International Consultant for baseline studies for the project “Political Stabilization and Reform through Confidence Building and Inclusive Dialogue

Guinea-Bissau is a post-conflict country marred by violent political turmoil. Its cyclical instability is mainly the result of structural conflict factors at the political, institutional, security, and economic level that have not been resolved since the country’s liberation. The incidents of political instability, fueled by both internal disputes between political elites and direct interventions by the military, have undermined the capacity of the State to generate, negotiate and implement public policies, foster a culture of political dialogue and compromise much less provide the basis of services that the population needs. The UNDP Country Office (CO) in Guinea-Bissau, as a key government partner in the area of governance, has been developing and implementing various projects in a variety of governance-related domains, including rule of law and justice, anti-corruption and accountability, decentralization, and local governance, electoral and parliamentary support as well as civic engagement. Additionally, taking into consideration the UN mission transition, UNDP has been adapting to the new environment by reinforcing some of its capacities in the governance domain. UNDP is the lead agency for the implementation of a Peacebuilding Fund (PBF) project on “Political Stabilization and Reform through Confidence Building and Inclusive Dialogue” in close collaboration with UNFPA, WFP, and until December 2020 with UNIOGBIS. The project is expected to strengthen the government’s and civil society’s capacity to accelerate political stabilization and systemic reform processes that are key to sustainable development in the country. The project enables the participating UN agencies to advance key peacebuilding priorities while providing for better-coordinated strategies and stronger partnerships related to political stabilization and confidence-building efforts. In this context, the project seeks to harness national and international resources and advance effective political stabilization strategies in times of political crisis and impasse, enabling key national and regional interlocutors to dialogue and establish effective working relationships necessary to undertake key and urgent reforms (political party law, electoral law, and constitutional reform) that are widely regarded to be the long term stabilizing reforms called for by the Conakry Agreement, the ECOWAS Roadmap, and the Stability Pact. To achieve this goal, the two outcomes of the project are described below: – Outcome one: Effective and coordinated in-country confidence-building measures, dialogue and mediation interventions from ECOWAS, UN, civil society, and other key international actors strengthen political stabilization in Guinea-Bissau. – Outcome two: Urgent reforms advanced through inclusive processes (as stipulated in the Ecowas roadmap and Conakry agreement). Within this setting, UNDP calls for a consultancy to collect necessary baseline information with special reference to Interparty dialogue and mutual confidence, project beneficiaries’ understanding about dialogue, negotiation and conflict resolution, levels of trust among CSOs, and stakeholders’ satisfaction with (i) the consultation process and (ii) the content of the reforms. 

The purpose of this consultancy is to review the project’s results framework and M&E plan by conducting a baseline study to collect information for indicators that do not have a baseline yet and to determine quantitatively and qualitatively the current situation in relation to the main elements of the project (Interparty dialogue and mutual confidence, project beneficiaries’ understanding about dialogue, negotiation and conflict resolution, levels of trust among CSOs and stakeholders’ satisfaction with the consultation process and the content of the reforms). The baseline study will focus on baseline data collection for a set of indicators outlined below and additional indicators proposed by the consultant. The baseline study report will be used as a measurement to monitor the project progress against the set indicators over the course of the project implementation. The selected consultant will work closely with the project team along with other key stakeholders to ensure that data collection will provide the basic background in the area of Political Stabilization and Reform through Confidence Building and Inclusive Dialogue. The baseline study will cover key institutions with which the project is engaging, including Political Party members, The Members of Parliament, and the Civil Society as well. Organizations, among others. The study design and methodology will be discussed and agreed upon with the project team and with the implementing partners at the beginning of the consultancy. The consultant may use different data collecting methods: desk review, quantitative survey, interviews, and focus group discussions, to establish a baseline for the project’s key indicators. The table of indicators below presents the indicators for which baseline information needs to be collected under the present study:

Project indicators

• Levels of Interparty dialogue and mutual confidence;
• Percentage of Members of Parliament who report positive changes in understanding dialogue, negotiation, and conflict resolution
• Levels of trust among CSOs;
• Percentage of CSO members who report positive changes in understanding dialogue, negotiation, and conflict resolution;
• Stakeholder groups level of satisfaction with (i) the consultation process AND (ii) the content of the laws; 
• Percentage of consultation participants who report knowledge of where to find information about the key reforms, by gender;
• Percentage of consultation participants who think public authorities take their interests/suggestions into consideration for the systemic reforms, by gender.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Under the technical supervision of the PBF Political Stabilization Project Manager, the consultant will:

• Elaborate questionnaires for surveys (one for each target group), interviews, or focus groups discussions, which incorporate the different indicators of the Project’s results framework;
• Lead on the process of the baseline study design, methodology, planning, and quality control procedures;
• Provide a baseline study validated by the project team which informs baseline information for the key indicators of the project described in the table above;
• Provide additional indicators into the project’s results framework if necessary, based on the Project Documentation and in accordance with the project team and review the Project’s Results Framework and respective M&E Plan and provide inputs and amendments if necessary.

Deliverables:

• Methodology for the baseline study (including but not limited to the identification and definition of the samples and the development of the questionnaires for surveys) defined;
• Conduct the baseline data collection/fieldwork;
• Draft Report containing presentation and analysis of results;
• The final report validated by the project team, including revision and update of the project M&E Plan, with the proposition of new indicators if necessary;
• Duration of the assignment, the assignment must be conducted within 60 working days, from the day the contract is signed.

Functional

• Professional experience;
• Able to manage conflicting deadlines and priorities;
• Able to coordinate activities such as missions, special events, etc.;
• Able to assume full responsibility for activities, ensuring that mission objectives are met in a transparent and inclusive manner;
• Set clear goals and performance standards; perform responsibilities as they should be;
• Self-analysis of performance problems; seeking appropriate guidance and support.

Resource management

• Strong organizational skills;
• Ability to work independently, produce high-quality outputs; Page 6 of 7;
• Solid opinion, strategic thinking, and ability to manage competing priorities;
• Able to find creative solutions to daily problems, working in an everchanging work environment.

Communication and advocacy

• Strong ability to write clearly and convincingly, adapting style and content to different audiences and speaking clearly and convincingly;
• Ability to produce high-quality professional documents and products under pressure and to defend and negotiate difficult issues and positions for senior and official employees;
• Strong ability to present at meetings with the ability to adapt to different audiences;
• Strong analytical, research, and writing skills with demonstrated ability to think strategically;
• Strong clear and fast communication skills;
• Strong interpersonal skills in negotiation and liaison.

Education:

• Academic training, Bachelor or master’s in social science, economics, data management, or related area;

Experience:

• Professional experience of at least five (5) years relevant professional experience in project management, monitoring, and evaluation at the national or international level;
• Experience in research methods, monitoring and evaluation tools, development of reports, development, and analysis, and elaboration of indicators and data collection, analysis, and reporting is required;
• Experience collecting data for baseline studies is required;
• Experience in the use of computers and office software packages, including management of databases;
• Knowledge of the Bissau-Guinean context is an added advantage.

Language:

• Fluency in Portuguese is necessary.
• Intermediary knowledge in English is required;
• Good knowledge of Crioulo and/or French is desirable.

GUIDELINES FOR APPLICATION:

Required documents:

• A cover letter explaining why you are the most suitable candidate for this assignment;
• A brief methodology on how you will approach and conduct the tasks, describing the tools and work plan proposed for this assignment. The methodology should be relevant to the Project objectives and aligned with the current Project Results Framework (attached to the Tor);
• A financial proposal;
• A personal CV including past experiences in similar projects and at least 3 professional references.

Lump-sum contracts:

The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount, and payment terms around specific and measurable (qualitative and quantitative) deliverables (i.e. whether payments fall in installments or upon completion of the entire contract). Payments are based upon output, i.e. upon delivery of the services specified in the TOR. In order to assist the requesting unit in the comparison of financial proposals, the financial proposal will include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (including travel, per diems, and the number of anticipated working days).

Travel: All envisaged travel costs must be included in the financial proposal. This includes all travel to join duty station/repatriation travel. In general, UNDP should not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class Page 7 of 7 tickets. Should the Individual Consultant wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources. In the case of unforeseeable travel, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging, and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed.

Evaluation: Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodologies:

Cumulative analysis

When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract should 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 points;
• Financial Criteria weight – 30 points.

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70 points would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Evaluation criteria:

• Education background – 10 points;
• Experience as defined in the ToR – 15 points;
• Competences as defined in the ToR – 10 points;
• Understating of the ToR – 15 points;
• Methodology and overall approach – 30 points;
• The overall quality of the proposal (comprehensiveness, structure, language, and clarity) – 20 points.