Background

The Government of Albania is reforming its public service delivery through “Innovation against Corruption: Building a Citizen Centric Service Delivery Model in Albania” (ISDA) initiative. This reform led by the Minister of State for Innovation and Public Administration (MIPA) represents the Government’s determination to improve service access and quality for citizens and businesses and increase efficiency in the Albanian public administration as a means to strengthen the rule of law and fight corruption, foster a customer-care culture, strengthen compliance with the EU integration agenda, and align with commitments under Southeastern Europe regional initiatives and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The pillars of this reform are: (i) Front Office (FO) – Back Office (BO) separation and centralized service delivery; (ii) Re-engineering of service processes through standardization and simplification; (iii) Digitization and online services; and (iv) Performance monitoring and citizen feedback.

As part of the reform, in October 2014, ADISA, the Agency for the Delivery of Integrated Services in Albania, was established to manage the centralized public service delivery to the citizens. Its expanded mandate includes the implementation of the separation of the front office (FO) from the back office (BO) in all central government institutions. This process entails the overhaul of public service delivery in Albania with the establishment of service standards for the citizens and performance monitoring for service window clerks, based on a customer-care culture. Key institutional partners include also the Delivery Unit at the Prime Minister’s Office (DU), and the National Agency for Information Society (AKSHI).

The reform program is supported by World Bank financing as well as donor assistance including the EU, Government of Italy, Government of Austria and UNDP.

Since mid-2014, UN Albania has provided support through provision of technical assistance, which has been structured within a donor pool fund project format under the name of “Support for Innovation against Corruption: Building a Citizen Centric Service Delivery Model in Albania (ISDA Support Project)”.

The Project focuses on:

  • Long-term public service reform policy document;
  • Support for the design of the Front Office - Back Office separation model and its piloting;
  • Establishment of service delivery standards;
  • Institutional capacity building for ADISA to implement the service delivery reform;
  • Technical assistance for MIPA in overall reform management and monitoring.

The current pool fund contributors are the Government of Italy, Government of Austria, UN and UNDP. Implementation follows UNDP’s national implementation modality, with MIPA in the leadership, while UNDP provides project and financial management support in accordance with UNDP’s regulations and rules for project management. In this respect, UNDP’s support includes engagement of expertise identified as necessary by the MIPA and in accordance with the project’s agreed objectives and plan of activities.

As part of supporting the adoption of best practices in ensuring standardized workflows resulting in effective and efficient service delivery, the project is planning to assist the reform program in looking at the opportunities offered by a new promising technology, the blockchain, for one of the most problematic sectors - the land and property system. The blockchain technology is already used for land management purposes in a few countries like Georgia or Sweden.

With the actual system it is difficult and costly to keep track of the many property transactions that accumulate over time. Furthermore, for buyers and sellers, information about the ownership of properties can only be accessed or updated via the central register held by the public sector in Albania. But sometimes information in the land registry can be missing, referring to registrations by the actual system, because someone has failed to do what is required during the manual registration. Without properly registered records, governments and businesses would not be able to identify counterparts (citizens) from whom they need to buy land and/or property in order to invest. Besides that sometimes fraudsters, by exploiting our system shortcomings, may use forged documents to transfer someone else’s property into their own name or raise a mortgage on someone else’s property.

As a consequence, property fraud is not easily detected so the responsibility falls on all parties, including land owners, the government, mortgage lenders, and so forth. Unclear ownership, therefore, has several negative effects on both citizens and the economy as a whole. Aside from the challenge to make people more aware of the benefits of registration is the second challenge of getting people comfortable with and trustful of the registration process itself.

In Albania, registration involves several procedures, is time consuming, and often costs a fair amount of money. Also it is noted that land is one of the most corrupt sectors. Blockchain technology, through the creation of a distributed database holding a public ledger of all transactions, each with a time stamp, presents an innovative solution to address a series of problems with the land / property registry in Albania.

Objective of the assignment

 The Consultant will be hired to support MIPA in preparing a roadmap on the usage of blockchain for Albania’s land / property registry.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Consultant will work under the overall guidance and management of MIPA and will collaborate closely with ZRPP (Immovable Property Registration Office), ADISA and AKSHI.

During the engagement period, the expert shall perform the following tasks:

  • Present a best-practices overview on blockchain usage for land registry in EU, other European countries as well internationally;
  • Analyze the current land registry situation in Albania and identify issues that can be addressed by the blockchain technology;
  • Prepare a roadmap for blockchain implementation in Albania, inclusive of policy considerations, timeline, budget, staffing, milestones and output indicators for effective monitoring;
  • Prepare the terms of reference and assist in the preparation of standard bidding documents for the required expertise to establish Albania’s blockchain land registry;
  • Assist in the draft contract formulation from the technology perspective.

Expected Deliverables

  • Best practices report to be delivered within twenty (20) days from contract signature, in English language, in electronic format and one (1) hard copy;
  • Analysis report and blockchain case for Albania to be delivered within forty (40) days from contract signature, in English and Albanian, in electronic format and one (1) hard copy for each language;
  • Roadmap for blockchain implementation in Albania, inclusive of:
    • Policy;
    • Timeline;
    • Staffing;
    • Budget;
    • Milestones and output indicators for effective monitoring

to be delivered within eighty (80) days from contract signature, in English and Albanian, in electronic format and one (1) hard copy for each language;

  • ToRs as part of the standard bidding documents to be delivered within one hundred and ten (110) days from contract signature, in English and Albanian, in electronic format and one (1) hard copy for each language;
  • A final report highlighting the expert’s work, outputs, challenges, and recommendations for the next steps to be delivered within one hundred and twenty (120) days from contract signature, in English language, in electronic format and one (1) hard copy.

Competencies

Core competencies and values:

  • Demonstrates integrity and fairness by modeling UN values and ethical standards;
  • Demonstrates professional competence and is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results;
  • Display cultural, gender, nationality, religion and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Functional competencies:

  • Ability to work well independently and in teams, and to deliver on schedule;
  • Excellent problem solving and organizational skills;
  • Ability to consult and negotiate with a broad range of government partners;
  • Strong inter-personal and ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

  • Advanced degree in Mathematics, Computer Science Engineering (five-year studies), or equivalent degrees.

Work experience:

  • At least five (5) years of experience in projects-based on advanced mathematical and ICT backgrounds (experience in planning and implementing document management/archives strategies and systems, including digital archiving will be an advantage). Knowledge and experience of Blockchain Technology is required.
  • Experience in project management on similar assignments, and at least one technical assistance project engagement as Team Leader;
  • Knowledge of the land registration system in Albania is a plus.

Language requirement:

  • Fluent in Albanian and English, including excellent report writing and presentation skills in both languages.

 

Evaluation procedure:

Applicants will be screened against qualifications and the competencies specified above. UNDP applies the ‘Best value for money’ approach - the final selection will be based on the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal. Only the highest ranked candidates who would be found qualified for the job will be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

The award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

a) Responsive, and

b) Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

Individual consultant will be evaluated based on a cumulative analysis taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal.

Technical Criteria - 70% of total evaluation – max points: 70

  • Criteria A: Compliant educational background – max points: 20
  • Criteria B: Relevant professional experience – max points: 30
  • Criteria C: Assignment specific knowledge – max points: 20.

Financial Criteria - 30% of total evaluation – max points: 30.

 

Application Procedure

Interested applicants are advised to carefully study all sections of this ToRs and ensure that they meet the general requirements as well as specific qualifications described. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please make sure you have provided all requested materials.

The application should contain:

  • Cover letter explaining why you are the most suitable candidate for the advertised position. Please paste the letter into the "Resume and Motivation" section of the electronic application.
  • Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability-please fill in the attached form...http://www.un.org.al/doc/PSU_%20Individual%20Contract_Letter%20to%20UNDP.docx
  • Filled P11 form including past experience in similar projects and contact details of referees, please upload the P11 instead of your CV. Download here.
  • Financial Proposal in ALL* - specifying a total lump sum in Albanian Lek  for the tasks specified in this announcement.  The attached template may be used - http://www.un.org.al/doc/Financial%20Offer%20template.doc Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant during the contract period (e.g. fee and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services).
  • Copy of Diplomas and copy of Passport.

*Kindly note that Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability and Financial Proposal are two separate documents and should be both part of your application.

How to Submit the Application:

To submit your application online, please follow the steps below:

  • Download and complete the UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs);
  • Merge your UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs), Financial Proposal Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability and cover letter into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded;
  • Click on the Job Title (job vacancy announcement);
  • Click “Apply Now” button, fill in necessary information on the first page, and then click “Submit Application;”
  • Upload your application/single file as indicated above with the merged documents (underlined above);
  • You will receive an automatic response to your email confirming receipt of your application by the system.

Due to large number of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process.

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.