UNDP is the knowledge frontier organization for sustainable development in the UN Development System and serves as the integrator for collective action to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP supports governments and their partners to realign investments with the SDGs. The Sustainable Finance Hub brings together UNDP’s work on public and private finance, to better link all sources of finance for the SDGs. The Hub is an integral part of both the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) and the Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy (BERA), as part of the Global Policy Network (GPN), a network of field-based and global technical expertise across a wide range of knowledge domains and in support of the signature solutions and organizational capabilities envisioned in the Strategic Plan.

As per UNDP’s new Strategic Plan 2022-2025, UNDP aims to promote the investment of over $1 trillion of public expenditure and private capital in the Sustainable Development Goals and maximize development impact for country partners. With this goal, UNDP will mobilize governments, institutional and commercial investors, financial institutions, and enterprises alike to take a more integrated approach to sustainable investment, enabling and promoting the impact integrity of actual and realized investments to enhance transparency, disclosure, assurance, and optimize private and public sectors contributions to achieving the SDGs.

UNDP’s Sustainable Finance Hub has established five offers through which country offices can scale up their engagements with public and private partners towards the delivery of the SDGs. Ultimately these offers will contribute to the systemic transformation required for finance to deliver on the SDGs at scale in all countries. These services are interlinked and offered across the following areas: (i) Public Financing for the SDGs; (ii) Unlocking private capital and aligning business operations for the SDGs Private Investment for the SDGs; (iii) SDG Impact Management and Finance Tracking; (iv) Integrated National Financing Frameworks and Portfolios; and (v) the SDG Finance Academy. All offers provide country offices with access to tools and experts as well as being backed by training modules for staff and for our partners through the SDG Finance Academy.  

UNDP recognizes the importance of improved impact management for shifting the current systems of decision-making towards investment with positive impact on people and the planet. It does so by tracking actual and realized investments through impact measurement and management (IMM) practices, channelling sustainable finance solutions and creating a deep positive impact on development priorities at scale. With this purpose, UNDP has developed Impact Management and Finance Tracking solutions that enable the public and private sector to integrate coherent approaches, define common goals, and develop credible SDG-related tracking and reporting systems into their practices, improving accountability, disclosure, and transparency for sustainability and the SDGs.

The overall objective of the assignment for the Results Based Management Consultant is to support UNDP to contribute to UNDP’s moonshot of putting in place a roadmap to promote the investment of over $1 trillion of public expenditure and private capital in the Sustainable Development Goals by 2025. Specifically the RBM expert will work through a highly consultative and participatory process to develop: (i) a theory of change for the moonshot with clearly defined terms such in respect to ‘leverage’ and ‘alignment’; (ii) a results framework and associated plan for monitoring progress towards the moonshot including the identification of qualitative and quantitative indicators; data sets to draw from; role and responsibilities for different units; and digital platform for data management, using IT tracking mechanisms, in line with UNDP corporate systems and (iii) a capacity development plan to embed the $1 trillion theory of change, results framework and monitoring plan including a training module for UNDP Country Offices  It is expected that the monitoring framework for the $1 trillion moonshot will include a mix of qualitative and quantitative methodologies that enable UNDP to articulate a story of impact not just on finance and the SDGs but also on the lives of poor people.

The framework will clearly define the terms ‘alignment’ and ‘leverage’ in respect to the Sustainable Finance Hub approach and tracking system, including how this relates to the ongoing monitoring frameworks across the GPN and entire UNDP portfolio at the regional and country level.

Under the overall supervision of the UNDP Sustainable Finance Hub Chief of Programme, working daily with the SDG IMM advisor, and consulting regularly with UNDP Development Effectiveness Group and SDG IMM task team, the RBM expert will:

• In coordination with team leaders, internal and external partners, define how the Sustainable Finance Hub products and services and UNDP policy and programming more broadly are expected to contribute to the US$ 1 trillion of investments.
• Review initiatives in support of Sustainable Finance Hub, establish a baseline and develop a common framework for UNDP that shows how the different products and services contribute to the US$ 1 trillion of investments.
• Literature review including UNDP strategic plan and its Integrated Results and Resources framework, UNDP services offers (including but not limited to sustainable finance), existing materials articulating $1trillion moonshot, as well as literature from academic sources or other partners including international finance institutions, and the private sector as they relate to the leverage and alignment of SDG finance and to SDG Impact Management and Measurement.
• Consult with UNDP country teams, Regional Bureaus, regional finance specialists, global sustainable finance technical leads, Other Global Policy Network teams including Crisis Bureau and NCE team, as well as units overseeing UNDP corporate monitoring systems to determine options for the results framework (identify data sets and sources for data collection, quality control and reporting frequency and mechanisms)
• Consult with external partners and review approaches and methodologies for monitoring, leverage and alignment from key public and private sector partners including MDBs for tracking outcomes, measuring impact as well as financial co-financing methods of finance tracking
• Design a theory of change for the USD 1 trillion moonshot with clearly defined terms and principles on the nature of this contribution, in respect to ‘leverage’ and ‘alignment’ of sustainable finance (accounting/attribution/contribution/informed vs direct investment, annual vs cumulative, by public/private investments, by region/country, by project vs portfolio, by SDGs)
• Design a system change plan to assess the impact of leveraged and aligned finance, aggregating quantitative and qualitative data (including story telling), to track, measure and manage the impact of UNDP’s contributions to leverage US$ 1 trillion of public and private sector investment to the SDGs.
• Design a results framework for tracking UNDP’s contribution to the moonshot considering problem and solution tree, theory of change, assessment questions, breakdown outcomes, outputs, key performance indicators, experimental and non-experimental methods, sample size and power calculation.
• Design a monitoring plan on sustainable finance to be implemented across the UNDP portfolios including guidelines, tools, reporting templates, monitoring data collection forms building on UNDP Integrated Results and Resources Framework (IRRF) and the country offices reporting systems.
• An associated capacity development plan for operationalizing the results framework and monitoring plan at global, regional, and country levels will also be drafted with clear roles and responsibilities.
• Recommend an appropriate digital platform for data management, using IT tracking mechanisms, will also be identified lined as appropriate to UNDP corporate systems.
• Organize workshops to further refine the results framework and the monitoring plan with UNDP teams
• Develop a capacity building plan and supply one module and presentation for SFH and UNDP Country offices in collaboration with the SDG Academy.

Criteria

Weight

Max. Points - 1000

Technical

• Academic qualifications:

10%

100

Masters-level qualifications in international affairs, development, business administration, economics, or related fields

10%

100

• Professional experience:

45%

450

At least 7 (seven) years of professional experience at managerial level in knowledge-management, monitoring and evaluation of complex development programmes or projects in/with a public administration and/or international organization.

10%

100

Experience in Results-Based Management (RBM) and implementation of the tools/ systems/ processes for gathering, reporting, and analyzing performance data of programme implementation, including overall development and harmonization of RBM approaches for all project components with a view to assess their effectiveness, learn from past experience, and improve the development results of future policies, strategies, programmes, and projects.*

10%

100

Experience in evidence gathering protocols and development of Performance Monitoring Plans (PMP) and oversight of their implementation and periodic revision, including design and monitoring of data collection forms for project staff and contracted authorities.*

5%

50

Demonstrated experience in designing theories of change and assessing development programmes or projects

5%

50

Demonstrated experience in working with multi-level, multi-stakeholder projects operating at the global, regional, and country level, including the engagement of partners and other agencies experts and host country staff in planning of monitoring activities *

5%

50

Statistical skills for analyzing data and ensuring programme design is statistically sound is an asset

3%

30

IT affinity and demonstrated experience of working with MS Excel and/or statistical software packages, Visio, survey tools, digital collaboration tool is an asset

2%

20

Methodology (evaluation of the brief approach on how the candidate would approach and conduct the activities (shall be uploaded by the applicant during online application)

5%

50**

• Competencies

15%

150

Ability to communicate technically complex information clearly and concisely is an asset*

5%

50**

Stakeholder engagement, facilitation, and communication skills is an asset*

3%

30**

Fluency in written and spoken English is required*

5%

50**

Knowledge of other UN languages is an advantage, but not a requirement

2%

20

Financial

30%

300

Unit price as per Financial Proposal

30%

300

Degree of compliance of the candidate with the required competence

Degree of compliance Supporting Evidence Scoring scale (% from maximum available score for the given sub-criteria)

% from maximum available score for the given criteria

Excellent

Excellent evidence of ability to exceed contract requirements

80-100%

Good

Good evidence of ability to exceed contract requirements

60-80%

Satisfactory

Satisfactory evidence of ability to support contract requirements

40-60%

Poor

Marginally acceptable or weak evidence of ability to comply with contract requirements

10- 40%

Very poor

Lack of evidence to demonstrate ability to comply with contract requirements

0-10%

No submission

Information has not been submitted or is unacceptable

0%