Outcome TUR_O_5

Ind.5 Product- Services- Processes

All projects have achieved their targets despite challenges in financial management caused by very high inflation and depreciation of the Turkish currency against the USD. Mitigation measures were put in place and discussions are ongoing with donors to cover financial shortages caused by the economic situation. The CO continued to exercise close monitoring of the entire programmatic portfolio under the SN results framework and under different projects in line with Project documents. Project outputs are on track or have been surpassed. Monitoring and reporting capacities of staff were strengthened in different ways (attendance of 4 staff at regional training and consequently them acting as trainers and coaches to other staff on RBM, refreshers for all staff, debriefing on the annual reporting process, etc). Türkiye Country Office has continued making use of common procurement, human resources (partially) and facility services including Common Premises in the reporting year. The CO also continued to make use of previously established LTAs. Additionally, 8 staff have attended and made use of the BOS common soft skills training on stress management, negotiation, and presentation skills during 2022.

Ind.5 Product- Services- Processes

The UN Women Türkiye Office followed the existing Standard Operation Procedures (SoPs) to carry out its daily operations. In the latter part of the year, the office finalized an extra flow diagram for already-existing SoPs. In order to guarantee that every employee has the abilities and information required to successfully manage the new procedures, staff engaged in regular operations meetings and training on the Quantum modules. Through these training sessions, staff members were able to gain a deeper understanding of the new workflows and how they relate to the various modules within the Quantum system. Additionally, staff members had a safe space to ask questions and voice their concerns, which could then be addressed and resolved in a timely manner, through these meetings. On the finance side, the office changed the payment process and adapted to the renewed policy and Quantum. The office checked all POs that have been transferred to Quantum and reorganized incorrectly transferred ones respectively in terms of Procurement operations in the first half of the year. Since there was no improvement regarding the second badge PO transfers, the CO took certain actions about the unsuccessfully transferred POs by creating new POs instead. In addition, the office activate Rapid Response Procurement (RRPP) for 180 days after the two massive earthquakes that Türkiye faced to respond to the needs promptly. As a result of all these efforts, payments are made on time and smoothly in compliance with the policy. Additionally, incorrect purchase order amounts have been corrected, reaching the accurate figures. Wrong or double payments have been prevented, ensuring reconciliation. With the activation of the RRPP, effective and immediate access to the affected region has been achieved. Partially waiving procedures under the RRPP has provided operational ease and has become an assisting factor in supporting the region most effectively. Project teams and operation colleagues had increased dialogue on event management issues fostering further experience sharing and peer learning in the second half of the year as result of the changes introduced in the procurement of event management services based on lessons learnt in the first half of the year. It was decided that the Call-off Order process for the event management services needs to be conducted with the collaboration of the operations and the programme unit together. The operations team constantly supported the procurement case managers in the programme unit and provided both general and on-the-job trainings. Additionally, procurement SoPs have started to be updated regarding the changed processes and procurement tracking tool have started to be developed for better follow-up. Besides, the onboarding of the second procurement assistant to the team has been completed per the increasing workload and orientation and training has been conducted. With the latest addition to the team, the year-end closure was completed smoothly and successfully with full support to the programme unit. Additionally, the office renewed related SoP of procurement process of Event Management since the relevant LTAs of travel and event management companies have changed and it was decided to have a secondary bidding process. The travel process in UN Women Türkiye CO has been diligently implemented to minimize irregularities by adhering to the Duty Travel Policy in 2023. The Operations Team ensured strict compliance with the travel policy and utilized UNAll and Quantum to facilitate a robust travel tracking system, effectively allocating the responsibilities, and mitigating the risks. Office asset recording and tracking received significant attention, covering IT equipment and vehicles. End of the year 2023, asset focal point accurately recorded and updated assets, including computers, mobile phones, monitors, printers, consumables, stationery, and related equipment in the UN Women Türkiye Office and reported to the HQ by the year-end Asset physical verification exercise. There has been daily monitoring of office vehicle usage, detailed records, and adherence to maintenance schedules, and it ensured effective control. In line with this, comprehensive asset records are maintained in the ERP system, which facilitates seamless tracking during the purchase order processes. By renewing the SOPs, Programme colleagues were able to see how the process progressed at any time without the need for support, thus enabling more effective management of the process. Additionally, documenting how the process operates through the updating of SOPs aided in the standardization of the process. The increased importance of asset recording and tracking ensured that all assets in the UN Women entity were promptly tracked in the manner requested by HQ, facilitating smooth asset verification.

Ind.5 Product- Services- Processes

During the year 2024, on the programmatic side CO has monitored its progress against UN SC D F, SN and project’s targets against set ind icators while incorporating the risk management’ lessons learn ed and good practices aspects. On the operational side, CO has fully supported the implementation of activities in the context of BOS and derived OMT work plan with an emphasis on full achievement of gender re sponsive actions as assigned . In addition , CO has expanded its pool of W omen Owned B usinesses and provided face to face and online support/training as needed . As for SOPS, they were kept updated to maintain efficiency and effectiveness in CO operations . To maintain a higher eff i ciency in business processes, CO has conducted internal thematic trainings on Quantum a nd its increased capabilities to maximize gains at the CO level.