International Consultant to Support Local Governments in Planning and Implementation of Capital Budget

Contract

This is a International Consultant contract. More about International Consultant contracts.

Background

The Government of Montenegro adopted the Chemicals Management Strategy 2019-2022 (hereinafter: Strategy) in 2019. The main objective of this Strategy was to identify the appropriate measures to be taken in the period 2019-2022, taking into account identified problems, available funds, existing legal and institutional framework, as well as administrative capacities.

The Ministry of Ecology, Spatial Planning and Urbanism, annually reported to the Government of Montenegro on the implementation of the measures from the Action Plan. The Strategy has proposed 36 measures for implementation in the period 2019-2022 and by the end of 2020, a number of measures were implemented. Almost all the measures listed in the Action Plan of the Strategy have a continuous implementation period over the period 2019-2022, which is one of the reasons for the partial implementation.

Adoption of the Strategy is foreseen by Article 63 of the Law on Chemicals ("Official Gazette of Montenegro", No. 51/17), which defines the required and its content.

The national strategy contains:

1) assessment of the situation and problems in the field of chemicals management; 2) priority activities and measures for the preservation of human health and the environment; 3) mid-term and long-term national strategic objectives; 4) priority tasks in all areas of chemical safety; 5) Action plans for implementation of the National Strategy with priorities and sources of financing.

Main objective of this activity is creation of Strategy which will contain, in addition to an introductory section and an executive summary, 13 distinct chapters and a series of annexes, as appropriate (find below). The current Strategy already contain all of above mentioned Chapters and now is necessary to update them.

It should be recognised that certain parts of the National Profile can be regularly updated, including some of the national background information (e.g. concerning trade and production statistics), whereas other parts will only require updating after some triggering event such as the adoption of new legislation or regulations.

When drafting the strategy, the requirements of the Decree on the manner and procedure of drafting, harmonizing and monitoring the implementation of strategic documents (Official Gazette of Montenegro, No. 54/18), as well as the accompanying Methodologies for policy development, drafting and monitoring the implementation of strategic documents must be taken into account. The National Chemicals Management Strategy with the Action Plan for the period 2023-2026 must be adapted to national circumstances so that it contains relevant aspects listed in the UNITAR guide, but also meets the requirements mentioned Decree and Methodologies.

When drafting the Strategy, special attention must be paid to the relationship between the strategic document and the current strategic framework (Montenegro adopted National plan for implementation of Stockholm convention and National plan for implementation of Minamata convention), in order to ensure that public policies are planned in accordance with the principles of coherence (Article 6 of the Decree), the principle of economy and rational planning (Article 12 of the Decree). Article 14 of the Decree is respected when planning the development of a strategic document.

Finally, Action plan for the fulfilment of closing benchmarks in chapter 27 environment and climate change one of the measures is taking over the obligations from the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans / European Green Deal in the area of Chemicals in order to alignment with the EU Chemicals Strategy. New Chemicals Strategy prepared and adopted by the Government is Indicator of the realization of this measures.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objective of the assignment

The International Technical Expert (further in the text – ITE) will provide an overall technical backstopping support to the national institutions recognized as main stakeholders and beneficiaries. Strategy on chemicals management should be prepared in coordination with the representatives from Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Administration for Inspection (AI), Centre for ecotoxicology research (CETI), Institute for Public Health (IPH), Custom Administration (CA), Administration for Food Safety, Veterinary and Phytosanitary Affairs (AFSVPA). Also, ITE shall be responsible for data collection and data analysis.

When creating a Strategy it is necessary to bear in mind all legal acts, direct or indirect connected with chemicals management, and also all relevant documents connected with conventions in area of chemicals management.

To prepare updated Strategy, a guide was provided by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) under the auspices of the Inter-Organization Program for Sound Management of Chemicals (IOMC) and adopted by the International Forum for Chemical Safety (IFCS) - "Preparing a National Profile to Assess Infrastructure and Capacity Needs for Chemicals Management", Second Edition 2012, Guidance Document. This document has been developed to assist countries in the preparation or updating of Strategies to assess the infrastructure and capacities required for quality chemical management through a process involving all stakeholders at the state level. Bearing in mind the small volume of chemical production and the insufficiently developed chemical market in Montenegro, and on the other hand, fully respecting the requirements assumed by international agreements and conventions, and in particular the obligations of the EU integration process, the development of the Strategy in accordance with UNITAR Guidelines is adapted to national circumstances.

Under the guidance and direct supervision of UNDP Montenegro ITE will provide around 15 days of home-based support, and up to 15 days of support within Montenegro spread over three missions, all of which aim to bring international technical assistance to the project. The main duty of the ITE will be to update Chemicals Management Strategy in order to ensure that the full range of concerned parties participate in the preparation/updating of the National Strategy, and to facilitate access to necessary information. Expert will have the full support of the key ministries, institutions and agencies involved in the various aspects of chemicals management. Also, holding a planning meeting early on would allow government and stakeholder groups to agree on the process and determine how input will be coordinated towards preparing or updating the National Profile.

ITE is obliged, before the beginning of the work on strategy update, to deliver methodology with the timeframe for implementation of work, individually for all chapters, in accordance with the above mentioned guide.

The following table of contents represents the structure of the National Profile: Chapter 1: National Background Information Chapter 2: Chemical Production, Import, Export, Storage, Transport, Use, and Disposal Chapter 3: Legal Instruments and Non-Regulatory Mechanisms for Managing Chemicals Chapter 4: Ministries, Agencies, and Other Governmental Institutions Managing Chemicals Chapter 5: Relevant Activities of Industry, Public Interest Groups, Professional Bodies, and the Research Sector Chapter 6: Inter-ministerial Commissions and Coordinating Mechanisms Chapter 7: Information Management, Access, and Use Chapter 8: Technical Infrastructure Chapter 9: Chemical Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Follow-up Chapter 10: Awareness/Understanding of Workers and the Public; and Training and Education of Target Groups and Professionals Chapter 11: International Linkages Chapter 12: Conclusions and Recommendations Chapter 13: Action plan with the concrete measures, time frame and Resources Needed for Chemicals Management.

Also, ITE is obliged, in cooperation and MESPU, to establish a network of contact points and gather information; hold regular working group meetings, develop draft of Strategy for Chemicals management, disseminate first full draft of Strategy for Chemicals management to relevant stakeholders, and address received comments/suggestions.

Strategy for chemicals management 2023-2026 should be written on Montenegrin and English.

Time duration and travel:

The duration of the total assignment is expected to be for 30 working days within the period of 20 April – 30 October 2022. Three missions to Montenegro with the maximum of 15 working days of duration are expected.

Competencies

• Solid knowledge of United Nations, Global Environmental Facility, the Stockholm, Basel, Rotterdam and Minamata Convention and other international or bilateral organizations and their policy, programme and operations;
• Proven ability to work in a complex environment with a lot of different stakeholders within a specific political context;
• Ability to interact and relate with people at any level;
• Ability to critically analyze issues, find root-causes and suggest optimum solutions.
• Demonstrated leadership ability and technical ability to communicate complex ideas verbally and in writing.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• University degree in chemicals, hazardous waste management, environmental science and management, or related fields; advanced degree desirable.

Experience:

• Minimum of 10 years of experience in preparation of national assessments related to chemicals in the environment, POPs, etc.
• Experience in development of long-term plans for chemicals management.
• Experience in Policy/Regulatory and Institutional assessments.
• Practical experience in similar projects is preferred.
• Prior UNDP/GEF project experience and knowledge of UNDP and GEF procedures and guidelines is an advantage.

Language:

• Fluency in English with exceptional writing, presentation and communication skills.
• Knowledge of Montenegrin language would be considered as an advantage.

Criteria for selection:

Combined Scoring method will be used. When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as: (i) responsive, compliant, acceptable, and (ii) having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

• Technical criteria weight - 70% (Background and education 10%; Relevant previous experience 20%; Substantial knowledge/Required competencies 30%; Required language 10%);
• Financial criteria weight - 30%.

Only offerors obtaining a minimum 490 points for technical criteria will be considered for the financial evaluation. For more information on procurement methodology for Individual Contractors, please refer to Procurement Notice.

Application procedure:

Interested applicants are requested to submit their applications by April 10, 2022 by using the Apply now button. The application should contain CV or P11 that can be downloaded at https://www.me.undp.org/content/montenegro/en/home/jobs.html. Please note that UNDP jobsite system allows only one uploading of application document, so please make sure that you merge all your documents into a single file.

Only the short-listed applicants will be contacted and requested to submit a letter of interest including a price quotation indicating the lump sum (in EUR) requested for the work envisaged in the section "Description of Responsibilities".