Background
In Moldova corruption is usually perceived as a phenomenon characteristic to public sector, in particular justice, health, education, police, central and local public administration. However, a more comprehensive approach to this phenomenon demonstrates the involvement and destructive effects of corruption on private sector as well.
Costs of corruption in private sector are huge and affect the quality of goods and services delivered to population, market competitiveness and economic rules, investment process, national public budget. Bribes paid by the economic agents for gaining public contracts determine a fraudulent increase of cost of such contracts and a decrease of quality. Public and business entities and political actors set illegal relations to gain public contracts and fund political parties. According to the Survey on Perception vs. Personal Experience with Corruption of Households and Business-people, conducted by UNDP in partnership with the Transparency International Moldova, the total value of bribes paid by businessmen in 2015 was estimated at MDL 381 mln.
Another research developed by the Transparency International-Moldova, The National Integrity System states that “a part of the private sector activates in shadow economy, in which tax evasion is committed, which makes it vulnerable to the control bodies. The private sector is poorly protected by the state. The ethical standards of small enterprises are low. The big enterprises usually do not apply norms of corporate management. The private sector is insufficiently involved in the activity of working groups/councils in the frame of state bodies, in monitoring economic and anti-corruption policies.”
The same tendency is demonstrated by several international ratings as well. The “Index of Economic Freedom 2016”, developed by the Heritage Foundation, ranks Moldova as 117th out of 178 countries with a score a score of 57,4, or 0,1 points less comparing to the last year Corruption was highlighted as one of the major challenges, while bureaucracy and lack of transparency often make opening and running a business costly and difficult. According to the Global Business Bribery Risk Index, developed by the non-governmental business association TRACE International, Moldova occupies the place 130 out of 197. The highest risk score (70) was attributed for the Interaction with Government, Moldova being placed in the group of countries with a high level of corruption risks.
In spite of the fact that national legislation sets certain rules on the responsibility of legal entities of private law for a rightful, honorable and adequate entrepreneurial activity, incriminates corruption offences in private sector, including criminal liability of legal persons for corruption offences, application of the legal framework is unsatisfactory.
The UN Convention on Corruption (UNCAC), ratified by the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova by the Law 158/06.07.2007, provides that each State Party shall take measures, in accordance with the fundamental principles of its domestic law, to prevent corruption involving the private sector, enhance accounting and auditing standards in the private sector and, where appropriate, provide effective, proportionate and dissuasive civil, administrative or criminal penalties for failure to comply with such measures. Moldova will be part of an external evaluation of this chapter in the next round of evaluation.
The Government of Moldova, acknowledging the need to fight corruption, adopted the National Anticorruption Strategy (NAS) in 2011. NAS is the main anticorruption policy document currently applied at the national level. The goal of the Strategy is to reduce the level of corruption in public and private sectors of the Republic of Moldova. National Anticorruption Center has a clear mandate to prevent corruption, including development of viable tools to prevent corruption in private sector. NAC is endorsed to take part in developing and improving legal framework on prevention and fighting corruption and corruption related offences, promoting international anticorruption standards.
UNDP, through its project Strengthening the corruption prevention and analysis functions of the National Anti-corruption Center (NAC) aims to strengthen the capacities of NAC in the analysis of corruption. To strengthen the capacities of NAC in the analysis of corruption in private sector , the project intends to contract an international consultant, who working in team with a national consultant, will assess the conformity of national anticorruption system, including legal, normative and policy framework, to UNCAC and other international standards related to corruption and integrity in private sector and will deliver concrete recommendations for preventing corruption and integrity management in private sector (at legislative, normative, institutional and policy level) and a sample Code of ethics for small and medium enterprises.
http://transparency.md/ro/cefacem/publicatii
http://www.heritage.org/index/ranking
https://www.traceinternational.org/trace-matrix
Parliamentary Decision 154, of 21 July 2011, to adopt the National Anti-Corruption Strategy 2011-2015. http://cna.md/sites/default/files/snadoc/national_anti-corruption_strategy_2011-2015_republic_of_moldova.pdf
Duties and Responsibilities
Main objective of the assignment is to strengthen the capacities of NAC in the analysis of corruption in private sector through developing a comprehensive assessment report on the conformity of national anticorruption system, including legal, normative and policy framework, to UNCAC and other international standards related to corruption and integrity in private sector and deliver concrete recommendations for preventing corruption and integrity management in private sector (at legislative, normative, institutional and policy level) and a sample Code of ethics for small and medium enterprises.
The assignment will include two missions (5 working days each). The first mission (tentatively scheduled to take place during the period of 2 - 6 May 2016) will involve the review of relevant background documents, national legislation, materials, and reports prior to and during the mission, focus group discussions and in-depth interviews involving officials from NAC, Anticorruption Prosecution, Ministry of Economy, Chamber of Commerce, Ministry of Finance, Competition Council, other relevant institutions. It will also include interviews and/or focus group discussions with key external partners, profile NGOs and associations of businessmen. The second mission, which will be undertaken at least one month after the first mission, will involve the presentation of the draft assessment report and recommendations, its validation with NAC and main stakeholders. Final assessment report and a sample Code of ethics for small and medium enterprises will be submitted to the NAC and UNDP after the second mission. The international consultant will work in a team with a national consultant.
The consultancy will have three major outputs:
- A comprehensive assessment report on the conformity of national anticorruption system, including legal, normative and policy framework, to UNCAC, Criminal Convention on Corruption and other international standards related to corruption and integrity in private sector;
- A set of concrete recommendations for preventing corruption and integrity management in private sector (at legislative, normative, institutional and policy level);
- A sample Code of ethics for small and medium enterprises
For detailed information, please refer to Terms of Reference at: http://www.undp.md/jobs/current_jobs/
Competencies
- Effective communication and strong analytical skills;
- Proven commitment to the core values of the United Nations; in particular, is respectful of differences of culture, gender, religion, ethnicity, nationality, language, age, HIV status, disability, and sexual orientation, or other status;
- Responsibility;
- Capacity of collaboration and teamwork;
- Flexibility, Punctuality.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
- Master’s Degree or equivalent (5 years of university studies) in Economics, Finance, Law or other relevant field.
Experience:
- At least five years of relevant experience in consultancy related to corruption and integrity standards in private sector;
- At least one year of experience in implementing similar missions in new EU Member or candidate states or CIS region;
- Knowledge of the UNCAC, international standards and effective mechanisms for identifying and reducing corruption in private sector demonstrated by previous assignments;
- Practical experience in corruption risks assessment and/or anti-corruption expertise and integrity standards in private sector;
- Experience of work in private sector regulatory institutions (fiscal, competition, etc.) and/or anticorruption agencies will be a strong advantage.
Languages:
- Knowledge of English;
- Knowledge of Romanian or Russian would be an advantage.
Initially, individual consultants will be long-listed based on the following minimum qualification criteria:
- Master’s Degree or equivalent (5 years of university studies) in Economics, Finance, Law or other relevant field;
- At least five years of relevant experience in consultancy related to corruption and integrity standards in private sector;
- At least one year of experience in implementing similar missions in new EU Member or candidate states or CIS region.
The long-listed individual consultants will be further evaluated by a Selection Committee based on the following short-listing criteria:
- Master’s Degree or equivalent (5 years of university studies) in Economics, Finance, Law or other relevant field - maximum 30 pts;
- At least 5 years of relevant experience in consultancy related to corruption and integrity standards in private sector max. - 45 pts;
- At least 1 year of experience in implementing similar missions in new EU Member or candidate states or CIS region - max.- 25 pts;
- Extensive demonstrated experience in developing analytical studies/reports related to corruption risks in private sector - max.- 30 pts;
The first three candidates who passed short-listing evaluation criteria with the best score shall be invited for interview and pass cumulative analysis.
Cumulative analysis
The award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:
- Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
- Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.
- Technical evaluation (max 300 points) – 60%;
- Financial evaluation (max 200 points) – 40%.
Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% score of the technical evaluation (at least 210 points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.
Interview:
- Knowledge of the UNCAC, international standards and effective mechanisms for identifying and reducing corruption in private sector demonstrated by previous assignments - max. 30 pts;
- Practical experience in corruption risks assessment and/or anti-corruption expertise and integrity standards in private sector - max. 45 pts;
- Experience of work in private sector regulatory institutions (fiscal, competition, etc.) and/or anticorruption agencies will be a strong advantage - max. 40 pts;
- Effective communication and strong analytical skills - max. 20 pts;
- Previous successful experience of working with UN agencies is an advantage - max. 10 pts.;
- Knowledge of English; knowledge of Romanian or Russian languages would be an advantage - max. 15 pts;
- Responsibility, capacity of collaboration and teamwork, flexibility, punctuality, initiative, creativity/ resourcefulness - max. 10 pts.