BACKGROUND
The United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-Habitat, is mandated by the United Nations General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities. It is the focal point for urbanization and human settlement matters within the UN system. The agency supports national and local governments in laying the foundation for sustainable urban development.
UN-Habitat envisions well-planned, well-governed, and efficient cities and other human settlements, with adequate housing, infrastructure, and universal access to employment and basic services such as water, energy and sanitation. To achieve these goals, derived from the Habitat Agenda of 1996, UN-Habitat has set itself a medium-term strategy approach for each successive six-year period; Medium-Term Strategic and Institutional Plan(MTSIP) 2008-2013 and Strategic Plan 2014-2019.
The Land and GLTN Unit within UN-Habitat hosts the secretariat of the Global Land Tool Network (GLTN), which is a network of over sixty international institutions that was established in 2006 and since then has been working to promote secure land and property rights for all, through the development of pro-poor and gender appropriate land tools. The programme seeks to implement the “Resolution on sustainable urban development through expanding equitable access to land, housing, basic services and infrastructure”, GC23-17, passed by the 23rd Governing Council in April 2011. The GLTN’s objective is to ensure that “International organisations, UN-Habitat staff and related land programmes/projects and targeted national and local governments are better able to improve tenure security of the urban and rural poor.” Phase 2 of the programme (2012-2017), seeks to build on the success of the first phase that came to an end in 2011. Phase 2 of the GLTN places emphasis on improving capacity and tools development towards the achievement of tenure security for all in both urban and rural settings. The Project will be implemented in six years with an estimated budget of USD 40 Million where a portion of the budget has been secured from donors.
Three expected accomplishments are expected to contribute to the overall result namely:
• Expected Accomplishment 1: Strengthened land-related policy, institutional and technical frameworks and tools and approaches to address the challenges in delivering security of tenure at scale particularly for the urban and rural poor;
• Expected Accomplishment 2: Improved global knowledge and awareness on land-related policies, tools and approaches that are pro-poor, gender appropriate, effective and sustainable towards securing land and property rights for all and
• Expected Accomplishment 3: Strengthened capacity of partners, land actors and targeted countries, cities and municipalities to promote and implement appropriate land policies, tools and approaches that are pro-poor, gender appropriate, effective and sustainable.
Phase 2 of the GLTN programme is coordinated by the GLTN Secretariat, which is housed within the Land and GLTN Unit of the Urban Legislation and Governance branch of UN-Habitat. The Secretariat is tasked with supporting the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the activities of the Network in collaboration with partners including at country level.
The independent and external Medium-Term Review is a key activity to establish the progress made in the implementation of the GLTN Phase 2 Programme for the 2012-2015 period. The key objectives are to inform planning and decision making for the remaining period of the Phase 2 Programme and to provide recommendations for improving programme delivery. The review is part of UN-Habitat’s efforts to perform systematic and timely evaluations of its programmes and projects. The review is included in the UN-Habitat Evaluation Plan 2015 as approved by the UN-Habitat Board.
In this context GLTN is recruiting a Review Team composed of a lead evaluation consultant and a land expert. The land expert supports the lead evaluation consultant and contributes primarily on technical aspects of the Review process. The lead evaluation consultant oversees the whole Medium Term Review process and responsible for the submission of required MTR reports as indicated below.
RESPONSIBILITIES
In consultation with other members of the MTR team, the specific objectives of the consultancy are the following:
• Establish the level of progress made in implementation of the GLTN Phase 2 programme by assessing the results and progress of the programme in terms of effectiveness (outputs achieved against planned outputs) and the efficiency of implementation (output results against inputs and budgets used);
• Assess the sustainability of the programme in regard to the design (including its results framework and related strategies), scope, implementation, partnerships, management and steering of the GLTN Network.
• Identify preliminary and emerging impacts of the programme and review processes in place to measure impact in the short to long-term horizons.
• Identify successes, opportunities, challenges and lessons learned so far from the implementation of the GLTN programme and the management and coordination of the Network.
• Examine the strategies, modalities and approaches used at global and country level engagements.
• Assess progress made in implementing the GLTN capacity development strategy, with a focus on the nature and extent of its impact on tool development and application by partners including at country level.
• Make recommendations based on the findings to support the strengthening and improvement of delivery of the programme and the effective functioning of the Network.
The consultant will directly report to the Leader, Land and GLTN Unit or any authorised or designated staff in collaboration with other members of the MTR Team. UN-Habitat Land and GLTN Unit/GLTN Secretariat will supervise and be responsible for approval of the methodology and of the intermediate and final products of the Review. The Land and GLTN Unit/ GLTN Secretariat will be responsible for providing and coordinating logistical support for the review team. The Consultant will oversee and coordinate the work of the other MTR team member and will be responsible in integrating this/her inputs into the required reports and documentation in collaboration with GLTN Secretariat. The Evaluation Unit will provide technical support and comments to key deliverables of the review process (inception report and draft report) as prescribed for decentralized evaluation process in UN-Habitat.
A reference group will be established for the purpose of the review with members of the GLTN International Advisory Board, GTLN Secretariat, key UN-Habitat staff and key partners at global and national levels. The reference group will contribute in the review of the inception report and draft reports. The Steering Committee, GLTN International Advisory Board and the Quality Assurance Unit in the UN-Habitat Office of Management will also provide feedback and guidance to the over-all process.
Key deliverables:
It is expected that the MTR consultants as part of the inception report, will develop a comprehensive methodology and propose key aspects that should be considered in undertaking the Mid-term Review of the Programme. Specific outputs of the MTR consultancies are:
• Inception report – The inception report (maximum of 25 pages), including proposed detailed methodology, assessment criteria/questions and work plan, and other key elements to be determined, should be made available to the GLTN Secretariat a month after the signing of the contract. During the inception mission to Nairobi, initial discussion with relevant resource persons, interviews with partners and presentation of the inception report are expected. GLTN Secretariat will consolidate comments on the inception report within two weeks after the last presentation/discussion of the inception report.
• Draft review report – The draft final report (main report maximum of 40 pages, excluding Executive Summary and Annexes)should be made available to the GLTN Secretariat within three (3) months of submission of the inception report and at least two (2) weeks before the agreed date of presentation of the draft report. After receiving the report, GLTN Secretariat will get back to the consultants on the timing and place of the presentation of the draft final report with key stakeholders. GLTN secretariat will send consolidated comments within two weeks after the presentation/meeting.
• Final review report- The consultant will have a month to incorporate the comments on the draft final report and send the final report to the GLTN Secretariat. After receiving the report, the GLTN Secretariat will send its final comments, if any, within a week from the submission. The final report should be accompanied with a brief presentation of key findings using Microsoft Power Point. The GLTN Secretariat will review the reports with the UN Habitat Evaluation Office, other partners and stakeholders, including the International Advisory Board (IAB) and the GLTN Steering Committee of GLTN and approve the deliverables, as appropriate. The outline of the review report should follow the format for evaluation reports in UN-Habitat.
The MTR will require travels/missions to Nairobi and key GLTN program sites. UN-Habitat/GLTN will shoulder all the necessary costs within the existing accounting and auditing rules and regulations.
COMPETENCIES
Professionalism: Knowledge of concepts and approaches relevant to the land sector including land administration and capacity building. The ability to conduct independent analysis, identifying issues, formulating options and making conclusions and recommendations is of essence.
Managing performance:Makes sure that roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are clear to each staff member;monitors progress against milestones and deadlines;regularly discusses performance and provides feedback and coaching to staff;actively supports the development and career aspirations of staff.
Teamwork: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.
Planning and organising: ability to work under pressure, establish priorities and plan, coordinate own work plan, use time efficiently and apply judgement in the context of competing deadlines.
Client Orientation: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.
EDUCATION
A Master’s degree in one of the following fields: social sciences, international development, land, agriculture, urban development, or a field directly related to the assignment. A relevant university degree combined with at least 3 years of relevant professional experience can be accepted instead;
WORK EXPERIENCE
• At least ten (10) years of experience in leading, participating and conducting evaluations of multi-year international development programmes implemented at the national, regional or global level;
• Experience and understanding of global development trends including urban and rural land management and security of tenure is desirable;
• Experience and knowledge of monitoring and evaluation of capacity development programmes at the international and country level is required;
• Knowledge and experience in theories and practices related to project cycle management, monitoring and evaluation and results based management, in particular in international development contexts are required;
• Experience working with networks and partnerships is desirable;
• Experience working in a multi-cultural environment/context and with country level experience;
• Flexibility and ability to work in a team.
LANGUAGE SKILLS
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations. For the post advertised, excellent proficiency in spoken and written English is required. Knowledge of French is an advantage.
OTHER SKILLS
• Ability to lead and manage cross-cutting thematic evaluations
• Good analytical skills
• Willingness to travel on missions in Africa
REMUNERATION
Payments will be based on deliverables over the consultancy period. There are set remuneration rates for consultancies. The rate is determined by functions performed and experience of the consultant. The fees will be paid as per agreement.
Applications should include:
• Cover memo (maximum 1 page)
• Summary CV (maximum 4 pages), indicating the following information:
• Educational Background (incl. dates)
• Professional Experience (assignments, tasks, achievements, duration by years/ months)
• Other Experience and Expertise (e.g. Internships/ voluntary work, etc.)
• Expertise and preferences regarding location of potential assignments
• Expectations regarding remuneration
• At least two samples of evaluation reports undertaken in the last seven (7) years
• A proposed outline (about 3 pages) for the evaluation to be conducted, including key elements of the evaluation, time and cost implications.
HOW TO APPLY:
All applications should be submitted to:
Ms. Ombretta Tempra
Land and GLTN Unit
United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT)
P.O. Box 30030, Nairobi 00100, Kenya
E-mail: ombretta.tempra@unhabitat.org
Please be advised that since April 15th 2010, applicants for consultancies must be part of the
UN-HABITAT e-Roster in order for their application to be considered. You can reach the e-Roster
through the following link: http://e-roster.unhabitat.org
Deadline for applications: 11 August 2015