UNDP Jobs - 69196- International consultant for guiding the implement

International consultant for guiding the implementation of Randomized Control Trial on tax compliance in the Republic of Moldova

Location :

Chisinau, MOLDOVA

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

21-Oct-2016

Application Deadline :

06-Nov-16 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

20 working days, during the period November, 2016 – July, 2017

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

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

The phenomenon of informal economy is wide-spread in many parts of the world. In Moldova it often takes form of hidden wages, when employees are paid only part of the wage formally and the rest “in envelope”, avoiding taxes. As a result, the public budget, as well as pensions and health insurance funds receive less funding while many employees are running huge health care and social insurance risks.

According to the Ministry of Labour, Social Protection and Family, 57% of employed population have not had their salaries reported in full, and the value of informal salaries has increased by 6% annually[1]. One of the main determinants for undeclared wages among employees are: dissatisfaction with the low quality of public goods and services, such as quality of roads infrastructure, social protection system, public institutions, and health care system. One of the major factor affecting under-reported salaries is low transparency of public spending: only 11.4% of the population is highly informed about how the public money is spent, while 79.4% consider that they are poorly informed[2].

To overcome this phenomenon, the National Tax Office has started to send out targeted letters to companies reminding them of their duty to pay taxes and wages in full. Our hypothesis is that these letters may achieve higher results if they use behavioral insights: “social recognition and reciprocity”, and “social norms”. In order to test this hypothesis, UNDP Moldova together with the National Tax Office intends to carry out a Randomized Control Trial (RCT) to assess the effectiveness of different types of letters on the formal salaries reported by businesses.

Thus, additionally to the standard letter, two more types of letters will be sent out by the National Tax Office to other two groups of businesses: one highlighting that most of the businesses in the sector pay much higher salaries, and consequently, higher taxes, and another one promising to award a recognition certificate in case reported salaries increase by certain percent. This experiment will help the UNDP team on the ground assess and measure the impact of this approach and will inform national tax policy at scale to formalize wages, protect workers’ rights and improve tax collection.

Therefore, UNDP Moldova is looking for an international consultant who would guide the MiLab team in the implementation of the RCT, ensuring a correct and valid trial.

[1] http://www.mmpsf.gov.md/ro/content/tranzitia-moldovei-la-economia-formala

[2] http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---europe/---ro-geneva/---sro-budapest/documents/publication/wcms_457542.pdf

Duties and Responsibilities

This activity is part of an effort to apply rigorous methods, such as RCT, for policy evaluation in the Republic of Moldova. Besides, UNDP Moldova and its MiLab project are to looking to build its capacity for policy evaluations using RCTs and sees this project as contributing to that goal.

In order to achieve these objectives, the Consultant will have the following responsibilities:

Guide and provide advice to the UNDP Moldova team on the overall design of the trial;

Advise on randomization, sample size, power calculation, and econometric model specification;
Review the intervention letters;
Provide ad-hoc guidance and support as needed;
Support and guide data analysis;
Validate the trial;

It is expected that the support will be offered remotely. Unforeseen travel will be discussed upon need.

Competencies

Competencies:

In-depth knowledge of advanced econometric methods for policy evaluation;
Advanced experience in quantitative data analysis;
Advanced user of Stata;
Strong analytical skills;
Proven commitment to the core values of the United Nations, in particular, respecting differences in culture, gender, religion, ethnicity, nationality, language, age, HIV status, disability, and sexual orientation, or other status.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualifications:

Master degree (PhD desirable) in economics, econometrics, social sciences, finance, or related discipline.

Years of experience:

At least 5 years of relevant academic or professional experience in the field of economics / econometrics/ public policy / social sciences / or related;
At least 3 research projects proving experience in conducting randomized control trials, as well as experience of working in the field. Links or copies of relevant published articles, reports, or other written proof of authoring or co-authoring such research must be provided;
Research projects conducted in the field of tax policy will be an asset (copies or links to the articles or reports must be provided);
Proven experience of econometric modelling and data analysis;

Language: English Language, spoken and written