UNDP Jobs - 57458- Project Mid-Term Evaluator

Project Mid-Term Evaluator

Location :

Home-based with One Mission to Russia

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

01-Nov-2015

Application Deadline :

30-Jun-15 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

30 w/days within November1, 2015 - February 15, 2016

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

30 w/days within November1, 2015 - February 15, 2016

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

This is the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the UNDP-GEF Midterm Review (MTR) of the full-sized project titled “Reducing GHG Emissions from Road Transport in Russia’s Medium-sized Cities” (PIMS#4304) implemented through the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation, which is to be undertaken in 2015. The Project Document was signed on September 25, 2012; however, the project was not operationalized till March 01, 2013; this is the third year of the project implementation. In line with the UNDP-GEF Guidance on MTRs, this MTR process was initiated before the submission of the second Project Implementation Report (PIR). This ToR sets out the expectations for this MTR. The MTR process must follow the guidance outlined in the document Guidance For Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects (http://web.undp.org/evaluation/documents/guidance/GEF/mid-term/Guidance_Midterm%20Review%20_EN_2014.pdf).

The UNDP/GEF Project “Reducing GHG emission from road transport in Russia’s medium-sized cities” (hereinafter referred to as the RUST project) is aimed to reduce the amount of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions into the atmosphere from the through improved planning and management of the public transport by creation of efficient monitoring systems and promotion of eco-friendly vehicles.

The objective of the RUST project is to reduce GHG emissions from the road transport sector by piloting low carbon modes of transport systems in medium-sized Russian cities – Kazan and Kaliningrad. The pilots will inform federal and local level policies towards the development of sustainable transport in Russia, and provide examples to other secondary cities of Russia to replicate. The main outcomes of the project will be the pilot projects in the two demonstration cities, supportive federal policies and legislative framework for sustainable transport in the Russian Federation and successful information dissemination and replication of the pilot activities.

The Project budget is: 5 400 000 USD (GEF funds); 158 136 000 USD (pledged co-financing as per Project Document): Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation - $8.6 million, Ministry of Transport and Road Construction of the Republic of Tatarstan – $113.0 million, Government of Kaliningrad region – $34.656 million, Liotech, Ltd. - $1.88 million.

The project duration is five years and the project is scheduled to last from 25 September 2012 to 25 September 2017.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work and Key Tasks

The MTR will be performed by an international independent consultant.

The MTR consultant will first conduct a document review of project documents (i.e. PIF, UNDP Initiation Plan, UNDP Environmental & Social Safeguard Policy, the Project Document, project reports including PIRs, project budget revisions, lesson learned reports, national strategic and legal documents, and any other materials that the team considers useful for this evidence-based review) provided by the Project Team and Commissioning Unit. The MTR mission will follow the desk review and consist of stakeholder interviews and site visits to Kazan and Kaliningrad.

The MTR team will assess the following four categories of project progress and produce a draft and final MTR report. See the Guidance For Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects for requirements on ratings. No overall rating is required.

Project Strategy

Project Design:

Review the problem addressed by the project and the underlying assumptions. Review the effect of any incorrect assumptions or changes to the context to achieving the project results as outlined in the Project Document;
Review the relevanced of the project strategy and assess whether it provides the most effective route towards expected/intended results;
Review how the project addresses country priorities;
Review decision-making processes.

Results Framework/Logframe:

Undertake a critical analysis of the project’s logframe indicators and targets, assess how “SMART” the midterm and end-of-project targets are (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-bound), and suggest specific amendments/revisions to the targets and indicators as necessary;
Examine if progress so far has led to, or could in the future catalyse beneficial development effects (i.e. income generation, gender equality and women’s empowerment, improved governance etc...) that should be included in the project results framework and monitored on an annual basis.

Progress Towards Results

Review the logframe indicators against progress made towards the end-of-project targets; populate the Progress Towards Results Matrix, as described in the Guidance For Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects; colour code progress in a “traffic light system” based on the level of progress achieved; assign a rating on progress for the project objective and each outcome; make recommendations from the areas marked as “not on target to be achieved” (red);
Compare and analyse the GEF Tracking Tool at the Baseline with the one completed right before the Midterm Review.
Identify remaining barriers to achieving the project objective;
By reviewing the aspects of the project that have already been successful, identify ways in which the project can further expand these benefits.

Project Implementation and Adaptive Management

Using the Guidance For Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects; assess the following categories of project progress:

Management Arrangements;
Work Planning;
Finance and co-finance;
Project-level monitoring and evaluation systems;
Stakeholder Engagement;
Reporting;
Communications.

Sustainability

Assess overall risks to sustainability factors of the project in terms of the following four categories:

Financial risks to sustainability;
Socio-economic risks to sustainability;
Institutional framework and governance risks to sustainability;
Environmental risks to sustainability.

The MTR consultant will include a section in the MTR report setting out the MTR’s evidence-based conclusions, in light of the findings.

Additionally, the MTR consultant is expected to make recommendations to the Project Team. Recommendations should be succinct suggestions for critical intervention that are specific, measurable, achievable, and relevant. A recommendation table should be put in the report’s executive summary. The MTR consultant/team should make no more than 15 recommendations total.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables

The MTR consultant shall prepare and submit:

Presentation: Initial Findings presented to project management and the Commissioning Unit at the end of the MTR mission. Approximate due date: December 09, 2015.

Draft Final Report

Full report with annexes. Approximate due date: January 15, 2016.

Final Report

Revised report with annexed audit trail detailing how all received comments have (and have not) been addressed in the final MTR report. To be sent to the Commissioning Unit within 1 week of receiving UNDP comments on draft. Approximate due date: February 15, 2016

The final MTR report must be in English. If applicable, the Commissioning Unit may choose to arrange for a translation of the report into a language more widely shared by national stakeholders.

Institutional Arrangement

The principal responsibility for managing this MTR resides with the Commissioning Unit. The Commissioning Unit for this project’s MTR is the UNDP Project Support Office in Russia.

The commissioning unit will contract the consultant and ensure the timely provision of per diems and travel arrangements within the country for the MTR consultant. The Project Team will be responsible for liaising with the MTR consultant to provide all relevant documents, set up stakeholder interviews, and arrange field visits.

Duration of the Work

The tentative MTR timeframe is broken down into 30 working days over the period 1 November 2015 – 15 February 2016 (10 mission based, 20 home based) as follows:

Before August 31, 2015 - Select MTR consultant(s)

November 1-30, 2015 (5 days maximum) - Initial debriefings with the MTR consultant(s) and handover of relevant documents. Document review and preparation for the MTR mission.

November 30 – December 09, 2015(tent. 10 days) - MTR mission: stakeholder meetings, interviews, field visits.

December 09, 2015 - Mission wrap-up meeting & presentation of initial findings.

By January 15, 2016(maximum 10 days) - Preparing draft report. Validation of GEF Tracking Tool.

By February 15,2016 (tent. 5 days) - Follow-up to stakeholder comments on the draft report incorporating audit trail from feedback on draft report. Finalization of MTR report.

The date start of contract is November 1, 2015.

Competencies

Functional Competencies:

Strong interpersonal skills, communication skills and ability to work in a team;
Ability to plan and organize his/her work, efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results;
Openness to change and ability to receive/integrate feedback;
Ability to work under pressure and stressful situations;
Demonstrable analytical skills;
Strong analytical, reporting and writing abilities.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

A Master’s degree in environmental science, or other closely related field - (max 20 points).

Experience:

Work experience related to the transport sector for at least 10 years - (max 30 points);
Recent experience with sustainable transport sector projects supported by international organizations;
Experience applying SMART indicators and reconstructing or validating baseline scenarios including results based management evaluation methodologies; evaluation/review experiences within UNDP/GEF system will be considered an asset.

Language:

Excellent command of English, proven report-writing skills - (max 20 points);
Excellent communication skills.

Duty Station

The consultant’s duty station/location: home-based, with the following travel arrangements:

Travel:

International travel will be required to Russia (Moscow, Kazan and Kaliningrad) during the MTR mission;
The Basic Security in the Field II and Advanced Security in the Field courses must be successfully completed prior to commencement of travel;
Individual Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director;
Consultants are required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under https://dss.un.org/dssweb/
All related travel expenses will be covered and will be reimbursed as per UNDP rules and regulations upon submission of an F-10 claim form and supporting documents.

Competence in adaptive management, as applied to the GEF CCM Focal Area.

The consultants cannot have participated in the project preparation, formulation, and/or implementation (including the writing of the Project Document) and should not have a conflict of interest with project’s related activities.

Application Process

Scope of Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments

Financial Proposal:

Financial proposals must be “all inclusive” and expressed in a lump-sum for the total duration of the contract. The term “all inclusive” implies all cost (professional fees, travel costs, living allowances etc.).

Schedule of Payments:

20% of payment upon contract signature;
60% upon submission of the draft MTR report
20% upon finalization of the MTR report
Or, as otherwise agreed between the Commissioning Unit and the MTR team.