UNDP Jobs - 49778- Short term National Consultant to Develop a Full-F

Short term National Consultant to Develop a Full-Fledged Project Document on Testing The Potentiality of Crowdfunding in Jordan.

Location :

Amman, JORDAN

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

01-Oct-2014

Application Deadline :

25-Sep-14 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

National Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

30 days (during the period from 1 october-30 november, 2014).

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

30 days (during the period from 1 october-30 november, 2014).

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

In the course of the past five years, UN organizations witnessed a continuous decline of funds from traditional donors to development organizations and the advent and rise of online crowdfunding platforms. UNDP’s core resources have steadily decreased since 2007 at a compounded rate of 5.4 per cent. With the protracting of the Syrian crises, the so-called donors’ fatigue affected Jordan as well decreasing the availability of funds for development. Meanwhile, the individual philanthropic market is growing, in the United States alone philanthropic giving in 2012 exceeded $316 billion with more than $228 billion donated by individuals.

The term “crowdfunding” describes the practice of securing funding for a project or business venture by a dispersed group of people, the crowd. The concept of crowdfunding is not entirely new and rather a progression from microfinance, micro-lending and peer-to-peer lending. Although its definition and boundaries with other fundraising tools are often blurry we observe that the constantly growing crowdfunding market has the potential to be a global disruptive force in the development field.

While the concept itself focusses on raising money, crowdfunding is likely not to result right away in a significant financial return of investment for many UNDP offices as the necessary requirements – staff time and budget for communications – are comparatively high, especially at the beginning. However, UNDP Jordan is convinced that exploring the potential of crowdfunding can be the right investment.

In fact, UNDP projects wishes to test and experiment crowdfunding as a pathway to improve its results-reporting and to find funding channels for social businesses. Crowdfunding is relevant for UNDP as it provides an opportunity to improve our approach to results-reporting and to test methods that are relevant for larger scale-donation drives, particularly perks, regular updates and points of engagement with your donor community.

As of August 2014, UNDP has no corporate policy on crowdfunding and no corporate platform available. There is, however, a considerable interest in the concept and Country Offices are encouraged to test crowdfunding and to share their experiences to inform future policies and platform decisions. UNDP Jordan seeks therefore to know more about the potential of crowdfunding initiatives and their applicability to the Jordanian context.

Objective:

The aim of this assignment is to analyse the national market for crowdfunding in Jordan, highlighting opportunities and potentials for UNDP Country Office to use the modality for attracting funds. The study will:

assess the experience of Jordan in crowdfunding, including where Jordan stands in terms of existing experiences, successful platforms, failures and lessons learned;
Develop a project document on crowdfunding as per UNDP template. Comparison with other experiences in the region would also be critical. Leveraging on the map of existing initiatives, the analyses should also contributes to develop current efforts on crowdfunding strategy for UNDP including targeting of potential donors and most appealing strategies;
Develop at least 40 project fact sheets (1-2 pager template) in the two governorates of Irbid and Mafraq to be utilized for crowdfunding purposes.

Duties and Responsibilities

In light of the above, the consultant is expected to meet the target deadlines outlined in the following timetable by end of November 2014.

Situation analysis report: mapping and analyses of the potential of crowdfunding for UNDP Jordan and recommendations on the most convenient Crowdfunding platform(s);
project document based on agreed recommendation as per UNDP guidelines and templates;
Produce 40 project sheets were crowdfunding can be potentially tested in Jordan.

Competencies

Excellent communication and presentation skills;
Excellent IT skills;
Excellent skills in applied research and analyses;
Ability to work with a broad range of individuals of diverse institutions and levels;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Highest standards of integrity, discretion and loyalty.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Post-graduate University Degree in International Development, political economy and science, Business Administration, or related area. Equivalent relevant experience combined with a first degree will also be considered.

Experience:

Minimum 7 years of relevant experience in resource mobilization, fund raising including crowd funding mechanisms, social networks, internet based communication and social media platforms;
Previous experience in fundraising for development interventions within the private sector.
Experience with providing advisory services to international organizations and development actors proven relevant working experience in developing countries;
Demonstrated experience in organizational assessment and management;
Demonstrated experience in carrying out strategic and guidance notes to organizations for prospective interventions in development
Familiarity with UNDP’s functions, innovation process and activities;
Experience with designing and delivering training on innovation;
Experience working collaboratively in a team structure in a multicultural environment;
Strong working experience with innovation and demonstrated use of innovation for development;
Experience in blogging and effective use of social media for advocacy and discussion;
Extensive experience analyzing data and preparing analytical reports;
Familiarity with UNDP’s work especially with host communities and in general with the Jordanian development sector and response to the Syrian crises;
Familiarity with innovation theory and practices;
Experience in applying innovation;
Experience in providing policy and programme advisory support;
Experience with Jordan/Middle East context is preferred.

Language Requirements:

Fluency in English and Arabic.

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

Proposal:

Explaining why they are the most suitable for the work;
Provide a brief methodology on how they will approach and conduct the work.

Financial proposal.

Personal CV including past experience in similar projects and at least 3 references.

Financial Proposal

Lump sum contracts

The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount including fees, DSA and transportations (local travel will be provided within the scope of the project’s resources). Payments are based upon output, i.e. upon delivery of the services specified above. In order to assist the requesting unit in the comparison of financial proposals, the financial proposal will include a breakdown of this lump sum amount.