Background

The Joint SDG Fund Joint Programme on Reaping the Demographic Dividend and Managing the Socio-Economic Impact of COVID-19 by Applying an Integrated National Financing Framework in the Philippines (JP INFF and DD) will apply the building blocks of the Integrated National Financing Framework (INFF) to provide catalytic support – tools, technical assistance for strengthening systems, coordination and consensus building on priorities as part of a whole of government approach in support of We Recover As One. It will strengthen national planning and budgeting mechanisms to ensure that a more effective resource allocation, and establish a more diversified financing framework that can leverage additional resources for the implementation of COVID-19 recovery strategies, and ultimately, the achievement of the SDGs in an integrated manner. UNDP (lead), UNFPA and UNICEF are the Participating UN Organizations in this Joint Programme, supported by the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office.

One of the outputs of the JP INFF and DD is the establishment of the Sustainable Development Goals Budget Tagging Systems and Processes (‘SDG Budget Tagging’) which plans to establish a monitoring and evaluation system on SDG investment programming, budgeting, and reporting. This initiative will promote SDG ownership among public institutions, and highlight the importance of tagging and tracking proposed plans and programs in terms of SDG achievement. As a result, this can strengthen upstream planning and prioritization of SDG expenditures.

SDG Budget Tagging will mobilize the budget process through a proposed codification system integrated to the national budget cycle. This will enable policymakers to take stock of national SDG response and use this system for a targeted and prioritized planning and budgeting. Hence, this will improve coordination and convergence among national government agencies in planning, prioritizing, budgeting, and implementing priority programs by focusing on SDG indicators relevant to their mandates.

Ultimately, SDG Budget Tagging will implement a policy-based and standardized codification of SDG-related programs, activities, and projects (PAPs). This is to ensure effective allocation of public resources to address SDG priorities, and increase ownership of national government agencies in their SDG response.

Objectives

This proposed policy-based and standardized codification system would identify, tag, and monitor SDG initiatives across government agencies, thereby strengthening the country's SDG planning, implementation, and financing.

Specifically, SDG Budget Tagging aims to:

a.Stand as an effective basis for allocation and prioritization of public resources on SDG programs:

1. Prompt timely analytics on resource allocation and generate baseline to evaluate the impact of public expenditures on meeting the SDGs;
2. Develop guidelines on how SDG issues could be addressed in project planning and investment programming, requiring a description of SDG-related objectives and expected outcomes, and its rationale in budget proposals;
3. Increase budget allocation and transparency of fund planning, and in the context of performance-informed budgets, its required outputs and intended outcomes;
4. Develop an SDG budgeting and planning system;
5. Align the SDG-related PAPs with the government framework for identifying, aggregating, and reporting financial transactions in the budget preparation, execution, accounting, and auditing processes; and
6. Identify the least and most underfunded SDGs in the planning and budgeting processes, and develop interventions to address financing gaps.

b.Promote coherence by fostering links between the government budget and SDG- related policies:

1. Establish clear institutional responsibilities for SDG monitoring and reporting;
2. Determine effectiveness of these institutional mechanisms in translating policy goals into development outcomes; and
3. Assess the performance of the SDGs with respect to the Results Matrices of the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) and Socio-Economic Report (SER), and inform SDG financing interventions.

c.Identify financing opportunities to accelerate SDG implementation

The JP INFF and DD seeks to hire a Consultant to assess and review the current SDG performance and financial indicators. The Consultant will also provide guidance to establish the framework for the SDG Budget Tagging Systems and Processes.

Institutional Arrangements

The Consultant will be under the supervision of the Joint Programme Coordinatorand the overall guidance of the UNDP Country Office, through the Team Leader of the Institutions and Partnerships Programme.

To achieve the intended results, the Consultant will collaborate closely with the Sub-Committee on SDGs Secretariat based in NEDA and the DBM throughout the assignment period. As necessary, guidance will be also be sought from the SDG Finance Team in UNDP’s Bangkok Regional Hub and Finance Sector Hub in New York. UNDP and NEDA shall provide comments and approve outputs within 10 working days upon receipt of output.

UNDP Philippines will not provide a workstation, administrative support, transportation, or ICT equipment for the consultant. The Consultant is expected to have his/her own equipment, office space, and internet connectivity.

Duration of Assignment, Duty Station and Travel

Duration: The Contractor will be engaged for 80 working days spread across the period of January 2022 to May 2022 unless revised in a mutually agreed upon timetable by UNDP and the Contractor. Changes in the duration of the contract will be implemented through issuance of a contract amendment.

The selected consultant will be home based. Travel within the Philippines may be needed at a later stage depending on COVID-19 travel restrictions as well as project progress and therefore arrangements and expenses shall be agreed on separately with UNDP prior to travel.

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and declaration of State of Public Health Emergency in the Philippines, all work and travel of the Individual Consultant shall be done within the guidelines and protocols set by the local and national government. Field work, trainings, meetings, and coordination shall be done in compliance with community quarantine policies.

Scope of Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments

The Consultant must send a financial proposal based on an all-inclusive lump-sum amount for the delivery of the outputs below. The total amount quoted shall include all cost components required to deliver the goods and services identified above, including professional daily fees X number of person-days and any other applicable costs (eg. software and online tool/platform subscriptions) to be incurred by the Consultant in completing the assignment.

Medical/health insurance must be purchased by the individual at his/her own expense, and upon award of contract, the Contractor must be ready to submit proof of insurance valid duringcontract duration

The contract price will be fixed output-based price. Any deviations from the outputs and timelines will need to be agreed on between the Consultant and the Resident representative effected through a contract amendment.

Payments will be made upon satisfactory completion of the deliverables by target due dates. Outputs will be certified by the Joint Programme Coordinator, prior to payments.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work and Deliverables

The objective of this assignment is to support the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), through the Joint Programme Participating UN Organizations, led by UNDP, by providing guidance on the establishment of the framework for the SDG Budget Tagging Systems and Processes.

The Consultant will provide overall technical guidance and methodological support for the design of the SDG Budget Tagging Systems and Processes, which includes the following phased deliverables:

• Output 1: PFM systems review. Assess current public financial management infrastructure and framework in terms of planning and budgeting system data sharing and interoperability. The review will look into the following systems, at the minimum: Unified Accounts Code Structure (UACS) and the Online Submission of Budget Proposal System (OSBPS), and Public Investment Program Online (PIPOL). The review will look into the broader perspective of not only tracking budgets for the SDGs,but also tracking budgets for PDP programs/priorities as a step towards a better integratedplanning and budgeting system.
• Output 2: SDG codification framework mapping. Stocktaking/mapping of existing international initiatives related to SDG budget tagging and assessing which can be adapted by the Philippines and identifying applicable options for the Philippines given planning and budget systems. The codification framework should tackle issues such as programs contributing to multiple SDGs and other issues that may be later identified.
• Output 3: Matching programs and budget allocations across NEDA and DBM systems. While programs and targets in the Philippine Development Plan has been mapped out to specific SDG targets, the budget allocation for these programs cannot be easily determined since the planning and budgeting systems of NEDA (PIPOL) and DBM (OSBPS and other systems) do not share a common set of program codes. The consultant is expected to propose a solution that will enable easier tracking of programs as identified in NEDA’s PIPOL program and their budget allocations and budget results (budget expenditure and physical accomplishments) as documented in various DBM systems which uses the Unified Account Code Structure (UACS).
• Output 4: Roadmap to further strengthening link of planning and budgeting systems. Provide recommendations on options for NEDA and DBM to achieve better linkage of the planning and budgeting systems and building in the capacity to easily track financing for the SDGs (allocation and disbursements) and other priorities in the future. The roadmap should indicate what steps are necessary to be taken.

The Individual Contractor is expected to accomplish the following activities with corresponding deliverables:

The solution is intended to be used between 2022-2023 when a new administration will craft its Philippine Development Plan and its first annual budget proposal. DBM has indicated that it is not possible to modify UACS in the short-term as several agencies, such as Treasury and COA, are already using this.

Competencies

Competencies

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills;
• Strong analytical, reporting and writing abilities skills;
• Openness to change and ability to receive/integrate feedback;
• Ability to plan, organize, implement and report on work;
• Ability to work under pressure and tight deadlines;
• Proficiency in the use of office IT applications and internet in conducting research;
• Outstanding communication, project management and organizational skills;
• Excellent presentation and facilitation skills.
• Demonstrates integrity and ethical standards;
• Positive, constructive attitude to work;

• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Functional and technical competencies

• Ability to work in a diverse and multi-cultural environment;
• Self-motivated and ability to work under pressure and to meet strict and competing deadlines;
• Displays analytical judgment and demonstrated ability to handle confidential and politically sensitive issues in a responsible and mature manner;
• Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities

Required Skills and Experience

Offers will be evaluated based on the combined scoring method :

• Technical qualifications = 70%
• Financial Proposal = 30%

For the evaluation of the Technical Proposal, the selection of the successful consultant must be based on the following qualifications (with the appropriate obtainable points).

Only offerors who will obtain a minimum of 49 out of 70 obtainable points  will be shortlisted and considered eligible for evaluation of the financial proposal.

Recommended Presentation of Offer

Interested applicants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications. Please group them into one (1) single PDF document as the application only allows to upload of a maximum of one document.

1. Duly accomplished Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided by UNDP
2. Personal CV or P11, indicating all experience from similar projects highlighting the following the qualifications and competencies identified above. Contact details (email and telephone number) of the candidate should be indicated.
3. At least 2 samples of relevant written work
4. Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs, as per template provided. 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. Medical/health insurance must be purchased by the individual at his/her own expense, and upon award of contract, the consultant must be ready to submit proof of insurance valid during contract duration.

Note: The above documents need to be scanned in one file and uploaded to the online application as one document.

Interested applicants to note that personal Medical/health insurance (to be purchased by the individual at his/her own expense) is mandatory for the issuance of contracts. Upon award of the contract, the consultant must be ready to submit proof of insurance valid during the contract duration.

The following templates / Annexes and IC General Terms & Conditions can be downloaded from http://gofile.me/6xdJm/bE9TCw8fU:

• General Terms and Conditions for Individual Contract
• Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability
• P-11 form

In view of the volume of applications, UNDP receives, only shortlisted offerors will be notified.