UN JOBS IN UGANDA- Consultant Vacancy

Job Title: National Consultant: Peacebuilding Fund Management Information System, Kampala


Location : Kampala, UGANDA
Application Deadline : 21-Feb-11
Additional Category Management
Type of Contract : SSA
Post Level : National Consultant
Languages Required :
English
Starting Date :
(date when the selected candidate is expected to start) 28-Feb-2011
Duration of Initial Contract : 3 months
Expected Duration of Assignment : 3 month
Closing Date: Monday, 21 February 2011

Background

The UN in Uganda has secured a funding envelope of $14m from the Peacebuilding Fund (PBF) to address remaining conflict drivers and peace building challenges, with a total of at least seven UN agencies that will be involved in implementing projects with this funding. The process to finalize the Priority Plan and the project documents has been a participatory one, in which the Resident Coordinator's Office (RCO) in Kampala has played a significant role as a coordinator and facilitator.

The Peacebuilding Fund guidelines place strong emphasis on the results based management of the projects, the measurement of the impact of capacity-building; the monitoring of the catalytic effect of the funding, and ensuring that lessons learned from the project implementation are recorded. The PBF also promotes the completion of an independent “Mid-term evaluation to assess relevance, efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of PBF in-country.”

Predominantly, and in line with global guidance, the UN in Uganda has attempted to build on national monitoring structures, and uses to a great extent, national indicators in its overarching policy documents. The reliance on national data means that district level data is not always available, adequately disaggregated, or it is not collected within a timeframe that would meet specific requirements of the UN for data. In order to ensure that agencies are implementing and reporting on their PBF projects in a timely manner, funds from the PBF envelope for Uganda were allocated to supporting coordination and monitoring activities.

The UN Resident Coordinator's Office has been identified as a natural existing structure which can manage the responsibilities of the local PBF Secretariat. In this role, it will support the agencies to prepare their project documents, and facilitate the work of the Technical Advisory Committee and the Steering Committee. It will also support agencies to comply with the PBF reporting requirements in a timely manner.

Objectives

The development of a user-friendly comprehensive Management Information System (MIS) for the PBF Joint Programmes (JP) will significantly increase the coordination, M&E and reporting capacity of the UN in Uganda. The development of the MIS aims to:

Increase efficiency and reduce costs through a results-based M&E and reporting.
Boost information availability and accessibility for evidence-based planning.
Enhance vertical and horizontal data-sharing for stronger UN coordination.
Explore possible areas of coordination geographically or thematically.

Duties and Responsibilities

Duties and Responsibilities:

The PBF MIS Consultant will have as overall responsibility the development of the PBF management information system (MIS). Specifically the tasks will include:

Develop the MIS software programme.
Input the planning information/data for all Joint Programmes base on the approved programme documents.
Run quality assurance tests on the software.
Present a prototype of the software to the lead agencies and RCO for comments.
Reconfigure/redesign the prototype base on comments, agreed changes and improvements.
Develop and write a User Manual and Troubleshooting Tips for the MIS software.
Provide hands-on training for the representatives of all PBF agencies at both field and Kampala levels, on the use and troubleshooting of the MIS software.
Launch and install the MIS system in all agencies at both Kampala and field levels.
Provide additional assistance to revisit and evaluate the MIS software three months after its launch.

Key Deliverables of the PBF MIS Consultant:

Work Plan at the start of the contract, at least within a week after contract signing.
Submission of a budget for the MIS annual establishment and operational costs at least one month after initiation of the contract.
User-friendly comprehensive Management Information System (MIS software) with features that allow users, both online and/or offline, to input planning data: planned activities, budget, target results, indicators, schedule, risks, etc.
Input “progress” data: activities conducted, expenditure, actual results, schedule and issues/challenges, against the planning data.
Input other pertinent data over and above the plans (like additional activities, unexpected results, unforeseen factors, etc.).
Update, view, compare and extract data by agency, joint programme, objective, outcome/output, geographic area, theme, target beneficiaries, monthly/quarterly/annual/midterm/final, and other categories.
Obtain a statistical analysis of data with graphical presentations – bars, charts, etc.
Draft, print and share detailed and summary reports base on predesigned report formats.
Share and attach other electronic reference files, including photos.
Other additional features that may be deemed necessary by the UN RCO, PBF Team, PMT and/or UNCT as the consultancy proceeds. As much as possible, the system should build on existing UN agencies' systems and be accessible and user-friendly at the national and field levels.
Presentation of prototype half way into the consultancy for input from the RCO and UN agencies.
User's manual and troubleshooting tips - electronic and hardcopy.
Provide hands-on training-workshop of selected UN staff in Kampala and the field on the use of the system

Duration and timing:

The development of the PBF MIS will cover three months, starting in end-February until end-April 2010.

Reporting:

The PBF MIS Consultant will be under the direct supervision and management of the UN Resident Coordinator's Office. He/she will consult with the UN RCO and other agencies on the MIS design, process and trainings. The review will also include meetings with the M&E working group and individual meetings with M&E focal points, as well as meetings with the Programme Management Team (as PBF technical appraisal committee) to discuss progress and next steps to ensure ownership of the system by the agencies.

Competencies

A strong academic and professional background/experience on software and database development/programming using various platforms and programmes.
Be a seasoned software developer/programmer with an excellent track record in reputable companies locally and/or abroad.
Extensive experience in providing hands-on training to people with various levels of IT skills and knowledge.
In-depth experience in presentation and communication skills.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

University degree in computer science/programming, management information systems, information technology, or any relevant field.

Experience:

Minimum of five years relevant experience in the field of management information systems/database programming/development.
Minimum of five years experience in personally developing an MIS/database that can be both offline and online, using various programming platforms/software, especially MS Access.
Experience in conducting hands-on training of people with various levels of IT skills and knowledge.
Experience in writing User Manuals and Troubleshooting Tips that are layman-friendly (easy to understand and follow).
Availability and willingness and personal initiative to travel and engage in quality assurance tests and trainings in Kampala and field agencies

Language Requirement:

Fluency in written and spoken English is a necessity.

Application Procedure - applicants are required to submit an application and proposals, which include the following:

I. Job Proposal:

Letter of Interest.
Explanation as to why you consider yourself suitable for the assignment.
A brief methodology on the approach and implementation of the assignment.

II. Personal CV

Highlighting past experience in similar projects.
Work references - contact details (e-mail addresses) of referees.

III. Financial Proposal

Financial proposal indicating consultancy fee, lump sum fee or unit price together with any other expenses related to the assignment.

Please note that the system will only allow you to upload one document, therefore all the job and finance proposals are to be attached to the CV and uploaded together.

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.

To Apply
https://jobs.undp.org/cj_apply.cfm?job_id=21618