Emplois au PNUD - 60737- National Research Consultant

National Research Consultant - UNDP Parliamentary Support Project (Preparatory Phase) - (Open to Sri Lanka Nationals Only)

Lieu :

Colombo, SRI LANKA

Type de contrat :

Individual Contract

Date de commencement :

Date limite de candidature :

25-Oct-15 (Minuit New York, États-Unis)

Niveau du poste :

National Consultant

Durée du contrat initial

3 months

Langues requises :

Anglais

Durée prévue de la mission :

3 months, with the possibility of extension for an additional 1-3 months

Le PNUD s’engage à recruter un personnel divers en termes de genre, de nationalité et de culture. Nous encourageons de même les personnes issues des minorités ethniques, des communautés autochtones ou handicapées à postuler. Toutes les candidatures seront traitées dans la plus stricte confidentialité. Le PNUD ne tolère pas l’exploitation et / ou les atteintes sexuelles, ni aucune forme de harcèlement, y compris le harcèlement sexuel, et / ou toutes formes de discrimination. Tous/tes les candidats/tes selectectionnes /ées devront ainsi se soumettre à de rigoureuses vérifications relatives aux références fournies ainsi qu’à leurs antécédents.

Historique

As the most representative and highest legislative body in the country, Parliament is the first state institution that the Constitution of Sri Lanka identifies. Chapter I, Article 3 of the Constitution speaks about “the Sovereignty of the People” and specifically states in Article 4 a) that “the legislative power of the People shall be exercised by Parliament, consisting of elected representatives of the People and by the People at a Referendum”. As such, Parliament has a pivotal role in the democratic governance of the country with wide ranging duties and responsibilities in legislative, oversight and representative functions. The capacity of Parliament to fulfill its constitutional mandate needs to be strengthened in order to achieve the vision and objectives of a vibrant democracy, economic prosperity, maintaining peace, upholding the rule of law and human rights, advancing gender equality and youth empowerment, and promoting social justice in the country. Following the Parliamentary elections in August 2015, the Government of Sri Lanka has expressed a strong desire to strengthen the effectiveness of Parliament through improved performance of its representative, legislative and oversight functions in response to the growing expectations of people for more efficient and effective governance and better outcomes from their representatives.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Sri Lanka supports inclusive and effective democratic governance by advocating, advising, fostering impartial spaces for dialogue, facilitating consensus, and supporting the strengthening of institutions. UNDP provided technical assistance to the Parliament of Sri Lanka through a project implemented from 2005-2008 that was preceded by a preparatory phase from 2003-2004. The project was comprehensive in scope and aimed to deliver five outputs ranging from strengthening and reorganizing the committee system for improved performance of legislative and oversight functions; revamping the structure and organization of the Secretariat to provide a clear differentiation between administrative, legislative and technical support areas; upgrading human resources according to a plan that was to be developed as part of the project and subsequently approved; and supporting provision of state-of-the-art parliamentary ICT services to assist MPs, staff, the media and civil society based on development of a long-term strategy to enhance public awareness, parliamentary outreach and Parliament’s involvement and interaction with all sectors of society. Whilst a number of positive project results were achieved, the project could not fully achieve its ambitious objectives given the challenging political context combined with the limited financial and other resources available at the time.

Following the August 2015 parliamentary elections, and on the request of the Parliament, UNDP provided international technical expertise for an orientation programme for the 63 new MPs of the 8th Parliament. Following the orientation seminar, the Parliament’s leadership made a formal request to UNDP to consider initiating, in partnership with the Parliament, a fully-fledged programme aimed at strengthening the institution and developing its internal capacities. Additionally, UNDP, which is perceived as a traditional and neutral development partner, has been requested to “play a pivotal role in coordinating parliamentary support activities of all donors and mapping out a common parliamentary support strategy.”

Given the above background, and building on its previous support to Parliament, UNDP is in the process of launching a preparatory phase of assistance to Parliament with the objective of: 1) formulating a Parliamentary Development Support strategy and project document for long-term technical assistance to Parliament; 2) providing coordination support for liaising between Parliament, UNDP, other development partners and other stakeholders for development of a coordinated strategy of support to Parliament; and 3) providing research and evidence-based policy advice and technical support for the immediate/priority legislative, oversight and representation activities of Parliament.

Scope and Objectives

UNDP Sri Lanka is seeking the immediate services of a National Research Consultant, to work in close consultation with a National Lead Consultant for the above-mentioned preparatory phase of its Parliamentary Development Support Project.

Management Arrangements

The National Research Consultant will be based in the Parliament building and will report to the National Lead Consultant (UNDP Parliamentary Support Project - Preparatory Phase) on substantive aspects of his/her deliverables, and to UNDP’s Policy Specialist (Democratic Governance) for contractual purposes.

Devoirs et responsabilités

Under the guidance of the National Lead Consultant, provide research and other substantive inputs for the formulation of a Parliamentary Development Support strategy and project document for long-term technical assistance to Parliament, including in-depth research and analysis of Sri Lankan and comparative experiences relating to legal and institutional reforms, conduct of context and institutional assessments, support for mapping parliamentary processes, updating information material, conducting interviews and internal surveys, etc.;
Support the National Lead Consultant to plan, manage and effectively execute project activities, including organizing consultations, meetings, etc., and preparing reports of proceedings and outcomes, etc., as required;
Support the National Lead Consultant to effectively liaise and coordinate between Parliament, UNDP, other development partners and other stakeholders, as required, to meet the objectives of the preparatory phase of assistance to Parliament;
Under the guidance of the National Lead Consultant, provide research support and evidence-based policy and other substantive inputs as well as administrative support to the Secretary General for the immediate/priority legislative, oversight and representative activities of Parliament;

Expected Outputs:

Research and other substantive inputs provided for formulation of a Parliamentary Development Support strategy and project document for long-term technical assistance;
Assistance provided for the effective execution of project activities and achievement of outputs;
Administrative inputs provided for effective coordination and collaboration between Parliament, UNDP, other development partners and other stakeholders;
Research and other substantive inputs as well as administrative support provided to assist the Secretary General in meeting the immediate priorities of Parliament;

Compétences

Functional Competencies:

Good research and analytical skills. Ability to synthesize large amounts of information, and provide structured and analytical research;
A fair understanding of constitutional systems, the legislative, oversight and representative roles and functions of Parliament as well as the system of governance in Sri Lanka;
Good oral and interpersonal skills to communicate with the parliamentary leadership and staff as well as a range of stakeholders;
Good organizational and administrative skills;
Ability to maintain confidentiality of information and records;
Demonstrates good judgment;
A team player;
Good working knowledge of word-processing and internet software applications; and good electronic research skills;

Corporate competences:

Sensitivity to cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age differences;
Fulfills all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment;
Demonstrates consistency in upholding and promoting the values of the UN in actions and decisions.

Qualifications et expériences requises

Education:

Degree or equivalent in political science, law, development studies, public administration or other relevant field.

Experience:

At least 1 year’s work experience carrying out policy research and/or programming functions.

Language:

Very good English language skills, oral and written;
Working knowledge of Sinhala and/or Tamil.

Financial Proposal

All Inclusive Lump Sum Fee: LKR (_______________________________________)

Amount in words: ( Rs._____________________________________________________)

Note: Payments will be based on invoices on achievement of agreed milestones, i.e., upon delivery of the services specified in the TOR and certification by the UNDP. The applicant must factor in all possible costs in his/her “All Inclusive Lump Sum Fee” financial proposal including his/her consultancy and professional fee, communication costs such as telephone and internet usage and printing costs (outside of that provided at the Parliament premises), return travel from home to office, ad-hoc costs, stationery costs, and any other foreseeable costs in this exercise. No costs other than what has been indicated in the financial proposal will be paid or reimbursed to the consultant.

For an Individual Contractor who is of 62 years of age or older, and on an assignment requiring travel, be it for the purpose of arriving at the duty station or as an integral duty required under the TOR, a full medical examination and statement of fitness to work must be provided. Such medical examination costs must be factored in to the financial proposal referred to above.

Payment of Services

Instalment 1 – 30% upon below deliverables:

Research and other substantive inputs provided for formulation of initial stages of a parliamentary development support strategy and project document for long-term technical assistance;
Inputs provided to the effective execution of project activities and achievement of outputs demarcated for 1st month;
Inputs provided for the effective coordination and collaboration between Parliament, UNDP, other development partners and other stakeholders during 1st month;
Research and other substantive inputs as well as administrative support demarcated for 1st month provided to the Secretary General in meeting the immediate priorities of Parliament.

Instalment 2 – 30% upon below deliverables:

Research and other substantive inputs provided for formulation of mid-stages of a parliamentary development support strategy and project document for long-term technical assistance;
Inputs provided to the effective execution of project activities and achievement of outputs demarcated for 2nd month;
Inputs provided for the effective coordination and collaboration between Parliament, UNDP, other development partners and other stakeholders during 2nd month;
Research and other substantive inputs as well as administrative support demarcated for 2nd month provided to the Secretary General in meeting the immediate priorities of Parliament.

Instalment 3 – 40% upon below deliverables:

Research and other substantive inputs provided for formulation of latter stages of a parliamentary development support strategy and project document for long-term technical assistance;
Inputs provided to the effective execution of project activities and achievement of outputs demarcated for 3rd month;
Inputs provided for the effective coordination and collaboration between Parliament, UNDP, other development partners and other stakeholders during 3rd month;
Research and other substantive inputs as well as administrative support demarcated for 3rd month provided to the Secretary General in meeting the immediate priorities of Parliament.

How to Apply:

The application should contain:

An updated CV which includes qualifications, competencies, relevant experience and contact details of 2 professional referees who can certify your competencies, professionalism, quality of writing and overall suitability to this TOR;
Individual consultants will be evaluated based on a combination of factors, including the credentials on offer, brief interview and the offer which provides the best value for money for UNDP;
Please duly fill the financial proposal as mentioned above and paste below the last page of your CV, and upload them as a single document. The website cannot upload multiple documents.

Note:

Please group all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document.

Qualified women and members of minorities are encouraged to apply.

Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please make sure you have provided all requested materials.