Background

The global process

At the Rio+20 International Conference on Sustainable Development, member states gave mandate to the Open Working Group (OWG) of countries to make recommendations on a set of Sustainable Development Goals. From March 2013 to February 2014, the OWG held eight sessions, where it discussed all themes relevant to sustainable development, including means of implementation. The OWG has defined means of implementation as an integral component in achieving sustainable development, including trade, financing for sustainable development, capacity building, and development and transfer of environmentally sound technologies.
 
The Rio+20 Declaration also mandated the creation of an Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing. The 30 experts of the Committee are currently working on three work streams: financial needs, financial resources and institutional framework and policy coherence
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With the submission of the reports of the OWG and of the Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing, in September 2014, the full intergovernmental negotiation process on a new development framework and set of goals will be launched under the aegis of the General Assembly. This process will culminate with the Summit of the Heads of States and Governments (HoSG) in September 2015. 
 
The regional process

One of the often-cited shortcomings of the MDG framework was the formulation and implementation of MDG 8. Goal 8 aimed to ‘Develop a Global Partnership for Development’. At the time of the millennium declaration, the Goal was crafted as a driver for achieving the other seven MDGs and was meant to facilitate with correcting historic inequities and structural economic asymmetries across countries and regions. It aimed to establish more conducive conditions for international development cooperation, ensure adequate resources to support development, create new development opportunities for countries and people, and help develop the capacities and skills needed to deliver on the first seven MDGs. Toward these ends, it included measures concerned with official development assistance (ODA), trade, external debt, and access to essential medicines and technology. Several targets and indicators were established and designed to support Goal 8.
Despite high expectations, the ESCAP/UNDP/ADB Asia-Pacific MDG Report ‘Asia-Pacific Aspirations: Perspectives for the Post-2015 Development Agenda’ finds that MDG 8 suffers from several limitations: it is weakly formulated, hard to track and only partially monitored. In the Asia-Pacific region, the goal has fallen short of expectations and has not addressed structural constraints to development transformation. A new goal (SDG) on global partnership for development needs to learn from the lessons stemming from Goal 8. To address the needs of a much more complex development agenda - which will be articulated by the SDGs - countries in Asia and the Pacific need a stronger and more effective global partnership, entailing a package of commitments able to address the most salient development concerns of today.
Asia and the Pacific has made tremendous progress on the MDGs, but remains a region with substantial “old” and “new” human development deficits. Comprising more than half of the world’s population, Asia and the Pacific has emerged as an economic power-house. How it navigates its future development trajectory will affect the rest of the world. The region therefore plays a critical role in shaping the future post-2015 development agenda and the global partnerships for its implementation.
 
In Asia-Pacific, the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is leading a series of intergovernmental consultation processes on the post-2015 development agenda. In May 2014, the regional Commission convened the first Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD), to prepare member states from Asia-Pacific for the next meeting of the High Level Political Forum (HLPF), in July 2014. The Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development included a session on Means of Implementation, where countries and members of civil society were consulted on the regional needs and aspirations for a future global partnership for development. Other regional intergovernmental processes are planned in the months to come, including the Asia-Pacific Outreach Meeting on Sustainable Development Financing and the 70th Commission Session.
 
Against this, the UNDG team in Asia-Pacific will complement the work that the Regional Commission has underway, by organizing a regional consultation focused on the global partnership for development and the means of implementation for the post-2015 development agenda. The UNDG-led regional consultation will partly take place online, through a structured e-discussion on critical issues related to (i) access to technology and trade for development; (ii) financing for development; and (iii) capacity development for data collection and analysis to monitor the post-2015 development agenda. The last segment of the regional consultation will take place through a face-to-face meeting.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the Policy Advisor on Millennium Development Goals and Inclusive Growth, the consultant will be responsible for facilitating an E-Consultation on global partnership for development and means of implementation for the post-2015 agenda for the Asia-Pacific region.
 
The key tasks under this inter-agency (United Nations Development Group-UNDG) initiative, include (i) facilitating an e-consultation on the Global Partnership for Development and Means of Implementation for the Post-2015 Development Agenda – i.e. the successor of MDG 8, The e-consultation will focus on three issues, namely: trade and technology access, financing for development, and building an evidence base for monitoring and policy formulation. (ii) Preparation of related issue papers/knowledge products, and (iii) support toward the organization of a face-to-face consultation meeting upon completion of the e-consultation.
 
Scope of Work

The consultant will be responsible, specifically for the following tasks:
  • Conduct desk review/research on MDG 8 progress, lessons from MDG 8 and issues related to its design/articulation in the context of the MDG framework;
  • Review the current debate on the new global partnership for development and means of implementation and recommendations for the successor to Goal 8 as part of the post 2015 Development Agenda;
  • Lead the substantive preparation of the e-consultation on the Means of Implementation and Global Partnership for Development Post-2015, including the launch message, background resources, key questions to lead the e-consultation and list of participants within and outside the Asia-Pacific region;
  • Reach out to experts, relevant communities of practice, NGO networks, private sector, etc. to ensure broad participation for the e-consultation;
  • Solicit at least 10-15 responses from experts, populate online platform in the lead up to the e-consultation;
  • Facilitate and moderate the e-consultation to ensure the rich and quality discussions;
  • Draft and finalize summaries after each phase of the e-consultation;
  • Draft and finalize a paper encapsulating the key messages and recommendations of the e-consultation;
  • Work closely with the APRC Inclusive Growth team to ensure the key messages emerging from the e-consultation are fed into relevant reports, including the ADB-ESCAP-UNDP Regional MDG Report;
  • Follow up the e-consultation through a survey to get feedback on ways to improve.

Final Products:       

  • Research work on MDG 8 and current debates around the successor of MDG 8 for the Post 2015 Development Agenda;
  • Substantive preparation of the e-consultation, including the launch message, key questions, background resources, list of participants and experts, advanced solicited contributions, fully functional e-consultation platform, and summary of discussions;
  • Facilitation and moderation of the e-consultation; 
  • Support to the Inclusive Growth team on Post 2015 Development Agenda issues, especially as they relate to the UNDG-RCM process and the regional MDG report preparation; 
  • Draft paper to consolidate key findings from e-consultation and consultation session(s), including comparative country analysis, opportunities and challenges, and strategic points for developing and formulating a successor to Goal 8.

Contract Duration:

1 July - 30 September 2014

Duty Station:

Home-based with travel to Bangkok, Thailand

Provision of Monitoring and Progress Controls:
 
The Consultant will perform his/her assignment under the overall guidance of the Policy Advisor on MDGs and Inclusive Growth. He/she will report directly to the Team Leader for Inclusive Growth and work closely with the Inclusive Growth team. He/she will be expected to provide updates/progress of any assigned work as and when required.
 
Documents to be included when submitting proposal:
 
Interested individual consultant must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate your qualifications:
  • Financial proposal: The financial proposal must indicate lump sum professional fee and travel costs in USD;
  • Personal CV and/or P.11 including past experience in similar projects and the name and contact details of 3 references.
Financial Proposal:

The contract will be based on lump sum amount. Financial bid should be quoted as all inclusive lump sum per Outputs listed above.  The financial proposal will specify the lump sum professional fee and travel costs in USD and payments will be made to the Individual Consultant based on the number of days worked and upon completion of the deliverables. 
 
All envisaged travel costs must be included in the financial proposal. In the event of unforeseeable travel, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed.

Evaluation:
 
The award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:
  • Responsive/compliant/acceptable;
  • Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.
Technical Criteria weight; 70%
  • Experience related to services: 75 points;
  • Expertise & Availability: 25 points.
Financial Criteria weight; 30%
 
Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 350 technical points would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Competencies

Communications
  • Speaks and writes clearly and effectively;
  • Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately;
  • Asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication;
  • Tailors language, tone, style, and format to match the audience;
  • Excellent writing and communication skills, especially analytical writing with ability to conceptualize, articulate and draft issues related to MDGs, particularly trade, technology access, finance, and statistics.
  • .
Commitment to learning
  • Keeps abreast of new developments in own occupation/profession;
  • Contributes to the learning of colleagues;
    Shows willingness to learn from others;
  • Seeks feedback to learn and improve.
 Professionalism
  • Shows pride in work and in achievements;
  • Demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter;
  • Is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and;
  • Achieving results.
 Respect for Diversity
  • Works effectively with people from all backgrounds;
  • Treats all people with dignity and respect;
  • Treats men and women equally.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

  • Master’s degree in development economics, development studies and/or related social science..

Experience:

  • Minimum of 7 years professional experience related to MDGs, inclusive growth, trade, finance for development, and statistics at the national and international levels;
  • Experience in collaborative team work with an MDG and/or human development orientation;
  • Extensive working experience on advocacy / campaigns / publications;
  • Strong understanding and knowledge of the policy-making on trade issues; research, innovation and technology; finance for development; data collection and analysis/national statistics;
  • Proven skills in coordinating and facilitating different teams/practices in a multi-disciplinary environment;
  • Substantive work experience on issues related to poverty reduction and the MDGs in the Asia-Pacific region is highly desirable, as is experience and skills in mainstreaming gender issues;
  • Good knowledge and experience in the use of standard office software packages and web applications;
  • Experience working with lyris and other e-consultation platforms;
  • Experience in facilitation of e-discussions/consultations with a development policy-focus is a requirement;
  • Experience working with UNDP and/or UN agencies is an advantage;
  • Professional experience in the Asia-Pacific region is desirable

Language Requirement:

  • Demonstrated proficiency in written and spoken English required.