Background

A fundamental government responsibility is to provide information and services aimed at improving the social and economic welfare of its citizens. During the first phase of the a2i program, fundamental progress has been made in improving access to public services. However, it is critical to expand the breadth and width of such simplified services and improve the service delivery model to counter the impact of widespread outdated manual processes, resistance to change by civil service staff, and a lack of transparency that still frustrates citizens in their attempts to avail of government information and services.

The objective of the project is to increase transparency, improve governance, and reduce the time, difficulty, and costs of obtaining government services for under-served communities of Bangladesh. This is to be achieved by the following 5 components of the project: 

Component 1: Strengthening existing e-services and launching the second generation of integrated, inter-operable e-government applications; (e-Service)

Component 2: Sensitizing government officials, training for service providers, and expanding digital literacy among the general public; (Capacity and Awareness)

Component 3: Forging strong policy and strategy links to ensure implementation of needed legal and regulatory changes in support of the project; (Enabling Environment)

Component 4: Promoting innovation in the delivery of e-services. (Innovation)

Component 5: Establishing linkage with public and private sectors and creating awareness among the citizens.          

‘Aspire to Innovate (a2i) Programme’ is looking for an International Consultant for Strategic Planning and Programme Development to formulate an independently developed strategy that identifies a2i’s key assets and operation models. The frameworks, recommendations, documentation, and content generated should provide in-depth insight into the progress of and the way forward for a2i in its third phase of the program. The strategy and knowledge will also provide essential mapping materials and tools for a2i initiatives, its partners, donors, and other stakeholders.

The project is funded by the Government of Bangladesh, UNDP and other development partners, and is implemented by the ICT Division and Cabinet Division.

Objectives:

The overall objective of the assignment are following:

1. Develop a framework for a2i’s current and future value proposition in the national and international development ecosystem
2. Produce knowledge product codifying and analyzing a2i initiatives practices and processes in the context of evolving partner demands and development landscape
3. Develop a framework for a new operational model for a2i to scale up its programs
4. Develop partnership development and knowledge management toolkits for internal capacity building

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of work and expected outputs/deliverables:

The assignment will focus on the following areas and activities:

1. Framework for a2i’s current and future value proposition in the national and international development ecosystem

a. Desk-based review of internal and external materials related to a2i’s mission, the scope of operations, and key stakeholders and partners

b. External and internal consultation regarding partner engagement progress, requirements, and pipeline activities

c. Identify future value proposition and selling points that accords with a2i’s activities through its five components

d. Identify strategic alliances and partnerships with governmental, bilateral, and development partners

2. Produce knowledge product codifying and analyzing a2i initiatives practices and processes

a. Internal consultation for the understanding of engagements, activities, and implementation experiences

b. Documentation and codification of program activities into cross-functional and interoperable cases, practices, and components

c. Analysis of in-house resources and capacity against organizational goals and strategy

3. Develop a framework for the new operational model for a2i to scale up its program

a. Propose new operational models in areas such as:

i. financing

ii. resource mobilization

iii. positioning

iv. partnerships

v. organizational framework

vi. presentation of impact

b. Identify and design packaged services a2i can offer in areas such as:

i. cultivating data sources

ii. innovation piloting

iii. support for research and development

iv. best practice dissemination

c. Identify and design products a2i can offer, in areas such as:

i. aggregated platforms

ii. data architecture

iii. dashboards

iv. web- and mobile-based tools

4. Develop partnership development and knowledge management toolkits for internal capacity building

a. Propose guidelines for external engagement, donor outreach, engagement, and resource scoping including quality assurance, team functions, focal points, expectations, and responsibilities

b. Design standard operating procedures for internal coordination of resource mobilization and allocation, including organizational gaps and linkages in streamlining processes

c. Develop methodologies to promote knowledge extraction, analysis, codification of results, and lessons learned in the specific thematic areas of engagement.

d. Develop methodologies in content development, and repository maintenance

e. Design internal capacity assessment and capacity development roadmap for program development

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’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
• Treats all people fairly without favoritism

Functional Competencies:

Operational Effectiveness

• Technical Knowledge of issues around complex social, economic and environmental  development challenges – and a good understanding of cross-cutting issues that require integrated solutions;
• Strong Analytical Skills: Ability to deconstruct complexity of issues and find strategic opportunities
• Ability to develop, maintain, and strengthen partnerships with others inside (Programmes/projects) or outside the organization who can provide information, assistance, and support.

Management and Leadership

• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude
• Demonstrates good oral and written communication skills
• Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities
• Leads teams effectively and shows mentoring as well as conflict resolution skills
• Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills
• Remains calm, in control, and good humored even under pressure

Language Required: Fluency in speaking and writing in English

Required Skills and Experience

I. Academic Qualifications:

• Minimum Bachelor’s degree in social sciences/journalism/international relations or any other relevant discipline.

II. Experience:

• Minimum 4 years of working experience in NGO/non-profit or international development sector
• Minimum 4 years of working experience in partnership development, working across sectors (public and private) preferably with experience in program development
• Minimum 1 year of experience in donor engagement/resource mobilization.

Supervision and Performance Evaluation:

The International Consultant for Strategic Planning and Programme Development will be working under the supervision of the Results Management and Data Specialist of a2i Programme who will be responsible for reviewing the performance and approve the deliverables of the incumbent.

Timeframe and deadlines:

The assignment will be for 90 Working days for over 5 months.

Reports:

The incumbent will be paid on a deliverables basis. The incumbent will be paid in 5 installments, after completing each of the activities.

Duty Station: Dhaka (Home-based)

Financial Proposal

Total lump sum:

The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount, and payment terms around specific and measurable (qualitative and quantitative) deliverables (i.e. whether payments fall in installments or upon completion of the entire contract). Payments are based upon output, i.e. upon delivery of the services specified in the TOR. In order to assist the requesting unit in the comparison of financial proposals, the financial proposal will include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (including travel, per diems, and a number of anticipated working days).

The final Products of the assignment will be the following:

Payment of the Consultant as per deliverables

Tentative Payment Schedule:

The incumbent will be paid on a deliverable basis

Travel

All envisaged travel costs must be included in the financial proposal. This includes all travel to join duty station/repatriation travel. In general, UNDP should not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel to a higher class, he/she should do so using their own resources.

In the case of unforeseeable travel, payment of travel costs, including tickets, lodging, and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed

Evaluation Method and Criteria:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology:

Cumulative analysis: The candidates will be evaluated through the Cumulative Analysis method. The award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

1. Responsive/compliant/acceptable, and

2. Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

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

Technical Evaluation Criteria (Total 70 marks):

Financial Evaluation: (Total obtainable score – 30)

All technically qualified proposals will be scored out of 30 based on the formula provided below. The maximum points (30) will be assigned to the lowest financial proposal. All other proposals receive points according to the following formula:

p = y (µ/z)

Where:

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated
y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal
µ = price of the lowest-priced proposal
z = price of the proposal being evaluated

Recommended Presentation of Offer

Interested individuals must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications.

a) Duly accomplished Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided by UNDP;

b) 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;

• http://www.bd.undp.org/content/bangladesh/en/home/operations/jobs/

c) Brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment and a methodology on how she/she will approach and complete the assignment.

d) Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs, as per template provided

• http://www.bd.undp.org/content/dam/bangladesh/docs/Jobs/Interest%20and%20Submission%20of%20Financial%20Proposal-Template%20for%20Confirmation.docx

e) Suppose an organization/company/institution employs an Offeror 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). In this case, the Offeror must indicate this at this point and ensure that all such costs are duly incorporated into the financial proposal submitted to UNDP.  

Please combine all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows you to upload a maximum of one document.

Note: The individual consultant who does not submit the above documents/requirements shall not be considered for further evaluation.