Consultant (Chemist dangerous substances)

Result of Service All outputs should meet the satisfaction of the officer in charge of the global OPIOIDS Project-related activities according to the following indicators:

• Quality of the materials developed and documents produced
• Technical competence
• Timeliness of completion of assigned tasks

Payments will be made upon satisfactory completion and/or submission of outputs/deliverables. Payments will be made upon completion of time sheet and progress report signed by the reporting officer, on monthly basis.

Below the complete deliverable outputs to be accomplished by date, as per point 3:

1. 2 working days, 1 January 2022 2. 4 working days, 28 February 2022 3. 4 working days, 31 March 2022 4 .4 working days, 30 April 2022 5. 4 working days, 31 May 2022 6. 4 working days, 30 June 2022

Work Location Home-based

Expected duration 22 working days (2/4days per month)

Duties and Responsibilities INCB has a long history of monitoring both scheduled and unscheduled drug-related substances, with a mandate assuring member states’ use of such substances is limited to medical, scientific and, in the case of precursors, industrial purposes.

INCB has repeatedly warned the international community of the growing threat of non-scheduled new psychoactive substances (NPS) in its annual reports and recommended that Governments take concrete steps to monitor the emergence of NPS.

In 2019, INCB expanded and consolidated operational activities (ION, OPIOIDS, Public-Private Partnerships) under its Global Rapid Interdiction of Dangerous Substances (GRIDS) Programme to measurably reduce trafficking in potentially dangerous substances and related equipment not under international control, and thus limit their supply and impact on the public. The global programme focuses on dangerous substances not yet under international control, in particular non-medical synthetic opioids (particularly fentanyl analogues), new psychoactive substances (NPS) and related chemicals.

To achieve its objective, the GRIDS Programme capitalizes on the proven expertise and experience of INCB as the body mandated internationally to monitor and facilitate compliance with the international drug control conventions and its unique convening power at the international level to facilitate the voluntary exchange of intelligence globally on non-scheduled substances. More information on the INCB and the GRIDS Programme can be found online at: https://www.incb.org/incb/en/grids.html.

Under the supervision of the officer in charge of global OPIOIDS Project-related activities and the overall supervision of the Chief of the Section, the consultant will perform the following specific tasks:

a) Review and provide a monthly update of substances relevant to the INCB list of fentanyl-related substances with no known legitimate medical or industrial uses and its list of emerging synthetic non-fentanyl opioids, following INCB’s preferred format (i.e., compiling chemical information (e.g., nomenclatures, various identification codes (e.g., CAS, HS, UN, SMILES, InChI)), physical information and structures, control information and legitimate uses, patents and related information) from reliable sources; b) Review, update and classify new psychoactive substances (NPS) under Project ION, OPIOIDS and the IONICS platform ensuring relevant accurate chemical information following the preferred format; c) Draft chemical monographs or instructional documents summarizing operationally relevant information for dangerous substances, as requested; d) Draft special notices or alerts involving dangerous substances for use by frontline officers, GRIDS programme (e.g., ION/OPIOIDS/IONICS) focal points, private-sector partners and Precursors global focal points, as requested; e) Provide technical support and advice for monitoring (e.g., e-commerce, social media, use groups) and communications (e.g., notifications applications) activities related to dangerous substances, as requested; f) Liaise on an on-going basis with GRIDS and Precursors staff, national, international focal points and private sector partners to maintain the latest operational information related to dangerous substances; g) Provide technical assistance in preparing written materials, expert group participation and/ or presentations on new psychoactive substances; and; h) Provide any other technical advice and make any other suggestions, as required.

Qualifications/special skills Academic Qualifications: An advanced university degree (Master’s degree or greater) in chemistry, pharmacy or related field, is required. A first level university degree in similar fields in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience: A minimum of 7 years of experience in national or international drug, precursors or related chemical control, clandestine laboratory investigations, national forensic (illicit drugs or new psychoactive substances) laboratory work, or related field, is required. Experience working in a field-based environment desirable.

Language: English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this position, fluency in English, with excellent drafting skills, is required. Knowledge of another United Nations official language is an advantage.

Other special skills or knowledge required/desired: Proficiency in Microsoft Office/ 365 (i.e., Word, PowerPoint, Teams, Excel, Explorer/Edge, Outlook, etc.) is required. Experience with Microsoft Power BI and/ or Power Apps desirable. Familiarity with INCB’s role in international drug control is desirable. Member of a relevant law, regulatory or professional forensic chemist group is desirable. Access to relevant chemical literature, patent information and databases is desirable.

No Fee THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.