Republic of Moldova

Adviser to the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Moldova

Vacancy Number: Pr14/00447

Location:	Chisinau, Moldova
Application Deadline:	05 Feb 2014, 23:59 (GMT+2:00)
Type of Contract:	Individual Contract
Starting date:	17 Mar 2014
Reference to the project:	EU High Level Policy Advice Mission to Moldova
Expected Duration of Assignment:	17 March 2014 – 30 June 2015
Submission Instructions: Proposals should be submitted online by pressing the “Apply now” button no later than 05 February 2014. Requests for clarification only must be sent by standard electronic communication to the following e-mail: administrator@euhlpam.org. UNDP will respond by standard electronic mail and will send copies of the response, including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry, to all consultants. This Vacancy Annoucementis also placed at http://jobs.undp.org/cj_view_job.cfm?cur_job_id=43341
Supporting Documents: Terms of Reference Procurement Notice Personal History Form (P11) UNDP General Conditions of Individual Contract

Background

The EU High Level Policy Advisory Mission (EU HLPAM) is a project financed by the European Union and implemented by the UNDP.  The objective of the project is to support the Government to implement its EU-integration related reform Agenda and in particular to assist the government in developing the capacities required for the implementation of the Association Agreement, including the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area, as well as the Visa Liberalisation Action Plan. Specifically, the project aims at strengthening the policy-making, strategic planning and policy management capacities of selected line Ministries and State Agencies involved in the implementation of the Association Agreement and Visa Liberalization and at enhancing stakeholders’ knowledge and awareness of EU policies, legislation and regulations in sectors strategic to the implementation of the Association Agreement including the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area, and to the implementation of visa liberalization.

Scope of work

The Adviser will provide policy advice to the Ministry of Economy on economy and trade. The Adviser will review relevant strategic policy documents, provide policy recommendation and guidance to the Ministry’s leadership on the implementation of the EU-Moldova Association Agreement and the related Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA) with the EU, as well as on policies and strategies aimed at capturing the opportunities opened by the DCFTA, including the Competitiveness Roadmap,  the Strategy for reform of the regulatory framework of entrepreneur activity (2013-2020) and the Strategy of development of small and medium enterprises (2012-2020), in order to enhance their ability to design and implement their Europe integration related reform agenda.

The Adviser will report primarily to the Minister of Economy, with a reporting line to the EU Delegation to Moldova, UNDP Moldova and the project manager. The Advisor will work closely with the other members of the team of EUHLPAM Advisors.

Key Responsibilities:

• Raise stakeholders' awareness of the policy implications of the Government's reform agenda and the AA implementation processes related to the DCFTA and the economy-related provisions of the Association Agreement focusing especially on assisting the Ministry of Economy in (a) designing, overseeing and adjusting the necessary policies and sequencing the necessary actions into an action plan, (b) overseeing and, where appropriate, coordinating the implementation actions taken by line ministries and other agencies, and (c) directing the work of any EU-funded (or donor-funded) technical assistance providers in the above field;

• Provide policy advice and guidance to the Ministry’s leadership  the implementation of the Competitiveness Roadmap, focussing especially on assisting the Ministry of Economy in (a) sequencing, monitoring and adjusting the necessary implementing actions, (b) coordinating the implementation efforts taken by line ministries and other agencies, and (c) assisting the Ministry in its cooperation and contacts with the future competitiveness council, as well as with Moldova’s development partners and with private sector and civil society representatives, on the efforts to improve the competitiveness of Moldova’s economy;
• Assist in the identification of policy and legislative priorities in above mentioned areas;
• Support the national authorities to draft policy papers, together with strategies and Action Plans for implementing the policies mentioned above;
• Assist the national authorities during the policy consultation process;
• Strengthen the institutional capacities of the beneficiary institution to design, manage and monitor policy;
• Support the beneficiary to design and apply risk management principles and tools;
• Liaise with other projects / programmes / instruments in the area, especially with the Comprehensive Institution Building Programme efforts, to ensure synergy, to promote effective downstream implementation of the policies and to avoid overlap and duplication, where appropriate and when requested by the beneficiary;
• Advise on the development of formal mechanisms to ensure that feedback from policy implementation is duly taken into consideration during the design phase of future policies;
• Analyze constraints in the business climate in Moldova, in consultation with relevant business organizations, and advise the national authorities on measures and policies to remove constraints in the business climate;
• Provide relevant policy advice and contributions to the national authorities for economic and sectoral policy dialogue between the EU and Moldova;
• Advise the national authorities on measures and policies to strengthen transparency in economic policy making and implementation, with special relevance to the privatization program;
• Advise the national authorities on measures and policies to promote and encourage economic integration and interaction of Transnistria with the rest of Moldova, including by developing options for a viable mechanism for applying DCFTA to Transnistria;
• Provide input, at the request of EU Delegation, to the annual ENP Progress Report;
• Support the national authorities to network with EU institutions through the EU Delegation to Moldova;
• Provide sectorial advice and report to the EU Delegation whenever requested;
• Assist the beneficiary to prepare an exit strategy on how the advice will be mainstreamed and consolidated once this phase has elapsed, including by training and building up local capacity;
• Advise the beneficiary to prepare the formal applications/fiches/Terms of Reference for policy implementation support from other EU instruments or any on-going/planned TA project;
• Respect and promote EU visibility at all times.

• Acquaint the national authorities with different policy options in export diversification / elimination of technical barriers on third markets; development of market economy;
• Provide the beneficiaries with examples of EU best practice in above mentioned areas;

The above responsibilities will be carried out through but not limited to: development of strategy documents, policy papers, advisory notes, methodologies, draft fiches and other relevant documentation as well as provision of technical on-the-job advice, support to networking to the institutions responsible for Government policies in economy and trade area.

Requirements for experience

Qualifications and skills:

• A Masters’ Degree in Economics, Trade and Management, or similar or equivalent professional experience relevant to the assignment. A Bachelor degree combined with 17 years of professional experience relevant to the assignment is considered equivalent
• Excellent communication skills
• Proven report writing skills
• Computer literacy
• Fluency in written and spoken English
• A working knowledge of the Romanian or the Russian language would be an advantage

General professional experience:

• Preferably 15 years of professional experience

Specific professional experience:

• At least 10 years of professional experience linked to the provision of high level policy advice on trade and economic policies. Preference to 15 years of such experience will be given.
• At least 10 years proven work experience in legal, economic, public policy and management areas in EU Member States, current or former EU Candidate States/EaP countries
• A comprehensive knowledge of EU external assistance programmes and policies targeted at EaP countries
• A comprehensive knowledge of the EU acquis and policies in market economy and trade
• Previous work experience in Moldova would be an advantage

Documents to be included

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

1. Proposal: explaining why they are the most suitable for the work;
2. Financial proposal;
3. Personal CV including past experience in similar projects, the duly filled Personal History Form (P11) and at least 3 references.

Financial proposal

The Financial Proposal shall specify a daily lump-sum fee and travel expenses quoted in separate line items. Payments are made monthly, based on the actual number of days worked, to the Individual Consultant subject to the submission and approval of the monthly time sheets and activity reports. 

Travel

One time travel to join duty station/repatriation travel must be included in the financial proposal.  In general, UNDP should not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on 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.

 

Disclaimer In case of discrepancies between the text published on the website and the contents of the supporting documents, the provisions, instructions and conditions included in the supporting documents (published as Adobe Portable Document Format files) shall prevail. In case of discrepancies between the English version and the Romanian and/or Russian versions of text, documents or other content published on this webpage, the English version shall prevail.

Notice UNDP, as a matter of practice, does not charge any application, processing or training fee at any stage of the recruitment process. If you have any questions as to vacancy announcements you may have received, please refer to this website. UNDP is currently aware of fictitious vacancy announcements that are being circulated through the internet, the purpose of which is to get people to register for a training and send in a fee. If you believe that you have received such a notice, please forward it, and any other related information you have received, to scamalert@undp.org. Since logos, emblems, names and addresses can be easily copied or reproduced, you are advised to take particular care in applying for vacancies, including undertaking all appropriate measures to protect against the unauthorised use of any personal information you may have provided as a result of the scam.