The United Nations Office Space Planning Unit (OSPU) has a 10-year contract with Wood and Shine to provide various types of loose and systems furniture for the United Nations Headquarters in New York. As a Calling Officer, your responsibilities include placing orders to Wood and Shine within the monetary limits set forth by OSPU.

In the absence of a Receipt and Inspection officer, you have been asked by the vendor to conduct an inspection of goods being delivered.

Considering what you already have learned about the duties of the Calling Officer, do you think it would be appropriate for the Calling Officer to conduct the inspection of the goods?

According to the Procurement Manual (para. 3.6.1) Calling Officer can receive a delegation of procurement authority to put Purchase Order under UN Systems contracts. To ensure segregation of duties para. 3.6.1.j the Procurement Manual forbids Calling Officers under any circumstances to conduct Receipt and Inspection of goods or services related to a Purchase Order for which he/she has been directly responsible. Therefore, in the example above, the Calling Officer should refuse to perform the requested inspection and either arrange for a colleague with the appropriate authority to conduct the receipt or to request the vendor to deliver the goods another time.