Background

The UN Resident Coordinator (RC) is the designated representative of the UN Secretary-General for development activities and the team leader of the UN Country Team (UNCT), which in Thailand is composed of 19 UN agencies, who have projects and programmes in Thailand. The Office of the UN Resident Coordinator Office (RCO) supports the RC in his/her coordination of the UNCT and liaison with national partners.

The RCO in Thailand, currently a team of five staff, provides strategic and secretariat supports to the RC and the UNCT to effectively coordinate the work of the UN agencies to implement the UN Partnership Framework, which was signed between the Royal Thai Government and the UN in Thailand.

In December 2017, the UN Secretary-General's report entitled "Repositioning the United Nations development system to deliver on the 2030 Agenda: our promise for dignity, prosperity, and peace on a healthy planet" was issued.  This report puts forward a comprehensive proposal on further improvements to the RC System to ensure more coherent, accountable and effective support for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda). This was further reinforced by General Assembly resolution 72/279 of 1 June 2018, which gave the UN Secretary-General the mandate to implement the repositioning.

A reinvigorated RC system is at the center of a repositioned United Nations development system, and while the system has been instrumental in driving coherence on the ground over the past four decades, it is now insufficiently robust to respond to the needs of the 2030 Agenda. The year 2019 has been a transitional period for the RCO, increasing the number of national staff with the aim to expand its support to the RC and UNCT.

The Development Coordination Specialist will also take the responsibility of coordinating the United Nations Action for Cooperation against Trafficking in Persons (UN-ACT) at the regional level. A key area of work for UN-ACT is to help strengthen collaboration and coordination in the sector between different actors, from government agencies to civil society and international organizations. UN-ACT is Secretariat to the sub-regional inter-governmental Co-ordinated Mekong Ministerial Initiative against Trafficking in Persons (COMMIT) Process, supporting the six governments of the Mekong Sub-region in collaboration against trafficking in persons. UN-ACT is run by a Regional Management Office (RMO) within Bangkok Regional Hub, and six national offices: Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work

1. Support the smooth setting up of the new RCO as per established framework provided by UN New York:

• Support the recruitment process of 4 National Officers (in two waves), assist in the on-boarding of the new National Officers by providing guidance and mentoring on UN inter-agency process, the work of the UNCT in Thailand, and the new reforms of the UN development system; 
• Work in conjunction with the Executive Assistant to establish processes and procedures in managing the RCO’s budget, quality-assure the production of monthly financial reports, and support procurement processes for the RCO as necessary.

    2.   Assist the RC in the management of UNCT processes under the new reforms and in the operationalization of new UNCT activities

• Work with the RC to introduce MAF (Mutual Accountability Framework) to the work of the UNCT, including any necessary adjustments;
• Assist the RC in the introduction of new performance assessment and feedback for the UNCT;
• Ensure regular UNCT meetings are organized monthly, with quality inputs, and assist with ad-hoc meetings as required;
• Participate in the meeting of the UNPAF Results Groups (five groups), provide inputs and guidance to the groups on cross Result Group coherence and reporting ensuring the new UNDAF guidelines are incorporated in their work;
• Support the RC and the UNCT in preparing a workplan for SDG localization activities;
• Work closely with UNCT members to prepare a concept and draft outline for the UNDAF mid-term review;
• Provide guidance to and work closely with the National Officer(s) to undertake any follow-up required with Government after the UNCT Annual Review and ensure official Government counterparts are informed of key UNCT activities;
• Assist the inter-agency coordination in working groups and thematic groups.

    3.  Support the coordination and implementation of UN-ACT programme and activities

• Support the overall management of UNACT programme and activities at the regional level;
• Coordinate among the countries in Mekong Sub-region (Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam) and partners to ensure completion and success of the UN-ACT programme and activities, particularly the facilitation of and support to COMMIT Process;
• Provide guidance to the National Project Coordinators in the six countries and ensure coordinated efforts in implementing the COMMIT process Sub-regional Plans of Action;
• Provide technical assistance in the implementation, monitoring, evaluation and reporting of UN-ACT programme and activities required by UN-ACT partners and donors;
• Liaise with UN agencies and UN-ACT partnering organizations to facilitate collaboration in delivering the UN-ACT activities.

    4.   Provide technical support and guide resource mobilization efforts for the UN-ACT activities

• Support the facilitation of cooperation and collaboration between different stakeholders on human trafficking, migration and displacement at regional level;
• Provide technical guidance in the identification of new initiatives, targeted countries and funding sources around migration and displacement programming;
• Assist in the development of project proposals at country level and facilitate access to funding by identifying potential donors and quality-assuring the proposals in line with the donor’s requirements.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables

The expected outputs for the Office of the UN Resident Coordinator Office:

• Completion of the recruitment of 4 new National Officer and their successful onboarding by the end of 2019.

• Recommendation and support to the RC for the introduction of new frameworks, formats, and guidelines introduced with the reforms of the UN development system, including MAF and performance assessment, to the UNCT Thailand and the RCO.

• Support in the preparation of the UNCT’s activities for the rest of 2019 and planning of the activities in the 2020, including the UNPAF mid-term review.

• External partners to be updated on the UNCT’s activities and plans.

The expected outputs for the United Nations Action for Cooperation against Trafficking in Persons (UN-ACT):

• Quality technical guidance and overall programme management of the UN-ACT at the regional level and in six countries.

• Completion of progress, mid-year and annual reports to partners and donors as per agreed submission deadlines.

Institutional Arrangement

• The consultant will work under the matrix supervision and guidance of the UN Resident Coordinator, UN Resident Coordinator Office in Thailand and the Chief, Regional Policy and Programme for Asia and the Pacific at Bangkok Regional Hub.

• The consultant will closely collaborate with colleagues in the UN Resident Coordinator Office in Thailand on a daily basis.

• The consultant will also directly communicate with UN agencies’ focal points, the five Results Groups, the Operation Management Team and other working/thematic groups, as well as external partners including the government.

• IT and other office equipment at the duty station will be provided. Costs to arrange local transport, workshop venues, etc. will be covered.

Duration of the Work

10 June 2019 – 31 December 2019 (up to 145 days).

Duty Station

Bangkok, Thailand with possible travel. Travels outside of Bangkok for the RCO and to UN-ACT programme countries are expected under this assignment. Official travels will be agreed in advance and costs covered by the RCO Thailand for its missions and by UN-ACT for travels related to UN-ACT’s activities.

Competencies

• Good interpersonal and communication skills and able to work in a culturally diverse environment, with UN staff of different levels;

• Able to adopt a practical and solutions-orientated approach;

• Strong analytical, reporting and writing abilities skills;

• Delivers outputs within prescribed time and quality standards;

• Openness to change and ability to receive/integrate feedback and offers new and different options to solve problems or meet client needs;

• Comprehensiveness knowledge and skills in team/project management and partnership-building;

• Demonstrates integrity and ethical standards;

• Positive, constructive attitude to work;

• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Required Skills and Experience

Educational Qualifications

• Master’s Degree in relevant studies.

Experience

• Minimum 7 years of hands-on and progressive experience in the implementation of development project/programme coordination with international development organization

• Experience working in projects with a UN inter-agency dimensions

• Direct experience in projects related to migration, trafficking and displacement issues. Prior experience in Asia is preferable.

• Knowledge of UN agencies operations in Thailand is a strong asset

• Demonstrated experience in dealing with project budget monitoring is an asset

• Prior experience of working with officials of the Royal Thai Government is an asset

Language requirements

• Fluency of English is required.

Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments

Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments:

The contract will be based on Daily Fee

Consultant shall quote an all-inclusive Daily Fee for the contract period. The term “all-inclusive” implies that all costs (professional fees, communications, consumables, etc.) that could be incurred by the IC in completing the assignment are already factored into the daily fee submitted in the proposal. If applicable, travel or daily allowance cost (if any work is to be done outside the IC’s duty station) should be identified separately. Payments shall be done on a monthly basis based on actual days worked, upon verification of completion of deliverables and approval by the IC’s supervisor of a Time Sheet indicating the days worked in the period.

In general, UNDP shall 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

In the event of unforeseeable travel not anticipated in this TOR, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and the Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed.

Travel costs shall be reimbursed at actual but not exceeding the quotation from UNDP approved travel agent.  The provided living allowance will not be exceeding UNDP DSA rates. Repatriation travel cost from home to duty station in Bangkok and return shall not be covered by UNDP.

Evaluation Method and Criteria

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology;

Cumulative analysis

The award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as a) responsive/compliant/acceptable; and b) having received the highest score out of set of weighted technical criteria (70%) *and financial criteria (30%). Financial score shall be computed as a ratio of the proposal being evaluated and the lowest priced qualified proposal received by UNDP for the assignment.

Technical Criteria for Evaluation (Maximum 70 points)

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points (70% of the total technical points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Documentation required

Interested individual 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:

• Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided in Annex II.

• Personal CV indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references.

• Financial proposal, as per template provided in Annex II. Note: National consultant must quote price in U.S. Dollar that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs, as per template provided. If an 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 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.

Incomplete proposals may not be considered. The shortlisted candidates may be contacted and the successful candidate will be notified.

To download related documents and templates, please click the link below:

http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=55821