Individual National Consultancy: Review of Socio-Economic Development Plans (SEDP) for the Period 2021-2025 for the Three Provinces of Soc Trang, Bac Lieu and Ca Mau

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Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

Review of the implementation of the environment and climate change pillars focusing on children, women and vulnerable groups in Socio-Economic Development Plans (SEDP) for the period 2021-2025 for the three provinces of Soc Trang, Bac Lieu and Ca Mau with recommendations to make annual and five-year SEDPs of these provinces more child-friendly, gender-responsive and climate resilient.

Scope of Work:

Viet Nam has, over the past 30 years, achieved remarkable socio-economic progress. Reforms have stimulated an economic transformation that has propelled the country into lower-middle-income status. The UN Common Country Analysis confirmed strong progress across several Sustainable Development Goals, including the lifting of over 45 million people out of poverty between 2002 and 2018. However, too many people have been left out of this rapid ascent into a modern, connected economy, while inequalities have persisted and in some parts of the population deepened – requiring specific, sustained investments to better deliver on the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals according to Viet Nam’s 2020 National Report. 

Over the last decades the Government of Viet Nam has demonstrated its commitments to child rights and children’s wellbeing. Specifically, priorities for children are expressed through the 13th Party Congress’s Political Document, within the 2021-2030 Socio-economic Development Strategy, the 2021-2025 Socio-Economic Development Plan and three national targeted programs – on sustainable poverty reduction, new rural construction and economic development for ethnic minority and mountainous areas – and the National Action Program on Children for the period 2021-2030.

However, multidimensional child poverty remains significant (10.7 per cent), with disparities between rural and urban areas (13 versus 6 per cent) and among ethnic minorities (33.1 versus 6.3 per cent for the majority of Kinh and Hoa).  In addition, Viet Nam is one of the countries that are most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, i.e., ranked sixth by the Global Climate Risk Index in 2020. Children living in the poorest households are significantly more affected by the consequences of extreme weather events. Recent research indicated that 50 per cent of studied children living in the poorest households in Viet Nam had experienced at least one extreme weather event that affected the household economy compared to 17 per cent of the least poor households.

The aforementioned gaps, along with those that have emerged in recent years due to environmental degradation, natural disasters, and extreme weather events related to climate change—such as droughts, floods, and storms—will significantly impact the comprehensive development of children in Viet Nam. Therefore, Viet Nam must accelerate its efforts to address both unfinished and emerging agendas related to children’s rights to ensure that no child is left behind. This requires timely and green investments in human capital, such as education and skills development, to equip the younger generation to adapt to the evolving job market and the changing economic, social, and environmental contexts.

The project “Child-Friendly Policies and Plans for the Period 2023-2026” between the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and UNICEF is expected to enhance the institutional capacity of the Ministry of Planning and Investment in policy formulation and implementation based on evidence. This aims to better fulfill children’s rights, particularly in planning, resource mobilization, implementation, and monitoring of socio-economic development plans, the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and national targeted programmes (NTPs). The Department of Science, Education, Natural Resources, and Environment (DSENRE) of MPI is the national focal point for implementing sustainable development and green growth. It is also responsible for formulating and monitoring socio-economic development plans (SEDPs) and medium-term public investment plans in the fields of education and training, science and technology, and natural resources and environment. Under this project, DSENRE/MPI in conjunction with UNICEF designed activities with a focus on promoting children’s rights in the implementation of sustainable development goals, green growth, environmental protection, and climate change response.

Therefore, within the project framework, DESENRE/MPI and UNICEF plan to recruit national consultants to support the DSENRE/MPI in conducting a midterm review of the environmental pillar in the annual and five-year socio-economic development plans (2021-2025) for three provinces: Soc Trang, Bac Lieu, and Ca Mau with a focus on children, women and vulnerable populations. This assignment has an overall objective of taking stock of the provincial plan implementation and formulating specific recommendations for the three provinces. It aims to better address children’s and vulnerable population groups’ well-being in the implementation of the environmental protection and climate change response pillars in their current plans, then ultimately informing the development of upcoming provincial 2026-2030 SEDPs with a focus on children.

Specific objectives include:

a) Reviewing the implementation of the environmental protection and climate change response pillars in the 5-year Socio-Economic Development Plans for 2021-2025 and the annual plans for 2021-2024 of Soc Trang, Ca Mau, and Bac Lieu, with a focus on children, women and vulnerable groups.

b) Providing specific recommendations to better implement the environmental protection and climate change adaptation pillars, with a heightened focus on children, women and vulnerable groups, in the 2025 Socio-Economic Development Plans and the 2026-2030 5-year SEDPs of Soc Trang, Ca Mau, and Bac Lieu.

c) Providing technical support through consultations and sharing research results with the three provinces to effectively include the environmental protection and climate change response pillars, emphasizing children, women and vulnerable groups in the 3 provincial 2025 SEDPs and the 2026-2030 5-year SEDPs. The goal is to achieve related SDGs set by Viet Nam for 2025 and 2030 in these 3 provinces.

The method/approach: This activity will adopt an approach of document review, and qualitative methods i.e. stakeholders’ consultation, interviews, and case study. The document review scope is confined to documents that reflect the development and implementation of the environmental protection and climate change response pillars in the 5-year SEPDs for 2021-2025 and the annual plans for 2021-2024 of Soc Trang, Ca Mau, and Bac Lieu provinces, with a focus on children and vulnerable groups. The documents for review may include, but not be limited to, guidelines, regulations, and operational arrangements for implementation of provincial SEDPs and their annual plans, and periodic reports. 

Consultation with relevant stakeholders who were involved in the implementation of these development plans may take the form of workshops and interviews with relevant individuals, agencies, and local authorities. In each province, 1-2 case studies will be developed to illustrate how climate changes and extreme weather events suffered by children, women’s and other vulnerable groups were addressed in the provincial 5-year SEDPs and annual plans, and in the implementation results, and how the SEDP could be strengthened to improve their well-being across multiple dimensions.

The mid-term review will answer the following key questions:

– How have the provincial socio-economic development plans and related policies, especially environmental and climate change policies, been developed over the past four years (2021-2024)?

– What is the implementation progress of the annual and five-year SEDPs (2021-2025)?

– How have issues affecting children, women and vulnerable groups been addressed in the implementation of SEDPs in general and in their pillar of environmental protection and climate change response?

– To what extent have children, women and vulnerable groups benefited from the implementation of SEDPs and the environmental protection and climate change response pillars in the SEDPs? What are the gaps and reasons including financial resources, capacity and public awareness available for the implementation? What is the role of national government/related ministries in supporting provinces?

– To what extent have children, women and vulnerable groups been involved in the implementation process of the SEDPs in general and the environmental protection and climate change response pillars in the SEDPs in particular? What are the gaps and reasons?

– What needs to be done to better address issues affecting children, women and vulnerable groups in the implementation of annual and five-year SEDPs and the environmental protection and climate change response pillars in particular?

It is anticipated that this complex assignment requires a consultant team consisting of a lead consultant and a team member. The lead consultant will be responsible for the recruitment of the team member and will be accountable for managing the entire process and delivering all required deliverables.

Detailed Work Assignments and Deliverables as attached  TOR National Consultants for Child-friendly SEDP Review-Soc Trang-Bac Lieu-Ca Mau.pdf

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Assessment criteria:

For evaluation and selection method, the Cumulative Analysis Method (weight combined score method) shall be used for this recruitment:

a) Technical Qualification weight 75%:

b. Financial Proposal weight 25%:

All prices/rates quoted must be exclusive of all taxes as UNICEF is a tax-exempt organization.

Financial proposal should be all-inclusive lump-sum cost including consultancy fee, cost for the research team to travel for field data collection and other related expenses. The lump-sum should be divided across the set deliverables of the assignment.

The project will not support cost for international travel, and other related expenses.

Please clearly indicate currency of financial proposal (mandatory in VND for local vendors).

Points shall be allotted to the lowest Financial Proposal that is opened/evaluated. Other Financial Proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.

The Contract shall be awarded to candidate obtaining the highest combined technical and financial scores, subject to the satisfactory result of the verification interview if needed.

Submission of applications:

a. Letter of interest;

b. CVs of an individual candidate or a team of experts, detailing team management. (It is expected that a clear mechanism for management of this assignment will be reflected in the applying documents and that UNICEF will consider signing the contract with a lead consultant only).

c. Submission of a technical proposal outlining the timeline for the assignment deliverables (within maximum 5 pages);

d. At least 2 samples of written work required;

e. Three references;

f. Financial proposal: Financial proposal should be all-inclusive lump-sum cost including consultancy fee, cost for the research team to travel for field data collection and other related expenses. The lump-sum should be divided across the set deliverables of the assignment.

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.