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National IT Infrastructure Analyst (EDMITE II).

Vacancy Number: Pr21/02222

Location:	Chisinau, Moldova
Application Deadline:	14 May 2021, 16:30 (GMT+2:00)
Application Extended deadline:	21 May 2021, 16:30 (GMT+2:00)
Type of Contract:	Individual Contract
Starting date:	25 May 2021
Reference to the project:	Enhancing Democracy in Moldova through Inclusive and Transparent Elections
Expected Duration of Assignment:	June - July (up to 35 working days)
Supporting Documents: Terms of Reference Individual Consultant Procurement Notice P11_Form_UNDP OFFEROR’S LETTER TO UNDP CONFIRMING INTEREST AND AVAILABILITY FOR THE INDIVIDUAL CONTRACTOR (IC) ASSIGNMENT UNDP General Conditions of Individual Contract

Ms. Eva Bounegru.

Background

Electoral support and capacity development are part of UNDP’s democratic governance assistance worldwide, through which UNDP helps nations build democratic frameworks to improve representation, accountability, and transparency for the benefit of citizens.

UNDP has a long-standing partnership with the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) aiming at advancing the democratic electoral processes in Moldova by consolidating the transparency and efficiency of elections’ management, modernization of electoral IT solutions and enhancing the inclusiveness and participation of voters. This partnership, which spans over 10 years, resulted in the establishment of a strong professional institution, development of a modern State Automated Information System “Elections” (SAISE), the enhancement of the State Register of Voters’ accuracy and the design and implementation of effective long-term civic and voter education instruments.

Since 2017, the Project "Enhancing democracy in Moldova through inclusive and transparent elections” supports the Central Electoral Commission to enhance the transparency and inclusiveness of the electoral process in Moldova by ensuring a more independent and credible electoral administration and better informed and pro-active citizens. With the continuous UNDP assistance, the CEC demonstrated a high capacity of carrying out transparent, safe and “well-administered” elections (as attested by OSCE/ODIHR Observation Mission) throughout challenging electoral cycles, particularly the 2020 Presidential Elections, organized in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Building on the sustainable results achieved during its first phase of implementation (2017 – 2020), the objectives of the current Project phase (2020 – 2023) are:

• Enhance the inclusiveness of the electoral process by increasing the functional and technical capacities of the State Automated Information System “Elections” (SAISE);
• Enhance the political participation of citizens by setting up and implementing the voters’ information and civic education programmes;
• Strengthen the capacity for effective and coherent oversight and monitoring on political party financing;
• Improve the legal and regulatory framework to respond to the EOM recommendations.

Since 2014, UNDP’s support for the CEC informational ecosystem was aimed at enhancing IT structures and processes, particularly of the Commission’s core informational platform for elections management - SAISE. During each election, the CEC and UNDP have come up with new useful tools for voters and electoral officials, but also for a smooth running of the electoral process. The long-term strategic IT expertise, provided by the Project, contributed to the expansion of the SAISE, currently a complex system with multiple modules responsible for most electoral processes, ranging from the pre-registration of voters, operation of the polling stations and aggregation of election results.

In the context of the early 2021 Parliamentary Elections, the Project shall offer specialized support to the CEC for enhancing and testing the SAISE’s IT infrastructure, as well as ensuring its connectivity with key national data registers - as to increase the performance and security of the IT electoral administration.

Scope of work

UNDP intends to contract an experienced National IT Infrastructure Analyst for elections (hereinafter “the Consultant”) to offer specialized IT development support and advisory to the IT and Management of Voters’ Lists Department of the Central Electoral Commission. More specifically, the Consultant is expected to assist the Central Electoral Commission in assessing, adjusting, and administrating the SAISE infrastructure and data interoperability framework, in the context of the early 2021 Parliamentary Elections. Namely, the Consultant shall have the following responsibilities:

• Provide technical expertise and guidance to the IT and Management of Voters’ Lists Department of the Central Electoral Commission, in the context of the early 2021 Parliamentary Elections;
• Plan and facilitate the implementation of the recommendations derived from the load and stress testing of the SAISE; and
• Assist CEC in the collaboration with the members of the Electoral Working Groups (at the technical level), including the e-Government Agency and the Information Technology and Cyber Security Service as to ensure a secure and operational election infrastructure.

For detailed information, please refer to Annex 1 – Terms of Reference.

Requirements for experience

Academic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Information and Communication Technologies or another IT related field.

Experience and knowledge:

• Minimum six (6) years of experience in the analysis, planning, design, implementation, and maintenance of information systems (please provide relevant details in the proposal);
• Proven experience in managing and maintaining at least three (3) ICT infrastructure projects;
• At least three (3) years of professional experience in working with ICT-based electoral systems;
• Previous professional experience in elections area will be considered as an advantage;
• Previous professional experience in working with international organizations, including UN Agencies, will be an advantage.

Competencies:

• Proven ability to ensure the security of governmental ICT infrastructure;
• Strong understanding of the ISO/CEI 27001 information security standard;
• Strong understanding of the electoral security infrastructure;
• Demonstrated interpersonal and diplomatic skills, as well as the ability to communicate effectively with all stakeholders and to present ideas clearly;
• Excellent analytical and management skills;
• Fluency in Romanian and English languages (verbal and written) is a must. Knowledge of Russian will be considered as an advantage.

Personal qualities:

• Proven commitment to the core values of the United Nations, in particular, respecting differences of culture, gender, religion, ethnicity, nationality, language, age, HIV status, disability, and sexual orientation, or other status;
• Responsibility, flexibility and punctuality, ability to meet deadlines and prioritize multiple tasks.

The UNDP Moldova is committed to workforce diversity. Women, persons with disabilities, Roma and other ethnic or religious minorities, persons living with HIV, as well as refugees and other non-citizens legally entitled to work in the Republic of Moldova, are particularly encouraged to apply.

Documents to be included

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/ information to demonstrate their qualifications:

• Offeror's Letter confirming interest and availability;
• Technical proposal (incl. brief description of experience, approach and methodology for the completion of the assignment);
• Financial proposal (in USD) specifying a total lump sum requested for the assignment specified in the Terms of Reference;
• Duly completed personal CV and at least 3 references.

Financial proposal

The financial proposal shall include a breakdown of the lump sum amount (daily rate and number of anticipated working days).

Travel

Travel is not envisaged in the framework of the current assignment.