Evaluation & Monitoring Expert (Team Leader); Deadline for applications: 6 July 2020

Functional Title: Evaluation & Monitoring Expert (Team Leader)
Duty Station of Assignment: Kosovo and home-based
Type of Contract: Individual Contract (Consultancy Assignment)
Duration of Assignment: 45 w/days over the period 3 September 2020 – 30 July 2021
Closing date for applications: 6 July 2020

BACKGROUND

The Pristina-Belgrade dialogue has presented an unprecedented opportunity to effectively address the unmet needs of citizens in Kosovo’s Serb-majority northern municipalities, and to promote better relations between Kosovo’s main communities. Yet implementation of agreements intended to facilitate integration of the northern municipalities has been slow and incomplete: critical duty-bearers in the northern municipalities need technical assistance to develop and align local municipal planning and management with Kosovo frameworks; genuine local democratic responsiveness and accountability is essential to reduce the risk of increased tension between municipalities and citizens; support is needed to build mutual confidence and cooperation between municipalities and central government, and amongst municipalities, to ensure positive results for citizens.

Successful integration of the four northern municipalities, consistent with agreements emerging from the dialogue since 2011, will be a key determinant of future stability and inclusive development, as well as Kosovo’s European perspective. UN-Habitat, PAX and Community Building Mitrovica (CBM) developed the Inclusive Development Programme to respond to the urgent demand for technical assistance on municipal planning and management in northern Kosovo, for strengthening of the social contract between municipalities and citizens, and for enhanced trust and joint action within a framework of local-central dialogue and inter-municipal cooperation. Following conclusion of a one-year inception phase, the programme is implemented over the period of October 2017 – September 2021. The Programme is financed by the Swedish International Development Agency and jointly implemented by UN-Habitat, PAX and Community Building Mitrovica (CBM) in close partnership with the Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Local Government Administration. It covers 7 municipalities in the northern Kosovo region: Leposavic/Leposaviq, Mitrovica South, Mitrovica North, Skenderaj/Srbica, Vushtrri/Vucitrn, Zubin Potok, and Zvecan/Zvecan.

Given the complexity of the programme and the multi-stakeholder partnership delivering it, a an evaluation and monitoring team will support the Programme Steering Committee by carrying out objective and independent oversight and monitoring functions, providing an external perspective on implementation progress and recommendations on the way forward to reach expected outcomes and assessing the performance of the Programme.

OBJECTIVES AND PURPOSE OF EVALUATION & MONITORING

A team of two consultants will be engaged to undertake the assignment, an evaluation expert for governance & capacity & trust building and a technical evaluation expert. The Team Leader will be the evaluation expert for governance & capacity & trust building. The Team Leader shall propose the methodology for conducting the independent review.

The key objectives are to:

• undertake objective independent oversight of programme activities; assess the Programme’s outputs and degree to which progress has been made towards achievement of the expected outcomes/impact; Validate the approach and methodology as described in the project document and in relation to achievement of intended outcomes, and verify that programme commitments to mainstreaming women’s empowerment and in relation to environmental impact and climate change mitigation are fulfilled; identify factors which help or hamper the achievement of those outcomes;
• propose priorities and recommendations for consolidating or expanding results, further deepening the final impact of the Programme and widening the range of capacity and trust building approaches and packages developed by the Programme so as to inform the Steering Committee of the Programme;
• examine the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, stakeholders ownership, internalization and sustainability as well as the outcomes/impact of the Programme’s methods and strategy and identify challenges as well as opportunities;
• identify the lessons learned of the Programme and propose recommendations and inputs for possible additional support.

The two-step evaluation’s findings and recommendations are expected to be used to inform the Steering Committee of the Programme for the best way forward to achieve the expected outcomes, and also in future planning and decision-making processes by the concerned national and local authorities, the Swedish Development Cooperation, UN-Habitat, PAX, CBM and other stakeholders.

More information is available here.