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Pre-Award Negotiations

Effective Date

Dec 07, 2016

Summary of Changes

Pre-award negotiation is the process in which the business unit discusses certain aspects of the bid with the bidder who has been recommended for the award of the contract, with the aim of understanding the rights and obligations of both parties and to achieve a mutually beneficial agreement. Negotiation is not a mandatory step in a procurement process. It shall be undertaken on an exceptional basis, and shall be only initiated by UNDP subsequent to review of the procurement process by the relevant procurement authority and in accordance with this policy.

The policy outlines the two types of negotiations:

  • Substantive Negotiations: Should be fully justifiable, as they may significantly affect the scope of the requirements, terms and/or price beyond UNDP's right to vary the quantity up to 25 percent.
  • Non-Substantive Negotiations: Do not significantly affect the scope of the requirements, terms and/or price, and are within the right of UNDP to vary the quantity by 25 percent.

Price alone, under normal circumstances, should not be negotiated (especially in cases of open competition, which is designed to reflect true value for money). An exception can be made in a situation where the price quoted by the recommended offeror is deemed to be higher than market rates. Negotiation of price in Direct Contracting – When UNDP is evaluating only one offer, the price can and should be negotiated whenever necessary.

Purchase Orders (Obligations, Maintenance and Closure)

Effective Date

Nov 30, 2016

Summary of Changes

For greater efficiency and better financial tracking, offices are now able to set up multi-year POs for projects that have future year resources and budgets. This allows UNDP to better track deliverables of a supplier for a given procurement action through a single PO reference. When raising multi-year PO lines in Atlas, offices must ensure that corresponding multi-year budget and resources are available. For projects where Annual Spending Limits (ASLs) are limited to one year, multi-year PO lines should not be used.

Previously, goods or services, which are expected to be received over more than one financial period, a separate PO had to be raised for each of the respective financial periods, and offices were requested to close POs annually. Multi-year contracts for projects were also maintained outside Atlas. Such requirements are no longer relevant. For questions on this process, please contact Helen Hall at helen.hall@undp.org, the Chief of Account, Office of Financial Resources Management, Bureau for Management Services.

Quantum Financial Closure Instructions

Effective Date

Nov 29, 2016

Summary of Changes

We have reflected the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) closure process and linked the technical year-end closing guidance.

Commercial Air Travel Safety Guidelines

Effective Date

Sep 29, 2016

Summary of Changes
The Air Travel Risk Management Guidelines have been revised to reflect a new UN Security Management System Air Travel Policy. Theseguidelines are applicable to all UNDP Personnel on official travel via Commercial Air (Transport) Operators, UN Chartered Flights and Donated Flights. To facilitate booking of flights, a Global Booking List of Airlines Pre-approved for Travel by UNDP Personnel has been made available on the UNDP Intranet via the following link. For Airlines which are not pre-approved (and therefore not included in the UNDP Global Booking List), the guidelines provide for an evidence-based risk assessment methodology, enabling informed decision making by the UNDP Managers with Signature Authority before use of these airlines.

Procurement Authority and Increased Delegated Procurement Authority

Effective Date

Sep 22, 2016

Summary of Changes

The following provisions, which previously required Fast Track activation request are no-longer necessary (i.e. integrated into the main policies).

a) The authority to grant the increase in Delegated Procurement Authority was devolved to Regional Chief Procurement Officers (RCPOs) in consultation with respective Regional Bureau Director for clearance. The respective RACP Chairpersons then will be responsible for obtaining technical inputs from relevant offices in assessing a request for increased delegation.

b) Recognizing the reduction of risks through e-Tendering, the standard delegated procurement authority of Resident Representative or head of a business unit in an office that systematically uses the e-Tendering has been raised from US$ 150,000 to US $200,000, based on the confirmation by the ACP Chairperson or respective Regional ACP Chairpersons.

Procurement Methods

Effective Date

Sep 22, 2016

Summary of Changes
a) Micro-purchasing
Country offices may request increasing the micro-purchasing threshold from US$ 5,000 to US$ 10,000 as part of their request for increase in delegated procurement authority. Please see Procurement Methods .

b) Request for Quotation (RFQ)
Offices are now authorized to issue RFQs in line with the following thresholds:
• For offices with micro-purchasing threshold of USD 5,000, the RFQ limit is US$ 5,000 ¬ US$ 149,999.
• For offices with micro-purchasing threshold of USD 10,000, the RFQ limit is US$ 10,000 ¬ US$ 149,999.

Temporary Appointment

Effective Date

Aug 04, 2016

Summary of Changes
The following provision, which previously required Fast Track activation request are no-longer necessary (i.e. integrated into the main policies).

The Regional Bureau Directors are authorized to grant waiver of competitive recruitment for up to 10 (ten) Temporary Appointment (TA) positions per annum, per country office in accordance with the following provisions:
(a) The process must ensure that the person selected is the best-qualified candidate to perform the job functions in a fully satisfactory manner;
(b) References must be checked prior to contracting/appointment;
(c) Contracting/appointing of close family relatives and other conflict of interest matters must be verified prior to contracting/appointment;
(d) The individuals must be medically cleared an enrolled in the applicable medical and life insurance policy prior to contracting/appointment;
(e) The appointment letter/contracts issued must be in compliance with the standard terms and conditions;
(f) The individuals must be informed of the contract terms and standards of conduct as set out in the POPP

Procurement Oversight and Procurement Review Committees

Effective Date

Jul 26, 2016

Summary of Changes

The requirement for Contracts, Assets and Procurement (CAP) Committee review was replaced with Direct Review by the CAP Chairperson for procurement actions valued between US$ 50,000 and US$ 150,000 (and US$ 75,000 for direct contracting). The CAP Chairperson may consult or request assistance from the Chairperson of the Regional Advisory Committee for Procurement (RACP) in reviewing any procurement action. If necessary, the CAP Chairperson, in consultation with the Head of Office, may escalate the case to the RACP Chairperson for his or her Direct Review. A full CAP Committee review is required only in those Country Offices that are granted an Increased Delegation of Procurement Authority (DPA) to review procurement actions valued between US$ 150,000 and the Increased DPA for competitive processes (and between US$ 75,000 and up to 50 percent of the Increased DPA for direct contracting). The quorum for a Committee was reduced from three members to two members, in addition to the Chairperson and/or Secretary.

Internship

Effective Date

Apr 08, 2016

Summary of Changes

This enabling Policy provides expanded eligibility by including any student enrolled in the last year of a bachelors' degree and one year after graduation from a master's degree or equivalent studies. It also removes the obligation that interns secure life insurance, as well as the ban on employment following the internship while clarifying that interns may not apply to positions during their internships. ​

UN Agency Services

Effective Date

Apr 05, 2016

Summary of Changes

The Policy provides measures to address UN clients' needs to obtain service provision at the Regional Hub and Global Shared Service Center levels to collaborate with, and support for Country Offices. This Policy also clarifies institutional arrangements for corporate Framework Agreements at Headquarters level, and Service Level Agreements for technical details to avoid duplication of efforts and arrangements. ​

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