A. Background

Mongolia has received a credit from the International Development Association (IDA) for the Strengthening Fiscal and Financial Stability Project (SFFSP). The Objective of the SFFS Project is designed to improve fiscal policy and sustainability in a mineral-based economy, protect the poor and vulnerable, and restore confidence in the financial sector. The project is designed into five components: (I) Strengthening Macroeconomic and Fiscal Management; (II) Improving the Efficiency of Public Financial Management; (III) Enhancing Financial Sector Stability; (IV) Strengthening the Social Protection System; (V) Project Management and Monitoring. The objectives are to Strengthen fiscal responsibility and implementing relevant policy measures, improving fiscal discipline, strengthen the resiliency of the banking system, improve public expenditure quality in social protection, providing support for Project implementation, coordination, monitoring, and evaluation, including inter alia, audit arrangements, reporting requirements, procurement, and financial management activities respectively. For more details, please refer to the Project Appraisal Document Report No.PAD2269. 

MLSP is keen to improve the social welfare legal environment to increase the social welfare system’s equity and efficiency by fostering a plan for the consolidation of fragmented social welfare programs and its implementation. Within this scope of legal reform, the MLSP (client) has established a working group to amend the social welfare legislation. The working group members have been working to identify the need for reform of the social welfare legislation, consolidating the benefits of pension, benefits, and services, and concessional allowances of social assistance. In this context, there is a need to study international experience, translate books and materials, hire international consultants, translate their reports, and provide interpretations for conferences and seminars.

On October 15, 2021, the Cabinet submitted to the Parliament the draft revised Social Insurance Package Laws. Since then, the minimum pension amount was increased to 500.0 thousand MNT by Government Resolution No. 63 of February 1. Therefore, the Parliament recommended the Government withdraw and revise the draft General Law on Social Insurance and the draft Law on Pensions Provided from the Social Insurance Fund. At the Cabinet meeting on April 13, It was decided to withdraw the two laws (The draft revised General Law on Social Insurance, and the draft revised Law on Pensions Provided from Social Insurance Fund) that were withdrawn at the 2022 spring session.) submitted to the Parliament. The Cabinet also instructed the MLSP to revise and re-submit the above two laws. The working group of MLSP is working on the updating revision of the draft Social Insurance Package Laws, aiming to submit Parliament by end of spring session 2022.  If the Parliament agrees to the further discussion of the draft law during its plenary session, the Social Policy Standing Committee of the Parliament shall establish a Working Group (WG-Parliament) mandated with the responsibility of discussing the draft Social Insurance Package Laws. In addition, MLSP contracted an international consultant firm on evaluating the current systems and developing a model for establishing a sustainable Central Provident Fund in Mongolia, and an international consultant to conduct an actuarial assessment of the Mongolian Pension Insurance Scheme including Simulations of Reforms included in a Draft Pension Reform Law.

Therefore,  MLSP and SIGO (Social Insurance General Office) are keen to communicate with international consultants online.

With the ever-increasing public and political pressure for the pension system reform in recent years, the Parliament and the Government of Mongolia have assigned the MLSP to increase the public awareness activities around pension reform issues. Therefore, MLSP wishes to translate some social insurance and pension-related documents to use as additional background documents under the pension reform.

B. The objective of the Assignment 

The main objectives of this assignment are to provide written and oral consecutive translations to related activities implemented in the field of Social Welfare and Social Insurance reform.

C. Scope of Work 

The translator will perform the following tasks:

Task I.  Written translation of reports and other relevant materials related to social welfare and social insurance reforms upon the MLSP’s request; 

Task II. Simultaneous and consecutive interpretation during meetings and field visits on social welfare and social insurance and central provident fund subject matter upon the MLSP’s request.

D. Deliverables

The translator will deliver the followings:

Deliverable 1. Written translation of reports and other relevant materials related to social welfare and social insurance matter upon request of the MLSP, and the volume of such translation is to be determined for each individual case; 

Deliverable 2. Simultaneous or consecutive interpretation during meetings and seminars on social welfare, social insurance, and central provident fund matter upon request of the MLSP, and the volume of interpretation service is to be determined for each individual case. 

Upon the proposals of the Director of the Policy and Planning Department, the Secretary of State will sign and approve the request for translation services. The request form is attached in Annex1. The Coordinating consultant of component D is expected to request the translator & interpreter to provide the services based on the approved request by the State Secretary. 

Payment for services will be paid upon deliverables completed to the satisfaction of the MLSP and a signed deliverable acceptance form. The total size of requests should not exceed the number of pages and translation time specified in part C of this assignment.

E. Consultant’s qualifications/selection criteria

Education: A suitable candidate should have a bachelor's degree and higher 

Experience: The incumbent should have at least 3 years of relevant translator and interpreter experience. The candidate should have experience in the translation of social welfare and social security fields. 

Language proficiency: The incumbent should have fluent oral and written English and Mongolian language skills;

Other skills: Be proficient in PC-based applications such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

F. Supervision and Reporting

The translator will report directly to the MLSP. 

The translator/interpreter shall: (i) translate/interpret documents in a manner that retains an accurate meaning of the documents and/or conversation, (ii) preserve the meaning of the original language; (iii)  ensure that the target language is lively, free of jargon, and clear to the reader; (iv) not add or delete any information, (vi) write in a literal and natural style that is easy to read and understand.

All reports shall be submitted in hard and soft form. The selected translator/interpreter will need to work within the specified timelines and deliver the services on agreed time, Deadlines shall become binding after the translator has received the source material to be translated. The translator shall make every effort to complete service(s) by the deadlines.

Payments for the written translation will be released upon the assessment of the quality of the translated documents/ interpretation services by the coordinating consultant D component and the monitoring specialist of SFFSP.  

If the translated material is to be published, it should be reviewed by The Head of the Foreign Cooperation Department of the MLSP shall evaluate the performance on agreed deliverables.

G. Contract Duration and payment condition 

The Local Consultant-Translator/Interpreter's service is expected to commence from October 2022 till April 2023. The timelines for each individual service to be delivered within the duration of this contract shall be determined on a case basis. 

Upon completion of the services, the MLSP will evaluate the translation services and the payable amount. Thus, the translator’s fee will be dependent on the results of the evaluation. In the event client finds the translation work unacceptable, the translator shall, in the case of written translation, revise or amend the work to an acceptable form within an agreed time frame and free of cost to the MLSP. Otherwise, the client may reject all or any part of the translation work and release the translator from any obligation under this assignment. 

The translator retains the right to provide translation services for other clients during the term of this assignment but shall give priority to the translation services under this assignment as needed to meet agreed-upon deadlines or to be at the appointed location punctually.

Translation and interpretation fees are based on the following schedule of rates and conditions: 

• Urgent translation request refers to translating 5 pages per day. 
• Urgent proofreading of translation refers to 7 pages per day.
• MS Word document: 2200 characters (no spaces) will qualify for one page of translation.

Remuneration is calculated based on the number of pages of written translation, as well as the number of hours of oral translation, and will be issued in installments upon completion of the translation.  

The translator shall not disclose any information concerning the MLSP or any of its activities obtained in the course of performing translation/interpretation services under this assignment to third parties. 

The translator and its personnel shall not publish, share, distribute, and transmit any documents or other recorded information known as a result of the Services under this Agreement.

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