As a part of the long term improvement plan and procurement reform embarked on in the Procurement and Logistics Division in 1999, UNRWA retained the services of two consultants to review the procurement and construction functions at UNRWA, sponsored by Department for International Development (DFID), UK.  

Based on the consultants’ reports, the Procurement and Logistics Division has been able to identify several weaknesses in processes which contributed to rising costs and complaints from various stakeholders. The recommendations were an opportunity for improvement and alignment of the Agency’s procurement processes with internationally-defined standards of best procurement practices. 

Analyzing the recommendations of the consultants, UNRWA has implemented the following improvements:

1.      Mapped our procurement and logistics processes.

2.      Hear the people, hear the process: An internal audit is being conducted by UNRWA to identify existing and potential problems and get comments and concerns from key internal customers.

3.       Explored causes of the identified problems.

4.       Identified and implemented solutions.

5.  Compared existing with required competencies and review the organizational structure of the Procurement and Logistics Division.

6.       Identified training needs.

As a result of all these improvements, we have been awarded The Certificate for Achieving the Standard of Excellence in Purchasing Policies and Procedures by the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) in UK. This is an independent International Quality Assurance Certification of UNRWA's Procurement and Logistics processes.

In order to help our staff adopt the changes and overcome the challenges posed by the new procedures, we have started a dual track integrated training program consisting of: 

a)       The CIPS Graduate Diploma Program - An 18 month program for 31 procurement staff

b)       The Long Term Training Project partly funded by DFID, UK - directed towards development of Area Staff  including training on general procurement issues and other specific topics  

With the help of these programs, we expect our staff to keep with the up to date procurement practices and meet  continuous demands for quality.

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