National Consultant to support enhancement of Social Protection Single Registry with UNICEF in Uzbekistan

Contract

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Background:

In 2019 UNICEF supported the Ministry of Finance of Uzbekistan designed the Social Protection Single Registry (SPSR), an integrated management information system on social protection and launched it as a pilot in Syrdarya region. In May 2020 the Ministry of Finance requested UNICEF to support an upgrade of SPSR so the system could be used to administer the response programmes to COVID-19 pandemic and the nation-wide roll-out of the system. In 2021 UNICEF supported extension of the functionality of SPSR, which was concluded with establishing an appropriate governance system within the Ministry of Finance that was handed over the responsibility to run the system. In 2022the system enhancement continued with the development and introduction of the tree modules – 1) on maternity benefits that were introduced from 1 September 2022 and 2) on administering case management based social work practices that is being now operated at local community (makhalla) level. Relevant user and system administrator trainings have been provided.

SPSR is designed to enable effective administration of the social protection programmes from applications, verification, and registration to payments, monitoring and reporting. Currently the system covers three means-tested social benefits for low-income families: 1) benefit for children in low-income families; 2) material support for low-income families; 3) maternity benefits for women working in non-budgetary organizations. SPSR is fed with information on applicants of social allowances through links to the databases of relevant ministries and agencies.

Based on the user feedback to the module on makhalla-level social services the State Committee on Families and Women and the Ministry of Finance requested UNICEF to develop the module’s version based on a mobile app, which could be used offline, too. The current web-based version of the module requires constant online connection, however, it is update is a straightforward thing, while updating a mobile app-based module would be a difficult task. Therefore, in March 2022 it was decided that the initial version of the module would be a web-based, which would then be followed by its mobile app-based version.

According to the Presidential Decree #300, the case management based social work practices should be rolled out nationwide by the end of 2022. The State Committee on Families and Women requested UNICEF to support the process.

On 28 September 2022 the Ministry of Finance requested UNICEF to support the operationalization of the module on emergency response cash transfers. The module was launched in July 2022, but the ministry lacks actual experience on its operationalization. On 31 August 2022 the president signed the decree implying paying one-off cash allowance to all low-income families in Karakalpakstan Republic that are registered in Single Registry.

Objectives:

UNICEF is seeking for a national consultant to support day to day activities of the Social Policy team in Uzbekistan Country Office and national and international stakeholders involved in the development of the Single Registry for Social Protection to timely and with quality implementation of the following objectives: 1) to coordinate the nationwide roll-out of the case management based social work practices and the use of the social services module;2) to operationalize the email exchange functionality of the social services module with the notification of the email receipt;3) to develop a timed action plan for the integration of the social services module with the ones of the service providers(e.g., the Ministry of Health, Public Service Agency) implying development of the facilities for them and women activists to enter information on the assigned social services into Single Registry (similar to dxa.gov.uz). The list of the service providers has been established.4) to develop the mobile app-based version of the social services module; 5) to operationalize the emergency response cash transfers module for the one-off cash allowance for the low-income families in Karakalpakstan Republic.

Timeline & Deliverables:

The consultant is expected to engage in day-to-day activities with the Social Policy Team and with international service provider, to liaise with the counterparts at the Ministry of Finance, State Committee on Families and Women and other line ministries/agencies, to ensure effective communication between the international service provider and relevant national partners, to ensure that the assignment’s objectives are met duly and timely. The consultant will also be responsible to coordinate development of the technical proposals and financial budgets on their implementation with the international service provider and send them for the approval to UNICEF.

The consultant will also coordinate submission of deliverables by the international service provider and ensure that the submitted deliverables are of appropriate quality and provided on time.

The timeline for the assignment is from October to December 2022. The total number of days allowed for all tasks is 40 days allocated across the topics in the following way:

1. Supporting the nationwide roll-out of the case management based social work practices and the use of the social services module. The deliverables are 1) the interagency working group is established; 2) the timed action plan for the nationwide roll out is developed and agreed with the interagency working group; 2) capacity building trainings on case management are undertaken according to the action plan(jointly with the Child Protection section); 3) the user trainings for the social services module are undertaken according to the action plan - 10 days

2. Operationalize the email exchange functionality of the social services module with the notification of the email receipt. The deliverable is the functionality is operationalized - 3 days

3. Develop a timed action plan for the integration of the social services module with the ones of the service providers (e.g., the Ministry of Health, Public Service Agency) implying development of the facilities for them and women activists to enter information on the assigned social services into Single Registry (similar to dxa.gov.uz). The deliverable is the action is developed and agreed with relevant national partners - 7 days

4. Coordinate development of the mobile app-based version of the social services module by the international service provider engaged separately. The deliverable is the mobile app-based version of the module is developed and ready for the launch - 15 days

5. Coordinate operationalization the emergency response cash transfers module for the one-off cash allowance for the low-income families in Karakalpakstan Republic by the international service provider engaged separately. The deliverables are 1) the module is operationalized and the cash allowance is paid out; 2) the international service provider undertook capacity building training for relevant staff of the Ministry of Finance to run the module - 5 days.

TOTAL: 40 days

Payments

Payments will be made based on a monthly report of the activities conducted during the month, considering daily rate and number of days spent of each deliverable. The consultant will be paid by bank transfer, in SOUMS and upon acceptance of the related monthly report.

Management

The consultant will work in close collaboration with the Social Policy Section of UNICEF Uzbekistan and the interagency working group established by the Ministry of Finance. The assignment will be carried out under the direct supervision of the Social Policy Specialist for monitoring and coordinating the assignment within UNICEF CO in Uzbekistan.

Resource requirements:

Estimated budget of the consultancy is subject to negotiation between the consultant and UNICEF.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

The consultant is expected to have the following minimum qualifications and competences:

• Advanced degree in Business Administration, Business Management, Economics, Information Technologies, Business Computing, or other relevant disciplines;
• At least five years professional experience in the areas of management information system and its evaluation or similar functional area;
• Good knowledge of the national social protection system in Uzbekistan in particular of social allowances is an asset
• Excellent written and oral communications skill in Uzbek, English and Russian;
• Computer literacy, especially with Excel and database management is required;
• Experience working on issues related to wellbeing of children and their families is an asset.

Procedures and Working Conditions:

The consultancy is based in Tashkent (Uzbekistan) for the time of implementing this assignment.

Travel arrangements and the costs associated will be covered by the consultant.

The output produced by the consultant remain under property rights of UNICEF and neither them nor their parts can be reproduced, shared or used in any other way without the written permission from UNICEF.

Reservations:

UNICEF reserves the right to withhold all or a portion of payment if performance is unsatisfactory, if deliverable(s) incomplete, not finalized or for failure to meet deadlines.

UNICEF will reserve all copyright of developed materials/reports and will own primary data collected through any assignment awarded to the institution. The materials cannot be published or disseminated by the institution without prior written permission of UNICEF.

UNICEF will be free to adapt and modify the materials/reports in the future.

UNICEF undertakes no liability for taxes, duty or other contribution payable by the consultant on payments made by under this contract.

Special considerations:

UNICEF has a clear policy of zero-tolerance on sexual harassment. UNICEF takes allegations of sexual harassment very seriously and is committed to holding wrong-doers accountable. Moreover, UNICEF has a Child Safeguarding Policy that provides guidance on the protection and safeguarding of children across all agency operations. Any consultant hired by UNICEF should comply with all policies and procedures on any kind of harassment.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS).

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants/individual contractors with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

Remarks:

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

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.