Republic of Moldova

National Consultant to support the elaboration of the national strategy on development of statistics in the Republic of Moldova

Vacancy Number: Pr14/00681

Location:	Chisinau, Moldova
Application Deadline:	27 Oct 2014, 23:59 (GMT+2:00)
Type of Contract:	Individual Contract
Starting date:	03 Nov 2014
Reference to the project:	Strengthening the National Statistical System
Expected Duration of Assignment:	November 2014 - February 2015, up to 40 full working days
Submission Instructions: Proposals should be submitted online only, by following the “Apply online” link, no later than 27 October 2014. Requests for clarification only must be sent by standard electronic communication to the following e-mail: aurelia.spataru@undp.org. UNDP will respond by standard electronic mail and will send written copies of the response, including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry, to all applicants. Important notice The applicant who has the statute of Government Official / Public Servant, prior to appointment will be asked to submit the following documentation: a no-objection letter in respect of the applicant received from the government, and; the applicant is certified in writing by the government to be on official leave without pay for the duration of the Individual Contract.  A retired government official is not considered in this case a government official, and as such, may be contracted.
Supporting Documents: Terms of Reference Individual Consultant Procurement Notice Personal History Form (P11) UNDP General Conditions of Individual Contract

Background

By far and large there are two strategic documents defining Moldova’s policy framework. Firstly, it is the National Development Strategy „Moldova 2020” , which serves as a platform for the management and coordination of reforms and foreign aid in seven priority areas along with sector strategic documents. Another key document is the recently signed EU-Republic of Moldova Association Agreement and Agenda which aim to deepen political and economic relations between Moldova and the EU. Among the 28 key sector policy areas there are public administration reform and statistics fields which combine to ensure the development of a well-functioning public administration sector and to approximate the legislation in the Republic of Moldova to EU norms and requirements in the field of statistics.

The implementation of the Central Public Administration Reform (CPAR) during 2005-2013 aimed at building professional civil service oriented to providing high quality services. Being a continuous process of institutional development such a reform is to be further carried out by the Government in a broader manner, having a more structured and synergetic approach to the identified thematic pillars and being guided by a comprehensive Roadmap. One of such CPAR pillars would be Policy Development focused on strategic and operational planning, policy analysis and consultations, policy coordination, monitoring and evaluation. It is valid for the statistical sector as for any other field of Government’s activity, being a public service aiming to provide reliable and timely statistical information to the governance, civil society and population.

As a development partner, UN in Moldova, under the United Nations-Moldova Partnership Framework “Towards Unity in Action” , is to assist the Government of Moldova in promotion of its reforms, supporting the implementation of the new Association Agreement with the European Union, fulfilling the administrative capacity requirements that Moldova must meet.

Currently, a Joint UN Project on Strengthening the National Statistical System of RM is implemented by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) of the Republic of Moldova, in partnership with 5 UN agencies (UNDP, UN Women, UNFPA, UNICEF, ILO), and aims at improving data collection, production, dissemination and use of statistical information with particular attention to national needs and official statistics overall conformity with international, in particular EU, standards. In the above context, the Project seeks to support the statistical public service of the country to gradually align to the international and EU standards and requirements in the field, as well as to build its administrative and strategic capacities needed to effectively implement the national reforms.

For more info on the specific context please refer to Terms of References.

Scope of work

The Joint UN Project on Strengthening the National Statistical System is to hire a national consultant with relevant experience who will assist the Government of Moldova in drafting a new strategy on development of national statistics to support the implementation of national policies and the Republic of Moldova - EU Association Agreement and pertinent documents.

The overall scope of assignment is to carry out a thorough assessment of achieved results and lessons learned so far, as well as gaps and needs for further progress, and to develop a strategic document, either on longer term (2015-2020) with a shorter term action plan (2015-2017) or being a medium term document (to be decided at the inception phase of assignment), that should include a complex approach and have a focus on the improvement of the whole statistical sector, not only the institutional development of NBS.

The national consultant will work in a team with an international consultant who will be responsible for coordination and consistency of produced reports, as well as overall guidance of the national expert. The National Consultant is to assist the International Expert in achievement of the assignment’s objective with own expertise in strategic planning, reforms’ implementation, knowledge about the national policy framework and experience of work with Government institutions, ensuring the participatory manner of strategy’s development at the appropriate level and inclusive participation of the NBS staff.

To achieve the envisaged objectives, in collaboration with the National Bureau of Statistics and the State Chancellery, under the overall supervision of the Project, the consultants will have the following major responsibilities and perform the following core activities: 

• Undertake desk review 
• Formulate own approach and working methodology 
• Provide trainings on strategic planning
• Carry out extensive consultation with relevant counterparts and stakeholders 
• Undertake situational analysis of national statistics development and functioning aiming to prioritise the core issues and goals to be addressed by the future strategy of statistical sector 
• Develop and agree a draft strategy on development of national statistics and its action plan.

For detailed information on Tasks and Responsibilities, Expected Deliverables please refer to Terms of References.

Requirements for experience

Academic Qualifications:

• Advanced degree in economics, public administration, social and/or other related science
• Other formal education relevant for the assignment

Years of experience:

• At least 7 years of professional experience in strategic planning, design and implementation of public policies, institutional development of public sector in Moldova 
• Experience including substantial participation in analytical works aiming at strategic planning at sector level, public administration development, evidence-based elaboration and monitoring in Moldova;
• Experience in policy-making and results-based management through evidence-based planning, designing, M&E of policies/strategies in Moldova;
• Experience in participatory team-works, joint researches, national/local consultations, trainings (organization, moderation, participation)
• Experience of collaboration with Government/s, in particular of the Republic of Moldova and (as asset) in EU countries
• Experience of work with development partners, in particular UN/UNDP, EU in international projects focused on public sector/s development

Competencies:

• Strong knowledge and understanding of national and/or sector strategic/policy context, public administration reform
• Fluency in Romanian and English
• Ability to analyse, plan, communicate, solve problems, organize and meet expected results, adapt to different environments (cultural, economic, political and social)

Personal Qualities and other requirements:

• Good interpersonal skills, solid judgment/decision making, initiative and creativity
• Ability to be independent, impartial and credible in a challenging environment
• Availability to work with UN and Project’s national stakeholders during the indicated/approved period
• Adherence to UN’s values and ethical standards
• Cultural and gender sensitivity.

Documents to be included

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

1. Technical Proposal including:

• brief explanation of how the Applicant responds to each of the qualification requirements and why he/she is the most suitable for the work;
• own vision and working approach in undertaking the assignment;

Financial proposal

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 all related costs e.g. fees, phone calls etc.) and the number of anticipated working days.  The consultant shall bare costs for all supplies needed for data collection and data processing including possession of his own personal computer. 

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 on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources.

In the case of other 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.

During the contract period no travel is required.

 

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