UNDP Jobs - 99472- National Consultant on Financing for SDGs

National Consultant on Financing for SDGs

Location :

Yerevan, ARMENIA

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

01-Jul-2021

Application Deadline :

15-Jun-21 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

National Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

01 July-31 December, 2021 (estimated 60 work days)

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

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

2030 Agenda: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda), adopted by world leaders in September 2015 at an historic UN Summit, presents an ambitious, complex and interconnected vision for sustained and inclusive economic growth, social inclusion, and environmental protection, fostering peaceful, just, and inclusive societies. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets demonstrate the scale and ambition of 2030 Agenda. They are integrated and indivisible and balance the three dimensions of sustainable development of the country: the economic, social and environmental. For achievement of the SDGs the countries should design national development strategy and sectorial development strategies as well as use different sources of financing (domestic/international, public/private) to finance adequately the strategies.

Development finance: The development finance landscape for both public and private sources is rapidly changing in Armenia; the COVID-19 crisis and the escalation of the conflict in NK increased the existing problematic issues in financing landscape and created uncertainty and risks for adequate financing policy from the Government. Accordingly, the development of a reliable framework is becoming more and more crucial in order to design new financial instruments and to use different sources of development financing to respond and recover from the compound crisis.

Project overview: In this context, “Making Finance Work for Transformative Change in Armenia: UN-Locking Finance for Armenia 2030” (the Project) was designed to operationalize the ATS and the country’s sectoral strategies through an SDG integrated financial framework and strengthen the financing architecture for effective policy implementation. To strengthen the overall capacity of country-led SDG actions on integrated policy and financing, the Project will carry out detailed assessments of national financing schemes and work with government stakeholders to develop capacity for effective, gender-sensitive and inclusive implementation of new/innovative financing options.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Project coordinator the Consultant will conduct research and analysis on the potential and mechanisms for development/SDG finance in Armenia (both public and private finance), develop proposals and concept notes, as well as support the process of DFA implementation with respective analysis.

The Consultant is responsible for analysis of international best practice and trends of development finance, sustainable finance as well as financing opportunities in Armenia, collecting data, making policy documents and analysis.

The responsibilities of the Consultant will include but are not limited to the following activities:

Support to SDG finance infrastructure development,
Analysis of international best practice on SDG’s financing infrastructures, tools and instruments both by public and private sources.
Analysis of financing context and outlook, existing structures, ongoing reforms and opportunities to strengthen financing policies and institutional structures in relation to the SDG-s finance.
Collection of relevant data, policy documentation and analysis about existing SDG finance policies, tools and instruments in Armenia.
Development of solutions and recommendations for reforms to public and private finance policies, institutional structures and capacity with a view to supporting SDG-s and innovative financial tools implementation.
Support to DFA implementation in the scope of development finance and innovative financial instruments.
Support the Project to plan missions, consultations and strategic dialogues as needed, including arranging logistics and reaching out to stakeholders in the scope of SDG finance activities.
Draft policy concept papers, notes and other relevant documents in the scope of SDG finance activities.

Expected Deliverables

Deliverables	Description of deliverables	Delivery time
Output 1	The first draft report, including international best practice of financing of SDGs both by public and private sources and practical recommendations with clear mechanisms and toolset defined for Armenia.	August 15
Output 2	Final report on financing of SDGs including international best practice, feedbacks from stakeholders and practical recommendations with clear mechanisms and toolset defined for Armenia.	November 15
Output 3	Two concept papers/proposals developed on SDG finance based on main findings and practical recommendations for Armenia	December 01

Payment schedule:

Payment will be made in the following installments upon completion of the tasks under each output and approval of deliverables by UNDP Team Leader and “Unlocking finance for Armenia 2030” project coordinator.

Output 1 – 35% of total amount
Output 2 – 35% of total amount
Output 3 – 30% of total amount

Competencies

Good knowledge of development policies financing schemes, sustainable development finance, SDGs finance etc
Good knowledge of financial tools, instruments and institutions
Good knowledge of data collection and analysis
Good knowledge of government systems and processes of Armenia, particularly in relation to the public and private finance policies, planning processes and their integration.
Ability and skills to implement research and analysis on different topics related to SDG-s financing, financial tools and policies financing.
Ability to conduct interviews with different stakeholders.
Demonstrating/safeguarding ethics and integrity.
Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Required Skills and Experience

Education

Advanced University degree (MSc, MA or PhD) in economics, public finance, or other relevant area.

Experience

At least 5 years of experience in the fields of development finance, public financial management, policy elaboration and planning,
Experience in public and private sector development policies design and analysis,
Experience in sectoral development policies design and analysis,
Experience in analysis on international practice on development finance and its institutional frameworks,
Research and analysis experience in areas of public or private financing policy for sustainable development,
Experience in development of analytical documents, concept papers and reports,
Previous experience with a development partner or government is a very strong advantage.

Language Skills:

Proficiency in Armenian and English required (written and spoken). Knowledge of Russian is an asset.

CANDIDATES WILL BE EVALUATED BASED ON THE FOLLOWING METHODOLOGY:

Candidates will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants' technical qualifications, experience and financial proposal.The contract will be awarded to the candidate whose offer has been evaluated and determined as technically responsive/compliant/acceptable to the requirements of the ToR and received the highest cumulative (technical and financial) score out of below defined technical and financial criteria.

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points in the technical evaluation would be considered for financial evaluation.

Technical Criteria - 70% of total evaluation - max. 70 points

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

DOCUMENTS TO BE INCLUDED WHEN SUBMITTING THE APPLICATION.

Financial Proposal and Availability form: OFFEROR’S LETTER TO UNDP (A total lump sum option is applicable for this assignment)
CV shall include Education/Qualification, Processional Certification, Employment Records /Experience

General Conditions of Contract is available here: GENERAL CONDITIONS OF CONTRACT

Note: Please note you can upload only one document to this application (scan all documents that should be included in the application in one single PDF file and upload it).