Purpose of Activity/Assignment:
This individual consultancy provides End-of-Project Public Financial Management (PFM) Technical Assistance (TA) to the Administration of Education, Abyei Administrative Area, following a 12 months’ PFM TA support delivered to Abyei Civil Servants by the Inter-Governmental Fiscal Relations (of the Ministry of Finance) and UNICEF in 2023.

The consultancy will also help UNICEF and Ministry of Finance appraise the Abyei PFM project.
Background & Rationale:
The UNICEF (2023-2025) County Programme Cycle is anchored on the 2023-2025 South Sudan United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF). The programme contributes to the four UNSDCF outcomes of governance, economic development, social services and social protection, and empowerment of women and youth. The programme is based on the Theory of Change of the UNDSDCF and is aligned to South Sudan’s Revised National Development Strategy 2021-2024, South Sudan 2040 Vision Document, the UNICEF Strategic Plan 2022-2025, and the Gender Action Plan 3.

The UNICEF South Sudan programme thus seeks to ensure all children, including adolescents and women, particularly the most vulnerable, are safer and enjoy their rights, with systems strengthened to ensure they have access to high quality and resilient services. The humanitarian component of the programme seeks to ensure assistance and development cooperation address the structural causes of fragility and vulnerability.

The operating environment however remains complex and characterized by insecurity and political instability. The structure of the programme is an adaptation of the UNICEF global key programme outcome areas.

One of the outcome areas of the country programme is Social Inclusion (SI) which partly promotes UNICEF’s global mandate on public financial management through the UNICEF public finance for children (PF4C) programme. The overall objective of SSCO PF4C programme is to influence the mobilization, allocation, and utilization of domestic and public financial resources for children in South Sudan. These resources include general revenues, on-budget overseas development assistance and private sector finances. The SSCO SI programme supports Government of South Sudan and partners in budget monitoring and analysis, evidence generation, PF4C awareness activities and public participation in budgetary processes.

In 2023, UNICEF initiated a PFM support for Abyei Administrative Area.

The support focuses on basic aspects of Public Financial Management (PFM) pertained to planning, reporting, monitoring, and accounting. The Technical Assistance (TA) also entails direct on-the-job and one-to-one support through a dedicated human capacity support from both UNICEF and the Inter-Governmental Fiscal Relations Unit of the Budget & Revenue Directorate of National Ministry of Finance and Planning (MoFP), guided and led by the State Monitoring Transfer Committee housed in the MoFP. The project also covers other PFM aspects pertained to oversight, budget transparency and evidence generation, covering Juba and the Abyei Administrative Area.

Scope of Work:
This individual consultancy will help Ministry of Education Abyei and the CTMC members receive critical PFM end-of- project technical assistance, building on the 12 months PFM technical support delivered by the Inter-Governmental Fiscal Relations (of the Ministry of Finance), UNDP and UNICEF.

The consultancy will also help Government appraise the PFM support provided in Abyei in 2023 through Norway support, and further ensure Abyei PFM evidence is generated, and all critical Abyei budget documents uploaded onto the MoFP-supported PFM Dashboard.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

Under the direct supervision of the Social Policy Specialist, the consultant will undertake the followings:
a) Lead the holding of three End-Project PFM trainings, specifically for the Ministry of Education and the CTMC members, covering budget planning, execution, and reporting, with focus on the chart of accounts and related PFM themes across the budget cycle.

b) Ensure Abyei Budget Documents are generated and uploaded onto Ministry of Finance Website (PFM Dashboard).

c) Appraised the PFM support provided in Abyei in 2023, with focus on budget preparation and planning processes, the phased budget reporting capacity initiative, the oversight functions of the CMT and SMT, and the capacity building initiative through the dedicated on-the-job delivered by the Inter-Governmental Fiscal Relations (IGFR) Section.

Background documents will be provided to the consultant to familiarize himself/herself with the PFM/PF4C and development context of South Sudan, with focus on Abyei.

Deliverables
1.

A succinct report (max 20 pages) on the budget preparation and planning workshops (and related processes) held in Abyei Administrative Area. The report should include details on orientation
events to civil servants on budget ceilings
Deliverable 1: A concise report (max 20 pages) on budget workshops in Abyei, covering orientation on budget Four weeks (20 days) Delivered by Wednesday, 02 October 2024 (29%) upon completion of deliverable 1 and budget circulars, and aspects pertained to Abyei budget books generated using the State Budget Preparatory Systems of the Ministry of Finance.

This should not be more than
twenty pages. ceilings, circulars, and Abyei’s budget books.

2. A detailed assessment report on the ‘phased’ budget reporting capacity initiative implemented by the Inter- Governmental Fiscal Relations, UNDP, and UNICEF in the 2023. This is a synthesis report with detailed findings and associated recommendations.
Deliverable 2: Detailed synthesis report on phased budget reporting capacity initiative by Inter-Governmental Fiscal Relations, UNDP, UNICEF in 2023. Three weeks (15 days) Delivered by Friday, 01
November 2024 (24%) upon completion of deliverable 2

3.

A max 20-pager report on the State and Deliverable 3: Report 4 weeks (20 days) (26%) upon
County Transfer Monitoring Committee (max 20 pages) on 2023 Delivered by completion of
visits conducted in Abyei Administrative visits to Abyei counties Friday, 06 deliverable 3)
Area in 2023. The task entails holding of and sub-locations, December 2024
visits to the four counties of Abyei and focusing on education related all second subnational geographic sector capacity building .locations wherein oversight and capacity
building activities for lower-level PFM cadres from social sector institutions were
implemented, with focus on Ministry of Education.

4.

Hold three Focus Group Discussions Deliverable 4: Detailed Three weeks (21%) upon
with civil servants on the ‘dedicated’ PFM capacity building activity delivered Report (audio and transcription included) on the three Focus Group Discussions (15days)
Delivered by completion of deliverable 4) through the ‘on-the-job’ with civil servants on Monday, 29 days coaching/mentorship for a select critical 2023 PFM capacity December 2024 PFM cadres (maximum 6 from each) in the building. Ministries of Education and Finance in 2023.

Qualifications required:

• Master’s degree in economics or social Science
• 5 years’ experience in PFM, with concentration on PF4C
• Additional 3 years of relevant experience in lieu of a
master’s degree.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Excellent written and spoken English is required.