Background

Ukraine is among the 30 MDR-TB burden countries in the world and WHO states that the TB epidemic in Ukraine is characterized by widespread multi-drug resistant (MDR) and extensively drug resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB), high mortality from untreated or inappropriately treated TB, and increasing TB/HIV co-infection rates. Despite the adoption of the Stop TB Strategy by the National TB Programme (NTP), its components have not been sufficiently implemented. The socio-economic hardship has been aggravated by political crisis and war in the East of Ukraine where more than one million Internally-displaced people (IDPs) are spread throughout the country and need emergency assistance including TB and TB/HIV care. The HIV situation significantly contributes to the TB epidemic in Ukraine.

To address this complicated epidemiological situation, UNDP Ukraine started an assessment of Ukraine’s national legal and regulatory framework regarding TB legislation in 2017. The primary aim of a legal environment assessment (LEA) is to identify and review TB, HIV, health and any other related laws, regulations and policies and practices to identify which laws, policies and practices are relevant and have an impact in the national response to TB. A range of laws (not just health laws) were implicated because TB is not just health/medical issues, but also have issues that require deep inquiry into structural factors of inequality, power, personal and social dynamics. The TB LEA included a range of laws affecting TB key populations, such as: children’s laws that set out children’s rights; family, marriage and inheritance laws providing information on the rights of women to own and inherit property; criminal laws that affect people with TB (e.g., laws that criminalize non-adherence to TB medication or call for the solitary confinement of people with TB and MDR-TB); laws that criminalize the behaviour of key populations at risk for TB including people who inject drugs; intellectual property laws that restrict or promote access to TB medications; correctional service laws that determine access to services for prisoners; citizenship, immigration/migration and/or refugee laws that determine access to services for non-citizens; employment laws that set out the rights of people with TB in the workplace, and necessitate non-discrimination and compensation; and disability laws that set out the rights of people with disabilities.

As the outcome of the national LEA, UNDP and Stop TB Partnership developed actionable, evidence-informed and human-rights-based recommendations for an effective TB and HIV response.  The set of recommendations was made to strengthen the legal environment, including through law review and reform, programmes to increase awareness of rights and access to legal services and improve law enforcement.

In line with it, UNDP seeks the services of the 3 Local Consultant (one for each oblast) to support the prioritization and implementation of the LEA TB recommendations on the local level.

Duties and Responsibilities

MAIN OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT

The main objective of the assignment is to develop local action plans using participatory approach that will result in implementation of the key recommendations of TB LEA  in one selected oblast of Ukraine. The action plan is to be developed at the oblasts or at the municipal levels and based on the stakeholders motivation and capacity to  implement the planned activities.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONSIBILITIES / SCOPE OF WORK

• Identify and examine all important legal and human rights issues discussed in TB LEA report regarding particularly people affected by TB and those at higher risk of TB exposure, including people living with HIV, in the selected region of Ukraine;
• Identify key stakeholders to be consulted and encouraged to participate in the discussions and development of the action plans;
• Develop the structure (template) of the action plans based on the SWOT analysis, TB LEA report (recommendations) and local TB context;
• Conduct stakeholders’ consultations and round tables for promoting an inclusive and participatory LEA implementation plan, legal and human rights issues in which the voices of all key stakeholders are heard and the rights of vulnerable groups are considered;
• Select and prioritize the proposed TB LEA recommendations for the local level context during round table with the local stakeholders and authorities’ representatives;
• Cooperate with other national experts and TB LEA Coordinator in the development of  the action plan;
• Draft the local action plans in the selected oblast of Ukraine based on the inputs received during the consultations and round tables with key local stakeholders;
• Participate in the all-Ukrainian stakeholders’ meeting (platform) in Kyiv to validate and finalize the action plans, prepare and make the presentation of the developed local action plan;
• Present the action plans at the local HV/TB CCM meetings and promote incorporation of the action plans to the locals TB programs.
• Prepare power-point presentation slide deck for future use.

Deliverables

monitoring/REPORTING requirements

Work-progress reporting/monitoring meetings will be held with the LEA Local Consultant on a regular basis. UNDP will be responsible for all quality control and evaluation of  work-progress of the performance of LEA Local Consultant. No reports or documents should be published or distributed to the third parties without prior approval of the UNDP.

Competencies

• Demonstrate/safeguard ethics and integrity;  

• Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment;

• Self-development, initiative-taking;

• Act as a team player;

• Encourage and participate in open communication in the team, communicate effectively;

• Create synergies through self-control;

• Manage conflict;

• Informed and transparent decision-making.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Advanced university degree in Sociology, Social Work, Public Health, Law, Governance or other relevant area.

Experience: 

• At least 1 year of relevant experience in project development and implementation;

• Previous experience in public health sector or human rights would be a valuable asset;

• Fluency in Ukrainian and Russian.

DOCUMENTS TO BE INCLUDED WHEN SUBMITTING THE PROPOSALS

Applicants shall submit the following documents:

• Personal CV, including information about past experience in similar projects / assignments and contact details for referees;
• Financial proposal;
• P-11 Form;
• Duly accomplished Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided by UNDP;

FINANCIAL PROPOSAL

 Lump sum contract

The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount, and sums pertinent to specific and measurable (qualitative and quantitative) deliverables. 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 one day travel to Kyiv for the participation in the final stakeholder platform).  

Travel costs

All travel arrangements for the trip to Kyiv for the final stakeholder platform should be included on the financial proposal.

EVALUATION CRITERIA

• Advanced university degree in Sociology, Social Work, Public Health, Law or other relevant area- 20 points max {15 pts – Bachelor/Specialist; 20 pts – PhD/Master’s};

• At least 1 year of relevant experience in project development and implementation - 30 points max {30 pts – 2 years or more; 20 pts – 1-2 years};
• Previous experience in public health sector or with human rights - 10 points max {10 pts – any experience in health sector or human rights};
• Fluency in Ukrainian and Russian - 10 points max {10 pts – Ukrainian and Russian};

Maximum available technical score - 70 points.

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% from 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 equal to 30. All other price proposals will be evaluated and assigned points, as per below formula:

30 points [max points available for 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 as the most compliant offer and will be awarded a contract.