Background

1. The project of Strengthening Arab Economic Integration for Sustainable Development (AEISD), by UNDP, sets as objective, provision of technical assistance to the League of Arab States (LAS), specifically Economic Sector and relevant organs, and member states of Pan Arab Free Trade Agreement (PAFTA) in working towards a deepened integration, including preparations for the Arab Customs Union. The second important component relates to strengthening the Arab connectivity among economies in the region with the expectation, these efforts would be translated into more contribution of economic integration for better livelihood of people, more employment opportunity and participation by the private sector. Trade has significant potential to fight poverty in Arab countries through generation of more income and access to markets.  Upgrading current preferential trade arrangements will contribute to the realization of strategic visions of Arab Common Market. The third component focuses on the promotion of inclusiveness and transparency as part of the development agenda, particularly on the economic empowerment of women, for regional economic integration.

Built on the progress achieved in the previous program of support to implementation of PAFTA (Executive Program of PAFTA), the current project focuses on specific aspects of making trade an engine of inclusive and sustainable growth guided by the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.  In continuation, the Project will also focus on helping countries and the main sub-regional and regional integration entities to accelerate the pace of trade reforms and regional economic integration, to strengthen the employment effects of those reforms, with a particular focus on women and youth, and to mobilize additional resources for this purpose.

The project aims to address specific challenges and complexities that Arab countries (and League of Arab States) face to enhance regional economic integration, more specifically in the transition from an FTA- based framework towards making the customs union a reality. The following presents major areas of focus:

1. Provide a structured and targeted technical support to LAS Secretariat and Arab negotiators on trade policy formulation and reform under PAFTA.
2. Provide assistance to the LAS Secretariat with a view of strengthening its organizational capacity in the pursuit of further facilitation of the regional economic integration agenda as well as promotion of trade liberalization.
3. Assist target Arab countries with collaboration with national policy makers in trade and economic fields in efforts of modernization and reform of trade policy in taking into consideration new developments.
4. Facilitation of transport and trade activities constitutes one of key areas to support national programs of enhancement of national competitiveness and better market access and more integration of the value chain.
5. Promotion of gender equality and women empowerment as well as generation of business and job opportunity for youth is also a key target of project activities. Moreover, good governance constitutes a pre-requisite in deepening Arab economic integration to a higher level of commitment with inclusiveness and sustainability.
6. Promotion of the contribution of trade, as one of pillars, to achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals at national and regional level.

These priority dimensions form the basis of the work program of the project. Specifically, the project targets the following result-oriented activities:

1. Development of the technical framework and required instruments for the PAFTA Upgrading - a upgrade from the existing PAFTA, and for the Arab Customs Union (ACU) preparations, to deepen Arab economic integration.
2. Reinforcement of mechanisms of policy design, measures of implementation and of systems of documenting the progress of implementation to secure smooth acceleration of realization of regional commitments.
3. Building the technical capability and capacity of policy makers of Arab countries to support accelerated implementation of the PAFTA Upgrading and preparations for the ACU.
4. Introduction of institutional arrangements that are necessary for the LAS to respond to the requirements of implementation of the PAFTA Upgrading, and consequently of designing and establishing the ACU.
5. Delivery of awareness raising activities and provision of technical guidance on good governance and integrity approaches.
6. Promotion   of   regulatory   transparency, open   dialogues   and   consultations   with   related stakeholders, targeting all social groups but particularly women, for more active participation to cross border operations and related economic activities, among others.

The project team also cooperates with several national authorities and regional organizations in the implementation of defined activities in taking into account requirements and priorities of national socio- economic development plans and strategies of Arab economic integration. The execution is carried out under rules and regulations by the UN applicable for Delegated Direct Implementation and fully aligned to UNDP Programme and Operations Policies and Procedures (POPP).

In effect, based on the project document and the agreed programme of support by UNDP to Arab countries the project coordinates with the League of Arab States to provide technical assistance programs to PAFTA members, especially the Least Developed Member Countries on different trade topics that supports the deepening of Arab economic integration process.

Trade in services is an important pillar of Arab economic integration, where Arab countries started negotiation of the Trade in Services Agreement since 2004. The draft text of the Agreement was finalized in 2003, and since then Arab countries were negotiating their schedules of commitments, as an integrated part of the Agreement. UNDP assisted Arab countries in the provision of technical analysis and advices since August 2014 in order to complete the negotiations of the said Agreement.

During its Regular Round no. 99 in February2017, the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) has approved the final ending of Beirut round of negotiations with approved schedules of commitments by 10 Arab countries and requested them to sign the Agreement and start its ratification. The Agreement shall enter into force after three months after the depository of the ratification documents of at least three countries. Currently, three countries have signed and ratified the Agreement namely Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan, and they are in the depositing process. During the last meeting of the work group on trade in services negotiations under LAS in March 2018, Kuwait submitted its final revised offer.

LAS Secretariat, based on the demand of Member States, requested officially UNDP to conduct series of regional workshops on a number of services sectors, in fulfilling this request and within the context of support of deepening Arab economic integration for sustainable development, UNDP in collaboration with the LAS Secretariat and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and New Technology plan to organize the first regional sectoral workshop under the theme “Transportation Services Sector and Trade Facilitation – Better Synergies in Arab Countries” as part of the program of support by UNDP to the LAS Secretariat in 2018-2019 that would be carried out in September 2019 in Casablanca, Morocco.

Duties and Responsibilities

The regional workshop aims to assist Arab trade officials and private sector in their implementation of the Arab Trade in Services Agreement. The current assignment requires the conduct of a comprehensive overview of the services component in the transport services in the circumstances of the Arab region. Furthermore, this analysis focuses on the concerned services of this sector in terms of its importance, reform and liberalization. It will also support participants gain greater insights into various related-matter such as the contribution of transport services in optimizing cost of trade and the role of private sector in trade in services within the framework of the Arab Trade in Services Agreement.

The workshop will equip the participants with the technical and legal knowledge and skills on trade in services in particular the transportation services sector. The participants are therefore needed to understand and absorb knowledge on the coverage of trade and transport services within the context of facilitating trade, with focus on general concepts of trade in services, legacy and theory, its role in the economic integration process, its importance for the Arab economic growth and the implementation of the Arab Trade in Services Liberalization Agreement.

The two-day workshop will have three components that comprise of theoretical and practical modules aimed at raising awareness and achieving good commands of international/regional best practices in trade in services Agreements: (i) Benefits of developing the transport services sector to consumers, services providers, economic growth, and economic integration process, (ii) likely impacts of liberalization for the interest of Micro, small and medium enterprises and employment creation, (iii) The role of transport services sector to further facilitate trade and reduce cost of trade in Arab countries.

In order to ensure the best possible outreach, the workshop program will be delivered through theoretical and practical modules. In strengthening the capacity and capability of the participants from the public and private sector who are trade policy makers in trade and transport services sector. Beside this, there would be special sessions to the private sector in order to understand their key interests and focus. It serves to discuss challenges and potential solutions and to design suitable approaches for the transport services reform, major strategies and the overall roadmap of future liberalization towards the economic integration process.

Best practices and new approaches towards more reform and liberalization of transportation services sector, such as regulatory review and more involvement by the private sector in the process, would be also addressed and explored as inputs to new policies and measures the Arab governments may consider for adoption reform and developing the sector. In the light of these, experiences and lessons of countries in and out of the Arab region will be presented to support new directions by officials and economic stakeholders (i.e. service providers, transport firms, traders, investors, among others) to improve the transport services sector and services exports. It would comprise presentations of the outcomes of technical papers on the likely impacts on transport services liberalization, and transport services contribution in reducing cost of trade.

Key topics of the Workshop may include:

1. The Concept of trade in services: An overview, services economy and rational including the importance of domestic regulations;
2. An introduction to the main provisions of the General Agreement on Trade in Services  (GATS) and international instruments;
3. The concept of the transport services within the classification of the GATS;
4. Commitments in transportation services sector within the Arab Trade in Services Agreement and GATS;
5. Transportation services sector in Arab countries from the trade in services perspectives, potential and opportunities;
6. The contribution of the transportation services in reducing trade cost; Implications on Arab countries;
7. Role of Arab private sector in trade in services;
8. An overview on the WTO Trade facilitation Agreement;
9. Likely impacts of liberalization of transport services in Arab region; and
10. Regional strategy towards transport services sector reform.

The regional workshop will be delivered by international experts and speakers from UNDP, UNCTAD, WTO, World Customs Organization, LAS and officials from Arab governments as well as private sector who will share their experiences with participants in the field of trade in services, trade facilitation and facilitate the conduct of the workshop, resource persons of Governments of Arab countries from relevant Ministries and Agencies, as well as researchers of think tanks and practitioners of Arab countries, particularly representatives from Academia, private sector and service providers.

SCOPE OF WORK AND DELIVERABLES

As part of the ongoing process of technical support to Arab countries, the project seeks provision of related services by an expert in trade in services with adquate knowledge of trade facilitation with detailed knowledge in specific areas such as implication by WTO GATS on developing countries and Arab LDCs. S/he forms part of the expert team, responsible for two assignments, the first one is to prepare a technical paper on the contribution of the transport services sector in optmizaing costs of trade , implications on Arab countries and the second assignment is the participation of the delivery of the workshop program to the public and private sector in Arab region.

The trade in services expert discharges her/his duties under the supervision and guidance of the Chief Technical Advisor of the project or CTA AEISD and would be supported by the UNDP team experts.

First part of the Assignment: The Contribution of Transport Services and Related-Transport Logistics Services in Optimizing Trade Cost

Rational

Transport is ultimately what makes trade possible.  Over centuries, transport service hubs have been the major centers of trade.  Transport costs could also be a major factor determining a country's comparative advantage and competitiveness.  For instance, an economy with relatively low air fares has a competitive edge in supplying perishable goods such as flowers or vegetables.  While for producers of bulk non-perishable goods the availability of reliable, efficient and low-cost port services can be the key factor in their logistics and distribution chain. 

In all stages of the international trade chain, transport and transport-related logistics services are determining cost factors through their impact on time delays, considered even more taxing on trade than tariffs. Transport services is the costliest but also the most significant component of total transport costs, bringing great benefits in terms of export performance at all levels of development. For maritime transport, which is the dominant mode of transport services sector, costs still amount to a valorem equivalent of 6% of the imports value[1], while road transport services is crucial for intra-continental trade and landlocked economies. However, the provision of high-quality physical infrastructure cannot lower transport services costs without efficient and competitive logistics services. The lack of a pro-competitive environment is one of the major constraints to many developing countries than infrastructure and is critical for translating lower transport costs into lower prices. In this paper, the focus will be on the transports services and how its cost would contribute in reducing trade cost.

According to the WTO Report[2], it is stated that transport costs account for the largest share of cross-country variation in overall trade costs, which is, 37 per cent for goods flows and 17 per cent for services flows. Transport costs are important for modes of supply that involve travel, such as consumption abroad (for instance, tourism) and the presence of a natural person (for instance, providing personal services abroad). They may also be important when cross-border supply requires some face-to-face communication and thus business travel. Transport costs may matter for services because they also matter for the goods trade. Recent empirical findings suggest that the exports of many business, transport services are tied to exports of goods, and therefore to the extent that some barriers hamper flows of goods that tend to be exported together with a service, these barriers thereby also have consequences for services flows (Ariu et al., 2018).

Transport services costs are not limited to the price paid to move goods from origin to destination, an important part of those costs is related to time delays and uncertainty. This is due to the increasing importance of global supply chains, just-in-time inventory management and lean retailing. For exporters sourcing intermediate inputs from varied sources, the disruption of one delivery could stymie an entire production process. Hummels and Schaur (2010) quantify the costs of time delays, suggesting that each additional day in transit is equivalent to an ad valorem tariff of between 0.6 per cent and 2.3 per cent, and that trade in intermediate inputs is 60 per cent more time-sensitive. Similarly, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) (2017b), any additional trans-shipment that lengthens shipping time is associated with a 40 per cent lower bilateral export value.

As the transport is the single most expensive component of trade logistics and an adequate infrastructure is required to facilitate transportation (OECD, 2011a), so it is difficult for a manufacturer to export at a competitive price or import at a competitive cost if the transport and related-transport logistics services sectors are inefficient. High prices, poor service, and a lack of certainty in transport and related-transport logistics services could translate into the effective isolation of a country from world markets. The rise of the Global Value Chains (VCs) is increasingly becoming significant as the participation in GVCs in manufacturing is one part of the economy that depends fundamentally on transport and related-transport logistics services for its success (WTO/OECD, 2013). It is the efficiency in the transport and transport-related logistics services that could affect trade costs as Arvis et al. (2012) argued that transport and logistics contribute as much to the costs of international trade as geographical distance.

Objectives

The paper should provide analysis on the linkage trade cost and transport services sector from the trade in services perspective, present the content of the transport and related-transport logistics services costs and recommend some strategic implications of the Arab Trade in Services Agreement for transport services policies and proposes a series of possible activities whereby LAS Secretariat could help the Arab Trade in Services Agreement Member States to integrate relevant  policies into national and regional transport services policies such as logistics and mobility policies.  The paper will tackle the transport services sector contribution toward optimization of trade costs as the main objective, in order to help the relevant stakeholders including governmental bodies, suppliers of transport services, and exporters and importers dependent upon transport to realize the how the transport services could contribute in reducing trade cost in Arab countries.

The paper is to provide analytical analysis on how transport services could contribute in reducing the trade costs in the interest of policymakers in Arab governments and the private sector, in connection with the implementation of the Arab Trade in Services Agreement. A compilation of information, data and statistics would be helpful to understand the relation between transport services and facilitate trade in terms of cost reduction in Arab countries.

The paper would outline, a brief on the best practices on reducing trade cost through the transport services in the developing countries and LDCs, and identify options to promote transport services sectors related to the trade cost reduction. The expert would identify the answer on the question of what transport services reform process might be needed and  present best practices in which the trade in trade services policy has proved to be effective and an important tool in reducing trade cost.

Scope of Work

The deliverables and outcomes of the first assignment of the program shall demonstrate the key findings from practical experiences that result from a detailed analysis undertaken by the expert. It includes among other issues an illustration, analysis and provide policy recommendations on the contribution of transport services sector in facilitate trade in terms of reducing costs of trade in the Arab countries. The assignment would address and analyse the below elements, among others:

1. Transportation services sectors contribution in reducing trade cost towards facilitate trade including; 1) importance of the role of transport services; 2) identification of sub-sectors covered and possible modes of supply related to trade cost reduction; and 3)  determine challenges to transport services that affect trade cost in Arab region.
2. Transport services related to trade cost profile in selected Arab countries including[3]; 1) brief on the technology impacts; 2) competitiveness; and 3) other countries’ experiences in benefiting from transport services in reducing trade cost .
3. The expected role of national transport authorities to be undertaken in implementing the transport services commitments and obligations arising from the Arab Trade in Services Agreement that related to facilitating trade, as they are one of the implementing agencies for most of these obligations.
4. Policy recommendations on improvement of transport services sector related to reducing the trade cost and main findings, and suggestions for possible new commitments within the Arab Trade in services Agreement, and policies to support facilitating trade.

Second Assignment: Presentation on the main findings of the Transportation Services Sector Linkage with Trade Facilitation in Arab Countries

The sectoral regional workshop second-day session would comprise of a technical presentation that followed by interactive discussion aim at improving technical capabilities of the participants that related to the transport services sector. The presentation during the dedicated session would cover the following technical issues based on the findings of the first assignment :

1. Introduction to the contribution of transport services in optimizing cost of trade.
2. The existent transport services commitments through the different modes of supply within the Arab Trade in Services Agreement and the implications on trade cost.
3. Best practices with respect to the; 1) approaches to improve transport services sector related to facilitate trade; and 2) relevant government initiatives in encouraging the improvement of transport services related to reduce trade cost.
4. Main findings and policy recommendations on the contribution of transport services in facilitating trade and its impacts on economic development.

EXPECTED OUTPUTS AND DELIVERABLES

By the end of the dedicated session, participants from governments and private sector should have their knowledge improved about the linkage TS sector and TF in the Arab countries, impacts of the TS existent commitments within the Arab trade in Services Agreement and trade policy instruments and have strengthened their technical capacity to integrate this knowledge into their implementation of the Arab Trade in Services Agreement.

The main results include:

• Making national and regional transport authorities, private sector and transport sector associations more aware of the contribution of transport services in reducing trade cost and the important role for the transport services;
• Helping Members of the Arab Trade in Services Agreement coordinate their facilitating trade plans with the national transport services sector plans launched and implemented by transport authorities and agencies;
• Better understanding and recognition of the main challenges faced by Arab countries related the transport services sector in terms of cost reduction;
• Providing better understanding to national and regional initiatives aimed at improving the current framework for regional transport services towards reducing the trade cost; and
• Sharing some insights on the potentiality of a region-wide multidisciplinary network of experts on trade in services.

[1] OECD Study - https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/5k47x2hjfn48-en.pdf?expires=1561195674&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=13D3D878906BC2F45AAB24CAC591B6F6

[2] World Trade Report 2018 - World Trade Organization - https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/publications_e/wtr18_3_e.pdf

[3] Expert would select three countries that ratified the Arab Trade in services Agreement as an example (Egypt, Jordan and KSA) and based of the best available information.

Competencies

Corporate

• Demonstrates integrity and fairness, by modeling the UN/UNDP’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.

Functional

• Time management and organizational skills, with the ability to undertake multiple tasks and deliver under pressure;
• Strong analytical and synthesis skills;
• Ability to work independently and achieve quality results with limited supervision and within tight schedules;
• Strong quantitative and qualitative research skills;
• Experience in reports production;
• Ability to write in a clear and concise manner;
• Good teamwork and interpersonal skills;
• Flexibility and ability to handle multiple tasks and work under pressure;
• Excellent computer skills especially Word, Excel and Power Point.

Knowledge Management and Learning

• Ability to strongly promote and build knowledge products;
• Promotes knowledge management in UNDP and a learning environment in the office through leadership and personal example;
• Seeks and applies knowledge, information and best practices from within and outside of UNDP;
• Demonstrates a strong capacity for innovation and creativity in providing strategic policy advice and direction.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualification

• Master’s degree in international trade, economics, trade and development, or closely related fields as minimum.

Years of Experience

• Work experience for at least 10 years of consultancy and negotiating at governmental and international organizations levels as an expert in trade in services and trade facilitation.

Technical experience

• Proven deep knowledge of WTO GATS, trade in services within the context of regional trade Agreements, and the inclusion of trade transportation in countries national trade policies and its effect on developing and least developed countries on regional and international levels.
• Experience in providing technical assistance and capacity building programs for similar regional bodies in developing countries.
• Training and coaching experience in trade in services.
• Excellent presentation and communication skills;

Language Requirements

• Fluency in written and spoken English is a must. Arabic language is an asset.

INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENT

• The individual is required to exhibit his or her commitment to this assignment with UNDP-RBAS;
• S/He shall perform tasks under the general guidance of the Regional Programme Coordinator and the direct supervision of the Conflict Prevention Advisor. The supervision will include approvals/acceptance of the outputs as identified in previous sections;
• The individual is expected to liaise and collaborate in the course of performing the work with other consultants, suppliers and UN colleagues;
• The individual is required to maintain close communication with the UNDP-RBAS on regular and needed basis at any period throughout the assignment in order to monitor progress. In the event of any delay, s/he will inform UNDP promptly so that decisions and remedial action may be taken accordingly. Delays that would affect the flow of the collaborative work and the delivery of outputs on schedule will lead to termination of contract; and
• Should UNDP deem it necessary, it reserves the right to commission additional inputs, reviews or revisions, as needed to ensure the quality and relevance of the work.

DURATION OF THE WORK

This is a short-term assignment (13 working days)

DUTY STATION

Home-based assignment with travel to Casablanca, Morocco in September 2019 to provide the training program for three days. 

SCOPE OF PRICE PROPOSAL AND SCHEDULE OF PAYMENTS

All proposals must be expressed in a lump sum amount. This amount must be “all-inclusive”. Please note that the terms “all-inclusive” implies that all costs (professional fees, travel costs, living allowances, communications, consumables, etc.) that could possibly be incurred are already factored into the final amounts submitted in the proposal.

The contractor will be paid an all-inclusive Deliverables/Outputs based lump sum amounts over the assignment period, subject to the submission of Certification of Payment (CoP) duly certified and confirmation of satisfactory performance of achieved work (deliverables/outputs) in line with the schedule of payments table mentioned in Procurement Notice. 

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications. Candidates that fail to submit the required information will not be considered.

1. Duly accomplished Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided by UNDP;
2. Personal CV or P11, 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;
3. Brief Description of why you consider yourself as the most suitable candidate for this assignment;
4. One sample of work that shows the candidate’s competence to undertake this assignment.

Interested candidates shall submit above documents to the Job Advertisement Website: https://jobs.undp.org/cj_view_jobs.cfm as one document not later than 1st August 2019.

Interested candidates can find Procurement notice, letter of confirmation of interest and availability and P11 http://procurement-notices.undp.org/

Please do not submit financial proposal in this stage.  Financial proposal shall be requested from Candidates with responsive offer

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION OF THE BEST OFFERS

Combined Scoring method – where the qualifications and methodology will be weighted a max. of 70%, and combined with the price offer which will be weighted a max of 30%.

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodologies:

Step I: Screening and desk review:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology.

Applications will be first screened and only candidates meeting the following minimum requirements will progress to the pool for shortlisting:

• Master’s degree in international trade, economics, trade and development, or closely related fields as minimum.
• Work experience for at least 10 years of consultancy and negotiating at governmental and international organizations levels as an expert in trade in services.

Technical evaluation Criteria max 100 points (Weighted 70):

• Proven deep knowledge of GATS WTO FTA Agreements, trade in services within the context of regional trade Agreements, and the inclusion of trade in services and trade facilitation in countries national trade policies and its effect on developing and least developed countries on regional and international levels;35%
• Experience in providing technical assistance and capacity building for similar regional bodies in developing countries would be a decisive advantage;30%
• Training and coaching experience in trade in services and trade facilitation;20%
• Excellent presentation and communication skills;10%
• Sample of work; 5%

Financial Criteria - 30% of total evaluation

For those offers considered in the financial evaluation, the lowest price offer will receive 30 points.                  
The other offers will receive points in relation to the lowest offer, based on the following formula:                 
  (PI / Pn)* 30 where Pn is the financial offer being evaluated and Pl is the lowest financial offer received.

Step II: Final evaluation

The final evaluation will combine the scores of the desk review and the financial proposal with the following weights assigned to each:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the cumulative analysis methodology (weighted scoring method), where the award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
• Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

Technical Criteria weight: [70%]
Financial Criteria weight:  [30%]

Only Individual Consultants obtaining a minimum of 49 points (70%) on the Technical evaluation would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.