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Tajikistan: International Individual Consultancy for Costing of Transition to a 12- years Education System in Tajikistan

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Organization: UN Children's Fund
Country: Tajikistan
Closing date: 27 Jun 2018

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

BACKGROUND

The Government of Tajikistan in coordination with the development partners actively involved in the education sector are working collaboratively to support the education sector reforms aligned with the National Development Strategic goals. This partnership seeks to improve human capital development and education and science results, which enables and stimulates an environment for creation of knowledge economy.

In addition, the work is being coordinated in support of the implementation of the Mid Term Development Strategy of Tajikistan and the achievement of its objectives: (a) increase enrolment in preschool education, especially in the age of 3-6 years, with the benefit of children with disabilities; (b) create basis for transition to 12 years of education system and improve the efficiency in education, universal coverage, improve quality of teaching and learning; (c) introduce inclusive education in the country's educational system, including in professional education; (d) improve primary and secondary vocational education system by 2020.

The Ministry of Education and Sciences (MoES) has embarked on the preparation of the Medium-Term Education Action Plan (MTEAP) 2020. The focus of the plan will be the Strategy of Education Development (NSED) 2020 which aims to ensure equitable access for all children, quality and relevant learning for 21st century responding to social, cultural and economic demand and efficient and effective service delivery.

To support the above national strategic goals, UNICEF is committed to support the Government of Tajikistan with analysis and evidence to take informed decision about transition to 12 years’ education system. For several years, the Government has been considering to increase years of education from 11 to 12 years. One of the options under consideration is an increase that implies an additional year with the starting age of six years leading to a 10-year’s basic education followed by 2 years in either upper secondary or vocational training. For this purpose, in 2015 UNICEF supported development of a concept note to provide an opportunity for reflection on whether an additional year should be provided in the next 5 years in Tajikistan. Several options for transition to a 12 years’ education system were suggested taking into consideration the depth and breadth of the major sector reforms in curriculum, teacher professional development and assessment. In addition, the concept note considered the pedagogical, legal, parental and financial implications of the proposed change and the likely challenges. The concept note captured current international thinking that focuses on improving relevance and quality against international standards. A few scenarios were presented for further consideration, such as: a) Develop the quality Early Childhood Education (ECE) programme and make the pre-school year compulsory; b) In the context of vocational education and training, explore the value added of a 3-year upper secondary programme.

To assist the Government in making an informed decision on such important topic, UNICEF has been requested to provide potential scenarios and a deeper analysis and detailed costing of the proposed options for a potential move to a 12-year’s education system. This exercise, that is meant to be consultative and participatory, will contribute to this process.

PURPOSE, OBJECTIVE AND EXPECTED RESULTS

Purpose of the consultancy is to feed critical evidence to the policy dialogue and decision related to the feasibility of moving to a 12 years’ education system in Tajikistan.

Objective of the consultancy is to identify and cost the scenarios of transition to a 12 years’ education system.

Expected results of the consultancy are the following:

The scenarios of transition to a 12 years’ education system, that keeps into consideration impact of scenario on the quality and equity in education, are identified in a consultative manner and costed, with funding requirements and sources identified.

TASKS

  • Desk review
  • Identify, collect and review relevant documents, including the following:

    1.1 Normative documents and laws regulating Public Finance Management (PFM) in the country

    1.2 Laws on state budget for the last three years

    1.3 Mid-Term Expenditure Framework related to education sector budget

    1.4 Detailed budget expenditure for education sector, including local budget for education

    1.5 Budget reports from the Ministry of Finance and The Ministry of Education and Science

    1.6 Policy documents and reports from the International Financial Institutions or multi-lateral donors in relation to fiscal space and PFM reviews

    1.7 Concept note on 12-year education system supported by UNICEF

    1.8 Documented evidence from other countries in the region where attempts have been made for similar transition.

    2. Methodology design

    Design a costing methodology based on the agreed scenarios with the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Finance and UNICEF. The methodology should include an analysis of different cost-based scenarios in terms of achieving the targets set by the National Development Strategy 2039, the Mid Term Development Strategy 2020 and the National Strategy for Education Development 2020.

  • Capacity development
  • Develop the capacity within selected Government institutions to understand and use the costing models in the future development and implementation of social sector policies and legislation. A two-day training should be organized and facilitated for representatives of the national and local level and local Government institutions, i.e. Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Education and Science, Ministry of Labour, Migration and Employment of the Population, Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (up to 15 people).

  • Costing of the scenario for transition to a 12-year’s education system
  • Review the economic and financial situation in the country, potential development opportunities and risks that would conceivably influence the fiscal space in Tajikistan
  • Review and define the available fiscal space and source of funding with a special focus on social sectors
  • Calculate the cost of interventions described in the strategic documents
  • Solicit information from donors on their current and future investments/contributions
  • Presentation of results
  • The consultant is expected to present the initial results of the costing exercise to the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Finance and UNICEF. A second validation presentation will be organized for the Government institutions and development partners to obtain their feedback and recommendations as well as to share international and regional practices and lessons learnt related to expansion of years of education and the impact on quality education, equity and gender aspects.

  • Submission of the final report
  • The final report of the assignment should be submitted after all consultation meetings are organized and the feedback is received and taken into account.

    DELIVERABLES and TIMEFRAME

    Installment I – 30%

    1. Inception report with suggestions of scenarios, methodology and timeframe presented and agreed with the MoES and UNICEF / 5 days (in country) / Mid-August 2018

    Installment II – 30 %

    2. Draft costing exercise report / 20 days / Early October 2018

    3. Analysis on fiscal space and opportunities for funding the proposed scenarios submitted / 10 days/ Mid November 2018

    Installment III – 40%

    4. Validation of the draft and Final costing exercise report /5 days for validation (in country); 5 days for finalization of the costing report / Mid December 2018

    STRUCTURE OF THE REPORT

    The final report to be produced and submitted to UNICEF should be presented in the following format:

  • Executive Summary
  • Methodology and limitations
  • Purpose
  • Process
  • Findings – presentation of scenarios and related costing
  • Challenges encountered
  • Conclusions
  • Recommendations
  • PERFORMANCE INDICATORS FOR EVALUATION OF RESULTS

    The evaluation of the results will be based on:

  • Technical and professional competence (quality of the product delivered to UNICEF);
  • Scope of work (complexity and number of tasks carried out);
  • Quality of work (quality of methodology, draft and final report);
  • Quantity of work (incl. number of documents reviewed, interviews held, meetings facilitated, etc.)
  • In addition, such indicators as work relations, responsibility, and communication will be considered during the evaluation of the institution’s work.

    REQUIRED SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS

    The institution applying must be of high international repute with relevant experience in the technical matters referred to in these terms of reference (TOR). The following skills and experience are required:

  • Good knowledge of education/social theories, programmes,
  • Good knowledge of PFM and state budgets
  • Solid experience in costing of education/social sector policies or legislation
  • Experience in public expenditure reviews, child-sensitive budget reviews and policy discussions in developing countries
  • Strong research, writing, analytical and presentation skills
  • Ability to work under pressure and commitment to work to tight time framework
  • Strong project management skills
  • Knowledge of Tajikistan Government’s legislation and policies related to children and the social sector would be an asset
  • Prior work experience in a Central Asian country in relation to policy or legislation costing would be an added advantage.
  • RESERVATIONS

    UNICEF shall be entitled to all property rights including but not limited to patents, copyrights and trademarks, about material, which bears a direct relation to or is made in consequence of the services provided by the Organization in compliance with the requirements of the applicable law. The institution shall take all necessary steps, execute all the necessary documents and generally assist in securing such property rights and transferring them to the Organization in compliance with the requirements of the applicable law.

    TERMS OF PAYMENT

    The rate per day of professional fees will be in accordance with the complexity of the TOR and the level of the expertise required, which is estimated at P4/P5 medium level with 50 working days involved. The contract fee will be paid by bank transfer as per schedule above and upon delivery of the set tasks and submission of the final report (upon completion of the contract) with the required deliverables certified by the Chief of Education. Should the contractor fail to complete the assigned tasks, UNICEF will have the right to withhold up to 50% of the consultancy payment.

    PROCEDURES AND LOGISTICS

    UNICEF will hire a local consultant to facilitate the work in the country and will support accessing relevant information as well as arrange meetings and site visits. In addition, UNICEF will be responsible for the translation of all documents produced by the institution into a local language (Tajik or Russian).

    TRAVEL

    The consultant/s will be stationed in Dushanbe with limited travel to some regions of the country if necessary. The consultant/s will not be expected to spend 50 days in Tajikistan. The duration of the stay will depend on the proposal, which may imply two country visits during the assignment. All travel-related costs, including return travel of the consultant/s by the most direct route in economy class from her/his home country to Tajikistan and the Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) (not exceeding the UN-approved rate) should be included into the financial proposal. UNICEF will arrange transport for local trips related to the assignment.

    WORKING CONDITIONS

    The consultant will work under the overall supervision of the UNICEF Chief of Education based in UNICEF Office in Dushanbe.

    EXPRESSION OF INTEREST

    UNICEF accepts applications from individual consultants. For selection, individual consultant is requested to submit:

    a) Technical Proposal, which will include the following documents and information:

  • A cover letter
  • A work-plan and methodology;
  • A proposed timeframe;
  • Proposed consultant’s curriculum vitae, P11;
  • A summary of experience in similar assignments.
  • b) Financial proposal with a description of unit costs (in US Dollar), professional fee/rate, per person day, to the extent possible, stipulate all-inclusive fees, including lump sum travel and daily subsistence allowance costs, as applicable.

    The technical proposal will be a key basis for the selection.

    APPLICATION PROCEDURES

    The link to review detailed Terms of Reference would be available at the following links: www.untj.org/jobs, www.unicef.org/tajikistan/resources, www.facebook.com/uniceftajikistan.

    The candidates who are interested to apply for the position should follow the electronic application's instructions at: http://jobs.unicef.org/cw/en-us/job/****?lApplicationSubSourceID=

    UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

    Remarks:

    Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.


    How to apply:

    UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organization. To apply, click on the following link http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/?job=513877


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