UNDP Jobs - 81705- Consultant-Local Economic Development Expert

Consultant-Local Economic Development Expert

Location :

home based

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

19-Nov-2018

Application Deadline :

02-Nov-18 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

130 days

Languages Required :

English French Spanish

Expected Duration of Assignment :

Twelve (12) months on retainer basis

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

UNDP promotes Local Economic Development (LED) in territories where considered a priority by the national and territorial stakeholders. A wide network of international centres of excellence (e.g. organisations, associations, universities, research institutes, etc.) and local governments articulate their support to LED processes through the Initiative and its framework programmes in partner countries. While LED is rooted in a decades-long history of theory and practice in both developed and developing countries, never has there been a more pressing demand to fully explore and understand different models of LED and scale up best practices. This is reflected in growing international interest in LED as a vehicle for facilitating the localization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Indeed, since the LED approach boosts a strategic, integrated and transversal perspective emanating from locally driven partnerships, it is potentially relevant to most SDGs, and constitutes a potential framework for channelling their overall implementation at the local level, connecting different SDGs objectives and principles, and fostering linkages and complementarities as part of a coherent, multidimensional setting.

In this context, ART is a member of the Executive Committee of the World Forum of Local Economic Development, an ongoing process that culminates every two years with the celebration of a global event. Since 2011, the Forum is offered as a platform to critically review experiences and assumptions that dominate LED discourse and practices. The Forum provides a space for a critical reflection and aims at promoting creative discussions on how can we do things differently in order to better respond to the key challenges that are presented in the new SDGs and the related 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Forum’s process is jointly promoted by UNDP together with United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), the Andalusian Fund of Municipalities for International Solidarity (FAMSI), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Organization of Regions United (ORU FOGAR), with the support of the Brazilian Service of Support for Micro and Small Enterprises (SEBRAE), Municipality of Turin and Metropolitan City of Turin and the Government of Cabo Verde.

After the celebration of the 4th edition of the World Forum in Praia, Cabo Verde, in October 2017, the forum process is poised to continue in 2018 and 2019 and will include several thematic and regional meetings before the 5th world edition to be celebrated in Cordoba, Argentina in the fall 2019. Meantime, after the Cabo Verde’s Forum a number of countries have also embarked on a series of processes to elaborate and adopt LED national strategies and are looking for concrete tools, instruments and other experiences that have proven to be successful to tap into the endogenous potential of a territory to promote and achieve a more sustainable, inclusive and environmental friendly economic development.

In order to continue playing a leading role in the process of the World Forum of LED and be able to respond to continuous LED related advisory requests, UNDP is looking for a senior expert that shall provide technical expertise and advisory services to UNDP country programmes in developing and implementing LED strategies and frameworks at national and subnational levels, adopting the most suitable LED tools and linking those experiences to the World Forum process.

Duties and Responsibilities

The consultant will work under the direct supervision of the ART Initiative coordinator and in collaboration with the ART Team, UNDP COs and the Executive Committee of the World Forum of LED. The consultant will be home-based and be available to travel to various countries.

Summary of key functions:

Lead research activities and provide technical inputs to the World Forum of Local Economic Development
Provide advisory services to UNDP country offices linking their activities with the World Forum of LED process and related partners
Develop LED related tools and knowledge products that can cross-feed the forum process and guide UNDP COs in their programming activities.

Lead research activities and provide technical inputs to the World Forum of Local Economic Development

Provide technical inputs in the elaboration and development of contents of the 5th World Forum of LED and related seminars and events by linking the knowledge and experiences of UNDP’s LED country programmes;
Support the overall scientific and research agenda of the World Forum of LED process in collaboration with the members of the Executive Committee by establishing and maintaining strategic contacts and association with relevant partners, and following-up proactively on engagement ideas;
Seek and lead engagement with new partners on potential collaboration opportunities in the area of LED with a focus on key strategic issues including the social and solidarity economy, private sector’s role and engagement, women economic empowerment, among others.

Provide advisory services to UNDP country offices linking their activities with the World Forum of LED process and related partners

Advise and support UNDP country offices (including, but not limited to COs of Cabo Verde, Mauritania, etc.) in the design, programming and implementation of LED initiatives or specific LED components of local governance / local development programmes by carrying out and developing contexts’ assessments, institutional capacity building, specific tools and mechanisms to enhance LED systems and functions across national, regional and local level;
Support UNDP ART Team in engaging World Forum of LED’s coalition of partners, including bilateral and decentralized cooperation actors, for LED programmes and preparing related project proposals;

Develop LED related tools and knowledge products to cross-feed the forum process and guide UNDP COs in their programming activities

Lead development of LED-focused tools and knowledge products building on the experiences of UNDP country offices to guide and accompany the new generation of country programmes using the LED approach as vehicle for SDG localization;
Review and identify opportunities and ways to further the integration of LED with UNDP strategic, programming and implementation processes and tools as member of the World Forum of LED executive committee.

Expected outputs and deliverables

Proposals of contents related to the Forum’s process defined and submitted on behalf of UNDP to the Ex. Co.;
Methodological and concept notes of the next World Forum and related preparatory events and seminars elaborated;
Suitable operational modality (ies) for UNDP – especially of its country offices – engagement with the forum process established;
Opportunities for partnership and resource mobilization for UNDP country programmes related to LED identified;
LED guidelines and tools, workshops formats, strategies and plans in support to UNDP country programmes conceptualised and elaborated;
At least four robust partnership and funding proposals drafted and submitted;
LED advisory services made available to country offices and relevant stakeholders;
Robust partnership networks established with LED relevant actors and linked to UNDP country programmes.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability
Treats all people fairly without favouritism;
Fulfils all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment.

Functional Competencies:

Solid knowledge of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the concept of localization of the Sustainable Development Goals;
In-depth practical knowledge of inter-disciplinary development issues including gender equality and empowerment issues, as well as a good knowledge of the inter linkages between the social, economic, environmental and cultural dimensions of sustainable development.
Strong interpersonal skills, communication and diplomatic skills;
Ability to work under pressure and stressful situations;
Excellent writing skills;
Seeks and applies knowledge, information, and best practices from within and outside of UNDP;
Good understanding of UNDP programming modalities.
Ability to advise on local governance and local development, including the implementation of the principles of aid effectiveness at the local level;
Ability to work with multiple partners in a wide variety of disciplines;
Ability to support strategic planning and change processes;
Ability to lead formulation, oversight of implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development projects

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Masters in a relevant discipline, such as Economics, Local Development, Local Economic Development, Development Studies, etc.

Experience:

At least 10 years of proving relevant work experience in local economic development, with sound experience in local Governance and Local Development;
Significant experience in local economic development processes in Africa, Asia and LA;
Knowledge of and preferably working experience with specific UNDP ART LED instruments such as LEDAs
Experience with European LED initiatives and concepts;
Preferably proven record of reports/publications on the subject;
Knowledge of and work experience with UNDP an asset;
Proven experience with decentralised Cooperation and other partnership cooperation modalities;
In depth knowledge of international development related processes, e.g. post 2015, Global Partnership for development cooperation effectiveness, etc.

Language Requirements:

Fluency in spoken and written English, French, Spanish.

Important notice:

Application Submission Process:

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:

Interested consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications. Please group them into one(1) single PDF document as the application only allows to upload maximum one document:

CV and a Personal History Form http://europeandcis.undp.org/files/hrforms/P11_modified_for_SCs_and_ICs.doc or http://sas.undp.org/Documents/P11_Personal_history_form.doc .

Letter of interest and why you think would be best suitable for the assignment.

Financial Proposal:

Financial Proposal that indicates the 1) all-inclusive fixed total contract price 2) all other travel related costs to-from Brussels, 3) per-diem rates should travel be organized at the request of UNDP. The proposal will provide detailed breakdown of costs, as per template attached and needs to be sent to: procurement.be@undp.org by 2nd November 2018. The proposals should be sent via email with the following subject heading: “Financial Proposal/UNDP RO Brussels/ART initiative- LED”. Proposals received after the deadline will be rejected. In order to assist the requesting unit in the comparison of financial proposals, the financial proposal should be all-inclusive and include a breakdown. The term ‘all-inclusive” implies that all costs (professional fees, communications, utilities, consumables, insurance, etc.) that could possibly be incurred by the Contractor are already factored into the financial proposal. Financial proposal template available here: http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_file.cfm?doc_id=45780.

Criteria for Evaluation of Proposal:

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, experience on similar assignments, letter of interest will be weighted at 70% and the price 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. Only Consultants obtaining a minimum of 70% on the Technical evaluation would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Technical Criteria - 70% of total evaluation – max. 100 points:

Criteria A – Relevant experience through CV and P11 analysis– max points: 20;

Criteria B – Knowledge of 2030 Agenda, LED concept and strategy, approach and territorial development – max points: 25;

Criteria C – Concept and experience of partnership and decentralized cooperation - max points: 30;

Criteria D – Interview – max points: 25.

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

Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director. Consultants are also required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under dss.un.org

General Terms and conditions as well as other related documents can be found under: http://on.undp.org/t7fJs

Qualified women and members of minorities are encouraged to apply.

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.