81291760-Short-Term Expert Pool to support Public Financial Management Reform in Serbia

Description

The project advises the Ministry of Finance (MoF) including its subordinate authorities and key actors fostering the implementation of the 2030 Agenda on technical and strategic issues. Moreover, it hosts a non-state actors" platform (SDGs4All) on the 2030 Agenda with the objective to increase the evidence-based participation of non-state stakeholders in the policy making. It works in four fields of intervention: 1) Improving Public Internal Financial Control (PIFC) mechanisms (EU negotiation chapter 32 ); 2) Advancing the fulfilment of PFM-relevant EU negotiation chapters (namely 16, 17, 18, 29, 33); 3) supporting public institutions in exercising their roles regarding the 2030 Agenda implementation; and 4) supporting evidence-based participation of non-state actors in national and local 2030 Agenda monitoring. The Module Objective reads: "Serbia has implemented key reform steps within the EU negotiation cluster 1 in the area of public finances and the 2030 Agenda". It will be achieved thorugh interventions in four outputs, two of which (Output 1 and 2) directly relate to PFM reforms while Output 3 and 4 relate to pursuing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Develpoment in Serbia (not displayed here). The objectives of two PFM-relevant Outputs (1 and 2) read as follows: Output 1: Strengthening Internal Financial Control In Serbia's internal financial control system, internal audit and budget inspection work more effectively. Output 2: Strengthening the functioning and efficiency of the PFM System Based on progress in relation to negotiation Cluster 1 "Fundamentals", Chapters 16, 17, 18, 29, 33 and the 2030 Agenda, the public finance system is more effective. Thus the project"s support activities will expectedly focus on, but not necessarily be limited to: Financial Control, Budget Management, Domestic Revenue Mobilisation, EU rapprochement and cross-cutting issues (such as organizational development, human resources management - HRM, Soft skills development, project management, digitisation of the administration, "Green PFM issues" e.g. green budget tagging, public participation/citizens engagement, gender/LNOB). Lot 1: The contractor is expected to support the project by managing short-term expert (STE) services to the project. The assignment encompasses the provision of three pools of STEs: - one pool of internationally experienced PFM experts - one pool of locally/regionally (Western Balkans) experienced PFM experts to provide expertise required to implement any PFM reform activities - one pool of locally/regionally experienced (Western Balkans) IT experts to support IT-related reforms of the PFM system. The contractor is expected to make experts" services available on a demand-driven basis. All expert assignments will be jointly identified by the project and its partners and closely coordinated with the contractor. A long-term national expert, referred to as the "pool manager", must be employed by the contractor who will be responsible for the operational management of the short-term expert pools (STEP). The pool manager shall be permanently posted in Serbia (Belgrade). Concrete tasks include (but must not be limited to): - Managing two STEPs for PFM (international and national/regional, respectively) and one pool for STEs for digitization/IT issues (national/regional), who provide their services in the key intervention areas of the project - Each individual assignment of any STE will be jointly planned with the project and its partners in close coordination with the STEP manager - Contracting STEs and managing all related administrative issues (including travel arrangements etc.); - Managing STE"s assignments, ensuring quality of services and timeliness of agreed deliverables (including products and reports); - Supporting the project team in drafting Terms of Reference (ToR) to define experts" assignments, concept notes etc. - Coordination with and reporting to the project team The project follows a results-oriented approach that requires a high level of flexibility and adaptability which means that although required services will in general follow the provided examples and thematic areas, the exact activities and milestones cannot be exactly defined at this point. Further refinements will be required throughout the implementation of the contract in close cooperation between the project and its partners.