Background

UNDP is implementing a sub-regional Project “Strengthen national and local systems to support the effective socio-economic integration of returnees in the Western Balkans”. The Project is part of the IPA II Multi-Country Action “EU support to Fundamental Rights of Roma Community and Reintegration of Returnees”, which has been entrusted for implementation to UNDP, the World Bank and the Council of Europe and targets Albania, North Macedonia and Serbia.

The project promotes holistic approach in responding to the immediate needs of vulnerable returnees as well as in tackling the structural challenges, which propel unregulated migration of men and women from the Western Balkans to EU. The comprehensive mix of technical assistance, capacity building and direct support to vulnerable men and women aims to demonstrate innovative solutions that will underpin transformational change in the models of governance of reintegration services and socio-economic empowerment programmes, with an objective of ensuring sustainable reintegration of the vulnerable returnees and social cohesion. 

In each country, the project will support establishment of local reintegration platforms in 3 municipalities, with a purpose of mobilizing public service providers, business community and civil society in co-designing and implementation of local strategies for reintegration of returnees. Local strategies will propose a set of context specific innovative solutions for improving the livelihoods and social wellbeing of returnees and the broader community. Moreover, local strategies will tackle the local governance issues, individual and institutional bottlenecks and gaps, which hinder the effective service provision.

To ensure effective targeting of activities the project will carry-out the assessment of institutional and individual capacity bottlenecks for accessing quality local services by the returnees both from public sector service providers and civil society in the three selected partner municipalities of Fier, Berat and Devoll with the main purpose to assess the magnitude and propensity for outward migration and re-migration of the local population as well as to assess the potentials and capacities for service provision, which are critical for sustainable reintegration of returnees.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Scope of work

This assessment addresses the challenges faced by returnees upon their return in the country and those that hinder further migration with respect to support services that are available at local level in each of the three partner municipalities of Fier, Berat and Devoll. The methodology should be based on the “ecosystem approach”[1] in reintegration setting where different levels of the returnee environment shall be regarded including attitudes and culture of society, private and public sector, service providers, civil society, community based service providers, neighbors, home, family, friends, peers, etc. In addition, the “user/people” perspective shall be considered in the report, i.e. what are the obstacles that the individual is experiencing upon the return and in the process of reintegration due to weak institutional/NGOs capacities from the perspective of access to information, long and multiple registrations in the system, access to support services, legal obstacles etc.

The initial desk review shall take stock of key standards and indicators used by actors in the field of return and reintegration to measure level of access to services and its sustainability and identify complementary approaches. The consultant will be responsible to collect all the necessary data and reports from all relevant stakeholders and LSGs which are relevant for the specific topic.

Guidance material will be provided by UNDP and will include, but not be limited to the following:

• Project Document “Strengthen national and local systems to support the effective socio-economic integration of returnees in the Western Balkans”.
• Regional Roma Survey 2017 -Regional survey on socio-economic situation of marginalized Roma in the Western Balkans, commissioned by UNDP and the World Bank, with the support of the DG NEAR.
• National Action Plan for Equity, Inclusion and Participation of Roma and Egyptian 2021-2025
• The National Strategy for Migration Governance 2019-2022
• Law No. 9034/2003 for Emigration of Albanian Citizens for Employment Purposes.
•  Municipal social plans.

To collect qualitative and quantitative data, the Consultant shall organize consultations with the institutions and organizations working directly with returnees in the country, as well as focus group with direct beneficiaries of the project – using a participatory approach, which means that returnees, families or communities of return are consulted.

Building on this input, the Consultant shall produce the draft of the assessment report.  The report shall answer the question how the current system of service delivery can be improved and what are the missing services by returnees. The report shall identify existing governmental and local measures/sources that serve as entry points to the social welfare system and access to labor markets, including the following set of parametars:

1. availability and capacities of public facilities for service provision, available care services (kindergartens, primary education schools, day care centers and home care) etc.;
2. availability of local entities with capacities to support the reintegration (e.g. Roma coordinators, assistants or mobile teams of local NGOs);
3. available services provided by the NGOs and public providers in the areas of personal documentation, social protection, education and labor market activation;
4. available services offered by NGOs directly to returnees (by assessing also their cooperation with local police forces or boarder police, local social services, labor offices, civil registry offices, municipal social service department, local education authorities, etc. relevant for the provision of reintegration assistance and services);
5. weaknesses and strengths of three selected municipalities, as regards institutional gaps, HR capacities, needs for improvement of integration services, etc.;
6. Good practices and models established at local level, resulting from previous interventions of NGOs and Municipalities, as regards social and economic support to Roma community, which may serve as a starting point for this project;
7. available opportunities for improving the employability and employment of returnees, etc.;
8. inter-institutional cooperation among different partners on a local level, especially between employment services and social welfare centers, including in-dept analysis on the information systems connectivity, availability of common services/individual/family plans for improvement etc. ;
9. needs and priorities of returnees assessed through local-level surveys including a review of their experience in interacting with institutions and NGOs;
10. presence and other ongoing projects supported by the international organizations and services they offer; 
11. the assessment will also reflect on the impact of COVID-19 on the capacities and challenges of public service providers to cope with the pressure to deliver accessible and safe services to citizens caused by the pandemic, etc.

The main findings shall be consulted and validated with the key project counterparts and civil servants from relevant institutions responsible for development of the new regulation on inclusion of the returnees.

The final report shall provide a baseline for developing solutions and an evidence-based foundation which will be used as a programming and advocacy tool to improve sustainable reintegration of returnees assisted through „Strengthen national and local systems to support the effective socio-economic integration of returnees in the Western Balkans“ project.

The consultant will work under direct supervision by National Project Coordinator in UNDP Albania and the overall oversight of the Regional Project Coordinator in the UNDP Istanbul Regional Hub. He/she will be in regular communication with the supervisor through e-mail and will provide regular progress reports on bi-weekly basis. All communication and reports will need to be prepared in English language. UNDP Staff estimated lead time to review outputs, give comments, certify approval/acceptance of outputs, etc. shall be within 5 working days.

1. Deliverables and Timeline

The consultant is expected to produce the following deliverables.

Competencies

Skills and Competencies

• Strong analytical, reporting and writing abilities.
• Proved expertise in the area of social protection in Albania.
• Familiarity with Roma, migration and returnees’ policy in the country.
• Familiarity of local self-governments system and its functioning in Albania, as well as with a network of stakeholders at the local level in Albania in the context of returnees. 
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Willing to take responsibility, act professionally at all times, and make sure tasks are fully completed.
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.
• Ability to work under pressure and uses time efficiently. Identifies priority activities and adjust them as required.

Required Skills and Experience

Master’s degree in social studies or related field (i.e., social work, psychology, public policy) is required.

Work experience:

• Minimum 7 years of general professional experience in social welfare systems, social protection, labour market inequalities and sustainable growth.

• Experience in reports writing and analysis.
• Record of at least 3 undertaken research focused on Roma and/or returnees would be an asset.

Knowledge

• Excellent knowledge of social protection sector, on national and local level in Albania, and related strategic, legal and institutional frameworks for Roma and returnees in Albania.

Language requirement:

• Excellent command of written and spoken English; fluency in Albanian language.

Evaluation Procedure

UNDP applies a fair and transparent selection process that would consider both the technical qualification of Individual Consultants as well as their financial proposals. The contract will be awarded to the candidate whose offer:

• Is deemed technically responsive / compliant / acceptable (only technically responsive applications / candidates will be considered for the financial evaluation)
• And has obtained the highest combined technical and financial scores.

Technical Criteria - 70% of total evaluation – max points: 700

• Criteria A: Experience working minimum 7 years’ of progressively responsible, professional-level experience related to socio-economic assessment, program assessment, monitoring, and evaluation, with a particular linkage to returnees, Roma and Egyptian minorities and social inclusion themes – max points: 350
• Criteria B: Familiarity with the social protection administrative service planning and administration – max points: 200
• Criteria C: Educational background– max points: 150

Financial Criteria - 30% of total evaluation – max points: 300

Candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% (490 points) of the maximum obtainable points for the technical criteria (700 points) shall be considered for the financial evaluation.

Contract Award

Candidate obtaining the highest combined scores in the combined score of Technical and Financial evaluation will be considered technically qualified and will be offered to enter into contract with UNDP.

Payment modality

Payment to the Individual Contractor will be made based on the actual number of days worked, deliverables accepted and upon certification of satisfactory completion by the project manager.

Application Procedure 

Interested applicants are advised to carefully study all sections of this ToRs and ensure that they meet the general requirements as well as specific qualifications described. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please make sure you have provided all requested materials. 

The application should contain: 

• Cover letter explaining why you are the most suitable candidate for the advertised position. Please paste the letter into the "Resume and Motivation" section of the electronic application. 
• Completed and signed UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SC) and Individual Contracts (IC) – Blank form Download here or latest Curriculum Vitae
• Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability & Detailed Financial Proposal - please fill in the attached form. Download Here (kindly use Firefox browser)
• Financial Proposal in ALL*- Specify a Total Lump Sum in Albanian Lek for the tasks specified in this announcement. The attached template may be used - Download Here (kindly use Firefox browser) Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall consider various expenses incurred by the consultant during the contract period (e.g. fee and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services). 
• Copy of Diplomas and copy of Passport. 

*Kindly note that Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability and Financial Proposal are two separate documents and should be both part of your application. 

How to Submit the Application: 

To submit your application online, please follow the steps below: 

• Download and complete the UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs); In the P11 Form make sure to include Email Addresses of the Persons who are willing to provide References on your past experience in working with them.
• Merge your UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs) or latest CV, Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability and cover letter into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded; 
• Click on the Job Title (job vacancy announcement); 
• Click “Apply Now” button, fill in necessary information on the first page, and then click “Submit Application;” 
• Upload your application/single file as indicated above with the merged documents (underlined above); 

• You will receive an automatic response to your email confirming receipt of your application by the system. 

Due to large number of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process

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.