International Consultant for provision of online professional development courses in trade

Ministry of Trade and Foreign Economic Relations of Turkmenistan (Ministry) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) are implementing a project entitled “Strengthening the Trade Capacity of Turkmenistan”. The project is focused on supporting the Government of Turkmenistan in building trade capacity of the country with a view to support the realization of Turkmenistan’s objectives aimed at increasing competitiveness of national economy, reducing imports dependence and diversifying exports, including by increasing the share of higher-value added products in export composition.

Due to the increasingly intensifying international competition for markets it is necessary to address the objective of export diversification with implementation of range of measures focused on the creation of effective system to promote domestically produced goods in export markets throughout the whole value chain: producer – ultimate buyer. The level of competitiveness of modern economy is largely determined by the quality of professional staff. Among factors of economic growth human capital is a matter of primary importance. This challenge for Turkmenistan implies addressing the current negative trends in the development of human capacities, including insufficient level of training of specialists and advanced training of personnel.

In this regard, the United Nations Development Programme supports the Government of Turkmenistan in formulation and implementation of a set of measures focused on building trade capacity of the country with a view to support the realization of Turkmenistan’s objectives aimed at increasing competitiveness of national economy, reducing import dependence and diversifying export, including by increasing the share of higher-value added products in export composition.

UNDP is planning to engage international consultancy with the hands-on experience to develop and deliver online training in the area of trade with modern interactive methods as specified below for the specialists of the Ministry of Trade and Foreign Economic Relations, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, the State Commodity and Raw Materials Exchange, Ministry of Finance and Economy and other related organizations in Turkmenistan.

In accordance with the above-mentioned objective of the assignment and under the supervision of the Project Manager and Programme Analyst, the International Consultant (IC) will have the objective of transferring knowledge and expertise to the specialists of national partners to develop the trade related professional skills through delivery of interactive online training courses. To achieve the objective, he or she will perform the following tasks:

Activity 1. Carry out desk review by reading relevant sections of the project document, state programmes related to trade and economic activities, trade policies and study of relevant trade related government institutions of Turkmenistan.

Activity 2. Prepare materials of online interactive modern training courses applying digital communication technologies to be delivered in the form of lectures, practical sessions, master-classes, problem-solving exercises, simulations, or case studies in the following areas:

• Development of art of negotiation – 3 days online training;
• Instruments for regulation of trade in goods and services – 3 days online training;
• Conflicts in international trade and interests of individual countries – regions – 3 days online training;
• Trading instruments and risk management – 3 days online training;
• Developing trade research and analysis skills – 3 days online training.

Activity 3. Deliver online interactive training courses in the form of lectures, practical sessions, master-classes, problem-solving exercises, simulation, or case studies as specified in the Activity 2.

Activity 4. Organize online training courses knowledge examination of participants and provide with exam results data. 

Activity 5. Provide consultancy report on the outcome of online training courses with further recommendations.

Deliverables and timeframe:

Deliverables:

• Desk review on state programmes related to trade and economic activities, trade policies and study of trade related government institutions of Turkmenistan completed.
• Materials of online iteractive modern training courses using digital communication technologies to be delivered in the form of lectures, practical sessions, master-classes, problem-solving exercises, simulations or case studies were prepared.

Duration and timeframe:

• 3 working days for analyses, state programmes related to trade and economic activities, trade policies and trade related government institutions of Turkmenistan.
• 12 working days to prepare materials of online interactive modern training courses using digital communication technologies to be delivered in the form of lectures, practical sessions, master-classes, problem-solving exercises, simulations, or case studies.

Deliverable:

• Online interactive modern training courses using digital communication technologies in the form of lectures, practical sessions, master-classes, problem-solving exercises, simulations, or case studies were delivered. 

Duration and timeframe:

• 15 working days for delivery of online interactive training courses and online training knowledge examination of participants.
• Writing consultancy report with further recommendations.

Payment conditions:

This is an installment-based contract that should cover the costs of consultancy required to produce the above deliverables. The final schedule of payments will be agreed upon in the beginning of consultancy. Payment will be released in two installments: 1st installment: 40% (after preparation of all five training materials) and 2nd installment: 60% (after delivery of all five online training, examination of knowledge of participants and final consultancy report submitted by international consultant as per the ToR) – upon timely submission of respective deliverables and their acceptance by UNDP Turkmenistan.

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
• Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Treats all people fairly without favoritism;
• Fulfills all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment;

Functional Competencies:

• Knowledge of and extensive experience working with UN international trade development mechanisms;
• Excellent analytical, communication and proposal writing skills;
• Results driven, ability to work under pressure and to meet required deadlines;
• Good understanding and practice of capacity development;
• Cultural sensitivity;
• Diplomatic skills;

Education:

• Advanced university degree (at least master’s degree) in a relevant field, such as business administration, economics, international business, or a related field;

Experience:

• At least 7 years of working experience in capacity development with a particular focus on training of trade professional skills or advising in the field of trade;
• Experience in provision of training using interactive methods applying digital communication technologies with focus on professional development in trade;
• Knowledge and experience of work in Central Asia or CIS is an advantage;
• Good knowledge of the UN, WTO mandate is an asset;

Language requirements:

• Excellent written and spoken English; fluent Russian is an asset;

Submission of applications:

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

All experts applying for this position are required to provide:

• Brief (1-2 pages) description of the methodology for the assignment. However, the specific design and methods for the workshop will be determined from consultations among UNDP Turkmenistan Project team, the international expert, and the national partners as specified in Project Document about what is appropriate and feasible to meet the goals of the training courses;
• Financial Proposal with the references to (1) the daily rate for the assignment and within the timing scale indicated in the present TOR, and (2) any other expenses (including transportation costs, accommodation costs, the possibility of vaccination and etc.). Template of the form can be found at: http://www.tm.undp.org/content/turkmenistan/en/home/procurement.html. The UNDP will enter into an Individual Contract based on a lump sum amount. The financial proposal shall represent a detailed, justified and “all inclusive” amount.  In order to assist UNDP in the comparison of financial proposals, the financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount, including: a daily fee for the tasks and an estimated duration as specified in this announcement, travel (to and from the missions), per diems, any other possible costs (including vaccinations, dwelling, communication etc.);
• Cover letter explaining why they are the most suitable candidate for the assignment;
• Resume /CV.

Evaluation of proposals:

Individual Consultants will be evaluated based on the combined scoring methodology. When using this method, the award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant and
• Having received the highest score – out of 100

Out of the maximum score, the score for technical criteria equals 70% – maximum 100 points, and for financial criteria 30%.

The technical evaluation will take into account the following as per the scoring provided:

• Education in the field of business administration, economics, international business or a related field – 20 pts;
• Working experience in capacity development with a particular focus on training of professional skills in the field of trade – 25 pts;
• Methodology – 15 pts;
• Good knowledge of the UN, WTO mandate – 10 pts;
• Knowledge and experience of work in the CIS or Central Asia – 15 pts;
• Fluency in Russian – 5 pts;
• Fluency in English – 10 pts

Financial proposal – 30% of total evaluation.

Additional requirements for recommended contractor:

Recommended contractors aged 65 and older, and if the travel is required, shall undergo a full medical examination including x-ray, and obtain medical clearance from the UN-approved doctor prior to taking up their assignment. The medical examination is to be cleared by the UN physicians and shall be paid by the consultant.