Institutional Coordination Expert

Background

NOTE: Signed Offeror’s Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and availability - https://www.ba.undp.org/content/dam/bosnia_and_herzegovina/docs/Operations/Jobs/Offerors%20Letter%20to%20UNDP%20Confirming%20Interest%20and%20Availability.docx - Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability.docx - to be sent to e-mail ba.shared.hr@undp.org with Subject: Job ID 100455.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UN lead agency on international development, working in 170 countries and territories to eradicate poverty and reduce inequality. Since 1996 UNDP has been a trusted development partner and catalyser of transformation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with presence from villages, municipalities/cities, cantons, entities to the state level, playing a unique “vertical connector” role. Providing advocacy and policy support, as well as implementation and management services, UNDP resorts to a platform way of work, galvanising broad partnerships. In line with the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2021-2025, UNDP’s support in Bosnia and Herzegovina is focused on democratic governance, sustainable and inclusive growth and social cohesion within the broader EU accession process and achieving the SDGs. 

The Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina (MOFTER) seeks to improve its working relation and legal oversight competence over the work of the Foreign Trade Chamber of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FTC), in line with the Law on Foreign Trade Chamber of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette, No. 30/01 and 72/13). The Law stipulates specific roles of both institutions, specifically the Article 2, which calls for regular consultations between FTC and MOFTER and Article 26 which designates the MOFTER as the responsible institution for the implementation of the entire Law on Foreign Trade Chamber of Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, the current coordination mechanism between these two institutions is not fully functional or institutionalized and does not include proper monitoring or evaluation processes.  

The purpose of this consultancy is to provide technical assistance to the MOFTER in its efforts to improve the coordination with the FTC, in full respect of the Law on Foreign Trade Chamber of Bosnia and Herzegovina. To that end, an Expert will be engaged to coordinate and facilitate constructive consultation process between the two institutions, facilitate the design of a work plan for the incoming period, and draft procedures and formats for regular reporting from the FTC to the MOFTER, as well as for the monitoring and evaluating of the FTC activities financed by the MOFTER. The Expert will also assist the MOFTER to design a competitive application procedure for (co)financing of export and promotion projects of the FTC. This procedure will be introduced with intention to improve quality of projects by creating an internal competition among different applicants.

Duties and Responsibilities

More specifically, the Consultant will be expected to perform the following tasks:

Task 1: Desk Review and establishment of a joint committee for improving the cooperation between the MOFTER and the FTC 

The Expert will become fully acquainted with all the relevant documents related to this consultancy which include, but are not limited to the Law on the FTC, relevant by-laws, reports and activitiy plans related to previous cooperation between the MOFTER and the FTC, current information exchange practices between the two institutions etc.

Further, the Exper will provide technical support and facilitate setting up of a joint committee for better cooperation between the two institutions. This includes:

• drafting the joint committee rulebook defining its purpose, members, and roles of each institution;
• debriefing the institutions and including their comments/observations in the final version of the document;
• facilitating a purposeful dialogue between the institutions;
• identifying risks hampering successful cooperation between the MOFTER and the FTC and suggesting methods to address them; 
• supporting the organization of Joint Committee meetings which will convene at least once a month during the 8 months of the assignment.

It is envisaged that this task will be delivered by September 2021 (apart from the last sub-task that will continue throughout the assignment). The estimated level of effort for the Task 1 is 21 days.

Task 2: Improve the procedures for co-financing fairs and trade promotion activities by the MOFTER

As part of this task, the Expert will

• Perform the analysis of the co-financing provided by the MOFTER in the period 2018 – 2020 for fairs and trade promotion with aim to determine good practices and lessons learned that will enable the improvement of the process in future. This will include, but will not be limited to, the analysis of procedures, application forms and other documents, as well as monitoring, evaluation and reporting practices. The analysis will be presented in a form of a short report (3-5 pages).

• Prepare a draft Rulebook for Fairs and Trade Promotion Co-Financing by the MOFTER that will improve the whole process and will include revision of the existing procedures or their draft, if they are not available, that define all the steps in the process, from advertisement through the collection of applications to the transparent evaluation of the proposals based on pre-determined criteria, monitoring of their implementation and proper use of funds and reporting. In this stage, the Expert will use the best practices from other government institutions, UNDP or other international organisations.

• Present the draft Rulebook to the Joint Committee to obtain suggestions/observations and include them in the final version of the document.

• Provide training to the members of the FTC to help them understand and apply the newly established procedures when seeking co-financing by the MOFTER. The training will be provided in cooperation with the FTC and support by the MOFTER.

It is envisaged that this task will be delivered in the period October - November 2021 and the level of effort will not exceed 12 expert days.

Task 3: Support the MOFTER in processing the first round of the selection process in line with the newly established procedures/Rulebook

• The Expert will provide technical assistance to MOFTER to perform the first round of proposal selection in line with the newly established procedures/Rulebook. His/her assistance will be required in all stages of the process, but particularly in the stage where the applications will be evaluated in line with pre-determined criteria. During this process, the Expert will provide learning-by-doing support to the MOFTER personnel who then will become fully capacitated to repeat the process autonomously in the future. The technical assistance will also include the evaluation, monitoring and reporting stage.

It is envisaged that this task will be delivered in the period November 2021 – February 2022 and the level of effort will not exceed 12 expert days.

Organizational issues

• The Expert will be allowed to work within MOFTER premises when relevant. His/her constant presence is not mandatory, but it is recommended to enable easier coordination with the Cabinet of the Minister and the FTC when needed. The MOFTER will secure all necessary conditions for work of the Expert, conduct inception and preparatory activities and politically clear the path for Expert’s work. The Expert will be asked to report to the MOFTER on progress by the end of each calendar month.

Deliverables/outputs

#	Deliverables / Outputs	# of Days per Task	Due Date	Percentage
1.	Task 1 – Desk Review and establishment of joint committee for improving the cooperation between the MOFTER and the FTC • Desk review completed• Rulebook prepared;• Joint Committee established;•  At least 2 sessions of the Joint Committe facilitated through the duration of the assignment	21 work days	Jul 2021- August 2021 September 2021	46%
2.	Task 2 – Improve the procedures for co-financing fairs and trade promotion activities by the MOFTER The analysis report prepared and approved; Rulebook for Fairs and Trade Promotion Co-Financing by the MOFTER prepared. Training to the FTC members delivered;	12 work days	31 October 2021	27%
3.	Task 3 – Support the MOFTER in processing the first round of the selection process in line with the newly established procedures/Rulebook At least 6 sessions of the Joint Committe facilitated through the duration of the assignment First round of the application selection process completed in line with the new procedures. Evaluation and monitoring of the selected projects implementation completed. Final report prepared and approved by the MOFTER/UNDP.	12 work days	29 February 2022	27 %

Competencies

Core values

• Demonstrates commitment to UNDP’s mission, vision and values;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Plans, prioritizes and delivers tasks on time;
• Strives for and promotes excellence in performance continually;
• Participates effectively in a team-based, information-sharing environment, collaborating and cooperating with others;

People Skills

• Recognizes and responds appropriately to the ideas, interests, and concerns of others;
• Encourages dialogue and acts in accordance with inputs.

Innovation:

• Identifies new ways and approaches of work in the subject matter, customised to the specific context;
• Critical thinking;

Results-Orientation:

• Uses resources, methods, partners, and information effectively;
• Analyses complex technical materials (including data) and makes concise, relevant recommendations;
• Plans and procedures quality results to meet established goals.

Communication:

• Technical writing skills, formulates written information clearly and persuasively;
• Strong communication and presentation skills.

Job Knowledge and Expertise:

• Solid knowledge of the governance structure and public administration processes in Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualifications/Education:

• University degree in law, economy or other relevant fields. Advanced University degree will be considered as an asset;

Experience:

• At least 8 years of relevant professional experience, including in terms of provision of technical advice to public institutions;
• At least 6 years in leadership or management positions, including participation in board positions;
• Previous experience in financial planing and financial management, financial procedures and compliance management;
• Previous experience in working with the MOFTER and the Foreign Trade Chamber of Bosnia and Herzegovina is an asset;
• Proven analytical skills and ability to conceptualise and write concisely and clearly.
• Ability to work as a team player in a complex working environment;

Languages Requirements:

• Fluency in the official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina and in English.

Other Requirements:

• Excellent computer skills (MS Office applications) and ability to use information technologies as a tool and resource. 

Longlisting/Shortlisting Criteria

Qualifications as stated in the ToR

Criteria:	Points
Relevant Education	max 10 points5 points allocated for BA/BSc degree+ 5 points for MSc/MA+ up to 5 points for PhD
At least 8 years of relevant professional experience	max 15 points
Fluency in English	max 5 points - will be assessed as:5 points for fluency and the points decrease as per the level mentioned in the CV:good - 4 points;fair/upper intermediate – 3 points;intermediate - 2 points;beginner - 1 point.

Technical Evaluation Criteria

Criteria:	Points
Rating based on Qualifications	30%
At least 6 years in leadership or management positions, including participation in board positions	25%
Previous experience in financial planing and financial management, financial procedures and compliance management	25%
Proven analytical skills and ability to conceptualise and write concisely and clearly	10%
Previous experience in working with the MOFTER and the Foreign Trade Chamber of Bosnia and Herzegovina	10%

Evaluation

Individual  will be evaluated based on the following methodology:

Cumulative analysis

When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract should be made to the candidate whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:a) responsive/compliant/acceptable, andb) 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%

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

• Personal CV, including past experience in similar projects and at least 3 references.

Please scan all above mentioned documents and upload as one attachment only online through this website.

Note:

• For an assignment requiring travel, consultants of 65 years or more require full medical examination and statement of fitness to work to engage in the consultancy.
• Due to large number of potential applicants, only competitively selected candidates will be contacted for remaining steps of the service procurement process.