International Consultant (Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Security & Infrastructure Advisor)

Background

UNDP Afghanistan Mission Statement:

UNDP supports stabilization, state-building, governance and development priorities in Afghanistan. UNDP support, in partnership with the Government, the United Nations system, the donor community and other development stakeholders, has contributed to institutional development efforts leading to positive impact on the lives of Afghan citizens. Over the years, UNDP support has spanned such milestone efforts as the adoption of the Constitution; Presidential, Parliamentary and Provincial Council elections; institutional development through capacity-building to the legislative, the judicial and executive arms of the state, and key ministries, Government agencies and commissions at the national and subnational levels. UNDP has played a key role in the management of the Law and Order Trust Fund, which supports the Government in developing and maintaining the national police force and in efforts to stabilize the internal security environment. Major demobilization, disarmament and rehabilitation and area-based livelihoods and reconstruction programmes have taken place nationwide. UNDP Programmes in Afghanistan have benefited from the very active support of donors. UNDP Afghanistan is committed to the highest standards of transparency and accountability and works in close coordination with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the UN system as a whole to maximize the impact of its development efforts on the ground.

Organizational context:

The UN Electoral Support Project (UNESP) is the international community’s programming vehicle to support the next elections in Afghanistan, including the parliamentary and district council elections announced by the Independent Election Commission (IEC) for 7 July 2018. The project has two overall objectives – 1) to build the capacity of the Afghan electoral institutions (the Independent Elections Commission and the Electoral Complaints Commission) to implement elections in line with the national electoral legal framework and Afghanistan’s international commitments; 2) to allow a programming mechanism for the international community to partially finance the elections as per the request of the Government of Afghanistan. The project follows previous UN projects in support of the Afghan electoral process, most notably the Enhancing Legal and Electoral Capacity for Tomorrow (ELECT) projects, from 2006-2011 (ELECT I) and 2012-2015 (ELECT II), and the UNDP Project Initiation Plan that is in place since July 2015 – October 2017. The UNESP places the UN’s electoral support to Afghanistan directly under the political and supervisory oversight of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), and reflects the growing sustainability of the Afghan electoral process, as evidenced by the Government of Afghanistan’s financial commitment to both electoral institutions, and the provision of significant in-kind support to the implementation of elections. The Project Board, under the overall political guidance of the UNAMA Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Political, will be co-chaired by UNAMA DSRSG for Political and the Chairpersons of the IEC and ECC or their delegates. It will be comprised of all key stakeholders to oversee and approve UNESP’s budget, annual work plans and policy in support of the Afghan electoral institutions. Project implementation support will be provided by the UNDP Country Office, reporting, on fiduciary and operational matters, to the UNAMA Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Development/ UN Resident Coordinator/ UNDP Resident Representative through the UNDP Country Director.

Along with support to both electoral institutions, UNESP will also support Afghan civil society’s civic and voter education and observation efforts to enhance the quality and quantity of participation in the electoral process. Overall, the project will have three outputs: (i) administration of credible elections is facilitated by the meeting of key IEC structural and planning milestones; (ii) credible electoral dispute resolution is provided by the Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) (iii) public outreach (along with support to civil society) to encourage citizen engagement in the electoral process. Mainstreaming of gender throughout the project is evident in key output indicators related to women’s participation in all three project outputs, reflecting the importance that UNESP places on increasing the position of women in Afghan electoral and political life. The project also aims at supporting the EMBs in strengthening integrity of the electoral process by enhancing accountability of responsible actors and supporting the implementation of electoral fraud mitigation mechanisms. Assisting the EMBs to implement measures to increase public confidence in election and democracy will be mainstreamed through the electoral assistance provided.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work and Deliverables

The Consultant under the overall guidance of the of the Chief Electoral Advisor/UNEST Director and the supervision of Electoral Information Management Specialist and close coordination with the IEC and ECC, the I.C.T. Security and Infrastructure Advisor consultant will work closely with both EMB’s in particular the IEC Director I.C.T. and the E.C.C. Director I.C.T. 

The I.C.T. Security and Infrastructure Advisor will be responsible for the following:

• Review and evaluate the existing I.C.T. Network, Data, Voice and Security Infrastructure in the IEC HQ and 33 provincial offices and ECC HQ and provide advice if and when the establishment of ECC provincial offices;
• Review and evaluate the existing CISCO Firewalls and polices for IEC HQ, and assist in designing for ECC and provide a report on required upgrades and actions;
• Review all software licences presently owned by the both EMB’s (IEC/ECC) and determine their future worth to the present I.C.T. infrastructure and network security settings, and report any out-of-date and anomalies relating to such licences;
• Inspect and provide a status report on the both EMB’s (IEC/ECC) firewalls at HQ and provincial offices. On completion of report, act on its findings and assist both EMB’s (IEC/ECC) in any upgrades and technical improvements that must be made to ensure that centrally controlled firewalls are operating to maximum security efficiency in the EMB’s (IEC/ECC) provincial offices;
• Assist the EMB’s (IEC/ECC) in re-establishing VPNs within both HQ ensuring network security;
• Assist the EMB’s (IEC/ECC) in the technical overview of present configuration of its Switches, routers, wireless access points and other networking devices in HQ and Provincial Offices; 
• Complete a physical test on the CISCO Unified communication appliance and suggest improvements with latest technology to give IEC total voice communication; 
• Provide advice and assist the EMB’s in the updating of its existing operational/administration I.C.T. infrastructure across the following:

  • HQ Compound;

  • IEC Data Center;

  • EMB’s (IEC/ECC) Provincial Offices.
• Ensures transfer of skills to the both EMB’s (IEC/ECC) I.C.T. counterparts through the application of appropriate training modules and materials;
• Assists both EMB’s (IEC/ECC) counterparts in the development, testing, implementation and maintenance of its Networking Solutions;
• Performs other tasks, duties and responsibilities required for the successful implementation of the project.

Expected Outputs/Deliverables:

The Electoral Information Advisor consultant will:

• The Consultant will provide technical advice to the both EMB’s (IEC/ECC) in close coordination with the UN Electoral Support Team (UNEST);

• The Consultant will provide and accurate assessment of existing I.C.T. Network, data, voice and security Infrastructure, installation of new appropriate I.C.T. data, voice and security devices and solutions in order to ensure data reliability, integrity and safety will result in increasing reliability of I.C.T. services provided for electoral and operational activities of both EMB’s (IEC/ECC);

• The Consultant will submit monthly and ad-hoc reports during the consultancy period.

Schedule of Payment:

Payments shall be done on monthly basis based on actual days worked, upon verification of completion of specific reports and approval by the Electoral Information Management Specialist and / or Senior Electoral Operations Advisor and a timesheet according to UNDP procurement formats for individual contractors.

Competencies

Building Partnerships

• Identifies needs and interventions for capacity building of counterparts, clients and potential partners;

• Displays initiative, sets challenging outputs for him/herself and willingly accepts new work assignments.

Promoting Organizational Learning and Knowledge Sharing

• Makes the case for innovative ideas documenting successes and building them into the design of new approaches;

• Participates in the development of mechanisms, including identifying new approaches to promote individual and organizational learning and knowledge sharing using formal and informal methodologies.

Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise

• Understands advanced aspects of primary area of specialization as well as the fundamental concepts of related disciplines;

• Keeps abreast of new developments in area of professional discipline and job knowledge and seeks to develop him/herself professionally;

• Demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of information technology and applies it in work assignments;

• Continually looking for ways to enhance logistical performance in the office.

Promoting Organizational Change and Development

• Performs appropriate work analysis and assists in redesign to establish clear standards for implementation.

Client Orientation

• Anticipates client needs;

• Demonstrates understanding of client’s perspective;

• Solicits feedback on service provision and quality.

Promoting Accountability and Results-Based Management

• Provides inputs to the development of organizational standards for accountability.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:         

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent Certification in Information Technology, Engineering, Network systems or any other related field.

Experience:

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible professional experience in ICT Network systems analysis, design and Installation required; experience in relevant areas, particularly utilizing CISCO Devices;

• Advanced ICT Network and security systems experience, with at least 3 years related to complex ICT infrastructure data, voice and security projects;

• Minimum Cisco Certified Networking Professional (CCNP), Preferably Cisco Certified Internetworking Expert (CCIE) Certification;

• Expert skills with firewalls, switches and Cisco Operating Systems and complex networking projects;

• Experience in implementation of ICT network ensuring security integrity, consistency and integrity of Data;

• Proven team building and leadership skills;

• Experience of working with election commission is an advantage.

Language Requirements

• Good oral and written English is required;

• Fluency in oral and written Pashto and/or Dari Languages is required.

Working Arrangements

Institutional Arrangements:

• The UNDP project will provide office space, IT equipment (mobile phone, sim card & laptop) as well as security equipment (Handheld Radio, PPE) and office transportation;

• Accommodation will be arranged by the UNDP Support to Elections Project, with payment being made directly by the consultant to the relevant accommodation management office;
• The Consultant will be based in Kabul, Afghanistan, however there may be instances where the consultant may work from home due to the specifics of the task at the time. During the contract period, the UNDP Support to Elections CTA will directly discuss the requirements of in country / work from home arrangements with the consultant;
• All airfares and travels costs including visa on arrival charges will be borne by the project. DSA will only be paid periods of time spent in Afghanistan.  DSA will not be paid for work days outside of Afghanistan.

Duration of the Work:

• 12 months with maximum of 261 working days (with possibility of extension).

Duty Station:

• Kabul, Afghanistan.

Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments

The contractor shall submit a price proposal as below:

• Daily Fee – The consultant shall propose a daily fee, which should be inclusive of her/his professional fee, local communication costs and insurance (inclusive of medical health insurance and evacuation). The professional daily fee, all inclusive of the above elements, shall be paid upon submission of timesheet. The number of working days for which the daily fee shall be payable under the contract is 261 working days;
• Living Allowance - The contractor shall propose a Living allowance at the Kabul applicable rate of USD 162 per night for his/her stay at the duty station. The maximum number of nights for which the Living allowance shall be payable under the contract is 364 nights. The contractor is NOT allowed to stay in a place of his choice other than the UNDSS approved places. UN will provide MORSS compliant accommodation in UNOCA to the contractor. The payment of UNOCA accommodation shall be made directly by the contractor.
• Travel & Visa – All airfares and travels costs including visa on arrival charges will be borne by the project.

• The contractor shall be entitled for R&R - 7 calendar days (paid as per UNDP policy) for every six weeks during the assignment. After the last R&R, the contract should mandatorily stay in country for minimum of 30 calendar days as per UNDP rules and regulations.

Payments shall be done on monthly basis based on actual days worked, upon verification of completion of specific reports and approval by the Electoral Information Management Specialist and / or Senior Electoral Operations Advisor and a timesheet according to UNDP procurement formats for individual contractors.

Evaluation Method and Criteria

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology:

Cumulative analysis

The award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and

• Having received the 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 of 49 points (70% of the total technical points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Technical Criteria 70 points:

Technical Proposal (20 marks)

• Technical Approach & Methodology (20 marks) – Explain the understanding of the objectives of the assignment, approach to the services, methodology for carrying out the activities and obtaining the expected output, and the degree of detail of such output. The Applicant should also explain the methodologies proposed to adopt and highlight the compatibility of those methodologies with the proposed approach.

Qualification and Experience (50 marks) [evaluation of CV]:

• Interview the shortlisted candidates (20 marks);

• General Qualification (10 marks);

• Experience relevant to the assignment (20 marks).

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications in one single PDF document:

• Duly accomplished Confirmation of Interest and Submission of Financial Proposal Template using the template provided by UNDP (Annex II);

• Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references.

Technical proposal:

• Brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment;

• A methodology, on how they will approach and complete the assignment and work plan as indicated above.