Background
Albania’s territorial and administrative reform is one of the main priorities of the current Government of Albania’s mandate, aiming at modernizing relations between the executive and local government, democratizing and strengthening the governance in the territory and encouraging economic efficiency through the creation of premises for an integrated planning in a more consolidated administrative space. The government’s simultaneous engagement in two reform streams; the administrative consolidation and the revision of the fiscal system and local government functions, is expected to provide the local governments with several key benefits.
The Government engagement in the territorial and administrative reform started in October 2013, and continued with development of the reform roadmap, and carrying out of the analytical work and developing options for a new administrative division, along with the engagement in an intensive consultation campaign with various stakeholders. These efforts led to the development of the legal package for the territorial and administrative reform which was approved as law 115/2014 in July 2014. The securing of the legal framework opened the way towards the reform transition phase decisive to framing the model and the guidelines for the amalgamation of LGUs, a phase which anticipates following of the two main stages:
- Assessment /due diligence of current situation of the remaining 361 LGUs
- Preparation for the actual amalgamation of existing LGUs
In order for the second to happen different sublegal acts need to be drafted and based also on the recommendations deriving from the pilot phase, a series of proposals need to be presented to the LGUs representatives for follow up intending to enable a smooth assessment and amalgamation process of the LGUS.
As the aforementioned require a certain degree of specialization in law UNDP/STAR Albania, upon consultation and request from the Minister of Local Issues, is soliciting the submission of individual applications to fill in the position of Legal Expert, who will be part of the Amalgamation Team.
Duties and Responsibilities
As part of the Amalgamation Team, the Legal Expert will work under the general guidance of the Amalgamation Team Leader and in close cooperation with the advisor of the MSLI, and as per the context described earlier; the Expert’s duties and responsibilities will include the following key tasks:
- Provide legal advice, interpretation of and compliance with all laws and regulations that cover the administrative aspect of the LGUs.
- Review the entire set of recommendations provided by KPMG during the piloting phase
- Based on the provided recommendations, draft sub legal acts and proposals that require decision making from the Council of the Ministers
- Draft recommendations for LGUs representatives and other institutions that play a role in the smooth transition and amalgamation process
- Identify issues emerging at different levels and ensure they are addressed on time through team troubleshooting and dialogue or otherwise escalated.
Deliverables
Monthly progress reports on his/her own activities as part of the Amalgamation Team to be submitted to STAR project management
Competencies
Corporate competencies:
- Demonstrates integrity by modelling 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;
- Treats all people fairly without favoritism.
Functional competencies:
- Ability to work in a team
- Ability to transfer knowledge
- Ability to work on tight deadlines
- Familiarity with and extensive ability to network with key stakeholders
- Demonstrated excellent interpersonal skills
- Very good oral and written communication
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
- Post-University degree in Law
Work experience:
- At least 7 years of working experience as an attorney at law or lawyer
- Experienced in drafting laws and procedures, and in working with public institutions (i.e. Ministry of Justice or legal directorates in line ministries) and private entities as part of their legal departments
- Strong knowledge of contract law, administrative regulatory framework and labour code;
- A good understanding of relevant international conventions/agreements as well as the national legal frameworks on local government
- A good understanding of LGUs organizational structure, their duties and responsibilities, local decision-making and implementation and operational processes, requirements for compliance with the relevant legislation and sublegal acts, the applicable human resource and employment policies, etc.
Language requirement:
- Very good knowledge of English and Albanian language.
Evaluation of applicants
Applicants will be screened against qualifications and the competencies specified above. UNDP applies the ‘Best value for money’ approach - the final selection will be based on the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal. Only the highest ranked candidates who would be found qualified for the job will be considered for the Financial Evaluation.
The award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:
a) Responsive, and
b) Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.
Individual consultant will be evaluated based on a cumulative analysis taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal.
Technical Criteria - 70% of total evaluation – max points: 70
Criteria A: Compliant educational background– max points: 20
Criteria B: Professional experience in drafting laws and procedures - max points: 30
Criteria C: Knowledge of LG legal framework: 20
Financial Criteria - 30% of total evaluation – max points: 30
Application procedures
Qualified and interested candidates are requested to apply no later than 17 April 2015
Please submit the following to demonstrate your interest and qualifications by explaining why you are the most suitable for the work:
- Cover letter stating your interest in and qualifications for the advertised position. Please paste the letter into the "Resume and Motivation" section of the electronic application.
- Filled UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs); form (blank form can be downloaded from http://www.al.undp.org/content/albania/en/home/operations/jobs/); please upload the P11 instead of your CV.
- Financial Proposal - specifying a total fee per day amount for the tasks specified in this announcement.
Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please make sure you have provided all requested documents.
Qualified women and members of social minorities are encouraged to apply.
How to Submit the Application
To submit your application online, please follow the steps below:
- Download and complete the UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs);
- Merge your UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs), Financial Proposal, monthly based and cover letter into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded;
- Click on the Job Title (job vacancy announcement);
- Click “Apply Now” button, fill in necessary information on the first page, and then click “Submit Application;”
- Upload your application/single file as indicated above with the merged documents (underlined above);
- You will receive an automatic response to your email confirming receipt of your application by the system.