Consultant – Research and Statistics – Project Support AACID-UNDP Initiative (due to COVID restrictions to travel open to EU residents only)

The ART Initiative – Hub for Territorial Partnerships is a UNDP global project that seeks to harness the potential of territorial partnerships by supporting decentralized cooperation, South-South and triangular cooperation. ART is therefore an entry point for international cooperation actors interested in harmonizing their respective actions in support of national and sub-national policies for sustainable local human development. ART aims to strengthen and expand the existing alliance between UNDP and decentralized cooperation partners in support of the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the local level. ART also seeks to strengthen the potential and role of Local and Regional Governments (LRGs) as development partners and to promote the principles of development cooperation effectiveness in support of the localization of the SDGs. In a global context marked by common challenges that require partnerships and complex solutions to “leave no one behind”, UNDP ART has partnered with many decentralized cooperation partners to jointly promote innovative initiatives that contribute to the localization of the 2030 Agenda. Over the years, the initiative has contributed to demonstrating that regional, municipal and local authorities, together with other local governance stakeholders, have a key role to play in promoting sustainable development and making the SDGs part of national and local development strategies and policies.

UNDP and the Andalusian Development Agency (Agencia Andaluza de Cooperación Internacional- AACID) are currently implementing the initiative “La perspectiva multilateral en los diálogos de localización de los ODS: un marco de diálogo entre el PNUD y Andalucía” that seeks to sensitize and train various Andalusian actors on the 2030 Agenda and the localization of the SDGs, among other results. One of the components of this specific objective is the promotion and support of the Andalusian leadership on monitoring and evaluation of the 2030 Agenda at the subnational level and in the localization of the SDGs. In this framework, the Andalusian Statistical & Cartography Institute (Instituto de Estadística y Cartografía de Andalucía – IECA) constitutes the reference organism to develop various actions within this project that would lay the foundations for critical lines of work to be followed by public statistics and cartography in Andalusia over the next few years in relation to the localization of the SDGs. Accordingly, a partnership between IECA – AACID – and UNDP has been established with the aim of strengthening the institutional role of public statistics in the follow-up and monitoring of the SDGs at the local level in Andalusia.

Considering the above elements, UNDP is launching a call to select a consultant aimed at supporting IECA’s role on the creation of public and official information for the follow-up and monitoring of the SDGs in municipal areas within the Autonomous Community. For this purpose, he/she will be assigned a set of responsibilities and tasks that will include:

1. Calculate selected indicators identified from the European Handbook for SDG Voluntary Local Reviews and on the georeferenced spatial and population information available in the IECA and/or on the statistical sources from Andalusian local governments (council and municipalities).

• Calculate three indicators: i.e. i) new buildings; ii) built-up area per capita; iii) population without green areas in their neighborhood. In case of information availability provided by relevant institutions, calculate a fourth indicator: i.e. iv) access to public transport.

Deliverables:

• Selected indicators from the European Handbook for SDG Voluntary Local Reviews calculated (estimated 40 working days).2. 2

2. Provide technical inputs for the statistical corporate scorecard and visualization tool.

• Contribute to the corporate visualization tool’s design by assessing the indicators variables, data reporting tables, and overall content that the scorecard needs to include for an effective indicators’ presentation.

Deliverables:

• Inputs to the statistical corporate scorecard and visualization tool provided (estimated 10 working days).

3. Provide technical assistance for the organisation and conduction of an exchange and capacity-building workshop, in coordination with AACID, IECA and UNDP, on statistical information production.

• Provide technical assistance to the organisation and development of the exchange and capacity-building workshop.

Deliverables:

• Organisation and development of the exchange and capacity-building workshop supported (estimated 10 working days).

4. Draft a final report outlining the assignment’s achievements (maximum 15 pages) and including recommendations on statistical information production.

• Provide a final report that would summarize the consultancy process/results and include recommendations as regards: i) the statistical information production for monitoring and reporting purposes of the Agenda 2030 at the local level in Andalusia and ii) the potential cooperation in this area with other countries and/or territories at national and international level.

Deliverables:

• A final report is drafted and validated with UNDP ART Initiative (estimated 10 working days).

The consultant is expected to work under the direct supervision of UNDP ART Initiative in Brussels. He/she will be working from home at the duty station Seville and be required to be physically present in IECA’s office in Seville several days each month throughout the assignment’s duration. Presence in the office will be determined by IECA’s COVID-19 related working regulations.

Corporate competences:

• Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Treats all people fairly without favouritism.
• Fulfils all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment.

Functional competences:

• Ability to work in a team and independently;
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills;
• Openness to change and ability to receive / integrate feedback;
• Ability to work under pressure and in stressful situations;
• Excellent writing and reporting skills;
• Excellent planning and organizational skills with ability to implement and report on work.

Education:

• Advanced University Degree in Economics, Applied Statistics, Data Science, Geography, Environmental Science or a related field;

Language:

• Applicants must be fluent in Spanish.
• Knowledge of English or other UN language is an asset

Experience:

• Minimum 2 years of related work experience.
• Demonstrated experience as an effective investigator and researcher with experience leading and conducting statistical and geo-statistical information production.
• Proven experience in collecting and analysing technical information & data and working with large volumes of structured and un-structured data.
• Proven experience in the use of R or Python languages and PostGres/PostGis to work with statistical and spatial data (intermediate knowledge).
• Strong command of statistical and geo-statistical methods including data analysis and route network analysis.
• Capability in calculating indicators.
• Familiarity with Andalusian institutional framework related to statistical information production.
• Competencies in statistical methods for institutions and familiarity with systems, models and tools for monitoring the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the local level is an asset.

Application Submission Process

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:

Interested consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications. Please group them into one (1) single PDF document as the application only allows to upload maximum one document:

CV and a Personal History Form http://sas.undp.org/Documents/P11_Personal_history_form.doc;

Letter of interest and why you think would be best suitable for the assignment.

A brief methodology (minimum: 2 pages; maximum: 5 pages) on how you will approach the assignment and the areas to be covered.

Special requirements:

Taking into consideration the security situation related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Consultant will have to be able to travel to and work from Seville. Additionally, the consultant will have to able to work within the European Union.

Financial Proposal:

Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price in US Dollars or EURO (including foreseen  travel costs to Seville/Spain on average 3-4 days/monthly for the duration of the assignment). The proposal shall be provided as per the financial proposal template available here: http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_file.cfm?doc_id=45780 and must be sent separately with the following subject heading: “Research and Statistical Consultancy – Project Support AACID-UNDP Initiative” to the email address: [email protected]  by 31st March 2021. Proposals received after the deadline will be rejected. In order to assist the requesting unit in the comparison of financial proposals, the financial proposal should be all-inclusive and include a breakdown. The term ‘all-inclusive” implies that all costs (professional fees, communications, utilities, consumables, insurance, etc.) that could possibly be incurred by the Contractor are already factored into the financial proposal. 

Criteria for Evaluation of Proposal:

Only those applications which are responsive and compliant will be evaluated.  Offers will be evaluated according to the Combined Scoring method – where the educational background, experience on similar assignments, letter of interest will be weighted at 70% and the price proposal will weigh as 30% of the total scoring.  The applicant receiving the Highest Combined Score that has also accepted UNDP’s General Terms and Conditions will be awarded the contract. Only Consultants obtaining a minimum of 70% on the Technical evaluation would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Technical Evaluation Criteria – 70% of total evaluation – max. 100 points:

• Criteria A – Demonstrate experience and skills through CV, P11 and letter of motivation – max 20 points;
• Criteria B – Technical proposal – max points 10 points;
• Criteria C: Interview – max 20 points.
• Criteria D – Proven experience in the use of R or Python languages and PostGres/PostGis to work with statistical and spatial data (intermediate knowledge) – max 20 points
• Criteria E – •  Strong command of statistical and geo-statistical methods including data analysis and route network analysis ­- max 20 points;
• Criteria F – Capability in calculating indicators – max 10 points

Financial Criteria – 30% of total evaluation – max. 30 points

The following formula will be used to evaluate financial proposal:

p = y (µ/z), where;

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated;

y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal;

µ = price of the lowest priced proposal;

z = price of the proposal being evaluated.

Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director. Consultants are also required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under dss.un.org

General Terms and conditions as well as other related documents can be found under: http://on.undp.org/t7fJs

Qualified women and members of minorities are encouraged to apply.

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.