Background

UNDP, the global development network for the United Nations system, is present in 166 countries and territories and is uniquely equipped to help developing countries build sustainable capacity to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In support of this, UNDP offers a wide range of solutions to global, regional and national development challenges through a comprehensive knowledge network, expert practitioners and focused strategic areas of support.

The Effective Development Cooperation (EDC) Team, under the umbrella of the Knowledge, Innovation and Capacity Group (KICG), the Bureau for Development Policy (BDP) of UNDP, is the institutional anchor of its work on development cooperation and serves as a part of Joint Support Team with OECD to the Global Partnership for Effective Development Co-operation (GPEDC). GPEDC brings governments, private companies, civil society and others together to facilitate and achieve the successful implementation of development effectiveness agenda. Global Partnership provides a space for political dialogue around the implementation of commitments on effective development cooperation as well as for strengthened multi-stakeholder partnerships / engagement. It also aims to support the sharing of knowledge / best practices and the building of on-the-ground evidence towards informed policy-making. 

Government of Japan and EDC/KICG/BDP/UNDP entered into partnership to contribute to a body of research on the role of development cooperation in MICs. ‘The Support to the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation’, funded by Japan-UNDP Partnership Fund, aims to build knowledge-base on the key roles of development cooperation in supporting MICs to overcome development challenges and make smooth transitions into the higher levels of economic and human development. Envisaged analytical products will come at an opportune time against the backdrop of major policy reviews and discussions following the first High Level Meeting (HLM) of the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation (GPEDC), which took place in April 2014, and in the context of upcoming post-2015 development framework.

Two-fold objectives of envisaged analytical products include: (1)to shed light on the ‘context-specific’ development challenges the country faces and the role of development cooperation in effectively addressing these obstacles. The findings / recommendations of analytical products can be a useful input in country’s efforts in developing/strengthening national development cooperation and partnership framework; and (2) to inform and influence global policy dialogue to better account for complex and diverse realities of MICs and to support flexible, targeted and differentiated strategies of development cooperation that can contribute to addressing middle-income trap and achieving smooth transitions.
 
To take stock of successful interventions of development cooperation in support of desirable changes in MICs, the following cross-cutting enablers of change, that are readily applicable to the widest range of different country contexts, were identified preliminarily:
  • Institutionalized social dialogue for co-definition of problems;
  • Capability for co-decision and collective action;
  • hybrid public-private collaboration mechanisms for co-designing solutions;
  • Participatory co-monitoring / co-evaluation modalities; and
  • Sufficient level of networked social capital.
In addition, UNDP Global Centre for Public Service Excellence (GCPSE) identified four elements pre-requisite for public sector to strike positive changes for sustainable development: (i) co-operation between political and administrative leadership to ensure sound programme delivery; (ii) removal of obstacles undermining public servants’ performance; (iii) capacity for long-term planning and management of complexity; and (iv) capacity to innovate. For private sector, UNDP Istanbul International Centre for Private Sector in Development (IICPSD) contributed the following common ingredients for success: (i) broad participation in skills development; (ii) existence of mechanisms to attract private investment in sustainable development; (iii) broad participation in sustainable urbanization / livelihoods; and (iv) adoption of Inclusive and green business models and technological solutions for people-centered, less resource-intensive growth in addition to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The enablers in non-governmental sector should be identified in specific country contexts in the course of proposed analytical studies.

The study aims to validate them from transformational development experiences of four countries to be determined later (2 in Asia, 1 in Africa, 1 in Latin America and the Caribbean) – with a primary focus on identifying the incentivizing roles of development cooperation. Below questions will further guide analytical products:
 
Understanding the Change (context)
  • How are the five cross-cutting enablers identified playing out to lead the country towards achieving smooth transitions into higher levels of economic and human development? How have they been or are being co-created, solidified and sustained by public, private and non-governmental sector actors? What were other cross-cutting enablers that are driving the country to graduate into higher levels of economic and human development?
  • How are the enablers of public and private sectors playing out to lead the country towards achieving smooth transitions in its growth / development? What are the enablers in non-governmental sectors? Under what socio-politico-economic contexts have these enablers been or are being triggered, solidified and sustained? Is there any other distinctive enabler(s) to add in each of this sector?
  • What are the cross-cutting disablers as well as those in public, private and non-governmental sectors, which have caused or are causing the country to stagnate in growth / development or where relevant, to regress to lower status of income and development?
 Identifying the Specific Roles of Development Cooperation (main focus)
  • What are the concrete examples of catalytic interventions of development cooperation, which have triggered or are triggering and supporting each of the cross-cutting enabler (or aggregated of some) as well as other sectoral enablers? 
  • What are the concrete examples of counter-productive interventions of development cooperation, which inadvertently hindered / are hindering the cross-cutting enablers or reinforcing the disablers identified above?
  • What kind of institutional and policy frameworks are facilitating the catalytic interventions of development cooperation?

Duties and Responsibilities

The consultant will be reporting to the Team Leader of Effective Development Cooperation (EDC) / BDP. His / her tasks are organized mainly under three work components as below:

Desk Review / Development of Research Plan (Prior to Missions):
  • Review the existing literatures on pertinent challenges MIC face (including MI trap and transition issues) in the context of evolving development architecture. Examine each cross-cutting enabler in linkages with catalytic roles of development cooperation;
  • In collaboration with national consultants and UNDP COs, prepare a comprehensive research plan, incl. proposed data collection methodologies / approaches and work schedules for each country analytical work;
  • In collaboration with national consultants and UNDP COs, identify key actors for each country and prepare 3 meetings (briefing, validation and de-briefing). Engage relevant stakeholders to ensure these meetings are participatory and based on a wide range of beneficiaries.
Substantive Contribution: Data Collection / Analysis / Drafting (During Missions):
  • Lead and substantially contribute to the entire processes of data collection / analysis / drafting and generate for each country: (i) country case study; and (ii) country policy brief, which contain answers to six guiding questions mentioned in earlier section;
  • Provide national consultants both substantive and technical guidance and input;
  • Revise Research Plan and analytical outputs based on the inputs provided from briefing, validation and de-briefing meetings;
  • Ensure the appropriate alignment of studies with related national policies / strategies / activities (e.g. Key recommendations of envisaged studies should be consistent with recent findings / advices of Development Finance and Aid Assessment (DFAA) conducted for Vietnam). 
Quality Control of Processes / Outputs (During / Post Missions):
  • In collaboration with national consultants / UNDP COs, conduct an introductory briefing meeting with national stakeholders to agree on the Research Plan incl. data collection strategies (e.g. government documents, semi-structured interview, questionnaire, etc.). Modify the plan where necessary;
  • In the course of data collection processes, identify and address the data gaps, in collaboration with UNDP COs, national consultants and relevant stakeholders;
  • Conduct a validation meeting with broad national stakeholders to verify the key observations / findings
  • Conduct a de-briefing meeting with UNDP COs, national governments and relevant stakeholders to present the findings / recommendations and discuss their value-addition;
  • Ensure that multi-stakeholder consultative processes are managed in neutral and transparent ways to enhance the credibility of analytical products;
  • Lead the entire peer review processes involving UNDP entities and national stakeholders to ensure the due incorporation of feedbacks into 3 final outputs.
Deliverables

International consultancy entails 4 field trips - countries to be determined later (2 countries in Asia, 1 in Latin America and the Caribbean, 1 in Africa).  In close consultation with UNDP Regional Service Centers / Country Offices, and in close collaboration with national consultants, the consultant deliver the following outputs:
  • 4 country cases (tentative deadline: 3 Nov);
  • 4 country policy briefs (tentative deadline: 3 Nov);
  • Joint synthesis report, which contains key policy recommendations on the catalytic roles of development cooperation in supporting MICs to effectively address development challenges and make successful transition into higher levels of economic and human development (tentative deadline: 20-Nov).

More detailed activities, outputs and tentative deadlines (in the parenthesis) are found below:

Prior to mission

  • Desk review / research (17-Jul);
  • Prepare comprehensive Research Plan for 4 countries including data collection methodologies, identification of key stakeholders, agenda for 3 meetings, etc. - output: Draft Research Plan (29-Jul);
  • Incorporation of inputs into draft Research Plan - output: Final Research Plan (1 Aug).
On / Between Missions
  • Conduct introductory briefing meeting and modify action plans if necessary (14 Aug);
  • Undertaking data collection / analysis / drafting - output: Draft country case #1 and draft country policy brief #1 (20 Aug);
  • Conduct validation meeting to verify findings. Take further measures to improve the validity of data / findings - output: Modification of outputs (21 Aug);
  • Conduct de-briefing meeting with COs/government / stakeholders - output: Modification of outputs (22 Aug)
  • Peer review (including all UNDP entities / national stakeholders) and incorporation of inputs - output: Final country case #1 and final country policy brief #1 (26 Aug);
  • Repeat the above processes for country #2 - output: Final country case #2 + country policy brief #2 (16 Sept);
  • Repeat the above processes for country #3 - output: Final country case #3+ country policy brief #3 (10 Oct);
  • Repeat the above processes for country #4 - output: Final country case #4 + country policy brief #4 (3 Nov).
Post-Missions
  • Prepare a table of content and agree on the structure of synthesis report through consultation - output: Agreed table of content (7 Nov);
  • Prepare draft synthesis report - output: Draft synthesis report (18 Nov);
  • Peer review and finalization of report - output: Final synthesis report (20 Nov).

Competencies

Functional Competencies

  • Excellent knowledge of evolving global development architecture and development effectiveness / development financing issues;
  • Good knowledge of and experience in developing national development strategies incl. national development cooperation framework / financing framework;
  • Familiarity with Internationally-Agreed Development Goals (IADGs) incl. Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Sustainable Development Goals/Post-2015 Development Goals, etc.;
  • Good communication skills, including the ability to write high quality reports, conduct empirical studies and to articulate ideas in a clear and concise style;
  • Excellent interpersonal / team-building skills. Adept at working with people of diverse cultural and social backgrounds;
  • Working knowledge of normative frameworks / principles of aid / development effectiveness from: Monterrey Conference on Financing for Development; Rome Declaration on Aid Harmonization, Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, Accra Agenda for Action; and Busan Partnership Agreement.
 Corporate Competencies:
  • Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
  • Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:
  •     Master’s Degree (minimum) in political economy, development economics, public / business administration, international relations / development, political / social science, economics, international finance or related field, with a focus on development cooperation and aid effectiveness;
  •     A PhD is strongly desirable.

 Experience:
  •     At least 15 years of experience advising national government (preferably of developing countries) on development financing framework, resource mobilization and management of development cooperation;
  •     A proven publication record in the fields of development economics, political economy, or related fields, desirably with focus on middle-income countries and aid/development cooperation;
  •     Experience in communicating research to diverse audiences, particularly in policy communities;
  •     Proven experience in conceptualizing, developing and implementing research project, with fact-finding missions to developing countries;
  •     Previous experience working with international organization research project particularly in a developing country is a plus;
  •     Experience establishing institutional arrangements for collaborative actions;
  •     Expertise in change theories and design thinking;
  •     Research experience in developing countries;
  •     Experience leading multi-stakeholder consultative and peer review processes.

Language requirements:
  •     Fluent in English (writing and verbal).

Selection process:
  •     Applicants will be evaluated based on the following evaluation criteria:
  •     Experience undertaking similar research project / significant publication record (30%);
  •     Technical approach / methodology and work plan indicating clear understanding of the job to be done (30%);
  •     Meeting educational requirement with expertise desirable for envisaged studies (10%);
  •     Financial criteria weight (30%).

 When using this weighted scoring method, the award of 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 (70%) and financial (30%) criteria specific to the solicitation;

Only candidates obtaining min of 70 point would be considered for financial evaluation (you will be required to provide a quote for the consultancy fees plus the travel).
Interested applicants are encouraged to submit the following as one attachment:
  •     CV;
  •     Technical proposal (incl. approach / methodology) and work plan (maximum 2 pages).