Procurement Notices

Project Title

Using Strategic Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) to Accelerate the Implementation of the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2017-2022 (Strategic M&E Project)

 Project Description

The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Philippine country office recently embarked on a partnership to strengthen the conduct of evaluations of priority government programs under the Philippine Development Program (PDP). Financed by NEDA and implemented with full UNDP country office support, the Strategic M&E Project will help strengthen the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) capacities of NEDA and key government agencies. This, in turn, will support the achievement of the PDP as well as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through evidence-based decision making.

The Project has the following components: 1) managing the conduct of evaluations of themes, sectors, and/or programs under the PDP; 2) supporting the implementation of the National Evaluation Policy Framework (NEPF); 3) assessing the evaluation capacity of and providing learning opportunities to NEDA and other government  agencies; 4) strengthening of a community of practice on evaluations through the M&E Network Philippines; and 5) developing an online portal of evaluations. The Project has also recently been directed to intensify its interventions in strengthening the foundational capacity of the government in results monitoring, including data management. This includes the development of an ICT system for the monitoring of flagship infrastructure and investment projects under the Public Investment Program (PIP).

On the first component, UNDP, on behalf of NEDA, has completed three independent evaluations on themes and programs that are relevant to the PDP (Anti-Red Tape Act, Philippine Action Plan on Nutrition, Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan). It is currently implementing four evaluation studies (National Early Childhood Care Development Program, National Climate Change Action Plan, Micro Small and Medium-Term Enterprise Development Plan, Roll on Roll off Terminal System Implementation), and is in the process of preparing two new evaluation studies (Salintubig, Social Safety Nets). In general, these studies evaluate the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability of priority social and economic programs that have been implemented or continues to be implemented by the government. Guided by the Project’s Roadmap, the use of completed studies are expected to be maximized by the development and implementation of a plan of action. 

On the second component, two responsible parties have been engaged to support the Strategic M&E Project in assisting at least six (6) national government departments in pilot-implementing the forthcoming NEPF Guidelines. This assistance will entail the following: preparation of evaluation agenda, evaluation plans for priority programs, in-depth evaluability assessments, and the identification of capacity development interventions.

The Evaluation Consultant shall contribute mainly to Outputs 1 and 2 of the Project. For Output 1, s/he shall be providing quality assurance for various outputs of the ongoing and new evaluation studies, their corresponding communication products, and supporting the development and implementation of the plan of action. For Output 2, s/he shall review the outputs of the Responsible Parties, as well as relevant RPA documents. S/he shall also support activities related to Output 3 insofar as they are relevant to Outputs 1 and 2. S/he shall report: directly to the Strategic M&E Project Coordinator and Project Officer (Overall Deputy), and work closely with the Project Assistant assigned for the first component, and the Project’s Knowledge Management Consultant. As the Project is a partnership with NEDA, the Consultant is also expected to coordinate closely with the NEDA Evaluation Staff and other relevant NEDA Staff.

Institutional Arrangement

• The Consultant shall be directly supervised by the Project Coordinator of the NEDA-UNDP Strategic M&E Project and the Project Officer (Overall Deputy), with whom all outputs shall be submitted, and through whom all communications shall be coursed or copied.
• When necessary, the Consultant shall be required to coordinate with the Director of the Monitoring and Evaluation Staff (MES) and other officials of the NEDA and other relevant stakeholders.
• The Consultant shall be available to do work for the project five days a week for the duration of the contract.
• The Consultant is expected to be accessible to the UNDP Project Coordinator via phone, mobile, or internet.  In addition, s/he shall report progress, provide updates, or raise issues to the Project Coordinator and Project Officer on a weekly basis.

Duration of the Work

The consultant will be engaged for a maximum of ninety (90) working days spread over eighteen weeks, or four months.

The target start of work date is 8 June 2020 and the maximum end date is 07 October 2020.

Duty Station

• In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and declaration of State of Public Health Emergency in the Philippines, all work of the individual consultant shall be done within the guidelines and protocols set by the local and national government. During the quarantine period, the IC shall NOT engage in any meetings or activities OUTSIDE THEIR HOMES. Coordination/meetings shall be done through phone or online communication until such time that the quarantine is lifted, during which this will be STRICTLY a HOME-BASED assignment; NO TRAVEL IS REQUIRED for the IC to complete their abovementioned tasks.
• The Consultant will be based in Manila but should be able to travel to locations of learning activities, consultations, and other engagements within the country, as required, subject to community quarantine guidelines set by the local and national government.  Any future travels will be charged to UNDP c/o Strategic M&E Project;
• Similarly, once the community quarantine is lifted, the Consultant will be required to report physically to UNDP on a weekly basis and when physical participation in activities, such as engagement with stakeholders and evaluation of prospective contractors, will be necessary.
• The Consultant is expected to have his/her own workspace, computer, and other facilities.

Scope of Price Proposal 

• Financial proposals must be expressed as a per person-day rate which includes professional fees, allowances, income tax, communications expenses, etc.
• Medical/health insurance must be purchased by the individual at his/her own expense, and upon award of contract, the consultant must be ready to submit proof of insurance valid during the contract duration.
• Each person-day of work delivered, according to the equivalent level of effort per output as outlined in part D, may be billed upon submission of a timesheet with the accompanying outputs. The submission of such timesheet may be made immediately after outputs have been submitted and accepted or in batches for each agreed-upon cutoff period.
• All other workshop expenses (venue, food, transportation, etc.) shall be borne by UNDP.

Duties and Responsibilities

Reporting regularly to the Strategic M&E Deputy Project Coordinator and the Strategic M&E Project Officer (Overall Deputy), the Consultant shall perform the following:

For Output 1:

• Ensure the high quality of outputs related to the evaluation studies by
  • Reviewing all submissions of outputs for the new and ongoing evaluation studies. Outputs include inception reports, draft evaluation reports, final evaluation reports, and peer review reports.
  • Ensure that comments to outputs are properly communicated to, and incorporated by evaluators
  • Participate in Evaluation Reference Group meetings and other discussions pertaining to the outputs of evaluators
  • Initiate and monitor the peer review process for the final outputs of the ongoing evaluation studies
  • Participating in bid evaluations for new evaluation studies
• Contribute to ensuring the high quality of communications products for the evaluation studies
  • Work closely with the Strategic M&E Project Officer (Overall Deputy) and Knowledge Management Consultant in crafting and finalizing the communications plans and collaterals for the different evaluation studies

• Contribute to the development and implementation of a plan of action for maximizing the use of evaluation studies by relevant NEDA sector staff
  • Work closely with the Strategic M&E Project Officer (Overall Deputy), the assigned Project Assistant, and the rest of the Project Management Team in developing and implementing the plan of action
  • Attend consultation meetings or relevant discussions that may be held in relation to the plan of action

For Output 2:

• Review outputs of the Responsible Parties (Draft Evaluation Agenda, Evaluability Assessment Report, Updated Evaluation Agendas and Plans, other documents relevant to addressing evaluability gaps.
• Review Responsible Party documents together with the Project Officer and Project Assistant.

Outputs and Deliverables

The said outputs shall be delivered by the following timeframe

Competencies

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.

Functional and technical competencies

• Ability to work in a diverse and multi-cultural environment;
• Self-motivated and ability to work under pressure and to meet strict and competing deadlines;
• Displays analytical judgment and demonstrated ability to handle confidential and politically sensitive issues in a responsible and mature manner;
• Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities;

Required Skills and Experience

Offers will be evaluated based on the combined scoring method :

• Technical qualifications = 50%
• Online/Virtual Interview = 20%
• Financial Proposal =    30%

For the evaluation of the Technical Proposal, the selection of the successful consultant must be based on the following qualifications (with the appropriate obtainable points):