Senior Consultants (Aid Effectiveness in Education)

OVERVIEW

Parent Sector : Education Sector (ED)

Duty Station: Paris

Classification of duty station: [[filter12]]

Standard Duration of Assignement : [[filter13]]

Job Family: Education

Type of contract : Non Staff

Duration of contract : From 1 to 6 months

Recruitment open to : External candidates

Application Deadline (Midnight Paris Time) : 05-FEB-2025

UNESCO Core Values: Commitment to the Organization, Integrity, Respect for Diversity, Professionalism

OVERVIEW OF THE FUNCTIONS OF THE POST

As the only specialized semi-autonomous organization with the mandate to support educational policy, planning and management, the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) plays a unique role within the United Nations system. IIEP was established in 1963 as an integral part of UNESCO. It supports ministries of education around the world and other key actors to plan and manage education systems through its programmes of training, technical assistance, policy research and knowledge sharing. The Institute launched its new Medium-Term Strategy (2022-2024) in December 2021. IIEP draws on core and project funding to achieve its goals and objectives.

Long Description

1. Context

IIEP, in direct partnership with Agence Française de Développement and Global Partnership for Education, is undertaking a comprehensive review of the implementation of the Paris Declaration principles in the education sector over the past twenty years (2005-2025). This review comes at a critical juncture when education financing faces severe constraints, yet the principles of aid effectiveness remain highly relevant to today's development challenges, particularly in the education sector. The study aims to examine how the Paris Declaration's principles of aid effectiveness have been implemented in the education sector, identify good practices, analyze obstacles encountered, and explore their relevance for emerging financing instruments. A key component of this report involves conducting detailed country case studies to provide empirical evidence on the implementation of aid effectiveness principles in different contexts. The country case studies represent the original research element of the global report. Their value lies in examining the gap between aid effectiveness principles and actual practices, looking at the education sector holistically rather than focusing on individual projects or programs. The case studies will cover key policy-oriented topics examining the evolution of education financing approaches, coordination mechanisms, and alignment with national systems over the 2005-2024 period.

Long Description

2. About the consultancy

To support this important endeavor, IIEP-UNESCO is seeking to engage qualified senior consultants who will assist in conducting one or several case studies.

Each consultant will work under the direct supervision of IIEP and in close collaboration with other consultants to ensure methodological consistency. The consultancy will require both desk-based research and primary data collection, including conducting interviews with key stakeholders from ministries of education, ministries of finance, development partners, and civil society organizations. Where relevant, field missions could be carried out.

While the final scope of each case studies (including focus countries) will be discussed and finalized with the consultants, the topics below have already been identified as of particular interest to the report.

• Historical reconstruction of alignment and harmonization practices by identifying the effects of these practices and their potential impact on the achievement of the education sector's objectives. This study will also bring out the perspective and analysis of officials in the countries benefiting from cooperation programmes. At least two focus countries will be selected for this topic.
• Aid effectiveness challenges in emergency contexts, documenting lessons learned on the implementation of the principles of alignment and harmonization in fragile and emergency-affected contexts.

Long Description

• Use of national systems by innovative financing mechanisms in the education sector, by studying the implementation of innovative financing, focusing on their potential (or lack of) capacities of for strengthening national systems rather than weakening them.
• Crowding-out effect of budget support on national education spending, by studying the impact of budget support on national education spending to provide new evidence on the issue of crowding-out effect, not in terms of crowding out domestic revenues, but regarding the absence or presence of additionality of budget support in the education spending due to the fungible nature of budget support.
• Public Financial Management (PFM) capabilities of ministries of Education in partner countries. PFM capabilities are crucial for delivering quality educational services and transforming education systems at scale. However, when ministries of education struggle with basic PFM functions like budget execution, procurement, and financial reporting, donors often become hesitant to use national systems. This creates a cycle where weak PFM capacity leads to donors bypassing national systems, which in turn prevents strengthening those same systems. The aim of the study will be to document a limited number of concrete cases to identify promising practices, including in fragile countries.

These case studies will mobilize several analytical tools and approaches including a political economy lens, quantitative data analyses and semi-structured interviews with key informants.  

COMPETENCIES (Core / Managerial)

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REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

• Advanced degree (Master’s minimum) in economics / political science / international development/ public financial management, or related fields.

Professional Experience

• Minimum 10 years of experience in international development, public financial management or education economics with specific expertise in education sector financing.
• Experience working with both Ministries of Finance and Education.

Competencies

• Demonstrated understanding of education sector planning and budgeting processes.
• Strong knowledge of international cooperation and development financing instruments and mechanisms.
• Excellent policy research and analytical skills, including quantitative analytical skills, as shown by prior substantive contributions to policy reports and/or academic publications.
• Strong interview and stakeholder engagement capabilities.
• Excellent drafting skills, including the ability to translate data insights into simple narrative/papers.

Language

• Strong command of English or French (written and spoken).
• The analytical report could be written in either English or French.

3. Deliverables

The consultant will be expected to deliver the following outputs:

• Inception report (5 pages) comprised of a i) detailed methodology, ii) a work plan, iii) interview protocols, and iv) where applicable, country cases selection criteria.
• Draft analytical report (25 pages maximum) comprised of i) initial analytical findings and ii) preliminary recommendations,
• Final report (25 pages maximum) based on stakeholder feedback.

During the elaboration of the case studies, consultants are expected to

• Provide regular progress updates to the IIEP Education Finance Lead.
• Participate in key stakeholder meetings.
• Presentation of findings to relevant stakeholders (IIEP-UNESCO, GPE & AFD).
• Provide all source materials and interview transcripts coded and properly documented.

4. Timeline and Level of Effort

• Total duration: up to 25 working days for a case study
• Expected completion: 31 March 2025
• Breakdown of effort:
  • Inception phase: 5 days
  • Data collection and interviews: 7 days
  • Analysis and draft report: 8 days
  • Stakeholder consultation: 2 days
  • Final report preparation: 3 days

5. Timeframe and supervisory arrangements

This is a part-time contract starting on 10 February 2025 and ending on 31 March 2025.  Up to 25 days will be allocated to each case study. Individual consultant may apply to one of several case studies at once. This consultancy will be remote / home-based, with possibility to work in IIEP office in Paris. He/she will report to the Education Finance Lead.

6. Application Process

Candidates who meet the required qualifications are invited to: i) a technical proposal outlining approach and methodology, ii) a financial proposal, and iii) a CV highlighting relevant experience to consultancytc@iiep.unesco.org by 05 February 2025. The subject line of the email should be "Consultancy: 20 years of Aid Effectiveness in the Education Sector”.

7. Intellectual Property

All materials produced under this consultancy will become the property of the commissioning organization. The consultant will ensure proper attribution of all sources and maintain confidentiality of sensitive information.

Only retained candidates will be contacted.

Payment is conditional on the completion of the monthly tasks as assigned by the lead of the IIEP Education Finance Cluster and the satisfactory submission of the deliverables within the deadlines defined above, unless otherwise agreed with the project leader.

SELECTION AND RECRUITMENT PROCESS

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