Background

Project Title: Asia-Pacific Development Effectiveness Facility (AP-DEF)

Project Description:

UNDP Support on Development Finance in Asia-Pacific

Despite innovations in financing, countries are facing significant challenges in terms of the volume of financing needed to achieve the SDGs and their national development ambitions. Governments have also recognized the need for effective engagement across a variety of actors and addressing systemic issues for the way finance is prioritized, mobilized and managed for national development priorities.

Countries have called for support in taking a more holistic approach to ensure public finance is spent effectively and with catalytic effect, and in creating an environment that supports private capital alignment behind the SDGs.

To support government and the private sector in scaling-up approaches to finance the SDGs, UNDP Country Offices are offering an integrated and systematic package of support to assist countries in more comprehensively engaging with private and public partners and maximizing the use of development finance.  UNDP’s support to countries on financing is centered around strengthening the effective governance of financing for the SDGs with a focus on institutional reforms, public private collaboration and ensuring transparency and accountability. UNDP seeks to use engagements to advocate and support the types of policy and regulatory reforms and institutional strengthening that enable finance to be aligned with the SDGs at scale. Country level support seeks to connect the dots across partners to strengthen the momentum for systemic reforms, working together with the entirety of the UN System, International Financial Institutions as well as development banks and other global and regional and financing institutions to this end.

UNDP’s Bangkok Regional Hub has established its Financing SDGs Team to support countries in the Asia-Pacific region to build integrated approaches to mobilising and managing financing for national priorities. To this end, with support from the Australia DFAT, UNDP through the Asia-Pacific Development Effectiveness Facility (AP-DEF) have developed the Development Finance Assessment (DFA), a tool to respond to the growing demand from countries in the region to establish evidence and analysis, and introduce policy and institutional reforms for managing the increasing complexity of domestic and international sources of finance for development. DFAs serve as a step toward establishing integrated national financing frameworks. DFAs were introduced as the very first development finance studies of their kind, seeking to bring together fragmented approaches on the use of the different sources of funds that may not all be primarily dedicated to address development challenges.

UNDP Development Finance work in the Pacific

The UNDP Pacific Office in Fiji leads UNDP’s work in 10 Pacific Island Countries (Fiji, the Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu) and is the sub-regional hub for support to other countries and territories supported by UNDP in the Pacific (Cook Islands, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, and Tokelau).

Within the Pacific, 5 DFAs have been completed or are underway (Fiji, Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, and the Solomon Islands) with requests from Vanuatu and the Federated States of Micronesia. There are important national differences in the development finance landscape of the countries covered, but there are also common patterns and challenges across the sub-region. The public sector, including state-owned enterprises, tends to play a much larger role in development finance and the economy in general- despite broad acknowledgement of the importance of private sector-led growth. Development assistance, from both OECD DAC members and non-traditional development partners, plays a much larger role than it does in most other regions. Accessing climate finance has taken on huge economic significance, particularly in the smaller Pacific countries. Countries typically have clear national development strategies, generally well-integrated with the SDGs, but in practice there is often a substantial disjoint between these plans, what resources are available, and how available resources are allocated.

The DFAs, produced in close collaboration with respective governments, provide a solid foundation for identification of practical steps that can be taken to improve financing of Pacific countries’ development plans.

UNDP is now recruiting a Development Finance Specialist to be based at the Pacific Office in Fiji to take forward support to governments in the Pacific on development financing.

In particular, the consultant will provide technical support two new Development Finance Assessments in the Federated States of Micronesia and Vanuatu, and support the government of the Solomon Islands in implementing the Solomon Islands Integrated Financing Framework. The role is also expected to provide technical support to countries, draft guidance for Ministries of Finance and Planning, facilitate dialogue and evidence building at country level on integrated approaches to financing, and support the UNDP regional teams on financing SDGs in their design of services for Pacific governments.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work:

Under the overall guidance of the Development Economist at the UNDP Pacific Office in Fiji, the consultant will:

1. Support technical consultations and drafting, in partnership with national counterparts, of new Development Finance Assessments in:
   • The Federated States of Micronesia
   • Vanuatu
2. Support the government of the Solomon Islands in the implementation of the Solomon Islands Integrated Financing Framework, working closely with the UNDP office in Honiara.
3. Provide substantive capacity to support UNDP and partner governments in DFA follow-up and taking forward priority DFA recommendations, including:
   • Developing practical development finance roadmaps and strategies (including integrated financing frameworks where appropriate), overall or sector-specific, in partnership with governments (primarily MOFs) and other relevant development partners; includes advising on dialogue mechanisms for financing development which support strategy design and implementation;
   • Support improved alignment between planning and budgeting processes. Specific activities would be in response to partner government demand, but could include supporting development of strategic planning guidelines for ministries and provincial governments, developing approaches for review of draft budgets for alignment with national plans, or supporting development of budget proposals by sub-national governments;
   • Support national and, as appropriate, regional mechanisms to track implementation and financing of national and regional development strategies.
4. Support development of initiatives to address identified development finance needs, including:
   • The potential SDG Joint Fund Pacific proposal on Integrated National Financing Frameworks;
   • Initiatives to more efficiently mobilize private sector engagement in the sustainable development agenda and improve alignment of investment decisions in line with UNDP’s private sector engagement and development strategy engaging innovation hubs, academia and the private sector think tanks;
   • Initiatives to make the most effective use of emerging opportunities to engage with non-traditional partners, including South-South Cooperation and private philanthropy in line with UNDP’s approach to philanthropic organizations in the Pacific;
   • Initiatives to improve collection and collection of data to provide decision makers with a more comprehensive understanding of development finance flows and support more evidence-based policymaking;
   • Supporting linkages and knowledge exchange with the Bangkok Regional Hub to facilitate South-South learning and knowledge exchange.
5. Contribute to regional UNDP work to strengthen SDG implementation and financing strategies at country level, with specific attention to country monitoring of development effectiveness principles and interaction of flows both domestic and international, public and private; specifically linking the work on effective development cooperation and aid effectiveness to wider financing for development discussions.
6. Serve as the Pacific focal point for the regional Asia-Pacific SDG Financing Facility (APFIN).

The consultant will function as an integral part of the UNDP Pacific Office in Fiji team, and is expected to flexibly respond to demands and opportunities to support countries’ development finance needs over the course of the consultancy.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables:

Institutional Arrangement:

• The consultant will work under the supervision of the UNDP Development Economist, with guidance from the Development Finance Advisor and Team in the UNDP Bangkok Regional Hub.
• The consultant will work in close collaboration with the Inclusive Growth Team at the UNDP Pacific Office in Fiji and the UNDP Country Office in the Solomon Islands.
• The consultant will work in partnership with Pacific Island Country governments and regional organizations.

Supervision/Reporting

• On a day-to-day basis, the consultant would report to the UNDP Deputy Resident Representative at the Pacific Office in Fiji
• Outputs produced by the consultant and overall workplan of the consultant would also be reviewed by the Policy Specialist, Development Finance and Effectiveness for the Asia-Pacific SDG Finance Facility project, based at the UNDP Bangkok Regional Hub

Duration of the Work:

The initial consultancy will be for a period of 6 months during 27 January – 31 July 2020. The total number of working days under this contract is 120 days, out of which 10-15 days will be home-based. An extension may be agreed on successful completion of the assignment.

Duty Station:

• The consultant will be based in the UNDP Pacific Office in Fiji (Suva, Fiji) for the duration of the assignment and would be required to work within the normal working hours of the Office. Approximately 10-15 working days will be home-based.
• The consultant will be expected to travel to provide in-country support and advice to governments within the Pacific sub-region. Duty travel costs would be paid by UNDP in line with policies and procedures.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrate integrity and ethical standards;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Treats all people fairly without favouritism;
• Promote the vision, mission and strategic goal of UN

Functional Competencies:

• Effective team player, with good communication, diplomatic and inter-personal skills;
• Has ability to communicate clearly and present coherent and well-founded arguments;
• Demonstrates openness to change, responds positively to feedback and different point of view;
• Excellent communication skills including presentations, networking and interpersonal skills;
• Has ability to synthesize large amounts of information into succinct written reports;
• Proven experience in writing, editing and proof reading; Strong analytical skills.

Required Skills and Experience

The consultant should possess the following expertise and qualifications:

Education

• Relevant degree or advanced degree in economics, public finance, public policy and administration or related field.

Experience

• Minimum of 5 years of relevant professional work experience with track record of research analysis;
• Research experience in the areas of development finance, budget review and public expenditure review are required;
• Previous work on development finance issues in the Pacific sub-region an advantage;
• Familiarity with UNDP’s DFA methodology and Financing Solutions toolkit as well as wider financing services considered an asset;
• Proven knowledge of the concept of Integrated National Finance Frameworks (INFF) and their adaptation at the country level will be considered a significant asset;
• Experience in country-level work rooted in public policy reforms in close collaboration with government;
• Excellent writing skills required, as demonstrated by previous research/analytical reports on relevant topics;
• Ability to lead consultations with senior Government officials required;
• Sound grasp of substantive policy issues in the public finance field;
• Excellent knowledge of data collection, analysis and statistics tool are essential;
• Advanced quantitative and econometric skills and experience with related data analysis tools are an advantage.

Language requirements

Fluency in written and spoken English.

Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments:

The consultant must send a financial proposal based on an all-inclusive Daily Fee in USD for the contract period. The 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 consultant in completing the assignment are already factored into the daily fee submitted in the proposal. Payments will be based on monthly reports for the services provided by the Consultant based on request

Payment Schedule

Travel related cost

UNDP Pacific will organize travels and disburse living allowance for the consultant using UNDP rules and regulations. All the cost incurred from the mission will be reimbursed at actual with prior approval according to UNDP rules and regulations.

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 the missions. 

Criteria for Selection of the Best Offer:

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 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 proposal received by UNDP for the assignment.

Technical Criteria for Evaluation (Maximum 30 points)

• Criteria 1: Relevance of education – Max 5 points
• Criteria 2: 5 years of relevant work experience on development finance with expertise in research analysis– Max 10 Points
• Criteria 3: Experience with conducting country and regional level analysis on development finance issues with a focus on policy reform– Max 10 points
• Criteria 4: Experience with DFAs or UNDP’s approach to financing advisory services  – Max 5 points

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70 points (70% of the total technical points) will be considered for the Financial Evaluation. Shortlisted candidates shall be called for interview.

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:

Interested individual consultants must submit the following to demonstrate their suitability for the assignment.

1. Duly accomplished Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability and Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price using the template provided by UNDP; 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.
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. One page of proposed methodology to complete this assignment

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

ANNEXES:

Annex I -ToR International DFA Consultant-Pacific
Annex II General Terms and Conditions for Contracts Individual Consultants
Annex III - Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability and financial proposal
Annex IV- P11 for ICs (optional)
Annex V - IC Procurement Notice

All documents can be downloaded at: http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=61922

For any clarification regarding this assignment please write to procurement.th@undp.org