Background

BACKGROUND

These are the Terms of Reference for the UNDP-GEF Midterm Review (MTR) of the medium-sized project titled Appropriate Mitigations Actions in the Energy Generation and End-User Sectors in Sri Lanka (PIMS#5232) implemented through the Ministry of Power and Renewable Energy, which is to be undertaken in mid-2017. The project started on the 10th June 2015 and is in its second year of implementation. In line with the UNDP-GEF Guidance on MTRs, this MTR process was initiated before the submission of the second Project Implementation Report (PIR). The MTR process must follow the guidance outlined in the document Guidance For Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects.

The project has been designed to support appropriate climate change mitigation actions in the energy generation and end-use sectors as part of the initiatives to achieve the voluntary GHG mitigation targets of Sri Lanka. This will be achieved by;

• Develop a robust provincial inventory system that could be updated periodically and aggregated at the national level using web-based EnerGIS database management system;
• Develop a decision making tools such as MACC tools for analyzing and prioritizing a pipeline of bankable NAMAs that could be implemented;
• Leverage public, private and CSOs resources through the NAMA Implementing Entity for the implementation of bankable RE and EE NAMAs based on viable and cost effective business models to incentivize value chain actors to reduce supply risks and create demand;
• Develop a robust and transparent MRV system that are accurate, reliable and credible and avoid double accounting.

The project is funded by the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and operational from 2015 June to 2019 June. The project is being implemented by the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SLSEA) under the purview of the Ministry of Power & Renewable Energy (MoPRE) of Sri Lanka.

SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES   

The MTR will assess progress towards the achievement of the project objectives and outcomes as specified in the Project Document, and assess early signs of project success or failure with the goal of identifying the necessary changes to be made in order to set the project on-track to achieve its intended results. The MTR will also review the project’s strategy, its risks to sustainability.

The MTR team will consist of two independent consultants that will conduct the MTR - one team leader (with experience and exposure to projects and evaluations in other regions globally) and one team expert, usually from Sri Lanka. 

The MTR must provide evidence based information that is credible, reliable and useful. The MTR team will review all relevant sources of information including documents prepared during the preparation phase (i.e. PIF, UNDP Initiation Plan, UNDP Environmental & Social Safeguard Policy, the Project Document, project reports including Annual Project Review/PIRs, project budget revisions, lesson learned reports, national strategic and legal documents, and any other materials that the team considers useful for this evidence-based review). The MTR team will review the baseline GEF focal area Tracking Tool submitted to the GEF at CEO endorsement, and the midterm GEF focal area Tracking Tool that will be completed before the MTR field mission begins. 

The MTR team is expected to follow a collaborative and participatory approach ensuring close engagement with the Project Team, government counterparts (implementing entity), the UNDP Country Office, UNDP Regional Technical Advisers, and other key stakeholders.

Engagement of stakeholders is vital to a successful MTR. Stakeholder involvement should include interviews with stakeholders who have project responsibilities, including but not limited to; executing agencies, senior officials and task team/ component leaders, key experts and consultants in the subject area, Project Board, project stakeholders, academia, local government and CSOs, etc. Additionally, the MTR team is expected to conduct field missions within Sri Lanka. These field missions shall include North-western, Central, Southern and Uva provinces, to the project sites, as needed.

The MTR team will assess the following four categories of project progress and produce a draft and final MTR report. See the Guidance For Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects for details. The final MTR report should describe the full MTR approach taken and the rationale for the approach making explicit the underlying assumptions, challenges, strengths and weaknesses about the methods and approach of the review.

1. Project Strategy

Project Design;

• Review the problem addressed by the project and the underlying assumptions.  Review the effect of any incorrect assumptions or changes to the context to achieving the project results as outlined in the Project Document;
• Review the relevanced of the project strategy and assess whether it provides the most effective route towards expected/intended results;
• Review how the project addresses country priorities;
• Review decision-making processes.

Results Framework/Logframe;

• Undertake a critical analysis of the project’s logframe indicators and targets, assess how “SMART” the midterm and end-of-project targets are (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-bound), and suggest specific amendments/revisions to the targets and indicators as necessary;
• Examine if the project’s objectives and outcomes or components clear, practical, and feasible within its time frame;
• Examine if progress so far has led to, or could in the future catalyse beneficial development effects (i.e. income generation, gender equality and women’s empowerment, improved governance etc.) that should be included in the project results framework and monitored on an annual basis.

2. Progress Towards Results

Please refer to the detailed TOR attached.

In addition to the progress towards outcomes analysis;

• Compare and analyse the GEF Tracking Tool at the Baseline with the one completed right before the Midterm Review;
• Identify remaining barriers to achieving the project objective;
• By reviewing the aspects of the project that have already been successful, identify ways in which the project can further expand these benefits.

3. Project Implementation and Adaptive Management

Using the Guidance For Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects; assess the following categories of project progress;

• Management Arrangements;
• Work Planning;
• Finance and co-finance;
• Project-level monitoring and evaluation systems;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Reporting;
• Communications.

4. Sustainability

Assess overall risks to sustainability factors of the project in terms of the following four categories;

• Financial risks to sustainability;
• Socio-economic risks to sustainability;
• Institutional framework and governance risks to sustainability;
• Environmental risks to sustainability.

The MTR consultant/team will include a section in the MTR report setting out the MTR’s evidence-based conclusions, in light of the findings.

Additionally, the MTR consultant/team is expected to make recommendations to the Project Team. Recommendations should be succinct suggestions for critical intervention that are specific, measurable, achievable, and relevant. A recommendation table should be put in the report’s executive summary. The MTR consultant/team should make no more than 15 recommendations total.

Duties and Responsibilities

RESPONSIBILITIES

Expected Output/Deliverables

The MTR consultant/team shall prepare and submit;

• MTR Inception Report: MTR team clarifies objectives and methods of the Midterm Review no later than 2 weeks before the MTR mission. To be sent to the Commissioning Unit and project management. Approximate due date - 7th July 2017;
• Presentation: Initial Findings presented to project management and the Commissioning Unit at the end of the MTR mission. Approximate due date - 28th July 2017
• Draft Final Report: Full report with annexes within 3 weeks of the MTR mission. Approximate due date - 18th August 2017;
• Final Report*: Revised report with annexed audit trail detailing how all received comments have (and have not) been addressed in the final MTR report. To be sent to the Commissioning Unit within 1 week of receiving UNDP comments on draft. Approximate due date - 11th September 2017.

*The final MTR report must be in English. If applicable, the Commissioning Unit may choose to arrange for a translation of the report into a language more widely shared by national stakeholders.

Institutional Arrangement;

The principal responsibility for managing this MTR resides with the Commissioning Unit. The Commissioning Unit for this project’s MTR UNDP Country Office in Sri Lanka. The Commissioning Unit will contract the consultants and ensure the timely provision of field travel arrangements within the country for the MTR team. The Project Team will be responsible for liaising with the MTR team to provide all relevant documents, set up stakeholder interviews, and arrange field visits.

TIMEFRAME

The total duration of the MTR will be approximately 24 working days (over 12 weeks) starting 27th June 2017 and shall not exceed five months from when the consultant(s) are hired. The tentative MTR timeframe is as follows;

• 31st May 2017: Application closes;
• 14th June 2017: Selection of MTR Team;
• 27th June 2017: Prepare the MTR Team (handover of project documents);
• 28th – 3rd July 2017, 4 days: Document review and preparing MTR Inception Report;
• 4th – 7th July 2017, 4 days: Finalization and Validation of MTR Inception Report;
• 19th –28th July 2017, 8 days: MTR mission: stakeholder meetings, interviews, field visits;
• 28th July 2017: Mission wrap-up meeting & presentation of initial findings;
• By  18th August 2017,  5 days: Submission of draft report;
• 19th – 26th August 2017: No working days for consultants. Review of draft report by CO;
• 28th – 29th August 2017, 2 days: Incorporating audit trail on draft report/Finalization of MTR report;
• 4th – 8th September 2017: No working days for consultants. Preparation & Issue of Management Response;
• 11th September 2017, 1 day: Finalization of Report. Expected date of full MTR completion.

The date start of contract is 27th June 2017.

Competencies

CONSULTANT PROFILE   

A team of two independent consultants will conduct the MTR - one team leader (international consultant with experience and exposure to projects and evaluations in other regions globally) and one team expert, usually from the country of the project (Sri Lanka).  The consultants cannot have participated in the project preparation, formulation, and/or implementation (including the writing of the Project Document) and should not have a conflict of interest with project’s related activities.

The selection of the national consultant will be aimed at maximizing the overall “team” qualities in the following areas;

COMPETENCIES  

a  Technical competencies

• Understanding of climate change mitigation, renewable energy and energy efficiency in Sri Lanka;
• Competence in adaptive management, as applied to Climate Change Mitigation.

b.  Partnerships

• Builds strong relationships with clients, focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
• Proven ability to work in a complex environment with different national and international experts/consultants;
• Proven networking, team-building, organizational and communication skills.

c.  Results

• Experience with result-based management evaluation methodologies;
• Experience applying SMART targets and reconstructing or validating baseline scenarios;
• Project Evaluation/Review Experience.

Required Skills and Experience

QUALIFICATIONS

• Understanding of climate change mitigation, renewable energy and energy efficiency in Sri Lanka (15%);
• Experience with result-based management evaluation methodologies (15%);
• Experience applying SMART targets and reconstructing or validating baseline scenarios (10%);
• Competence in adaptive management, as applied to Climate Change Mitigation (10%);
• Experience working with the GEF or GEF-evaluations (10%);
• Work experience in relevant technical areas for at least 5 years (15%);
• Demonstrated understanding of issues related to gender and Climate Change Mitigation; experience in gender sensitive evaluation and analysis (5%);
• Excellent communication skills (5%);
• Demonstrable analytical skills (5%);
• A Master’s degree in Energy/Energy Technology/Environmental Engineering, or other closely related field (10%);
• Project evaluation/review experiences within United Nations system will be considered an asset.

Language requirements;

• Fluency in English.

Evaluation: Only those applications which are responsive and compliant will be evaluated.  Offers will be evaluated according to the Combined Scoring method – where the educational background and experience on similar assignments will be weighted at 70% and the financial proposal will weigh as 30% of the total scoring.  The applicant receiving the Highest Combined Score that has also accepted UNDP’s General Terms and Conditions will be awarded the contract.

HOW TO APPLY

• To apply please access UNDP Jobs site http://jobs.undp.org;
• The detailed TOR can be downloaded at https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9X5Q4oQCuflRGhsS2s1WkYyM1k/view?usp=sharing.

The recommended presentation of offer should include;

1. Completed Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided by UNDP;
2. Personal CV or a P11 Personal History form, indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least 2 professional references;
3. Brief description of approach to work/technical proposal of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment, and a proposed methodology on how they will approach and complete the assignment (max 1 page);
4. Applicants should submit their CV along with other required documents indicating the following reference ‘National Consultant – MTR of Appropriate Mitigation Actions in the Energy Generation and End-user Sectors in Sri Lanka’ by 31st May 2017. Group all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows uploading maximum one document. This should not include the financial proposal;
5. Applicants should duly fill the financial proposal and send as a separate email to procurement.lk@undp.org and The Position/Title - Financial Proposal should be entered as the Subject Line. Incomplete applications will be excluded from further consideration.

FINANCIAL PROPOSAL  

1. Financial proposals must be “All inclusive” and expressed in a Lump-sum for the total duration of the contract. The term “all inclusive” implies all costs  including professional fees, travel costs to and from duty station in Colombo,  living allowances, honorarium, board and lodging, internet, printing, stationary and any other foreseeable costs in this exercise;
2. Transport to field sites during the mission will be provided by the project;
3. The lump sum is fixed regardless of changes in the cost components;
4. No costs other than what has been indicated in the financial proposal will be paid or reimbursed to the consultant;
5. Please send as a separate email to procurement.lk@undp.org and The Position/Title - Financial Proposal should be entered as the Subject Line;
6. Applicants should duly fill the below financial proposal, supported by a breakdown of costs as per the template below;

• All-Inclusive Lump Sum Fee  LKR (cost of 1, 2, 3);
  1. All Inclusive Professional Fee for 24 days - LKR;
  2. All inclusive costs for field visits including hotel accommodation (3*** rating), incidentals, insurance, per diem etc. LKR;
  3. Any other costs: LKR.

• Amount in words: LKR.

For an Individual Contractor who is 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 travel 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 above. Medical examination is not a requirement for individuals on RLA contracts. 

PAYMENT FOR SERVICES

Payments will be based on invoices on achievement of agreed milestones i.e. upon delivery of the services specified in the TOR and certification of acceptance by the UNDP.

Payment Milestones will be as follows;

• 20% of payment upon approval of the MTR Inception Report;
• 50% upon submission of the draft MTR Report;
• 30% upon finalization of the MTR Report.