Pharmacy Procurement Specialist

The African Medical Centre of Excellence (AMCE) Abuja is a 500-bed specialty hospital offering world-class comprehensive diagnostics and treatment in oncology, cardiovascular, and haematological care, and general medical and surgical services, along with top notch research and education. The AMCE will provide exceptional care to people on the African continent, regardless of their financial means. Developed by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in clinical partnership with King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust., AMCE Abuja is the first of five centres planned for development in Africa.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Pharmacy Procurement Specialist

Location: Abuja

Job role

• The Pharmacy Procurement Specialist will be responsible for planning, coordinating, and managing the procurement of medicines and pharmaceutical supplies at AMCE, ensuring their timely availability, quality, safety, cost-effectiveness, and compliance with applicable regulatory standards.
• The role holder will also oversee pharmacovigilance activities, including adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting, medication safety surveillance, and the identification and mitigation of medication-related risks.
• The role will ensure the effective integration of pharmacovigilance insights into procurement processes, supplier evaluation, pharmaceutical product selection, and formulary management, thereby promoting informed decision-making, strengthening medication safety, and supporting the delivery of safe, effective, and uninterrupted patient care.

Key Accountabilities/Responsibilities
Pharmaceutical Procurement Planning and Sourcing:

• Develop and execute medicines and pharmaceutical supply procurement plans based on clinical demand, consumption trends, approved budgets and formulary requirements.
• Coordinate purchase requisitions, quotations, product comparisons, purchase orders and order tracking in line with AMCE procurement procedures and delegated approval limits.
• Work with clinical teams and pharmacy leadership to forecast requirements, establish reorder priorities and prevent disruptions in medicine availability.
• Evaluate product specifications, registration status, quality, therapeutic suitability, pricing, total cost and delivery capability before recommending procurement decisions.
• Coordinate sourcing of critical, specialised and high-risk medicines, identifying suitable approved alternatives where supply risks arise.

Supplier Evaluation, Contract and Cost Management:

• Support supplier prequalification, due diligence, performance reviews and evaluation of pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors and vendors.
• Monitor supplier quality, delivery reliability, lead times, pricing, product authenticity and responsiveness to product complaints or recalls.
• Identify cost optimisation opportunities through competitive sourcing, demand consolidation, prudent purchasing and reduction of waste without compromising medication safety.
• Maintain accurate procurement documentation, supplier performance records and price comparisons to support transparent and auditable decisions.

Pharmaceutical Inventory and Supply Continuity:

• Collaborate with pharmacy stores and inventory teams to monitor stock levels, minimum/maximum thresholds, consumption, expiry exposure and stock-out risks.
• Coordinate timely receipt and verification of medicines against purchase orders, including quantity, batch, expiry, product integrity and required storage conditions.
• Support cold-chain controls, traceability, appropriate storage, quarantines, returns and the safe handling of recalled, defective or expired medicines.
• Investigate supply discrepancies and recurring stock issues and implement corrective actions with relevant stakeholders.

Pharmacovigilance, ADR Reporting and Medication Safety:

• Continue to coordinate the identification, documentation, assessment, follow-up and timely submission of suspected ADRs in accordance with AMCE procedures and applicable NAFDAC requirements.
• Maintain accurate, complete and confidential pharmacovigilance records and coordinate escalation of serious or urgent medication safety concerns.
• Monitor medication safety alerts, adverse event patterns, quality defects, product recalls and other emerging safety signals, and communicate relevant findings promptly.
• Collaborate with clinical, nursing, quality and pharmacy teams on medication incident investigations, root-cause assessments and appropriate risk minimisation measures.
• Provide pharmacovigilance awareness and guidance to relevant staff, encouraging consistent identification and reporting of suspected ADRs.

Integration of Drug Safety into Procurement and Formulary Decisions:

• Use ADR trends, safety alerts, recall history, product quality complaints and clinical feedback to inform product selection and supplier evaluations.
• Provide evidence-based medication safety input into formulary reviews and Pharmacy & Therapeutics Committee discussions, within approved governance arrangements.
• Recommend procurement holds, supplier escalations, product substitutions or additional risk controls where substantiated safety concerns are identified, subject to required approvals.
• Monitor safety performance for newly procured, high-alert or high-risk medicines and follow through on agreed mitigation actions.

Regulatory Compliance, Quality Assurance and Stakeholder Engagement:

• Verify relevant medicine registration, supplier authorisation and procurement documentation requirements and escalate identified compliance gaps.
• Ensure procurement and pharmacovigilance practices align with AMCE policies, applicable Nigerian regulatory requirements and approved professional standards.
• Participate in procurement and medication safety audits, maintain traceable records and coordinate closure of identified corrective actions.
• Develop and review applicable procurement–safety procedures, reporting workflows and cross-functional escalation protocols.
• Prepare periodic reports on procurement performance, supply risks, ADR reporting, supplier quality and actions taken, for pharmacy leadership and relevant committees.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Pharmacy (B.Pharm) or Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD), with valid professional registration and a current licence to practise as a pharmacist in Nigeria.
• Demonstrable knowledge of hospital pharmacy procurement, pharmaceutical supply chain management, inventory control, and related pharmacy operations.
• Demonstrable knowledge of pharmacovigilance principles, adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting, medication safety surveillance, and pharmaceutical risk management.
• Working knowledge of NAFDAC regulatory requirements, pharmaceutical quality assurance standards, supplier evaluation, procurement procedures, and relevant governance frameworks.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications, particularly Excel, and the use of pharmaceutical procurement, inventory management, pharmacy information, and electronic ADR reporting systems.
• Strong analytical, organisational, planning, negotiation, supplier relationship management, and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication, documentation, report-writing, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to engage effectively with multidisciplinary teams and internal and external stakeholders.
• Ability to exercise sound clinical and commercial judgement in pharmaceutical sourcing, product evaluation, procurement decisions, and medication safety management.
• High standards of professional integrity, confidentiality, attention to detail, and adherence to ethical procurement practices and regulatory requirements.