UNDP Jobs - 74630- Consultancy – Developing Guidance to Support Natio

Consultancy – Developing Guidance to Support National Governments in Developing Monitoring & Evaluation Systems for SDG Implementation, BPPS/SD

Location :

Home-based

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

15-Oct-2017

Application Deadline :

28-Sep-17 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

3 months

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

3 months

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

In September 2015, 193 Member States of the United Nations adopted a historic resolution committing themselves to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to be achieved by 2030. This coincided with the end of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) era that was geared to achieve 8 goals and 21 targets. The progress towards these goals and targets were assessed by tracking 61 indicators nationally, regionally and globally. In contrast, the 2030 Agenda has 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 169 targets and 232 proposed indicators for assessing progress. Thus, the SDGs are much more ambitious – they are universal, applicable for both developed and developing countries and transformational. They are driven by the moral and ethical principle of “leaving no-one behind” – both within and across countries.

The achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will require a mechanism by which the processes put in place, the commitments and investments made, the performance of relevant sectors, and any changes in the SDGs are regularly and transparently measured against stated targets and, if necessary, can lead to the revision of processes, policies, investments and practices in order for the SDGs to stay on track. As recognized in The Road to Dignity by 2030, national monitoring of the SDGs should build on existing national and local mechanisms and processes, with broad, multi-stakeholder participation. UNDP, in its role as co-lead of an inter-agency group mandated to support countries in producing national SDG reports, plays a central role in supporting countries with monitoring and reporting of SDG implementation. Moreover, as a leading development agency in many strategic priority areas such as multi-dimensional poverty, development effectiveness, governance and peacebuilding, UNDP is widely expected to play a significant and even leading role in supporting the statistical development of related indicators in the SDG framework, as well as the effective use of data in the implementation of sustainable development policies at national, regional and global levels.

Given the interconnectedness of the SDGs and scope of the indicators, their successful implementation will depend not only on the capacity of countries to collect, analyze, and utilize relevant disaggregated data, but to systematically track progress through a holistic, systems-wide approach. Complementary to its capacity building support to strengthen national statistical systems and promote inclusive and participatory data ecosystems, UNDP seeks to increasingly support countries in developing overarching monitoring and evaluation (M&E) frameworks for SDG implementation, with the aim of bringing cohesion across the different national systems in place to track specific components of the Goals. As opposed to disparate data collection and monitoring of the SDGS, this emphasis on integrated M&E systems, or the institutionalization of a series of policies, practices and processes, will ensure coherence in the collection, analysis, and use of M&E information to support countries in effectively implementing the SDGs. Strong M&E underscored by a whole of government approach will likewise ensure a holistic treatment of the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of sustainable development, which rest at the core of 2030 Agenda, by eliminating silos in the tracking, follow-up and review of SDG implementation efforts across sectors.

Overall, integrated national M&E frameworks for the SDGs will show how the investments and outputs associated with any one Goal interact with (i.e., affects and is affected by) the investments and outputs associated with the other Goals through complementarity or substitutability of investments to affect achievement of the overall SDGs and targets. Furthermore, the framework will show how the realization of the various outputs and outcomes are influenced by several conditioning factors such as governance and macroeconomic policies.

Duties and Responsibilities

Context: While national M&E frameworks for the SDGs should build on existing mechanisms and processes, avoiding the creation of parallel or duplicate systems, UNDP support to governments can help to promote certain quality standards with universal relevance. In particular, the following considerations should form the basis of the guidelines to promote M&E frameworks that can respond to the critical dimensions required for successful implementation of the SDGs: the enabling environment, including policies and multi-stakeholder platforms; delivering on commitments; the effectiveness of interventions; the consistency of planned interventions with initial targets; and exploration of policies and interventions with greater and better distributed outcomes.

Beyond overarching principles, the guidelines or set of guidance tools should outline the steps necessary in building the M&E systems – from a diagnosis of existing mechanisms in country, to the development of action plans and coordination of key stakeholders, to recommendations for the design of causal frameworks and indicator selection that demonstrate how processes, policies and investments influence the achievement of the SDGs. Guidelines for the action plan should likewise consider key areas for operationalization of M&E systems, including identification of influential champions; creation of strong incentives both to conduct M&E and to use the information; training in M&E and in using M&E information; structural arrangements to ensure M&E objectivity and quality; and a long-term commitment to institutionalizing M&E.

Scope of work covers:

Research and analysis: Desk review/mapping of best practices and case studies;
Liaising with country offices, relevant units within HQ, and UN and other partners supporting governments in their data collection, monitoring, and reporting for the SDGs, to understand the landscape of existing support, opportunities to fill national capacity gaps, and available expertise to inform the guidelines;
Based on assessments of the needs and contexts, proposing the format and content for final deliverable(s) in agreement with UNDP counterparts;
Production of guidelines to support governments in designing and implementing M&E systems for the SDGs;
In discussion with UNDP counterparts, possible support to development of external knowledge products and advocacy tools to complement the guidelines, elaborating on or providing momentum for driving central components of the process.

Expected outputs and deliverables (Dates are indicative.):

A - Research and analysis: collection of case studies and best practices (by 30 November 2017)

B - Proposed outline for the guidelines (by 31 October 2017)

C - Submission of final guidance document (by 31 December 2017)

Competencies

Functional Competencies include:

Excellent communications skills (written and oral)
Strong computer skills and experience in the use of web based communication and information tools.
Self-starter with excellent interpersonal and teamwork skills.
Proven ability to work in a multi-cultural setting and geographically dispersed teams with diversity of background and skills, while at the same time being capable of working independently to agreed work plans.
Flexibility and availability to travel to multiple countries.
Demonstrated organizational and planning skills, and ability to meet deadlines - and to manage multiple tasks effectively and efficiently.
Understanding of the evolving 2030 Agenda implementation and monitoring issues.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic qualifications:

Master’s degree (or equivalent degree/experience) in statistics, development economics or a relevant discipline is required.

Experience:

Minimum of seven years of relevant work experience in development monitoring, evaluation or measurement is required.
Experience in providing technical assistance and supporting the design and implementation of M&E systems for national development plans is required.
Knowledge of the 2030 Agenda follow-up and review architecture, the SDG indicator framework and international standards for official statistics is required.
Knowledge of statistical analytical tools and methods is required.
Work experience in international development agencies is an asset.

Language:

Fluency in written and spoken English is required;
Working knowledge of another UN language would be an asset

Application Procedure

The application package containing the following (to be uploaded as one file):

Online application with brief description of why the Offer considers her/himself the most suitable for the assignment; and
Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects and specifying the relevant assignment period (from/to), as well as the email and telephone contacts of at least three (3) professional references.
A two-page methodology on how the Offeror will conduct the work including a Work Plan and approach in delivering the required outputs within the assignment period.

Note: The above documents need to be scanned in one file and uploaded to the online application as one document.

Shortlisted candidates (ONLY) will be requested to submit a Financial Proposal.

The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount, and payment terms around the specific and measurable deliverables of the TOR. Payments are based upon output, i.e. upon delivery of the services specified in the TOR, and deliverables accepted and certified by the technical manager.
The financial proposal must be all-inclusive and take into account various expenses that will be incurred during the contract, including: the daily professional fee; cost of travel from the home base to the duty station and vice versa, where required; living allowances at the duty station; communications, utilities and consumables; life, health and any other insurance; risks and inconveniences related to work under hardship and hazardous conditions (e.g., personal security needs, etc.), when applicable; and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services under the contract.
This consultancy is a home-based assignment, therefore, there is no envisaged travel cost to join duty station/repatriation travel.
In the case of unforeseeable travel requested by UNDP, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between UNDP and Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed. In general, UNDP should not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources.
If the Offeror is employed by an organization/company/institution, and he/she expects his/her employer to charge a management fee in the process of releasing him/her to UNDP under a Reimbursable Loan Agreement (RLA), the Offeror must indicate at this point, and ensure that all such costs are duly incorporated in the financial proposal submitted to UNDP.
The Financial Proposal is to be emailed as per the instruction in the separate email that will be sent to shortlisted candidates.

Evaluation process

Applicants are reviewed based on Required Skills and Experience stated above and based on the technical evaluation criteria outlined below. Applicants will be evaluated based on cumulative scoring. When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

Being responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation where technical criteria weighs 70% and Financial criteria/ Proposal weighs 30%.

Technical evaluation - Total 70% (700 points):

Criteria 1. Experience in development monitoring, evaluation or measurement Weight = 15%; Maximum Points: 150;
Criteria 2. Experience in technical assistance at national level on development of M&E systems for national development plans and policies Weight = 15 %; Maximum Points: 150;
Criteria 3. Knowledge and experience of UN policies on follow-up and review for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and SDG indicators Weight = 15 %; Maximum Points: 150;
Criteria 4: Demonstrated excellent analytical, writing and editing skills Weight = 15 %; Maximum Points: 150
Criteria 5: Knowledge of statistical tools and methods Weight = 10 %; Maximum Points: 100

Candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% (490 points) of the maximum obtainable points for the technical criteria (70 points) shall be considered for the financial evaluation.

Financial evaluation - Total 30% (300 points)

The following formula will be used to evaluate financial proposal:

p = y (µ/z), where

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated

y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal

µ = price of the lowest priced proposal

z = price of the proposal being evaluated

Contract Award

Candidate obtaining the highest combined scores in the combined score of Technical and Financial evaluation will be considered technically qualified and will be offered to enter into contract with UNDP.

Institutional arrangement

The consultant will work under the guidance and direct supervision of Team Leader, Development Planning, Bureau for Policy and Programme Support and will be responsible for the fulfilment of the deliverables as specified above.
The Consultant will be responsible for providing her/his own laptop.

Payment modality

Payments are based upon output, i.e. upon delivery of the services specified above and deliverables accepted and upon certification of satisfactory completion by the manager.
The work week will be based on 35 hours, i.e. on a 7 hour working day, with core hours being between 9h00 and 18h00 daily.

Annexes (click on the hyperlink to access the documents):

Annex 1 - UNDP P-11 Form for ICs

Annex 2 - IC Contract Template

Annex 3 – IC General Terms and Conditions

Annex 4 – RLA Template

Any request for clarification must be sent by email to cpu.bids@undp.org

The UNDP Central Procurement Unit will respond by email and will send written copies of the response, including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry, to all applicants.