Back Programme Support Consultant

Background

UNCDF is the UN’s capital investment agency for the world’s least developed countries (LDCs). It creates new opportunities for poor people and their communities by increasing access to inclusive finance and investment capital.  UNCDF focuses on Africa and the poorest countries of Asia and the Pacific, with a special commitment to countries emerging from conflict or crisis.  It can provide seed capital both grants and loans as well as technical support that will improve poor peoples’ lives.

UNCDF works to enlarge peoples’ choices: it believes that poor people and communities should take decisions about their own development. UNCDF works in challenging environments – remote rural areas, countries emerging from conflict – and paves the way for others to follow. Its programmes are designed to catalyze larger investment flows from the private sector, development partners and national governments, for significant impact on the Millennium Development Goals, especially Goal 1: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger, Goal 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women, and Goal 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability.

Established by the General Assembly in 1966 and with headquarters in New York, UNCDF is an autonomous UN organization affiliated with UNDP.

UNCDF is the UN’s capital investment agency for the world’s 47 least developed countries (LDCs). With its capital mandate and instruments, UNCDF offers “last mile” finance models that unlock public and private resources, especially at the domestic level, to reduce poverty and support local economic development. This last mile is where available resources for development are scarcest; where market failures are most pronounced; and where benefits from national growth tend to leave people excluded.

UNCDF’s financing models work through two channels: savings-led financial inclusion that expands the opportunities for individuals, households, and small businesses to participate in the local economy, providing them with the tools they need to climb out of poverty and manage their financial lives; and by showing how localized investments — through fiscal decentralization, innovative municipal finance, and structured project finance — can drive public and private funding that underpins local economic expansion and sustainable development. UNCDF financing models are applied in thematic areas where addressing barriers to finance at the local level can have a transformational effect for poor and excluded people and communities.

By strengthening how finance works for poor people at the household, small enterprise, and local infrastructure levels, UNCDF contributes to SDG 1 on eradicating poverty with a focus on reaching the last mile and addressing exclusion and inequalities of access. At the same time, UNCDF deploys its capital finance mandate in line with SDG 17 on the means of implementation, to unlock public and private finance for the poor at the local level. By identifying those market segments where innovative financing models can have transformational impact in helping to reach the last mile, UNCDF contributes to a number of different SDGs and currently to 28 of 169 targets.

UNCDF hosts the Secretariat of the Better Than Cash Alliance.

The Better Than Cash Alliance is a partnership of 75 governments, companies and international organizations that accelerates the transition from cash to digital payments in order to reduce poverty, drive inclusive growth and accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Billions of dollars in cash payments and transfers are made daily in emerging and developing economies, including payment of salaries, social welfare and relief, payments to suppliers, remittances, etc. The problems with these cash payments include a lack of transparency, accountability and security, as well as inefficiency. Furthermore, the individuals who receive the cash payments are often part of the 1.7 billion excluded from the formal financial sector. This means they are excluded from access to a range of appropriate and affordable financial services to help them save safely, take advantage of economic opportunities and reduce their vulnerability to risk.

Shifting these payments from cash to digital has the potential to improve the lives of low income people, particularly women -who are twice as likely to be excluded from the financial system, while giving governments, the development community and the private sector a more transparent, time and cost efficient, and often safer means of disbursing payments. Digitizing payments can also contribute to women’s economic participation by providing them with more control over family finances, increasing personal security, and improving economic opportunities.

The Alliance Secretariat works with its 75 members to navigate their digitization journeys, by:   

• Providing advisory services based on member priorities 
• Sharing action-oriented research and fostering peer learning 
• Conducting advocacy at national, regional and global level 

The Better Than Cash Alliance Secretariat Core Values:

• Achieving together
• Striving for excellence
• Service oriented
• Results oriented

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision and direction of the Management Specialist, key responsibilities are as follows:

• Support to Travel administration
• Support to Event logistics
• Support to Procurement processes
• Support to Financial management

Provide administrative support to all travel arrangements

• Assist in preparation and submission of quarterly travel plan for Asia Pacific and Southeast Asia Lead
• Prepare flight reservation, visa application, security clearance, conference registration for staff
• Prepare expense report and file all supporting documents

Event logistic support

• Liaise with project officer and identify required services/items
• Liaise with country office to identify local vendors, prepare payment, request visa application, flight reservation and security clearance
• Track event budget/expenditures

Support to the procurement activities

• In coordination with Management Specialist, prepare procurement action request and provide inputs to the preparation of CAP case
• Assist in preparation of RFQ, collect quotes, complete evaluation and prepare canvass form
• Assist in posting and dissemination of vacancy announcement
• Upload All  supporting documents for all procurements in SharePoint for auditing purposes.

Support to the financial resources management

• Assist Management Specialist to resolve questions related to budgets and payments.
• Provide programme and finance support and ensure full compliance of BTCA operations with the UNCDF operational framework in line with the UN/UNDP rules, regulations and policies.
• Creation of requisitions in Atlas, receive approval and make budget check for requisition
• Create receipt, compile all supporting documents, and submit payment request to the finance unit
• Timely corrective actions on un-posted vouchers, including the vouchers with budget check errors, match exceptions, unapproved vouchers. Timely response to HQ requests to resolve financial data issues
• Manage Purchase Order list and monitor encumbrances.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables:

The key results have an impact on the overall economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of BTCA operations in the Asai Pacific region as it relates to the use of corporate resources in the following areas:

• Travel
• Event logistic
• Financial services
• Procurement services

Daily management, review & approvals of the completed work will managed by the Alliance’s ASIA PAC Regional Lead.

Competencies

• Demonstrates a high degree of initiative and independence in delivering required outputs within tight timeframes, exercising problem solving skills while at the same time demonstrating flexibility and the ability to get the job done effectively.
• Demonstrates the ability to work in a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic environment.
• Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment
• Self-development, initiative-taking
• Acting as a team player and facilitating team work
• Facilitating and encouraging open communication in the team, communicating effectively
• Managing conflict
• Ability to perform a variety of repetitive and routine tasks and duties related to general administration support
• Ability to review data, identify and adjust discrepancies
• Ability to operate and maintain a variety of computerized business machines and office equipment in order to provide efficient delivery of service
• Ability to organize and complete multiple tasks by establishing priorities

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

University degree, or secondary Education with specialized certification/training in office administration, Management, Accounting or related field.

Experience:

• Five (5) years progressively responsible administrative experience is required at the national or international level
• Experience with a UN organization/agency is desirable.
• Experience with ATLAS and UNDP Procurement Processes is desired, but not a requirement.
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc) and advance knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages, experience in handling of web based management systems.

Language:

Fluency in English, both oral and written, is required and working proficiency in Hindi, both oral and written, is desired.

Payment Terms:

• This contract will be based on daily fee agreed. Payments will be made to the consultant based on the number of days worked and against key deliverables. Payments will be based on timesheets and invoices approved by the supervisor ;
• The daily fee is all inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant during the period of the contract, including professional fees, insurance, risks and inconveniences related to work under hardship and hazardous conditions, and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services under the contract;

Travel:

• Business travel will be included under this contract and agreed with supervisor prior to travel and according to UNCDF/UNDP travel policy;

 Application process

Interested individuals must submit the documents mentioned below as proposals in order to demonstrate their qualifications (Note: the system does not allow multiple uploads of documents. Applicants must make sure to upload all documents in one PDF file).

All applications must contain the following information:

• Cover letter with a summary statement of competencies in relation to the Terms of Reference (TOR) indicating earliest availability;
• Curriculum Vitae or P11;
• Signed financial proposal for the assignment outlining - Total professional fee (including professional fees and other professional expenses (such as insurance, taxes, etc.). Available at https://popp.undp.org/_layouts/15/WopiFrame.aspx?sourcedoc=/UNDP_POPP_DOCU MENT_LIBRARY/Public/PSU_%20Individual%20Contract_Offerors%20Letter%20to%20U NDP%20Confirming%20Interest%20and%20Availability.docx&action=default 

Please make sure you have provided all requested materials. Failure to submit all the above mentioned documents may result in rejection of the application.

Evaluation Method:

Consultants will be evaluated based on UNDP’s cumulative analysis method. When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract shall be made to the 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 (70%) and financial (30%) criteria.

Evaluation Criteria:

70%: Technical (based on CV)

30%: Financial Proposal

 References

UNDP’s Individual Consultant’s General Terms and Conditions are provided here:

http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/documents/procurement/documents/IC%20-%20General%20Conditions.pdf