Chief Technical Specialist

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The National Planning and Financing for Inclusive Development (NPFID) project is UNDP's flagship initiative in supporting the Government of Lao PDR in development policies. Its main objective is to harmonize different aspects of national development planning processes. Specifically, the project aims to improve coordination between the Ministry of Planning and Investment, responsible for planning, and the Ministry of Finance, responsible for financing. Additionally, the project strives to enhance the involvement of Sector Working Groups in the national development planning process to ensure a unified approach to defining priorities and implementing strategies.

Operating with a catalytic approach, the project's ultimate goal is to empower the government to operate independently, reducing dependence on external aid, especially as the country progresses towards graduating from its Least Developed Country (LDC) status in 2026. In line with this objective, the project is charting a new development path that prioritizes people, drawing insights from UNDP's human development reports and initiatives. Through collaboration with the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the project aims to mainstream human development considerations into national development plans, promoting a more inclusive and sustainable development approach. Furthermore, the project supports the alignment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) implementation with the National Socio-Economic Development Plans (NSEDPs) and the establishement of conducive conditions to increase government’s public revenue for development through increased tax income and promoting quality private sector investments.

The NPFID project plays a crucial role as an integrator in the formulation and implementation of national development strategies, aiming to strengthen the government's institutional capacity in both planning and executing development plans. The project has been pivotal in supporting the Mid-Term Review of the 9th National Socio-Economic Development Plan (NSEDP) and is actively shaping the upcoming 10th NSEDP to be more attainable, with an integrated financing framework that aligns with the country's upcoming graduation from LDC. The project is currently supporting the operationalization of the 9th NSEDP Financing Strategy, with expectation that a similar framework will be integrated into the 10th NSEDP.

Through various capacity-building activities, such as Results-based Management, capacity building in researching sills and foresight planning, the project aims to strengthen the capacity of government’s planning bodies on the necessary skills and tools to formulate development plans that are resilient, risk-informed, and shock-responsive. These comprehensive capacity-building activities are essential for enhancing the effectiveness of development plans of the country.

The NPFID project represents the first project by UNDP to bring together three crucial ministries involved in development strategy formulation: the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This collaboration underscores the project's commitment to strengthening the government's capacity in planning and executing development initiatives, ultimately contributing to the country's sustainable development goals.

The Technical Specialist will be responsible for all aspects of the project as outlined in the project document, to the required standards of quality and taking into account the implications of time and cost.

Reporting line: The Technical Specialist will report to the National Project Director, Director General of the Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Planning and Investment; and Team Leader, Inclusive Growth Unit, UNDP Lao PDR.

Duty station: Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Planning and Investment. 
 

• Provide strategic vision, and high-level policy advice on issues related to national development planning, focusing on strengthening national capacities. 
• Propose strategic approaches and priorities for policy engagement, advocacy, and project implementation. 
• Identify opportunities for strategic coordination among various project responsible partines and develop specific plans to enhance collaboration. 
• Explore potential partnerships with development partners and other government entities beyond the project scope to facilitate comprehensive and achievable national development planning. 
• Deliver leading edge technical advice and lead analytical work to identify key policy issues / gaps to improve policies for the project implementation.
• Conduct thorough analysis of the social and economic situation in the context of the project and provide strategic advice to the government and UNDP CO management on national development issues.

Provide technical oversight and quality assurance for project implementation.

• Provide technical expertise and strategic guidance to the Project Manager (PM) in effectively planning and implementing project activities to ensure achievement of targets and results. Oversight responsibilities include annual work planning and budgeting, monitoring, and reporting on progress and budgets, management of project resources, procurement of goods and services, and contractual management. 
• Advise on adaptation options envisaged in the project document and identify needs for external technical support for effective implementation, including advising on terms of references; Update and revise project indicators, baselines, targets, and means of verification for project outcomes, outputs, and activities as required for effective planning, implementation, M&E, and reporting. 
• Lead in developing risk mitigation measures during all project phases and identifying solutions to address existing gaps arising out of assessments; Prepare and consolidate information, data, and reports on the achievements of the project according to the indicators and targets in the log frame and requirements of donors; lead in developing the action plan against the results / reccomendations assessed on the auditor’s report.
• Lead the design and put in place quality control mechanisms, including coordination of contributions from relevant responsible parties to ensure highest quality of project outputs, products, publications, and policy discussion papers and briefs before review and approval by UNDP and the government partners (if needed).
• Provide technical guidance, input, and support to the project team; Ensure coordination between UNDP and all project stakeholders to ensure that financial and operational procedures of the project are in line with UNDP rules and regulations.

Ensure the optimal sequence and quality of activities by different responsible parties

• Develop a comprehensive roadmap of capacity building activities and consultation workshops by different responsible parties; Collaborate with different responsible parties to ensure that capacity building activities and consultation workshops are complementary and contribute to project objectives. 
• Provide technical inputs for capacity building activities to enhance knowledge and skills necessary for effective national development planning. 
• Analyse existing capacities of the government and develop plans to build and retain knowledge and skills for national development planning processes; Design and deliver training programmes and workshops to enhance the government’s capacity in a sustainable fashion; Develop Terms of References in case external support is needed.
• Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of capacity building activities and make recommendations for improvement. 
• Prepare reports and documentation related to capacity building activities / consultation workshops and outcomes.
• Lead the process of knowledge capture of national and international know-how and document project lessons, experiences, and best practices that may be useful in design and implementation of similar projects for organizational and external sharing and learning.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient implementation of the project and benefit for the Lao government.

Business Direction & Strategy    

• System Thinking. Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system

Business Development    

• Collective Intelligence Design. Ability to bring together diverse groups of people, data, information or ideas, and technology to design services or solutions.
  Knowledge and understanding of Collective Intelligence Design principles, methodology and practices.

Business Management    

• Project Management. Ability to plan, organize, prioritize, and control resources, procedures, and protocols to achieve specific goals. 
• Risk Management. Ability to identify and organize action around mitigating and proactively managing risks

Partnership Management    

• Resource Mobilization. Ability to identify funding sources, match funding needs (programmes/projects/initiatives) with funding opportunities, and establish a plan to meet funding requirements
• Multi-stakeholder engagement and funding. Knowledge and ability to forge multi-stakeholder partnerships, and remove any obstacles to resource mobilization and multi-stakeholder funding platforms
• Strategic Engagement. Ability to capture and sustain attention, interest and agreement of high-level, influential policy and decision makers and secure their buy-in of high-level vision and objectives

• Fluency in English and Lao is required