UNDP Jobs - 85531- National Mentor for Civil Society Organisations (C

National Mentor for Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) within the ReLOaD Project

Location :

Prishtina and throughout selected municipalities (Istog/k, Kamenice/a, Lipjan/Lipljan, Viti/Vitina, and Zveqan/Zvecan), Kosovo, UNSCR 1244 (1999)

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

20-Jun-2019

Application Deadline :

10-Jun-19 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

National Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

20 June 2019 – 15 September 2019 (24 working days within this period)

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

20 June 2019 – 15 September 2019 (24 working days within this period)

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. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

An integral part of the European Union (EU) accession agenda is to promote the inclusion of civil society in decision-making processes and to further develop participatory democracies in the region. Western Balkans (WB) face challenges related to the lack of collaboration between the institutions and civil society. Also, lack of transparency of existing public mechanisms for support of civil society organizations (CSOs), mainly at the local level, is perceived as one of the main obstacles for development and functioning of credible civil society. Local governments in the WB are one of the key funding providers for CSOs, and absence of a conducive financial environment is one of the main challenges civil society is experiencing in the current period.

All the WB, and local governments consequently, use similar models for funding of CSOs from public budgets, where common challenges relate to insufficient transparency and/or clear criteria of the selection processes. To address these challenges, the EU-funded Regional Programme on Local Democracy in the WB (ReLOaD) aims to strengthen partnerships between local governments and civil society by scaling-up a successful model of transparent and project-based funding of CSOs. The ReLOaD programme is implemented in Kosovo , Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia.

Within the Kosovo Strategy for Cooperation with the Civil Society 2013 - 2017, the Strategic Objective 3 foresaw the building of a system and defines criteria to support financially the CSOs. Approved in July 2017, the Regulation MF – NR – 04/2017 on Criteria, Standards and Procedures on public Funding of NGOs that aims to regulate state support for CSOs is in place and provides the Manual for distribution of public funds to CSOs which shall reflect also the recommendations from the LOD methodology. Nevertheless, there is still lack of application and capacity from municipalities and CSOs to properly implement such mechanism.

The ReLOaD project in Kosovo partners with five municipalities selected in a competitive process: Istog/k, Kamenice/a, Lipjan/Lipljan, Viti/Vitina, and Zvecan/Zvecan. In 2018 and early 2019, the project in collaboration with these municipalities has awarded grants to CSOs through a competitive process in line with the Regulation MF 04/2017. In mid-2019, the project will open a new, second public call for project proposals from interested CSOs in the 5 partner municipalities. To ensure qualitative project proposals that address problems of beneficiaries/local communities, and ensures appropriate budget allocation for project activities, the project will offer technical assistance and advise to interested CSOs through provision of mentoring support that aims to contribute to increasing knowledge in preparing and developing project proposals as well as crucial aspects of PCM, including project implementation, reporting and evaluation.

Objectives of Assignment
The purpose of the assignment is to strengthen capacities of CSOs in the 5 partner municipalities (Istog/k, Kamenice/a, Lipjan/Lipljan, Viti/Vitina, and Zveqan/Zvecan) through mentoring to design, apply for and implement project-based grants in line with the Regulation MF – NR – 04/2017 and its manual, LOD methodology, contributing to local communities and improved service delivery.

Assignment will be conducted in line with UN 8 Point Agenda and the UNDP Gender responsive mandate.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under direct supervision of the ReLOaD Project Officer, the Mentor will deliver the following:
1. Design of mentoring process for grassroot CSOs in partner municipalities by performing the following tasks:

Conduct an in-depth analysis of the drafted evaluation reports of the CSOs project proposals submitted in the previous call, lessons learned reports with recommendations, findings from previous mentoring sessions, and any other relevant materials;
In consultation with the ReLOaD team, prepare a work plan with key priorities in line with the public call guidelines for applicants and deliver 20 mentoring sessions in total (four per each partner municipality);
Explain technical requirements of the public call for CSOs, the principles of project-based approach including best examples (financial and operational) as well as advices how to prepare relevant project proposal in line with one or more priorities as defined in the Public call, etc.

2. Coach CSOs in preparation of project proposals:

Ensure close interaction and knowledge sharing by providing technical insights into rules and regulations of the public call for CSOs;
Perform various mentoring and counselling learning modalities/principles;
Organise practical, interactive and relevant sessions for the challenges faced in process of preparation of successful project proposal in a local community;
Present lessons learned from the previous public calls, capturing and identifying most common issues and weaknesses of CSOs face when designing project proposals;
Hold regular consultation with interested CSOs representatives by providing support to the actual needs and CSOs problems encounter in application process;
Focus on providing guidance to CSOs representatives related to the benefits of target groups from the envisaged activities, with special attention on the role of CSOs applicant, partner, institutions and/or consultants in foreseen project proposals;
Explain the methodology in project proposal writing with practical examples of activities that logically correspond with goals and expected results;
Elaborate proper recognition and definition of potential risks and importance of mitigation measures, as well as proper definition of objectively verifiable indicators;
Ensure that all relevant concerns raised by CSOs representatives are properly addressed given the specifics of the public call for CSOs;
Maintain written records of the most common issues and challenges during each session in order to be communicated to other interested CSOs.

3. Submit a short final report with gender disaggregated data to UNDP for validation containing main findings and recommendations covering the above specified tasks.

The Mentor is strictly obliged to perform his/her engagement without any preferences to particular CSOs participants; without providing advises related to concrete project ideas that would lead to project proposal writing.
In addition, he/she will organise his/her own travel and accommodation arrangements to training venues that will be determined by the project team in the five respective partner municipalities.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables

Mentoring process for grassroot CSOs in partner municipalities designed through in-depth analysis of the relevant materials, prepared work plan and technical requirements elaborated (2 working days)
Coaching CSOs in preparation of project proposals delivered (estimation of 60 CSOs mentored in five partner municipalities, depending on the demand) (20 working days)

*Dates of the training delivery might be subject to slight modification, in agreement with ReLOaD project and partner municipalities.

Final report submitted, reviewed, and validated by UNDP (2 working days)

Remuneration - Lump Sum Amount
The Contract is based on lump sum remuneration and shall be processed subject to deliverables as per the schedule listed below

First tranche (70%) to be transferred upon successful completion of mentoring sessions
Second tranche (30%) to be transferred once final report is submitted and validated

Recommended Presentation of Offer
The following documents must be submitted:

Updated P11/CV, indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references
Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability
Technical proposal, a max. 2-pages document explaining the approach and the methodology to be utilized for delivering the expected results within the indicated timeframe
Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive, lump-sum contract price. The Offeror must indicate and ensure at this point that all such costs are duly incorporated in the financial proposal submitted to the UNDP

Criteria for selection of the Best Offer
Offers will be evaluated utilizing a combined Scoring method – where the technical qualifications, the relevant work experience and the technical proposal will be weighted a max. of 70% and combined with the price offer which will be weighted a max of 30%.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies

Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards
Promotes the vision, mission and strategic goals of the UN/UNDP
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability

Functional competencies

Demonstrates modern approach to delivery of policy/technical advice, and experience of working with civil society, ministries and local self-governance structures
Proven skills related to design and delivery of training/mentoring sessions
Ability to identify beneficiaries’ needs, and to match them with appropriate solutions
Builds strong relationships with clients, focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude
Demonstrates good oral and written communication skills
Good analytical and report writing skills
Ability to synthesize research and draw conclusions on the related subject
Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing
Ability to pay attention to details

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

University degree in development, economics, public policy, public administration, or a related social science field. A valid trainer certificate in the field of PCM would be considered as an asset.

Experience:

At least 3 years of relevant experience in the field of development planning and management;
Previous experience in provision of technical assistance and training to public institutions in development management, is required;
Previous experience in capacity development of civil society organizations in local governance, local development, public participation and public scrutiny is required.

Languages:

Fluency in spoken and written Albanian and English. Knowledge of Serbian language would be an asset.

Application Instructions:

Click on the "Apply now" button
Input your information in the appropriate sections: personal information, language proficiency, education, resume and motivation; you can type in, or paste your short Resume into the last box
Upon completion of the first page, please hit "submit application" tab at the end of the page. On the next page, you will be asked to upload your Resume
System will only allow one attachment. All docs (CV; P11; financial offer; list of similar profiles should be included as one attachment)
Please make sure to submit all the requested documents/information; otherwise, your application will be considered incomplete