Antecedentes

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1. PROJECT BACKGROUND and CONTEXT

On 1 January 2021, UNDP launched its new Digital, Inclusive, Accessible: Support to Digitalisation of State Services in Ukraine (DIA Support) Project. With a total duration of three years, the project is made possible due to the support of the Government of Sweden and is carried out in close collaboration with the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine (MDT) and other government stakeholders.

The ‘Your State in Your Smartphone’ initiative launched in Ukraine in 2019, would only succeed if appealing and accessible civic digital education was developed and widely implemented to help close digital gaps in knowledge and skills, and bridge the digital divide between generations and groups of Ukrainians with different social backgrounds.

Thus, the project builds on extensive UNDP experience in two areas: administrative service reform and reengineering and digitalising public administration processes with broad citizen and expert engagement. As part of the project, UNDP helps the government partners select several service clusters in use by citizens representing vulnerable groups. The state digital services are packaged to accommodate everyday needs and transposed into a fully digital format.

The DIA Support project operates on three pillars:

  • Capacity development support to the government institutions in designing and implementing inclusive digital transformation with consideration of HRBA and gender mainstreaming;
  • Assistance in launching or reengineering a range of digital public services and service-related digital tools for vulnerable and war-affected groups of Ukrainians;
  • Communication campaigns to inform Ukrainians on available state e-services with the promotion of online resources that will help to enhance the digital skills of the e-services’ potential users.

Specifically, DIA Support Project has been contributing to fostering digital education to help close digital gaps in knowledge and skills, and bridge the digital divide between generations and groups of Ukrainians with different social backgrounds; enhancing the accessibility of digital solutions through the design of relevant IT instruments and the creation of relevant regulatory tools; as well as promoting the development of effective, accountable, and inclusive public institutions capable of responding to the needs of women and men belonging to different groups in terms of reengineering public services.

The full-scale invasion of Russia started in February 2022 has affected Ukraine’s state reforms aspiration, however, it did not manage to significantly slow down the development of new digital solutions and innovations. To a certain extent, the digital transformation domain has been even advanced with the war, as the demand for online services had to be accelerated with security issues, not only the convenience of online delivery. The number of Diia users increased dramatically in 2022 – over 18 million users in total – as new digital services were designed to address the needs of internally displaced people (IDPs), those who were looking for social support from the government, and whose number, unfortunately, continues growing.

During 2.5 years of its implementation, the DIA Support project launched more than 30 social e-services and relevant digital tools to address the needs of Ukrainians representing, among others, vulnerable groups, e.g., IDPs, and elderly people. Over 9 million applications were submitted within newly established services, with equal access for women and men. Also, over 90% of applicants expressed their high satisfaction with the functionality of the online services. This demonstrates that regardless of the COVID-19 pandemic and war-related difficulties, the public services that were introduced with the project support are effective and accessible to the Ukrainian people.

Currently, UNDP plans to analyse the lessons learned from the DIA Support Project, conduct consultations with the key government stakeholders on strategic priorities in the area of digitalization of public governance for the next few years in order to foster digital transformation reforms and ensure the inclusiveness and accessibility of state digital solutions, as well as sustainable growth of e-services’ users and their level of satisfaction.

The main Project stakeholders are (including but not limited to):

  • Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine (MDT);
  • Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine;
  • Ministry of Justice of Ukraine;
  • Ministry of Health of Ukraine;
  • Ministry of Veterans’ Affairs of Ukraine;
  • Ministry for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine;
  • Vulnerable groups (IDPs, elderly people, war veterans etc);
  • Ukrainian citizens who use public e-services

 

Project/Outcome Information

Project/Outcome title

Digital, Inclusive, Accessible: Support to Digitalisation of Public Services in Ukraine (DIA Support)

Quantum project ID

00124920

Corporate outcome and output

Contributing Outcome (UNDAF/CPD, RPD or GPD):

UNDAF OUTCOME: 3. By 2022, women and men, girls and boys participate in decision-making and enjoy human rights, gender equality, effective, transparent and non-discriminatory public services

Indicative Output(s) with gender marker:

CPD Output: 2.2.1 Use of digital technologies and big data enabled for improved public services and other government functions. GEN2

Country

Ukraine

Region

Eastern Europe

Date Cost-sharing Agreement signed

11 November 2020

PAC Meeting date

15 December 2020

Project dates

Start

Planned end

1 January 2021

31 December 2023

Project budget

US$4,470,914

Project expenditure at the time of evaluation

US$3,365,651 (as of 1 January 2023)

Funding source

Government of Sweden

Implementing party

UNDP in Ukraine

Human-rights based approach

The HRBA framework is an essential part of the Project’s theory of change since the digitalisation of public services should be undertaken only with the ‘leave no one behind’ principle when imagining various groups of these services’ users. In essence, HRBA considerations are built into the core of the project by linking the service re-engineering process to experiences of ‘human rights and digitisation’. Specifically, HRBA is incorporated into the Project’s components by setting human rights approaches into the policy design and capacity development of the civil servants and building new digitalized/mobile-based digital services.

Gender equality

The cross-cutting topics of gender and sustainability are addressed through all three outputs of the Project: capacity development of civil servants, technical assistance to the Government with e-services, and awareness raising about existing e-services among the Ukrainian population. The Project strives to ensure that women and men are equally represented in all interventions and have equal access to the produced e-services. UNDP applies an equal opportunities approach in hiring and procurement practices and strives to employ a workforce that reflects the diversity and gender balance.

The gender balance is measured through the gathering (when possible) of sex-disaggregated data at activity and at results levels. The Project launched two educational programmes designed specifically for women, namely, the leadership programme for women innovators in digital transformation and the internship programme for women obtaining STEM professions. While the internship programme is successfully completed in early 2023, the leadership programme continues to be implemented till the middle of 2023.

Also, within the project's communication campaign on citizen awareness of state e-services, all media materials elaborated are typically aligned with the needs, preferences, and challenges of women and men from specific target groups. Before dissemination, the materials are pretested and modified in order to reflect the gender-oriented preferences of the target audience.

More detailed background and context information, logical framework and theory of change, monitoring plans, specific targets and indicators are available in the Project Document[1]. The results achieved so far since the beginning of the Project as per the logical framework, along with the project mid-term review report and other project documentation, will be provided.

[1] https://info.undp.org/docs/pdc/Documents/UKR/DIA%20Prodoc_Amended_11.11.2020.docx

Deberes y responsabilidades

2. PURPOSE, SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT

In line with Article X. of the Financing Agreement with the Government of Sweden, represented by the Sweden International Development Cooperation Agency, signed on 11 November 2020, Project Document and Workplan, UNDP seeks to conduct a final Project Evaluation (PE). The nature of PE is largely a management tool to provide the Project team and stakeholders with an account of results against the initial plans, Project Document and Financing Agreement, provide recommendations and guide further Sweden’s and UNDP’s interventions.  

The main objective of the assignment is to conduct the final evaluation of the Project “Digital, Inclusive, Accessible: Support to Digitalisation of Public Services in Ukraine (DIA Support)”. The purpose of the evaluation is three-fold and aims (1) to analyse the implementation of the Project in 2021-2023, its relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and coherence, particularly in consideration of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation; (2) to draw the lessons learnt, including viable suggestions on operational directions, which could be sharpened and further enhanced in the follow-up Project phase; (3) to provide recommendations and inform the development of further Sweden’s and UNDP’s interventions accounting for the ongoing war and its impact on governmental partners as well as for the need of further UNDP’s assistance. This will not only support accountability, inform decision-making and allow UNDP and the Project Board to better manage development results but also pave the way towards the development of the follow-up phase of Sweden’s and UNDP’s intervention. The scope of the PE will cover activities undertaken by the Project from its start until the end of June 2023.

Given the nature of the Evaluation, the International Consultant will cooperate with the National Consultant to:

  1. assess Project progress towards the achievement of the objectives, expected outputs and outcomes as specified in the Project Document following a number of parameters set under evaluation questions in the sections below; compare planned outputs of the Project to actual outputs; evaluate the relevance of the objectives, expected outputs and outcomes set accounting for the impact of ongoing war; assess signs of Project success or failure with the goal of identifying the necessary changes to be made in order to calibrate Project activities towards meeting emerging needs of government partners by the end of the Project; review the Project strategy and its risks to sustainability;
  2. review progress indicators and targets set in a logical framework in terms of their relevance and feasibility in accounting for the country context and provide feedback on achieving the targets;
  3. draw the lessons learned that can both improve the sustainability of benefits from the Project achieved before the onset of full-scale war and tailor UNDP’s response to the needs and priorities of Project beneficiaries arising, in certain perspective, due to the war;
  4. provide clear recommendations for adaptive management to improve the Project over the remaining part of its lifetime, guide further Sweden’s and UNDP’s interventions and inform the development of the Project’s follow-up phase upon consulting with Project beneficiaries.

This PE will assess Project performance against the review criteria, as outlined in the UNDP Evaluation Guidelines, based on OECD-DAC evaluation criteria: relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability, and coherence. The International Consultant should also address how the Project applied the human rights-based approach and gender mainstreaming in development efforts. The evaluation will be carried out (home-based) between 1 July and 31 August 2023. The PE should be conducted in accordance with the guidance, rules and procedures established by UNDP and as reflected in the UNDP Evaluation Policy.

 

3. EVALUATION CRITERIA AND QUESTIONS

When suggesting a methodology for conducting the evaluation, the evaluators must utilize an evaluation matrix to translate the theory of change and its established framework of direct and indirect results into a comprehensive set of measurable categories for evaluative analysis. This matrix should be designed in a way that effectively encompasses the dimensions of gender equality and human rights.

The below presents a set of preliminary questions that the evaluators are suggested to address in their proposed approach, following the OECD DAC evaluation criteria. The final list of evaluation questions and tools is to be proposed by the International Consultant in coordination with the National Consultant and agreed with UNDP in an Inception report. All evaluation questions should mainstream gender and will be screened by UNDP’s Gender Specialist.

A. Relevance

  • Country context: How relevant is the Project to the interventions target groups, including Government’s needs and priorities and the current evolving country context?
  • Target groups: To what extent is the Project relevant to address the needs of government partners, notably the newly emerging priorities in the crisis settings? What type of needs and priorities is the Project unable to tackle (if any)? To what extent is the Project tackling the vulnerable groups (IDPs, elderly, and others as per Project Document) and gender issues in the digitalization of state e-services? To what extent do the Project’s interventions align with the needs of partner Ministries of Ukraine as the main Project’s recipients?
  • Does the Project remain relevant considering the changing environment in the face of the ongoing war waged by the Russian Federation against Ukraine on 24 February 2022, while taking into consideration the risks/challenges mitigation strategy? Do the Project objectives, impact, outcome and output indicators remain pertinent in the current context? What can be done additionally to better capture the needs of the target groups relevant to the focus of the Project? Suggest Project adaptation strategies to the crisis settings and potential scale-up directions focusing on the war response and recovery.  
  • Does the Project design incorporate the lessons learned from the midterm review (MTR)? Is there a need to reformulate the Project design and the Project results framework given changes in the country context, including those caused by the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine and its effect on the operational context? What measures can be taken to improve the relevance of the Project?
  • How the Project goals and objectives could be reviewed, adjusted and scaled up to frame the development of the potential follow-up Project phase to support the government partners targeting their newly emerging needs in consideration of the ongoing war and post-war recovery?
  • To what extent did UNDP adopt gender-sensitive, human rights-based and conflict-sensitive approaches?

B. Coherence

C. Effectiveness 

  • Assess the overall performance of the Project with reference to its respective Project document / cost-sharing agreement, strategy, objectives (or lack of thereof) and indicators, and identify key issues and constraints that affected the achievement of Project objectives including per individual Project components, accounting for the crisis settings. Were the planned objectives and outcomes achieved according to the results framework? Are the set targets feasible in the current country context? To what extent have the results at the outcome and output levels generated results for gender equality, empowerment of women involved in the digital transformation of Ukraine and promoting sustainable practices? What are the results achieved beyond the logical framework? How can the Project build on or expand the achievements, particularly focusing on the government’s response to the war?
  • How effective was the adjustment and administration of the Low Value Grants (LVGs) competitions in the current country context? To what extent were the eight (8) grant projects supported under the three competitions effective in addressing the emerging needs of the government and people of Ukraine against the backdrop of the war?
  • Was the cooperation with Project beneficiaries and key Project partners, including but not limited to the Ministry of Digital Transformation, Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Social Policy successfully achieved and contributed to the achievement of the Project’s goals? How the role of the state partners in the project could be enhanced?
  • How have stakeholders been involved in the Project implementation? Has the Project effectively cooperated with the Ukrainian Association of Libraries in establishing Digital Hubs for the general population of Ukraine? To what extent has the Project been successful in promoting digital skills and resources for their improvement?
  • How effective is the Project in delivering capacity development initiatives (training sessions, educational series) for civil servants engaged in digital transformation? What measures/interventions could be implemented to enhance the Project’s impact or broaden its coverage?

D. Efficiency

  • Has the Project demonstrated cost-effectiveness? Have resources (funds, human resources, time, expertise, etc.) been strategically allocated to achieve the intended outputs, outcomes and to address inequalities and gender issues? Was the use of resources allocated to LVGs efficient in achieving the anticipated results
  • Are the Project’s activities aligned with the schedule of activities as defined by the Project team and annual work plans? Are the disbursements and Project expenditures in line with budgets? Do the adjustments in Project’s activities and budget revisions adequately reflect the changes in operational circumstances and the programmatic environment? Have the project activities been coordinated and implemented in a timely manner?
  • Is the Project management, coordination and monitoring efficient and appropriate?
  • Does the monitoring consider gender equality and women empowerment issues? To what extent project monitoring results and clients’ feedback are incorporated in project design and delivery?

E. Sustainability

  • Are the measures applied by the Project ensure that Project results (impact, if any, and outcomes) are likely to continue after the Project ends? Define the most promising areas requiring further support and scaling-up in the course of future interventions, considering the current evolving country context.
  • Is there sufficient public/stakeholder awareness in support of the Project’s long-term objectives?
  • What are the financial, social or political risks that may jeopardize the sustainability of Project results? Define the possible risks/challenges mitigating approaches.
  • Are the grant activities or initiatives supported by the Project likely to continue, be scaled up, replicated and increasingly contribute to the inclusive gender-responsive socio-economic development at the national and/or local level after the Project ends?
  • To what extent the interventions have well-designed and well-planned exit strategies?
  • Has the Project contributed to gender equality, women’s empowerment, promotion of human rights and social inclusion? To what extent were capacity development initiatives adequate to ensure sustainable improvements for women, men and vulnerable groups, and promote responsible practices and HRBA-oriented principles among civil servants? What can additionally be done to improve the sustainability of the Project?
  • Has the Project contributed or is likely to contribute to long-term social and economic improvements, considering the current evolving country context?
  • What could be potential priority areas of engagement and corresponding recommendations for the remaining part of the Project and further Sweden’s and UNDP’s interventions in terms of digital transformation, taking into account emerging needs and priorities of the Project beneficiaries? Findings, conclusions and recommendations should reflect gender equality, women empowerment and social inclusion.

4. EVALUATION APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY

In cooperation with the National Consultant, the International Consultant will be required to facilitate the usage of different methods to ensure that data gathering and analysis deliver evidence-based qualitative and quantitative information, based on diverse sources including project reports, survey results, individual meetings etc. This approach will not only enable the Project Evaluation to assess causality through qualitative and quantitative means but also provide reasons for why certain results were achieved or not and to triangulate information for higher reliability of findings. The concrete mixed methodological approach will be detailed in the Inception report and stated in the Final report. All data provided in the report should be disaggregated, where possible, by sex and other social variables. Furthermore, the evaluation methods and sampling frame should address the diversity of stakeholders affected by the Project. Ethical standards are required throughout the evaluation and all stakeholder groups are to be treated with integrity and respect for confidentiality.

The International Consultant is expected to encourage the usage of a participatory and consultative approach ensuring close engagement with government counterparts, civil society partners, the Swedish Embassy in Ukraine (SE), UNDP Country Office (CO) and Project team at all stages of the evaluation planning and implementation. The evaluation will assess the extent to which the Project was successfully mainstreamed with UNDP Strategic Plan given the current country context.

The evaluation of Project performance will be carried out against the expectations set out in the Project Results Framework, which provides performance and impact indicators for Project implementation along with their corresponding means of verification. All indicators in the Results Framework need to be assessed individually, with final achievements noted. An assessment of the Project M&E design, implementation and overall quality should be undertaken. The evaluation will assess the key financial aspects of the Project, including Project budget revisions. Project cost and funding data will be required from the Project, including annual expenditures. Variances between planned and actual expenditures will need to be assessed and explained. The evaluation also should include the value of money aspect – the minimum purchase price (economy) but also the maximum efficiency and effectiveness of the purchase.

The conclusions related to the implementation of the Project from its start until the end of June 2023 should be comprehensive and balanced, and highlight the strengths, weaknesses, challenges and outcomes of the Project. They should be well substantiated by the evidence and logically linked to the progress evaluation findings. They should respond to key evaluation questions and provide insights into the identification of and/or solutions to important problems or issues pertinent to Project beneficiaries, UNDP and Sweden.

The recommendations for adaptive management to improve the Project over the remaining part of its lifetime and guide further Sweden’s and UNDP’s interventions in the area of digital transformation with a focus on war response, recovery and resilience building, should identify how best practices and achievements of the Project can be scaled up or proliferated to better respond to the emerging needs and priorities of the governmental partners, as well as to adapt/strengthen the theory of change of the Project, based on interviews with Project partners and beneficiaries and desk analysis (please see below). The recommendations need to be supported by an evidential basis, be credible, practical, and action-oriented, and define who is responsible for the action to have the potential to be used in decision-making. It is expected that the International Consultant will contribute to producing up to 5 recommendations addressing the execution of the remaining part of the current Project phase and framing the development of the potential Project follow-up phase.

The International Consultant should also contribute to a proposed design, methodology of evaluation (methods, approaches to be used, with particular focus on addressing gender-specific issues and inclusion of relevant SDGs, evaluation criterion for assessment of each component to be proposed), detailed work plan and report structure to UNDP prior to the start of fieldwork; these documents and the list of stakeholders to meet should be agreed with UNDP. The evaluation products should take into account gender and human rights issues. While proposing the methodology, the International Consultant should be guided by the UNDP approach to Project evaluations[3].

The methodology will be based on the following:

1.Desk review of the documents listed below (including but not limited to):

  1. The original Project documents, progress reports, annual work plans, M&E frameworks and financial documents;
  2. Notes from meetings involved in the Project (such as board meeting minutes);
  3. Other Project-related materials produced by the Project (such as publications, audio-visual materials and consultancies reports including the midterm Project review).

2.Interviews/group discussions with key partners and stakeholders, which can be conditionally divided into the following groups:

  • the relevant UNDP Country Office representatives and the Project’s management and staff;
  • representatives of the SE or Sida;
  • national government institutions;
  • international development actors active in the field of intervention.

3. Independent surveys that are needed for identifying the outcome level results in specific groups of beneficiaries including Ukrainian citizens with vulnerabilities, civic servants participating in the project’s capacity development interventions etc.

The interviews are aimed to examine how the partners and stakeholders assess the Project, their concerns and feedback. The Consultant will need to collect and analyse needs and suggestions and provide recommendations/vision on how future Sweden’s and UNDP’s interventions could address those. A debriefing session will be also arranged for discussing the evaluation findings, results and recommendations.

Since the evaluation is mostly to be carried out virtually, consideration should be taken for stakeholders’ availability, as well as their ability or willingness to be interviewed remotely. Given the remote nature of the assignment, field and observational visits will not be applicable;  meanwhile, the focus group discussions might be organized online. All types of limitations (if any) in terms of data collection should be reflected in the final report.

 

5. EVALUATION PRODUCTS (KEY DELIVERABLES)

In cooperation with the National Consultant, the International Consultant should provide the following deliverables:

Deliverable #

Task description

Days and timing

Payment breakdown

Deliverable #1

  • Conduct desk research of Project’s core documentation (Project documents, annual work plans and available progress reports, board meeting minutes, midterm review report, etc.). The set of documents to be reviewed will be prepared by UNDP.
  • Develop an Inception report including an evaluation methodology and strategy to collect the required data, guidelines and data collection forms for the interviews/focus group discussions with partners and counterparts.

 

Inception report is expected to be up to 10 pages without annexes, single spacing, Myriad Pro font, size 11, which includes, but is not limited to, the following components:

  • Background and context;
  • Evaluation objective, purpose and scope;
  • Evaluation criteria and questions;
  • Cross-cutting issues;
  • Evaluation approach and methodology;
  • Evaluation matrix;
  • Schedule of key milestones;
  • Resource requirements;
  • Outline of the final report.

 

Output: The Inception report with a detailed description of the methodology and evaluation matrix is produced; annotated structure of the report is developed; a toolkit for gathering data is designed. All documents are submitted to UNDP for final approval.

 

4 working days after the Contract is signed

10%

Deliverable #2

  • Conduct necessary consultations and interviews with the Project staff and Project partners.  Examine how stakeholders assess the Project and what their concerns and suggestions are.
  • Clarify issues that emerge from the preliminary analysis of the Project and require hard and soft data to substantiate their reasoning.
  • Discuss the existing needs in the field of public digitalization and how further Sweden’s and UNDP’s interventions, including potential Project follow-up phase, can address them. Collect and analyse feedback from the project’s team and key partners.

 

Output: minutes of the initial findings discussed in a wrap-up session with the Project team and UNDP CO.

 

5 working days, after Deliverable #1 is completed

15%

Deliverable #3

  • Produce a draft report of the evaluation covering all items detailed in paragraph #2 of the present ToR with a definition of the lessons learned and recommendations for the remaining part of the Project as well as the potential Project follow-up phase.

 

Output: draft of the report produced and submitted for UNDP comments. UNDP will review the draft evaluation report and provide a combined set of comments to the evaluator, addressing the content required (as agreed in the inception report) and quality criteria as outlined in the UNDP evaluation guidelines

 

10 working days

after Deliverable #2 is completed

40%

Deliverable #4

  • Collect, review and incorporate comments from UNDP into the final version of the evaluation report. Comments and changes by the evaluators in response to the draft report should be retained by the evaluator in the audit trail to show how they have addressed comments.

 

The key product expected is a comprehensive evaluation report (up to 40 pages without annexes, single spacing, Myriad Pro font, size 11), which includes, but is not limited to, the following components:

  • Title and opening pages;
  • Project and evaluation information details;
  • Table of contents;
  • List of acronyms and abbreviations;
  • Executive summary (up to 4 pages);
  • Introduction;
  • Description of the intervention;
  • Evaluation of scope and objectives;
  • Evaluation approach and methods;
  • Data analysis;
  • Findings;
  • Conclusions;
  • Recommendations;
  • Lessons learned;
  • Report Annexes: ToR, methodology related documentation, list of individuals or groups interviewed/consulted, documents reviewed, summary tables of findings, signed Code of Conduct, etc.

 

The detailed structure of the final report should be agreed with UNDP and reflect all key aspects in focus.

 

Output: Final evaluation report containing all required annexes indicated in paragraph #3 of the present ToR. The report should be submitted to UNDP, SE for review and approval.

 

8 working days

after Deliverable #3 is completed

30%

Deliverable #5

  • Prepare a detailed PowerPoint presentation of the evaluation study (in English) to cover major findings and lessons learned from the evaluation as defined in section 3 of this ToR with diagrams/pictures, where applicable.
  • Present the results during the meeting between UNDP, SE and other stakeholders (virtual meeting).

 

Consultations regarding UNDP expectations from the presentation will be held with the Contractor prior to the event.

 

Output: PowerPoint presentation (in PPT format) prepared and delivered during the joint meeting of interested parties.

 

3 working days

after Deliverable #4 is completed

5%

Payment will be based upon the satisfactory completion of deliverables upon review and acceptance by UNDP. 100% of the total amount shall be paid upon completion of the Deliverables 1-5.

 

6. IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS

A team of two (2) independent consultants will conduct the evaluation: one (1) international team leader (with experience and practice of participation in projects and evaluations in other regions of the world) and one (1) national expert, which will work in close cooperation with and under the guidance of the international consultant.

In close cooperation with the National Consultant, the International Consultant will interact with UNDP Project and CO Staff to receive any clarifications and guidance that may be needed. UNDP Project and CO Staff will provide the Consultant with administrative and logistical support, as well as required data and documentation. UNDP Programme Analyst will also connect the Consultant with the wider programme unit, senior management and key evaluation stakeholders, review and approve inception reports including evaluation questions and methodologies, review and comment on draft evaluation reports, circulate draft and final evaluation reports, collect and consolidate comments on draft evaluation reports and share with the Consultant for finalization of the evaluation report. The satisfactory completion of each of the deliverables shall be subject to the endorsement of the UNDP Evaluation Manager.

The Consultant will inform UNDP of any problems, issues or delays arising during the implementation of the assignment and take necessary steps to address them.

The key product expected is a comprehensive evaluation report (with the parameters indicated above). The report must be as free as possible of technical jargon in order to ensure accessibility to its wide and diverse audience. The report should be in line with UNDP’s principles of gender-responsive communication and should be prepared in English.

All reports and results are to be submitted to the UNDP in electronic form (*.docx, *.xlsx, *.pptx, and *.pdf or other formats accepted by UNDP).

Ethics

This evaluation will be conducted in accordance with the principles outlined in the UNEG ‘Ethical Guidelines for Evaluation’[4]. The Consultant must safeguard the rights and confidentiality of information providers, interviewees and stakeholders through measures to ensure compliance with legal and other relevant codes governing the collection of data and reporting of data. The Consultant should respect differences and accord equal space and dignity regardless of interviewees’ gender, race, sexual preference, ethnicity, ability, or other markers of identity. The Consultant must also ensure the security of collected information before and after the evaluation and protocols to ensure anonymity and confidentiality of sources of information where that is expected. The information knowledge and data gathered in the evaluation process must also be solely used for the evaluation and not for other uses with the express authorization of UNDP and partners.

Copyright

All information and products produced by the Consultant under this assignment will remain the property of UNDP Ukraine.

[1] https://recovery.gov.ua/

[2] https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/2022-04/Ukraine-offer.pdf

[3] http://web.undp.org/evaluation/guideline/documents/PDF/UNDP_Evaluation_Guidelines.pdf

[4] UNEG, ‘Ethical Guidelines for Evaluation’, June 2008. Available at http://www.uneval.org/search/index.jsp?q=ethical+guidelines

Competencias

7. EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS REQUIREMENTS

  • Education: University degree in Economics, Management, Social Sciences, Public Administration, Business Administration, International Development or other relevant areas;
  • Relevant professional experience: At least three (3) years of work experience in the area of economic development, public administration, digitalization, monitoring and evaluation. Experience in participatory approaches, planning, monitoring, evaluation and learning would be an asset;
  • Experience in evaluation: At least two (2) accomplished complex evaluations of Projects where the candidate was the author or co-author, especially in economic development, public administration fields, digitalization, understanding of gender aspects (reference to or copies of previously prepared programme/project evaluation reports to be provided);
  • Proven knowledge of monitoring and evaluation methodologies, summary of a proposed evaluation methodology is to be provided (up to 2 pages);
  • Languages proficiency: Fluency in spoken English and good command of written English.

 

8. DOCUMENTS TO BE INCLUDED WHEN SUBMITTING THE PROPOSALS

Required

 

      X

Letter of interest/proposal, providing brief methodology on how the work will be conducted and/or approached as well as stating independence from any organization that has been involved in designing, executing or advising any aspect of the Project that is the subject of evaluation (up to 2 pages);

      X

CV including information about past experience in similar projects/assignments and contact details for referees (at least 3 contacts)

      X

Samples of at least two (2) previously prepared programme/project evaluation reports

Habilidades y experiencia requeridas

9. EVALUATION CRITERIA

#

Assessment of Candidate’s qualifications, experience and competences

Maximum score

1

University degree or equivalent in Economics, Management, Social Sciences, Public Administration, Business Administration, International Development or other relevant area:

[Bachelor’s Degree – 7 points;

Master’s Degree or higher – 10 points]

10

2

At least 3 years of work experience in the area of economic development, public administration, digitalization, monitoring and evaluation:

[3-4 years – 7 points;

5-6 years – 9 points;

7 years and more – 10 points]

10

3

Experience in participatory approaches, planning, monitoring, evaluation and learning confirmed by at least two documents covering these aspects where the candidate was an author or a co-author:

[no documents – 0 points;

2 and more documents – 5 points]

5

4

Proven knowledge of monitoring and evaluation methodologies (summary of a proposed evaluation methodology is to be provided):

[- acceptable quality and relevance of the methodology (methodology is based on the information, provided in TOR) - 16 points;

- intermediate level of quality and relevance (methodology is based on previous successful experience with the following examples of its use for such tasks) - 18 points;

- highly relevant methodology (methodology is based on previous successful experience with the following examples of its use for such tasks, adapted to the needs of the target audience and ToR) – 20 points]

20

5

At least two accomplished complex evaluations of Projects where the Candidate was the author or co-author, especially in economic development, public administration fields, digitalization, understanding of gender aspects (a reference to previously prepared programme/project evaluation reports to be provided):

[2 highly relevant evaluation projects – 16 points;

3 highly relevant evaluation projects – 18 points;

4 and more highly relevant evaluation projects – 20 points]

20

6

Language proficiency, excellent written and oral communication skills with demonstrable experience in analytical reports writing (at least two (2) program/project evaluation reports prepared):

[Working knowledge of English – 3 points;

Fluent English – 5 points] 

5

 

10. EVALUATION METHOD:

Cumulative analysis 

Contract award shall be made to the incumbent whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

a) responsive/compliant/acceptable, and

b) having received the cumulative highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation. 

* Technical Criteria weight: 70%

* Financial Criteria weight: 30%

Only candidates obtaining a minimum 70% of the maximum available technical score (49 points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation

The maximum number of points assigned to the financial proposal is allocated to the lowest price proposal and will be equal to 30. All other price proposals will be evaluated and assigned points, as per the below formula:

30 points [max points available for the financial part] x [lowest of all evaluated offered prices among responsive offers] / [evaluated price].

The proposal obtaining the overall cumulatively highest score after adding the score of the technical proposal and the financial proposal will be considered the most compliant offer and will be awarded a contract. 

 

11. FINANCIAL PROPOSAL

Lump sum contract

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 instalments 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 the number of anticipated working days).

Travel costs are not applicable. In the case of unforeseeable travel, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon between UNDP and the Consultant prior to travel, and will be reimbursed. The BSAFE course must be successfully completed before the commencement of travel. Individual Consultant is responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director. A Consultant is required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under https://dss.un.org/dssweb/