to:

• Participate in meetings and work closely with other respective medical experts, partners, engineers & colleagues to conduct exact analyses, assessments in order to offer the best options.

• Write reports as required and meet their deadlines.

1. Education

• Advanced level university degree (Master's Degree or equivalent) or PhD. in Biomedical Engineering or related field is required.

• First level university degree (Bachelor’s degree or equivalent) in Biomedical Engineering or related field  in combination with two (2) additional years of relevant professional experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

2. Work Experience

• Minimum of seven (7) years experience in the biomedical engineering field is required.

• Experience in the maintenance and the acquisition of health biomedical equipment is required.

• Experience in purchasing & installation of oxygen plants &/or LINAC is an asset.

• Experience in Covid-19 response would be an advantage.

• Experience of successfully working with a variety of health sector stakeholders, particularly governments and development partners is an asset.

3. Professional Certification

• Membership with a recognised institution as a registered Medical Doctor or Biomedical Engineer is an asset. 

• Experience with organisations such as the Global Fund for Aids and Malaria or similar (with focus on AIDS/HIV specific activities) is an asset.

4. Language Requirements

• Fluency in English is required.

• Fluency in French is required.

1. Contract type: International Individual Contractor Agreement (IICA)
2. Contract level: I-ICA3 (ICS 11)
3. Contract duration: on going subject to organizational requirements and satisfactory performance.  


For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link:
https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx 

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (around 4 hours) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS.
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  
• Duty Station Yaounde is a family Duty Station
• CANDIDATES WITH NO UN OR UNOPS EXPERIENCE ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO APPLY
• Please note that this VA is also open to National of Cameroon, a Cameroon Citizen selected will be contracted under a Local Individual Contractor Agreement (LICA11)

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns.
Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful
implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects
around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve
peace and sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management,
financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging
environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused
professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 5,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,400 personnel recruited on
behalf of our partners, spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a range of
nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced and diverse labour force — a
strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs. We
continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that
encourage the recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and
personal demands.