UNDP Jobs - 50092- International Consultant

International Consultant – Thematic Evaluation on Electoral Assistance Provided within the Romanian ODA Programme

Location :

Bucharest, ROMANIA

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

20-Oct-2014

Application Deadline :

15-Oct-14 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

2 month

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

Maximum 2 months

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

Romania’s development assistance (ODA) programme has been officially launched in 2007, following the country’s accession to the European Union (EU). Since then, Romania has strived to position itself on the international development arena as an innovative donor, with the main comparative advantage of being able to share its direct experience and knowledge in the democratic transition and Euro-Atlantic integration processes. Romania’s strategic objective in development cooperation is to contribute to poverty reduction by promoting security and economic welfare, state of law, sustainable economic development, climate change mitigation and investments in education, complementing international efforts in the field.

Romania has identified the thematic and geographic priorities, and has developed a clear national Policy and institutional framework for its ODA. The geographical focus is now on twelve countries: in the Black Sea extended region - the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan; and in North Africa and the Middle East - Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Iraq, Palestine and Afghanistan. The Romanian current ODA thematic priorities are: 1) transition to democracy (reconstruction of the state, democratic governance, administrative reform, support for the civil society, the media, and conflict resolution); 2) support for agriculture and sustainable economic growth in the climate change context– preferably in the phytosanitary and sanitary and veterinary fields; 3) environment protection and support for activities to promote sustainable energy in the context of the climate changes. The secondary sectors are health and education.

In view of further consolidating national capacities in the field of ODA, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) are currently implementing The New ODA Cooperation Partnership with Romania project (2013-2015), with the overall objective to support Romania in becoming an effective, innovative and increasingly influential actor for development cooperation so it can achieve sustainable, scalable development impact in the countries that are a priority of Romanian ODA. The UNDP continues to provide the MFA with the necessary administrative and implementation mechanism and tools for ODA delivery (project/programme frameworks and management capacity) where needed.

Having gone through complex democratic transition processes, Romania has gathered plenty of experiences, good practices and lessons learned that can be shared with other countries that continue their efforts to build a strong and democratic state. In this context, Romania positions electoral assistance and democratic governance as important thematic priorities in its development cooperation policies. Thus, the Romanian Permanent Electoral Authority (PEA) has been for many years actively participating in different cooperation networks and technical assistance projects at international level, widely contributing to the consolidation and promotion of the democratic principles and institutions around the world within a framework of shared responsibility.

The PEA of Romanian is an independent administrative public institution which ensures the effective organization and conduct of free and fair electoral processes that guarantee appropriate conditions for exercising the voting rights, equal opportunities in political competition and transparency in funding of political parties activity and electoral campaigns. During its 10 years of activity, the PEA has established solid bilateral relations with electoral management bodies (EMBs) around the world, as well as strong relations with regional and international bodies.

Since 2004, the PEA has provided electoral assistance and shared its experience with electoral management bodies worldwide in various modalities: organizing study visits for EMBs from countries such as Iraq (2004, 2005), Republic of Moldova (2006), Malaysia (2010), Indonesia (2011), Egypt (2011); sending PEA representatives to election observation missions in Azerbaijan (2005, 2010), Iraq (2005), Bulgaria (2007), Moldova (2007, 2009, 2011), US (2008), Hungary (2010), Tunisia (2011), Egypt (2012), Georgia (2012); organizing and substantively leading various international workshops (such as ACEEEO Conference on the security of elections Mamaia, 2008; Out of country voting workshop, Bucharest, 2010; Workshop on democratic transformations, Bucharest, 2011; BRIDGE workshops, Bucharest 2012 and 2013; Regional workshop on preventing and combating electoral fraud, Bucharest 2012; ACEEEO Conference, Bucharest, 2014, Romanian PEA holding the ACEEEO Presidency for the current year; etc).

Duties and Responsibilities

This evaluation will help develop a clearer understanding of how Romania has been engaging in providing electoral assistance to respond to the needs and demands of its partner countries in this field and it will examine Romania’s strategic niche and the role it can assume in supporting the capacity development of its partner countries to successfully organize free and fair elections, considering the complementarity of efforts between Romanian ODA and other development actors engaged in this technical field of assistance in Romania’s partner countries. The evaluation is also expected to identify Romania’s successful stories and best practices and to provide a sound basis for Romania’s future involvement in the international electoral assistance field.

The evaluation will determine the relevance, appropriateness, scope of coverage, effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of PEA projects and activities directed at supporting countries to strengthen their electoral systems and processes implemented (mainly) within the Romanian ODA programme.

The Evaluation Questions

The following key questions will guide the project evaluation process:

What are the results that Romania has achieved this far in the field of electoral assistance? What are the types of interventions that worked best? The evaluation report will provide strategic recommendations on specific intervention modalities based on the electoral assistance projects implemented by the PEA;
What are the capacities (institutional, technical, etc) that Romania holds in the field of electoral assistance?
What are the development needs of Romania’s partner countries in the field of electoral processes? What is the involvement of other donors in the region? Can Romanian interventions be strategically placed, needed and effective? What can be done to ensure maximum complementarity and effectiveness with other development assistance initiatives in Romania’s partner countries?
What are Romania’s competitive advantages in the field of electoral assistance? What is the thematic and geographic niche that Romania should develop in the field of electoral assistance?

How has Romania positioned itself as a provider of electoral assistance in the international development arena? What is the level of visibility and awareness of the PEA as an electoral assistance provider?

The evaluation will focus on the electoral assistance that Romania has granted to its partner countries through the Permanent Electoral Authority during the period 2007-2014 and will include:

A portfolio analysis (including an assessment of the most prominent types of projects implemented by the PEA in the field of electoral assistance and the identification of best practices);
One in-depth country case study on the PEA interventions in one of the ODA partner countries (to be decided together with the PEA and UNDP representatives), including the identification of best practices and recommendations for future projects and programmes;
Evaluation of niche intervention thematic areas in the field of electoral assistance, including an identification of Romanian best practices and expertise;
Evaluation of the PEA capacity to implement electoral assistance project and programmes;
Evaluation of Romania’s profile as a donor of electoral assistance (level of visibility and awareness at the international level).

Competencies

Strong analytical skills;
Well-developed ability to synthesize information;
Demonstrate strong oral and written communication skills;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Highest standards of integrity, discretion and loyalty.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Masters degree in Public Policy, International Development, Development Economics/Planning, Economics, International Relations/ Diplomacy or any other relevant university degree;
Technical electoral management-related certifications are a plus (such as BRIDGE certifications).

Experience:

At least 5 evaluations performed and accepted by the hiring organization;
Experience in conducting UNDP project evaluations is a strong asset;
Good knowledge and understanding of development cooperation, aid effectiveness and related issues;
Good knowledge and understanding of the evolving trends and the main actors in the field of electoral management at the international level.

Language:

Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English.

Note:

Please access the following link for further details and full documentation regarding this position: http://www.undp.ro/operations/tender-announcements/#n3536 .