National Consultant to conduct assessment of the local economic development potentials of the Municipalities of Berat, Fier and Devoll and mapping out the prospective of local supply and value chain

Background

UNDP is implementing a sub-regional Project “Strengthen national and local systems to support the effective socio-economic integration of returnees in the Western Balkans”. The Project is part of the IPA II Multi-Country Action “EU support to Fundamental Rights of Roma Community and Reintegration of Returnees”, which has been entrusted for implementation to UNDP, the World Bank and the Council of Europe and targets Albania, North Macedonia and Serbia.

The project promotes holistic approach in responding to the immediate needs of vulnerable returnees as well as in tackling the structural challenges, which propel unregulated migration of men and women from the Western Balkans to EU. The comprehensive mix of technical assistance, capacity building and direct support to vulnerable men and women aims to demonstrate innovative solutions that will underpin transformational change in the models of governance of reintegration services and socio-economic empowerment programmes, with an objective of ensuring sustainable reintegration of the vulnerable returnees and social cohesion. 

In each country, the project will support establishment of local reintegration platforms in 3 municipalities, with a purpose of mobilizing public service providers, business community and civil society in co-designing and implementation of local strategies for reintegration of returnees. Local strategies will propose a set of context specific innovative solutions for improving the livelihoods and social wellbeing of returnees and the broader community. Moreover, local strategies will tackle the local governance issues, individual and institutional bottlenecks and gaps, which hinder the effective service provision.

To ensure effective targeting of activities the project will carry-out the assessment of economic potentials and capacities for service provision, which are critical for sustainable reintegration of returnees. The main objective of this assignment is to undertake an assessment of the local economic development potentials in the three target municipalities (Devoll, Fier and Berat). The assessment will map out the prospective local supply and value chains, which can generate quality jobs, assess the employability level of returnees and the needs of potential employers. The analysis should highlight the existing gap between demanded skills by the employers and the skills offer of the unemployed.

The analysis should particularly focus on the skills gaps of the vulnerable population, Roma and the returnees. This assessment needs to be based on a research (questionnaire, polls, interviews or other innovative methods of data collection) conducted with vulnerable population, Roma and returnees, private companies, local banks, and business support providers. The workforce analysis should assess labour market from 1) labour supply side  i.e. the profile of returnees (demographics, education, technical and soft skills, previous experience abroad or in informal economy, preferences and interest for future employment, self-employment etc.) and 2) the demand side  i.e. local economic development potentials: employers, future skills needs of the employers, investment plans of private sector in future.  The analysis should also contain: 3) assessment of the available support system in skills development such as: schooling, skills development institutions and 4) financial support services, economic and business development service providers, employer’s organizations and policy creators. The analysis will be based on an in-depth assessment of identified local supply and value chains with jobs creation potential. Focus should be put on potential backward value chains, possibilities for contracting of individuals, micro and small businesses, social enterprises etc. in the existing or new short value chains, which might be established . After providing a critical analysis of the current situation, the report should provide practical recommendations for interventions on skills development, employment/self-employment and entrepreneurship support programmes as part of improvements of the local system in delivery of effective socio-economic integration of returnees.

Duties and Responsibilities

The consultancy services should aim at:

1. Mapping out the economic development and jobs creation potentials in Devoll, Berat  and Fier in the established local businesses or in foreign direct investment companies based on their growth plans.
2. Identification of the most relevant value chains and investment plans in the 3 selected municipalities, assessment of the jobs creation potentials of local industries, the workforce needs and forecast of required skills. Additionally, potentials for integration of businesses run by returnees or Roma men and women in local value chains will be mapped out, with focus on backward value chains. Attention shall be paid on the analysis of the opportunities for contracting out the self-employed, micro and small businesses or social enterprises, the obstacles and reasons for low integration of local suppliers and business actors in the local value chains as well as the specific barriers that Roma or returnees experience in the collaboration with the established companies. Furthermore, an in-depth analysis of identified lead sectors in local economies, which employ or can provide job opportunities such as domestic work, agriculture/agro-industry and in clothing and apparel/manufacturing industry should be carried out;
3. Considering the prevalent engagement of Roma and returnees as informal workers in these sectors, the analysis will zoom into the root causes and solutions required to support the gradual transition to decent employment contracts and possibilities for supporting the informal workers and informal businesses to improve skills, productivity, access to finance to gradually move to formal economy.
4.  Labour diagnosis of the current skills of Roma men and women and returnees, as well as the barriers for formal employment, employment experience in the country or abroad or in informal sector, employment preferences etc. within the three selected municipalities (skills development supply side)
5. Review of the current skills development service providers and other business development services such as financial institutions, employment and self-employment support programmes, entrepreneurship support etc. (formal and informal).
6. Provision of recommendations regarding the needs for soft skills, VET skills, on-the-job trainings, internships and apprenticeships programs in order to address the gaps detected in the assessment of workforce needs and current skills sets of Roma communities in the three municipalities.
7. Analysis of the barriers that hinder current business, skills development and employment supporting functions to efficiently target Roma and returnees. Finally, the analysis should provide recommendation on where the system can be strengthened to provide solutions to wider target group (employment/self-employment, entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship and skills development support system).

Competencies

Skills and Competencies

• Strong analytical, reporting and writing abilities.
• Proved expertise in the area of social protection in Albania.
• Familiarity with Roma, migration and returnees’ policy in the country.
• Familiarity of local self-governments system and its functioning in Albania, as well as with a network of stakeholders at the local level in Albania in the context of returnees. 
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Willing to take responsibility, act professionally at all times, and make sure tasks are fully completed.
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.
• Ability to work under pressure and uses time efficiently. Identifies priority activities and adjust them as required.

Required Skills and Experience

Master’s degree in the relevant field (public policy/economy/or other related topics).

Work experience:

• At least 7 years of professional experience in relevant policy analysis/research or economic analyses relevant to economic development, value chains and skills.

• Experience in reports writing and analysis.
• Minimum 5 relevant consultancy works (public policy analyses or co-benefits relevant to economic development potentials, policy research on local systems, economic development potentials, value chain analyses and/or skills development analyses).

Knowledge

• Excellent knowledge of social protection sector, on national and local level in Albania, and related strategic, legal and institutional frameworks for Roma and returnees in Albania.

Language requirement:

• Excellent command of written and spoken English; fluency in Albanian language.

Evaluation Procedure

UNDP applies a fair and transparent selection process that would consider both the technical qualification of Individual Consultants as well as their financial proposals. The contract will be awarded to the candidate whose offer:

• Is deemed technically responsive / compliant / acceptable (only technically responsive applications / candidates will be considered for the financial evaluation)
• And has obtained the highest combined technical and financial scores.

Technical Criteria - 70% of total evaluation – max points: 700

• Criteria A: At least 7 years of professional experience in relevant policy analysis/research or economic analyses relevant to economic development, value chains and skills – max points: 350
• Criteria B: Minimum 5 relevant consultancy works (public policy analyses or co-benefits relevant to economic development potentials, policy research on local systems, economic development potentials, value chain analyses and/or skills development analyses) – max points: 250
• Criteria C: Educational background– max points: 100

Financial Criteria - 30% of total evaluation – max points: 300

Candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% (490 points) of the maximum obtainable points for the technical criteria (700 points) shall be considered for the financial evaluation.

Contract Award

Candidate obtaining the highest combined scores in the combined score of Technical and Financial evaluation will be considered technically qualified and will be offered to enter into contract with UNDP.

Payment modality

Payment to the Individual Contractor will be made based on the actual number of days worked, deliverables accepted and upon certification of satisfactory completion by the project manager.

Application Procedure 

Interested applicants are advised to carefully study all sections of this ToRs and ensure that they meet the general requirements as well as specific qualifications described. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please make sure you have provided all requested materials. 

The application should contain: 

• Cover letter explaining why you are the most suitable candidate for the advertised position. Please paste the letter into the "Resume and Motivation" section of the electronic application. 
• Completed and signed UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SC) and Individual Contracts (IC) – Blank form Download here or latest Curriculum Vitae
• Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability & Detailed Financial Proposal - please fill in the attached form. Download Here (kindly use Firefox browser)
• Financial Proposal in ALL*- Specify a Total Lump Sum in Albanian Lek for the tasks specified in this announcement. The attached template may be used - Download Here (kindly use Firefox browser) Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall consider various expenses incurred by the consultant during the contract period (e.g. fee and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services). 
• Copy of Diplomas and copy of Passport. 

*Kindly note that Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability and Financial Proposal are two separate documents and should be both part of your application. 

How to Submit the Application: 

To submit your application online, please follow the steps below: 

• Download and complete the UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs); In the P11 Form make sure to include Email Addresses of the Persons who are willing to provide References on your past experience in working with them.
• Merge your UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs) or latest CV, Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability and cover letter into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded; 
• Click on the Job Title (job vacancy announcement); 
• Click “Apply Now” button, fill in necessary information on the first page, and then click “Submit Application;” 
• Upload your application/single file as indicated above with the merged documents (underlined above); 

• You will receive an automatic response to your email confirming receipt of your application by the system. 

Due to large number of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process

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.