Background

India presently faces a dual challenge of a severe paucity of highly-trained, quality labour, as well as non-employability of large sections of the educated workforce that possess little or no job skills. The   National Skill Development Policy (2015) of the Ministry for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship indicates that on the demand side, there is an additional net requirement of 11.92 crore skilled manpower in twenty-four key sectors by 2022. On the supply side, it is estimated that broadly 11.9 crore fresh entrants to the workforce over the next seven years (ie, by 2022) will need to be skilled. In addition, 30.7 crore of existing farm and non-farm sector workforce will need to be skilled, up-skilled or re-skilled.  Women confront additional barriers, both social and economic, as a result of which their recorded participation in the workforce is limited to 27 per cent.  The Skill Policy (2015) states that ‘’skill development is a shared responsibility of both the Government as well as the industry.’’ It lays a lot of emphasis on demand-orientation and the role of the private sector.

 The project 'Creating Employment and Entrepreneurship Opportunities for Women in India’  represents a partnership between UNDP India, the IKEA Foundation and Xyntéo (a private sector advisory firm) with the ambitious goal to touch the lives of one million Indian women in 3 years through training, employment and entrepreneurial skills development, as well as development of a new model of public-private collaboration that can be adapted and replicated across India by the end of this ‘proof of concept’ phase in 2017.

This project will adopt a twin strategy. One element will focus on identifying opportunities for skilled personnel in the business sector and entrepreneurial opportunities in their supply chain. The second will focus on mobilisation and capacity building of women so that they avail of the opportunities arising from the business sector in a manner that is in harmony with their aspirations and needs. The project will be implemented in collaboration with Government, industries and implementing agencies who will be identified through due diligence process and will leverage on the existing Government programmes/schemes and existing platforms to reach the goal.

The project will be located in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra , Haryana and the NCR Region. Thus it is proposed to set up state-level offices in Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai/Pune and Gurgaon/Manesar. To the extent possible, these state offices will be located in the premises of the respective state-level skill missions.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Programme Manager of the UNDP/IKEA Project, the consultant has the responsibility for the following tasks:

   Main responsibilities

  • Explore in depth the state-level schemes and programmes, infrastructure and other public resources which could be leveraged for the project;
  • Analyse the local business environment, opportunities arising from the same and identify business enterprises for partnership under the project;
  • Identify strong implementing agencies (social mobilisation agencies, skill development organizations, placement agencies, certification agencies, entrepreneurship support organisations, financial institutions etc.) that need to be considered while firming up the state—level implementation arrangements. Prepare a list based on the assessment criteria and coordinate the implementation arrangements;
  • Collaborate with government and other stakeholders to develop a business model which can be scaled across other clusters in the state based on the findings of the pilots;
  • Support implementation through close working relationship with implementing agencies. Provide regular inputs on issues such as social mobilisation of women, curriculum development, certification, placement, and retention etc;
  • Conduct field visits and proactively identify implementation gaps at different levels and provide necessary inputs/feedback;
  • Any other related tasks consistent with the level of the post and/or assigned by the Programme Manager.

Deliverables:

  • Monthly submission of progress report against every activity in the workplan;
  • Mapping of IAs and selection of suitable IAs in the region alongwith assessment reports;
  • Submission of final report on the Government schemes which could be leveraged for the project along with the mechanism;
  • Submission of report on the local business environment (identified private companies, demand and needs from the private companies) and the opportunities available in the region.

Competencies

Functional Competencies:

Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise:

  • First hand exposure to different Govt programmes and schemes for skill development and entrepreneurship for women.
  • Good understanding of PPP modalities and their implementation.

Communication skills:

  • Good communication, interpersonal and presentation skills, with an ability to work in a multi-cultural environment.

Core Competencies:

  • Demonstrates/safeguards ethics and integrity;
  • Works as a team member;
  • Ability to work independently and under pressure;
  • Schedules activities to ensure optimum use of time and resources; monitors performance against development and other objectives and corrects deviations from the course;
  • Self-development, initiative-taking;
  • Willingness to travel extensively.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

  • Post-graduate Degree or equivalent in Business Management, Economics, Social Sciences, Development Studies or related fields.

Experience:

  • A minimum of 7-8 years’ experience in a senior level of responsibility at the state or national level in managing a development programme focussing on livelihood, skill development, enterprise development and/or related fields;
  • With relevant experience of 5-6 years in leading large scale livelihoods promotion/skill development/entrepreneurship development programmes and working with implementing agencies.

Language:

  • Fluency in English is essential. Knowledge of regional language(s) would be an asset.

Documents to be submitted:

  • Curriculum Vitae including experience in similar projects, and Names/Contact Details of 3 referees clearly specifying preferred state;
  • A Financial proposal indicating all inclusive per day consultancy rate.

Financial Matters:

  • Payments will be made on a monthly basis for the actual days worked on satisfactory completion of activities as agreed with the supervisor.

Note:

Please note that there will not be any fee payable for holidays and leaves taken, if any.

Cumulative analysis

The award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

  • Responsive;
  • Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.
  • Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points (70% of the total technical points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation;
  • Technical Criteria weight - 70%;
  • Financial Criteria weight - 30%.

Evaluation Criteria:

  • Relevant Qualification: 10 Marks;
  • Experience of working with women and girls:30 Marks;
  • Experience of working with goverenement. 30 Marks.

Notes:

  • Any kind of miscellaneous charges i.e. internet, phone, relocation charges  etc. would not be reimbursed;
  • Individuals working with institutions may also apply, contract would be issued in the name of institution for the specific services of individual;
  • Please note proposals without financial proposal will not be considered;
  • CV and Financial proposal can be clubbed in one file for uploading;
  • The consultants must bring his/her own computing equipment.

For any clarification please write to sandeep.sharma@undp.org