Application Deadline: 31^st January 2011

Duration of Assignment: 30 days

Background

UNDP operations in Uganda are guided by the 5 year Country Programme prepared jointly with government and approved by the Executive Board. Deriving from the UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) and National Development Plan (NDP), Country Programme is implemented through 5 year Country Programme Action plan (CPAP). One of the two components of Country Programme is Growth and Poverty Reduction. The CPAP, developed with inputs from all the relevant stakeholders, guides overall project document design to be able to achieve the outcomes of the accountable democratic governance component as identified in the Results and Resources Framework of CPAP.

UNDP programme in Uganda operates under National Execution modality with Aid Liaison Department of Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED) acting as Executing Agency for the CPAP.

Growth and Poverty Reduction Component

The National Development Plan is anchored on the theme ‘Growth, Employment and socio-economic Transformation for prosperity’ and aims to address structural bottlenecks in the economy to accelerate socio-economic transformation for prosperity. One of the strategies to be adopted in this regard is a quasi market approach, which includes a mix of government investment and private sector market driven actions whereby public private partnerships will be actively promoted and pursuance of outward oriented policies undertaken by encouraging foreign investments.  On this, the component will facilitate policy dialogue and coordination and the development and implementation of MDG responsive strategies.

One of the outcomes that Growth and Poverty Reduction Component aims to contribute to is:

National and local institutions capacitated to develop, implement and monitor pro-poor and MDG responsive policies/strategies.

One of the outputs identified in CPAP that contribute to outcome for which a detailed project document is to be developed is:

Policies and institutional frameworks developed to support mobilization and utilization of diaspora resources in national development.

This output focuses on streamlining the way the diaspora capacity and resources can be tapped into for national development.  The primary focus will be on creating an enabling policy environment to attract diaspora investment in the productive sectors, building partnership, coordination and allowing active participation of Uganda’s diaspora in the various aspects of the country’s development.  Ugandans living in the diaspora are a powerful resource for the country but there are challenges such as: security for investment, tax policies, coordination, non involvement in decision making etc hindering their maximum contribution to national development in key service delivery institutions and sectors.  UNDP support will be aimed at addressing these challenges and thereby contribute to growth and socio-economic transformation for prosperity, which is a key anchor of the NDP.

Scope of assignment

In close consultation with key stakeholders, the consultancy will develop a project document that contributes to achieving the outcome of building capacity to deliver accountable, inclusive and demand driven social and economic services. The consultancy will:

• Identify niche for UNDP support in line with existing national capacities, support of other national development partners;
• Develop annual work plans with outputs and relevant activities, baselines, indicators and targets for the duration of project (guided by three normative principles of human rights based approach, gender mainstreaming and environment sustainability);
• Suggest appropriate implementing partner/s and responsible party(ies) for implementation of project ;
• Identify appropriate management arrangements for implementation of project;
• Undertake initial risk analysis for the project with an aim of suggesting risk mitigation measures;
• Develop monitoring and evaluation framework for the project (in line with CPAP, UNDAF M&E framework);
• Exit strategy.

The consultant on basis of analysis of their interactions with donors (through meeting and documentation) are expected to identify resource mobilization opportunities to support project implementation.

The consultant need to consider: Relevance; Effectiveness; Efficiency; Sustainability  of the project as key operational principles in the design of project document vis-à-vis CPAP RRF.

NB:

Mandatory capacity assessment of the IPs and RPs identified will be undertaken as a separate exercise.

Relevance –activities/interventions consistent with outputs and outcomes of CPAP RRF and beneficiary requirements;
Effectiveness – economic use of resources /inputs (funds expertise, time) are converted to outputs;
Efficiency – ability to produce results and contribute to outcomes
Sustainability – after exit the interventions should be able to sustain and continue.

Duties and Responsibilities

Key activities

Identify niche for UNDP support:
As part of drafting of project document, the consultant is expected to clearly identify the scope of project that maximizes the comparative advantages of UNDP operations. Scope of project should contribute to achieving the outcome at end of the 4 year programming cycle and also build synergy within programme components of accountable democratic governance programme. It should also take into consideration existing donor programmes and identify complementarities.

Develop outputs and activities (Annual work plan):

In close consultation with all stakeholders identify outputs (with clear indicators, baselines and targets) and activities with a view to ensure continuity over the four year period of CPAP. In line with the programmatic approach, project activities should be developed to ensure synergy with other components of the CPAP. Activities should also give due consideration to the following principles:

• Building national capacities and ownership;
• Strengthening capacity development;
• Promote south-south cooperation;
• Focus on key crosscutting themes of programming of UNDP;

Identify management arrangements:

Management arrangements explain roles and responsibilities (including clarification on accountability for resources) of parties responsible for managing project, carrying out activities and providing oversight. Annexure (template for project document) shows a typical management arrangement for UNDP supported project. A key component of management arrangements section is recommendations on appropriate implementing and responsible parties in line with scope of project. Results of the micro-assessment (managerial and financial capacities) of the recommended IPs and RPs will be the basis for final selection of implementing partners. Management arrangements are to be suggested within context of NEX modality.

Identify appropriate monitoring framework/tools:

Develop monitoring framework/tools for the project to be able to assess project’s progress towards intended outputs and effective utilization of resources. Monitoring framework/tools should be built on the principles of national ownership and ongoing stakeholder engagement approaches. Monitoring framework/tools should also be developed in line with management arrangements.

Conduct initial risk analysis:

Initial risk analysis is to be conducted to determine the risks that impact the project formulation and implementation. In undertaking risk analysis, UNDP risk log should be used with a view to utilize the same for updating in the course of implementation of project.

Exit Strategy:

The consultant is expected to identify appropriate exit strategies to be put in place to ensure sustainability and continuity of project interventions.

Managing the project document preparation processes:
In addition, the consultant is expected to organize meetings with all stakeholders depending on the need and requirements of project formulation, lead Pre-PAC and PAC meetings and incorporate comments into the draft final project document.

Deliverables
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Key deliverables expected from consultancy include:

Inception Report;

• This report should clearly delineate understanding of assignment, conceptual approach/framework/ methodology for design of project documents and timelines for consultancy. Timelines should be developed taking into account the number of working days for the overall assignment.

Agreement on the inception report will be the basis for consultancy which will incorporate the following:

• Draft 1 – project document;
• PAC meetings; and
• Final project document.

Reporting arrangements

Consultant(s) will work closely with the UNDP Accountable Democratic Governance team and representative(s) of the Ministry of Finance and Planning and Economic Development (Aid Liaison Department). The consultants (s) will report to the UNDP Team Leader, Accountable Democratic Governance and work under the overall guidance and leadership of Country Director and Resident Representative. The Consultant(s) will liaise on a day to day basis with programme consultant.

Competencies

Technical competencies

• Excellent analytical skills;
• Excellent communication and writing skills in English.

Personal Competencies:

• Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
• Positive, constructive attitude to work;
• Ability to act professionally and flexibility to engage with government officials, donor representatives, private sector and communities.

Required Skills and Experience

Required Skills and Experience

The assignment will be carried out by two national consultants with following profile:

• Minimum of Masters Degree in social sciences or related field with a focus on policy development and analysis
• Progressive consultancy experience in Policy development and analysis
• Expertise in Diaspora and/or Migration issues
• Extensive Knowledge of Ugandan Development Context
• Minimum of 10 years working experience in programming and project design
• Demonstrated capacity for strategic thinking and communication skills

Two National Consultants required.

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.