A. BACKGROUND

The World Bank (WB) and the European Union (EU) has been implementing a new hybrid Trust Fund (TF) aimed to support the efforts of the Government of Mongolia (GOM) to improve fiscal discipline, public financial management (PFM), as well as transparency and accountability processes for strengthened governance in Mongolia. 

This TF, through both Recipient Executed (RE) and Bank Executed (BE) interventions, serves two main purposes. Firstly, it complements and expands the ongoing technical assistance the WB is providing through the Strengthening Fiscal and Financial Stability (SFFS) Project. Secondly, this TF supports the GOM in advancing the current efforts toward increasing transparency, participation and accountability in fiscal matters as well as in strengthening its capacity to deal with non-technical drivers of the reform process that prevent state agencies from implementing policies and regulations as intended. 

The Component 2 of the TF focuses primarily on supporting the specific needs of the GOM to establish sound fiscal discipline, to improve expenditure management by strengthening the budget credibility, to establish the foundations for medium-term budgeting, and to re-orient public investment to strategic projects linked to the diversification of the economy. Five priority areas constitute the core of the component: (i) development and implementation of a public financial management reform plan and inter-agency coordination; (ii) strengthening budget preparation and execution towards results-based medium-term budgeting; (iii) improving budget reporting and transparency by increasing the comprehensiveness of fiscal and financial information and reporting; (iv) improving the management of contingent liabilities, through improving the existing governance framework for recognizing, managing, and disclosing contingent liabilities; and (v) strengthening public investment management, through the development and implementation of mechanisms for prioritizing capital project proposals and cost-benefit analysis.

The GOM has undertaken reforms to gradually bring about fiscal discipline and strengthen the PFM system. The first phase of reforms between 2003 and 2008 established the basic elements of the system, including strengthening internal controls, cash management, and accounting and reporting. The second phase of reforms between 2008 and 2011 included some improvements in fiscal policy, budget planning, and decentralization of roles and resources to subnational governments. More recently, the GOM approved in late 2018 an overall PFM strategy that is ambitious but attempts to set forth general principles and areas of intervention. This document is very detailed and outlines a significant number of activities in the majority of the PFM areas, in line with the structure of the PEFA assessment. In spite of the great amount of work and effort by the government put into preparing this document, the associated strategic vision does not clearly emerge from it as many different areas are covered pointing at a variety of, sometimes competing, needs. Therefore, this strategy needs additional fine-tuning in terms of strategizing and sequencing the ongoing and future interventions necessary to further strengthen the PFM system in the country. 

Despite past efforts, Mongolia still faces challenges related to the efficiency, effectiveness and transparency of the PFM system. Specifically, the GOM needs to work towards addressing the lack of alignment of expenditures and revenue outputs with the originally approved budget, the poor quality of cash flow forecast, and the unpredictability in availability of funds, all of which have weakened budget credibility and diminished public policy effectiveness. Hence, to address such issues and overcome the challenges, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) wants to refine the PFM Reform Strategy and implement the strategy successfully. 

B. OBJECTIVE OF THE ASSIGNMENT 

The main objectives of this assignment are to support the MOF in i) getting the PEFA assessment carried out; ii) refining the PFM Reform Strategy informed by the PEFA findings; iii) implementing the strategy and the associated action plan; and iv) advancing the monitoring and evaluation as well as reporting practices for the PFM strategy. 

C. SCOPE OF THE ASSIGNMENT

Key responsibilities under this assignment will include the following tasks and duties:

i. Act as a liaison and support the GOM in getting the PEFA assessment carried out:

• Review the PEFA 2011 and 2016 frameworks and the associated guidance documents, the previous PEFA report for Mongolia and other related publications;
• Assist in all phases of the standard assessment processes:
• Assist in organizing meetings, trainings and workshops prior to and/or at the commencement of the field work phase of the assessment;
• Liaise with the PEFA assessment team and consultants (international and local) in obtaining the required data and information from the relevant divisions and departments of the MOF; and
• Translate related documents as necessary.

ii. Support refinement of the PFM Reform Strategy (taking into consideration the PEFA assessment findings):

• Support the international consultant and the local senior PFM consultant in refining the Strategy through coordinating with the relevant divisions and departments; and collecting and consolidating all related inputs from them;
• Organize and participate in all logistical activities for missions, workshops, video conferences and meetings on the PFM Reform Strategy and action plan;
• Support the international consultant and the local senior PFM consultant in reviewing findings of the PEFA and the implementation progress reports, incorporating them into the PFM action plan, and finalizing the refined plan;
• Support in all stages of the approval/adoption processes of the refined action plan; and
• Translate related documents as necessary.

iii. Support implementation of the PFM Reform Strategy:

• Liaise with the relevant divisions and departments on the PFM Reform Strategy and the refined action plan implementation;
• Provide backstopping technical support to the relevant divisions and departments and the local senior PFM consultant of the Budget Expenditure Division in implementing the activities of the refined action plan;
• Collect and review inputs from relevant divisions and departments to provide feedback on the implementation progress and advise on next steps;
• Maintain a continuous dialogue with the relevant divisions and departments within the MOF (primarily the Budget Expenditure Division of the Fiscal Policy and Planning Department) as well as with other relevant stakeholders including the World bank and the EU; and
• Translate related documents as necessary;

iv. Support the PFM Senior consultant in advancing the monitoring and evaluation practices for the PFM strategy:

• Develop a comprehensive methodology and system for monitoring progress of the planned activities, and evaluation of the Strategy, including the design and information requirements for the evaluation; 
• Assist in implementing the methodology for monitoring of the implementation of the annual PFM action plan and modifying the methodology as needed; and
• Maintain good coordination and cooperate closely with the senior PFM consultant, and support in the preparation of interim/periodic progress reports and annual reports and organization of any related events/meetings.

v. Any other tasks as reasonably requested by the client as they pertain to the PFM Reform Strategy and the action plan.

D. DELIVERABLES:

The National Consultant will be required to provide the following deliverables:

1. The refined PFM action plan approved; 
2. Periodic progress reports on the technical backstopping support provided to implementation of the action plan;
3. Comprehensive methodology developed and implemented for M&E on the implementation of the PFM Strategy and action plan; 
4. Periodic progress reports and M&E reports for the PFM reform action plan;
5. Reports and notes on missions, workshops, video conferences and meetings organized concerning the PFM strategy and the action plan; and
6. Translated documents.

E. CONSULTANT’S QUALIFICATIONS/ SELECTION CRITERIA

Education: A suitable candidate should have a bachelor’s degree in a relevant field: finance, economics, business administration, public management or a relevant discipline;

Experience: Candidate should have at least three years of professional work experience including experience and knowledge in the areas of PFM;

Language skills: Fluent written and spoken skills in English;

Computer literacy: Be proficient in MS Office such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint, and have preferably skills for excellent web research and navigation skills; and

Excellent analytical, organizational, communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to function effectively and collaboratively in a team environment; high integrity and accountability.

F. SUPERVISION AND REPORTING

The consultant will work with the designated staff of the Expenditure Division of Fiscal Policy and Planning Department of the MOF, as well as other relevant MOF/government officials and consultants under the supervision of the General-Director of the Fiscal Policy and Planning Department. The designated official will communicate regularly with the consultant to review progress with the work program and to resolve any outstanding issues;

The consultant should submit weekly work plans and monthly progress reports with the relevant supporting documents/deliverables included under Section D to report on the progress of the assignment; and

All information provided to the consultant will be regarded as confidential and should not be shared with outside individuals or organizations without prior consent of the Client. 

G. INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS

The client will provide an office space, assign the officials to accept deliverables stated in the contract and provide all necessary materials required for undertaking the assignment. The consultant shall bring his/her own computer/laptop.

H. CONTRACT DURATION

The consultant's work is expected to commence in December 2020 with a total duration of 12 months.

The consultant will be selected in accordance with INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT SELECTION METHOD, the World Bank’s Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers (July 2016).

If you possess the above qualifications, please submit following documents via email to procurement_sgm@sffs.mn:

    1. Cover letter indicating why she/he considers her/himself suitable for the position,

    2. Detailed CV highlighting relevant skills/experience,

    3. Copy of diplomas or certificates and,

    4. 2 reference letters from previous last two employers no later than 17:00, December 22, 2020.

The submitted documents will not be returned to the applicants. Please note that incomplete applications would not be considered for evaluation. Only selected candidates will be contacted. Candidates can be interviewed. Detailed terms of reference can be requested from procurement_sgm@sffs.mn Contact address: Attn: Ms.Oyunyam, Procurement Specialist, Strengthening Governance in Mongolia Project.

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