UNDP Jobs - 84842- Consultant to Support the Creation of the Strategy

Consultant to Support the Creation of the Strategy for Life-Long Entrepreneurial Learning (2020-2024) in the Area of Formal Education

Location :

Home-based and Podgorica, MONTENEGRO

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

30-May-2019

Application Deadline :

07-May-19 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

National Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

30 May 2019 - 30 November 2019

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

25 consultancy days

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

Montenegro, as EU member candidate, is taking serious steps toward the EU accession in terms of harmonization and alignment of policy papers and strategic documents required by the process of accession. The creation of the principles and guidelines for the entrepreneurial policy in Montenegro are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Economy.

Within its mandate which, inter alia, implies sharing and promoting the EU policies and best practices in this field, the Ministry of Economy attaches a particular attention to entrepreneurial learning and reinforcing the entrepreneurship skills. The primary objective of the work of the Ministry of Economy in the field of entrepreneurial learning is to raise awareness and understanding of this topic among the policy makers, private sector and civil society and other interest groups regarding the role and significance of entrepreneurial learning and entrepreneurship skills for strengthening competitiveness and employability in the country.

Having in mind that the current Strategy for Life-Long Entrepreneurial Learning (2015-2019) defines the measures and indicators that need to be fulfilled by the end of 2019 and that its implementation is drawing to its end, the development of a new strategic document is one of the priorities of the Ministry of Economy, as prescribed by the relevant recommendations of the Small Business Act (SBA) regarding life-long entrepreneurial learning.

The purpose of this strategic document will be to outline a set of goals for entrepreneurial learning and it will aim to direct the aforementioned process within a wide range of sectors over the next five years. In addition, through this document, the entrepreneurial learning will be further promoted through strengthening the role of all the institutions that are engaged in stimulating and promoting entrepreneurial activities. The Strategy would also contribute to the further development and promotion of entrepreneurship learning in elementary schools, especially by means of increasing the number of trained teachers who would be able to transfer the knowledge in this field to young generations. Training of teachers will be of crucial importance for the creation of network of educated staff in this field, which could in turn help in the further promotion of entrepreneurship skills at all levels of education.

The need to further promote entrepreneurial lifelong learning is included in the SBA Policy Index. The SBA policy indicators particularly focus on two issues: a) strategy building for lifelong entrepreneurial learning and b) partnership as a governance imperative to see through the SBA recommendations. Furthermore, Montenegro’s status as EU candidate country entails additional obligations in meeting the ‘acquis communataire’ requirements to join the European Union. In particular, the Chapter 20 “Enterprise and Industrial Policy” and Chapter 26 “Education and Culture” require further development of capacities in analysing and reporting to the European Commission.

Montenegro has already made some progress in designing new training curricula for teachers in primary and secondary education, as well as for vocational and educational training. In order to make the entrepreneurial vision real, the Montenegrin Government – Ministry of Economy intends to prepare a comprehensive new Strategy for life long entrepreneurial learning (2020-2024) in order to recognize the results achieved so far, but also to direct and support future development in this field, using the resources which are required to deliver the high quality interventions, in an innovative and sustainable manner.

Through the Integrated Local Development project, jointly implemented by the Ministry of Economy and UNDP Montenegro, the Consultant to Support the Creation of the Stategy for Life-Long Entrepreneurial Learning (2020-2024) in the Area of Formal Education will be engaged in order to provide support to the Ministry in the creation of the aforementioned Strategy, with the specific emphasis on the elaboration of the topic in the scope of formal education.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objectives of the assignment:

The major objective of this task is to provide the support to the creation of Strategy for life long entrepreneurial learning (2020-2024) within the formal education system, covering all education levels.

Job content:

Under the supervision of the Project Manager, and in close cooperation with the Ministry of Economy, the National Consultant shall carry out the following tasks:

Prepare a detailed plan of activities for the assignment;
In consultation with the UNDP hiring Manager, conduct desk research and create the analysis of the current situation in the area of entrepreneurial learning at all educational levels (pre-schools, primary and secondary schools, university level), based on the implementation of the LE Strategy 2015-2019, containing the key challenges and priorities in this area for the next five years in formal education system, as well as lessons learnt;
Conduct review of other relevant strategic documents in this field on national and EU level;
Provide inputs for EL Strategy, containing the main strategic objectives and planned measures, indicators and results in the area of formal education for all levels of education until 2024;
Provide inputs for the Action plan for the implementation of the Strategy in the area of formal education (this task relates to the overall Action plan for the entire period of the Strategy implementation and annual Action plan for 2020)
Conduct consultations with the key stakeholders, incorporate their inputs and suggestions in the course of fine-tuning of both the Strategy and Action plan;
Participate in drafting of the conclusions and recommendations from the Public consultation process;
Conduct at least two (2) presentations in the scope of the meetings and events/public consultation process organized within the project;
Establish and maintain communication with the Key expert and prepare inputs to the Key Expert for position paper;
Prepare a Final Report about all the activities undertaken under this assignment.

The expected results:

Under the supervision of the UNDP hiring Manager, the National Consultant is expected to deliver the following results:

Detailed work plan for the assignment prepared, approved by UNDP Montenegro;
Analysis of the current situation, besed on the implementation of the LE Strategy 2015-2019 – Lessons learnt;
Key inputs for the EL Strategy and Action plan for the implementation of the Strategy - formal education area
(overall Action plan and annual Action plan for 2020);
Final report on all activities undertaken under this assignment, highlighting the main results achieved and proposed recommendations in the area of formal education system.

Timing and reporting:

The National Consultant is expected to work in Montenegro / home-based during the assignment (30 May – 30 November 2019). The National Consultant will be responsible for written regular reporting to the UNDP Project Manager for Integrated Local Development Programme, containing sufficient detail and information that would allow for the appraisal of the quality and effectiveness of the performance of the activities defined by the TOR.

Time duration:

National Consultant will be engaged under individual contract, for the total of 25 consultancy days, in the period from 30 May – 30 November 2019. No travel is envisaged under this TOR.

Competencies

Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Promotes the vision, mission and strategic goals of UN/UNDP;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Ability to lead strategic planning, results-based management and reporting;
Builds strong relationships with clients, focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
Demonstrates good oral and written communication skills;
Demonstrates ability to manage complexities and work under pressure, as well as conflict resolution skills.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

University degree in social sciences, economics/financial management, administration, local development, whereas advanced university degree would be an asset;

Experience:

At least 10 years of relevant professional experience in the field of entrepreneurial learning;
Knowledge of the relevant EU policy framework and implementation structures, including the Europe 2020, EU Charter on Small Enterprises and Small Business Act, Acquis Chapter 20;
Knowledge of SME policy and the concepts of life-long learning, entrepreneurial learning and promotion of entrepreneurship as the key competence in elementary, vocational and higher education development processes in the Western Balkans and/or new EU Member states;
Experience in drafting and/or implementing at least 1 national strategy contributing towards SME policy, competitiveness, or broader education strategy/policy goals;
Relevant experience in promotion and implementation of EU Charter or SBA principles;

Language:

Excellent knowledge of written and spoken English;

Other:

Excellent communication and presentation skills, demonstrated ability to facilitate workshops, etc.;
Excellent IT skills, including word-processing, database applications, presentation software, etc.

Criteria for selection:

Combined Scoring method will be used. When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as: (i) responsive, compliant, acceptable, and (ii) having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

Technical criteria weight - 70% (Background and education 10%; Relevant previous experience 20%; Substantial knowledge/Required competencies 30%; Required language 10%);
Financial criteria weight - 30%.

Only offerors obtaining a minimum 490 points for technical criteria will be considered for the financial evaluation. For more information on procurement methodology for Individual Contractors, please refer to Procurement Notice.

Application procedure:

Interested applicants are requested to submit their applications by May 7, 2019 by using the Apply now button. The application should contain CV or P11 that can be downloaded at http://www.me.undp.org/content/montenegro/en/home/operations/jobs.html. Please note that UNDP jobsite system allows only one uploading of application document, so please make sure that you merge all your documents into a single file.

Only the short-listed applicants will be contacted and requested to submit a letter of interest including a price quotation indicating the lump sum (in EUR) requested for the work envisaged in the section "Description of Responsibilities".