Capacity Assessment Expert | Kyiv, Ukraine | 2024

The Partnership Fund for a Resilient Ukraine – Phase 2 (PFRU-2) is a multi-year, multi-donor funded programme managed by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and governed in collaboration with the Government of Ukraine.

Principal Services and Responsibilities (Essential Functions)

Chemonics seeks a short-term consultant to serve as a Capacity Assessment Expert for PFRU-2 to create a tool that can be used to complete local government institutional capacity assessments within individual Oblast and Hromada administrations (50+) that are selected for partnership under PFRU-2. The Capacity Assessment Expert will lead a process that will include consultations with relevant PFRU-2 teams and staff to identify the priority local government institutional capacities that may be needed to support potential interventions undertaken under future PFRU-2 thematic strategic projects, creating a capacity assessment tool that defines the assessment objectives and methodology inclusive of relevant surveys and forms, training relevant PFRU-2 Regional Team and Research Team staff who will support the deployment of the tool and the collection and analysis of results, and launching pilot assessments in individual Oblast administrations as time allows. The Capacity Assessment Expert will be supervised by the PFRU-2 Regional and Rapid Response Lead responsible for leading the Area-Based Scoping Project for which these capacity assessments fall under.

The following responsibilities will be crucial to the success of the role:

• Consult with relevant PFRU-2 Regional Team, Research Team, and other staff to understand the mandate and functions of Oblast and Hromada administrations in Ukraine for which capacity assessments will be conducted.
• Consult with individual PFRU-2 team leads, including the Outcome 2 Services Lead, the Outcome 3 Social Cohesion Lead, and the Rapid Response Lead, as well as relevant staff within these teams and from other Learning, Adaptation and Policy teams, to identify the priority local government institutional capacities that may be needed to support potential interventions undertaken under future PFRU-2 thematic strategic projects. These may include, but are not limited to, technical or operational management capacities for institution staff to conduct recovery planning, apply for state and donor financing, and coordinate response planning with civil-military coordination actors.
• Following these consultations, create a tool that can be deployed to assess priority local government institutional capacities and identify capacity gaps in individual Oblast and Hromada administrations that are selected for partnership under PFRU-2. The tool should define the objectives and methodology for the capacity assessments, inclusive of root cause analyses and surveys and forms for data and information collection. The tool should incorporate relevant methodologies and best practices from established donor and other institutional capacity assessment resources, such as the Institutional Strengthening Toolkit for Human and Institutional Capacity Development (HICD), the Government Institutions Capacity Assessment (GICA) Tool, and the Excellence in Municipal Management (EMM) Tool. Capacity assessment methodologies will likely differ for Oblasts and Hromadas, considering the relatively smaller size and fewer resources and capacities within Hromada administrations
• Train relevant PFRU-2 staff from Regional and Research Teams who will be responsible for deploying the Capacity Assessment Tool within individual local government administrations. This includes training staff on the process for deploying the tool as well as the process for collecting, consolidating, interpreting, and analysing assessment results. Staff should also be trained to support the design of local government capacity strengthening plans that will be implemented, in part, by PFRU-2 Regional Team staff who will be embedded within these administrations, as well as external resources who will lead various trainings, seminars, and create various systems, processes, guides, etc.
• As time allows, oversee the deployment of the Capacity Assessment Tool in 9+ pilot Oblast administrations that are selected for partnership under PFRU-2, providing dedicated support to relevant PFRU-2 Regional Team and Research Team staff who will be liaising directly with individual government administrations during the assessment phase. Based on assessment results, support the design of individual local government capacity strengthening plans that identify opportunities for PFRU-2 Regional Team staff or external resources to work hand-in-hand with local government staff to build priority capacities relevant to future PFRU-2 thematic strategic projects
• As time allows, develop a system and process for conducting capacity reassessments on a yearly basis to gauge progress against identified capacity gaps that are being addressed by PFRU-2 capacity building interventions

Required Skills and Qualifications

The Capacity Assessment Expert will have the following qualifications and experience:

• A university degree (and ideally a post-graduate degree)
• A least 5 years’ experience in organizational development, management consulting, strategic planning, and/or capacity building. Demonstrable experience in other related sectors can be considered in lieu of the above
• Experience developing and carrying out institutional capacity assessments is highly desired, including familiarity with institutional capacity assessment tools and methodologies, as well as familiarity with adult learning approaches
• Experience with FCDO or other donor-funded programmes is highly desires
• Experience of working directly or in collaboration with central, regional or local government in Ukraine is desired
• Excellent communications skills including speaking and writing clearly and effectively in English. Knowledge of Ukrainian is preferable
• Proficiency in creating systems, tools, and processes using Microsoft Office

Duration of Assignment/LOE

The start date for assignment is as soon as possible with flexible engagement over the holidays. This is a short-term consultancy for a maximum of 30 days, which can be completed full-time or part-time in Kyiv or remotely depending on candidate’s availability

Location of Assignment

Ideally, this assignment would be completed from the PFRU office in Kyiv, Ukraine, though depending on availability and willingness to deploy to Ukraine, parts or all of the assignment can be completed remotely.