Somalia: planning and SDG Consultant

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Vacancy reference no.:

VAC-0950

Position:

Planning and SDG Consultant

Place of performance:

Mogadishu, Somalia, Somalia

Contract duration:

up to 4 months (@21.75days/month)

Starting date:

1-Sep-2017

OVERVIEW OF CTG GLOBAL

CTG support and manage humanitarian projects in fragile and conflict-affected countries around the world. With past performance in 15 countries – from the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia and Central and South America – we offer a holistic fabric of project management, implementation and support. Skilled in emergency response to crises such as the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, we have the ability to act quickly (crisis response teams can be on the ground in 24 hours) and to establish structured operations in high-risk environments. CTG recruit and manage qualified, skilled teams with extensive experience operating in challenging conditions.

OVERVIEW OF THE POSITION

Ministry of Planning, Investment & Economic Development (MOPIED) with OUR CLIENT support has completed developing a new National Development Plan (NDP), the first in a period of 30 years. The NDP has been formulated through an inclusive and transparent process while engaging sectoral ministries of the Federal Government, Puntland and the Emerging Federal States, civil society, parliament and academia as well as the international development partners. The plan sets up priorities for Somalia for the period 2017-2019 while at the same embedding the Sustainable Development Goals, adapting them to the national context, and is Interim Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (iPRSP) complaint. It will include results frameworks which will set the vision, goals, desired strategic outcomes and specific annual targets required to achieve those outcomes.

As per decision announced at the HLPF meeting which took place in Mogadishu in December 2015, the National Development Plan builds upon the achievements to date in the implementation of the New Deal Compact, maintaining a slightly modified oversight, planning and coordination architecture as well as the link between political, security and development priorities. It also addresses the aid management and coordination, development effectiveness and New Deal principles for engagement in fragile states. It is a priority for the Federal Government of Somalia to ensure coherence and continuity between the expiring Somali Compact and the National Development Plan (NDP), both in terms of development and reconstruction priorities and of use of existing coordination structures, funding and implementation mechanisms.

The purpose of the National Development Plan is to provide guidance to national authorities, international partners and other stakeholders (private sector, civil societies and citizens at large) in Somalia as they shape a medium term strategic framework to build upon achievements of the past few years, further strengthen the Federal Member State structures, create a favorable environment for private and non-government sector development, and – importantly - bring the benefits of the development efforts to the citizens.

The National Development Plan has four key interrelated objectives:

• Articulate Government development priorities: to set out a clear vision for Somalia’s security, social and economic development priorities. In addition, to define the key state building and peace building priorities including democratic governance and align with the SGDs as much as possible.

• Provide a structure for resource allocation and management: to guide the NDP priorities within the annual budget allocations in 2017 and beyond

• Guide Development Partner support within the defined FGS priorities in the coming three years: in terms of structure and well defined funding priorities, whilst ensuring FGS leadership of the development agenda and existing and new development Trust Funds.

• Serve as an Interim Poverty Reduction Strategy for Somalia that is aligned with the global SDG initiative. The Plan also meets Somalia’s on-going commitments as set out in the Somalia Compact as reprioritized within the NDP.

The Federal Member States have developed or are in the process to develop their state level development plans, mostly aligned to the NDP. Also on state level, the Ministries of Planning are in the lead for these processes.

The mainstreaming of the SDGs into the NDP and the state development plans is reasonable but open for further improvement. In a parallel effort, the OUR CLIENT is supporting the M&E and statistics capacities of the Federal and State ministries to allow measurement of progress.

Where for the first time in over 30 years, development planning takes serious advances in Somalia, OUR CLIENT seeks to hire a national Planning and SDG consultant to support in the development of an implementation plan related to the NDP and State Development Plans and to streamline the support to the federal and state governments.

The national consultant will be based in Mogadishu and is expected to work closely with the Ministry of Planning, Investment & Economic Development as well as OUR CLIENT. He/she will work in full coordination with the international Planning and SDGs mainstreaming consultant and may be invited to participate in meetings, together with OUR CLIENT and/or the International Planning and SDGs mainstreaming consultant with UN actors, donors and/or national stakeholders.

GENERAL FUNCTIONS

Role objective:

The main objective of this assignment is to support the Federal Ministry of Planning, Investment and Economic Development as well as the State Ministries of Planning and International Cooperation (MOPIC) develop well-articulated, coherent and realistic Implementation Plans for the NDP and State Strategic Plans as well as well articulated and realistic M&E plans to measure. Within these implementation plans and M&E arrangements, the SDG mainstreaming should be high on the agenda.

Development of Implementation Plans

The Somali National Development Plan is a transformative medium term plan that aims to transform Somalia over the medium to long term. It aims to generate average economic growth of 5.5% and increase per Capita income over the three-year period from $470 to $510. It will serve as a framework for the generation of resources to undertake large scale renovation of social and economic infrastructure to serve as a backbone for the recovery and growth of the country. To make this possible, the plan includes an elaborate set of results frameworks in all sectors of the economy. To make the results articulated in the Plan achievable, the results should be broken down into activities and projects that have clear timeframes and budgets.

SDGs Mainstreaming

The Government of Somalia is fully committed to the Sustainable Development Goals. And instead of developing a separate work stream to address the SDGs, a decision was made to mainstream the SDGs into each sector. An effort was made to align the goals, targets and indicators in the different sections of the NDP with the SDGs as adopted to the Somalia situation. The NDP also provides mechanisms for monitoring its implementation. In that regard, it provides a gender sensitive monitoring and evaluation strategy, a strategy for monitoring the effectiveness of the policies and programs in reducing poverty, and the current institutional arrangements for ensuring transparency and accountability in the use of public resources.

Development of M&E frameworks

It is commonly said that what gets measured gets done. The successful implementation of the National Development Plan depends, to a large extent, on putting in place a good M&E system to monitor and evaluate its implementation. Since the launch of the drafting process for the NDP, the MOPIED and International Development Partners established an M&E working group to act as a coordination platform for all efforts aimed at developing a results framework for the NDP. The establishment of this working group was premeditated based on the need to develop a framework that would make it possible to measure and monitor the degree to which the objectives/results of the NDP were being realized. A clear and comprehensive M&E framework would make it possible to determine beforehand what kind of data would be needed to measure achievement in the realization of NDP objectives, and hence put in place a system to consistently and systematically collect that data in a standardized manner. There are existing sector M&E plans and strategies from the line ministries that are currently being used to monitor and report on progress in the implementation of government programmes. However, all these needs to be sifted and integrated into the overall NDP M&E framework as appropriate.

Expected output:

The Consultant is expected to support the MOPICs on Federal and State level in the achievement of the following results:

Development Planning:

• Developing an Implementation Plan for the NDP

o Review the Logical Frameworks of the plans and translate them into annual deliverables and associate this with the implementation arrangements.

• Review and articulate the institutional structures to coordinate and stimulate coherence between the different plans (federal and state level);

• Ensure strengthened FMS ownership of the NDP and state implementation Plans.

• Support the alignment of sector ministry policy and strategy documents with NDP and state development plans

SDG Mainstreaming:

• Develop and implement an approach to stimulate awareness of SDG on federal and state level

• Develop and implement an approach to ensure solid mainstreaming of the SDG within the NDP and state development plans

• Develop and implement an approach to allow appropriate measurement and reporting on the SDGs.

Monitoring and Evaluation

• Developing an Operational Plan for the NDP M&E framework

o Review baselines, targets, and data sources for all output and impact indicators that are currently included in the NDP

o In consultation with the relevant line ministries and other relevant stakeholders, make recommendations and adjust (where necessary) to ensure that they are realistic and achievable within the 3-year period

o With the support of the relevant stakeholders, fill all data gaps in the baselines and targets of the indicators included in the NDP

o Establish the frequency, data sources and means of verification for the various data requirements for reporting on the indicators

• Review and articulate the M&E institutional structures in MOPIED, Line-Ministries and Federal Member States (including detailed roles and responsibilities) that are necessary to lead the implementation of the M&E framework.

• In consultation with MOPIED, OUR CLIENT and other relevant stakeholders, plan and conduct a number of validation and training meetings/workshops to ensure all relevant stakeholders are on the same page regarding the implementation of the M&E framework and that responsible government staff (at the Federal government and FMS level) are trained in the requisite skills to play their roles and responsibilities.

o To ensure strengthened FMS ownership of the M&E implementation Plan and that the necessary behavioral change starts to take place, part of the training will be hosted by and conducted in Federal Member State capitals for the staff working there.

• Support the alignment of sector ministry policy and strategy documents with NDP M&E framework

• Contribute towards the establishment of mechanisms for effective coordination of M&E staff among sector Ministries, regions and states.

Project reporting:

Deliverables:

• An inception report defining the approach, methodology and timelines for the execution of this assignment

• A completed set of implementation plans for the NDP and the state development plans

• Properly articulated institutional coordination arrangements for Planning and M&E at the Federal and State government levels with clear roles and responsibilities

• A consolidated and coherent approach for SDG mainstreaming as well as measurement and reporting framework.

• Developed Strategic Plans for emerging state (Hiran Shabelle) in line with the NDP

• Developed Implementation and monitoring framework of Strategic Plans of the emerging states (Jubaland, ISWA, Galmududg and HirShabelle)

• A completed M&E indicator matrix with complete baselines, targets, data sources, data collection frequency and means of verification.

• An M&E strategy that can effectively guide the monitoring and reporting on the implementation of government priorities articulated in the NDP.

• A training plan to train government officials (at both federal and FMS level) on the Implementation plans, M&E indicator matrices and strategies developed during this assignment.

The consultant is expected to report formally back to the OUR CLIENT as follows:

• Inception report –1 week after the start of the assignment, including initial deployment plan

• Monthly progress reports or earlier as appropriate

• Final consultancy report

Impact of Results

Successful completion of this work will contribute towards the:

• Implementation of a robust Implementation Plan as well as an M&E system that will render achievement of government priorities as articulated in the NDP achievable and measurable, leading to more evidence-based reporting and ultimately contribute to more effective delivery of public services by the government at all levels.

• Stronger and more competent national technical staff in MOPIED, the line ministries and at the State level who are able to execute programmes and projects as well as to measure and report on progress made in the implementation the national development priorities as articulated in the national development plan.

• The establishment of a stronger partnership between the users (demand) and suppliers (supply) of development data.

Team management:

Teamwork and respect for diversity

• Ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries;

• Ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity and gender.

ESSENTIAL EXPERIENCE

Education:

§ Bachelor's degree in Development Studies.

Work experience:

§ Minimum of 2 years of demonstrable relevant Public Finance experience.

Geographical experience:

§ Minimum of 2 years of experience in Africa with local experience in Mogadishu, Somalia is an advantage.

Languages:

§ Fluency in English and Somali are essential.

Key competencies:

• Advanced degree, preferably in development studies, economics, management, finance, public finance, public or business administration or any other relevant field;

• Demonstrated knowledge of the Somalia development agenda and intra-governmental processes;

• Experience in advising government ministries, regional governments, agencies and divisions on planning, monitoring and evaluation, including experience of results-based management;

• Knowledge of international development cooperation and cooperation agreements;

• Excellent communication (spoken and written) skills in Somali and English, including the ability to communicate proactively with key stakeholders, correctly interpret messages from others and respond appropriately. The candidate will demonstrate openness in sharing information;

• Excellent interpersonal skills; ability to establish and maintain effective working relations with people from diverse background;

• Supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position.

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrates commitment to OUR CLIENT’s mission, vision and values.

• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability

Functional Competencies:

Accountability

• Mature and responsible; ability to operate in compliance with organizational rules and regulations;

Planning and organizing

• Effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner;

• Ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work;

• Ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent activities.

Teamwork and respect for diversity

• Ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries;

• Ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity and gender.

Leadership and Self-Management

• Focuses on result for the client and responds positively to feedback

• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude

• Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure

• Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities

Language requirements:

• English is the working language for this assignment.

• Knowledge of Somali is a must.

Other relevant information:

The national consultant is required for 6 months over the period May 15, 2017 to December 2017. He/she will support an international consultant in the development of an Implementation Plan as well as M&E framework for the National Development Plan. The national consultant will be based in Mogadishu and work closely with the Ministry of Planning, Investment and Economic Development as well as OUR CLIENT. He/she will work in full coordination with the international consultant tasked to develop the Implementation Plan for the NDP as well as the national M&E framework and will participate in meetings with UN actors and donors.

The consultant will work under the supervision of the OUR CLIENT Programme Manager. All outputs must be completed, discussed and agreed with OUR CLIENT prior to the finalization of the assignment.

Interested candidates should create a profile and apply on CTG Global careers website (click here). Please refer to the vacancy number: VAC-0950.Shortlisted candidates will be contacted for an interview.