Democracy and Governance (DG) Specialist

USAID/Nepal Democracy and Governance Office

Position Description

  1. Background

Since the U.S. Government first began providing development assistance to Nepal in 1951, poverty has been drastically reduced; yet as of 2011, approximately 25 percent of the population still lived below the international poverty line of $1.25 per day. Roads, hospitals, schools, and drinking water systems have been built. Fertility and infant mortality have decreased, life expectancy has doubled, and natural resource management has markedly improved. Primary school enrollment and total adult literacy rates have risen significantly. Yet despite these improvements, many challenges persist.

Nepal’s wide range of physical and social diversity, including its marked spatial variation in resources, has created and perpetuated disparities in the population’s living conditions. The country of 27.5 million has 125 caste and ethnic groups (including two unidentified groups), speaking 92 languages. Caste, ethnicity, language, and religion remain the major sources of cultural identity.

The Government of Nepal’s (GON) commitment to greater inclusion and economic empowerments is recorded in the 2006 Comprehensive Peace Accord, which abolished the monarchy and ended the second people’s movement. In this new democratic era – following the election of a second Constituent Assembly – Nepal faces the challenge of improving government effectiveness, representation, and inclusion in order to improve its human development and reduce its poverty.

Poor governance, however, is cited by the Global Competitiveness Report 2013-2014 as the major factor inhibiting economic growth in Nepal.Institutional weaknesses in legislative, policy-making, and regulatory bodies, coupled with political infighting and rent-seeking, undermine Nepal’s economic potential. The World Economic Forum’s 2013-14 Global Competitiveness Index ranks Nepal 117 out of 144 nations due to instability, corruption, and an inefficient bureaucracy. Improving the GON’s ability to formulate and achieve policy objectives and deliver basic services is the most direct path to sustained alleviation of the extreme poverty that affects 25 percent of the population.

The challenge of including traditionally marginalizedpeople in the political process while improving government responsiveness to their demands permeates GON ministries, civil society, and private sector organizations across all sectors in which USAID works. Addressing this challenge is critical to Nepal’s future stability. Likewise, new and renewed institutions require substantial support to meet their mandates. During the life of USAID’s new strategy (2014-2019) independent commissions, a new Constitutional Assembly, judicial actors, and elected local government bodies are amongst the key democratic institutions to be strengthened for them to better address public needs and to bring legitimacy and support to the country’s democracy.

  1. Basic Function of the Position

The incumbent will serve as a DG Specialist in USAID/Nepal’s DGO and work towards the successful coordination, implementation and monitoring of the Mission’s strategy and supporting programs. This is a mid-level position requiring technical and analytical abilities combined with excellent interpersonal and communication skills. DGO seeks a candidate with a proven track record in design and implementation in a range of DG and peace building activities. The incumbent should have experience in Nepal or be familiar with the economic, social and political dynamics of Nepalese society.

The incumbent will have management responsibility for designed activities within the DGO portfolio as well as coordination responsibilities between USAID/Nepal Offices as well as donor and government partners. The incumbent will report to the DGO Director.

The current DGO portfolio is comprised of assistance to support the current Country Development Cooperation Strategy’s primary development objective for “more inclusive and effective governance.” Programs under DGO’s management and other Office management will contribute to the following intermediate results:

1.1Peaceful political environment sustained

1.2Accountability of institutions strengthened

1.3Civic participation and advocacy increased

1.4Public policy and performance improved

To support results 1.1-1.4, the incumbent must be flexible, proactive, and engaging in order to coordinate DGO efforts with those of other USAID Office’s programs and track joint progress and results.

  1. Duties and Responsibilities

Technical analysis and report writing (30%): Participate in the ongoing implementation and new, long-term strategic plan, including planning and contributing to required analyses. Assist in analyzing the current political situation in Nepal and provide regular input for various reporting requirements. Participate in the development of concept papers and activity design and approval documents for activities. Participate in the preparation/refinement of performance management plans for ongoing and new activities. Assess program impact and reports on progress, including preparing annual reports. In coordination with the Development Outreach Coordinator, assist in developing a standard information package on the DGO portfolio for briefings and distribution (materials include scene setters, program briefing papers, status reports, maps, photos, donor and country information). Perform other duties as assigned by the DGO Director.

Liaison and Communications (30%): Coordinate and communicate DGO efforts with those of other USAID Office’s programs in order to track joint progress and results in support of the Mission’s strategy. Alternating with DGO Director, represent DGO in meetings with USG and GON officials, donor representatives, and other interested parties in connection with program planning and implementation. Attend donor coordination meetings and maintain up-to-date information on other donors’ activities in the DG sector. Participate actively in conferences, meetings, hearings or presentations involving problems or issues of considerable consequence and maintain regular communications. The incumbent may be called upon to work in close coordination with other US Mission personnel, including (but not limited to) USIAD’s Office of Program and Project Development, and representatives from the Department of State, Department of Defense and other USG agencies at post. Close work with implementing partners as relates to performance monitoring and reporting is required. Collaboration with other donors, particularly the European Union, DANIDA, DFID, Norway, UNDP, etc., will be required.

Program management (20%): Assist in the development, implementation and management of activities. Serve as the Contracting/Agreement Officer’s Representative for contracts and/or grants, which includes providing technical direction and administrative approvals to ensure successful implementation of activities. Prepare procurement request documents, statements of work, program descriptions, pipeline analysis and budgets for ongoing and planned activities. Monitor accomplishments against annual work plans and performance measurement targets. Facilitate and participate in field visits.

Team Member (20%):Actively participate as a member of the DGO.Provide expert advice to professional and technical staff of the extended DGO team. Coordinate with DGO and DG objective contributors in reporting tasks and outreach activities. Review and edit documents to improve English grammar and clarity of expression for the DGO team’s outgoing and internal communication. Supplement and/or cover for other DGO members when on leave or unavailable. Perform other tasks as assigned by the DGO Director.

  1. Requirements and Preferred Qualifications

The successful applicant will meet or exceed each criterion below:

Education: The incumbent must have a Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant subject. However, a Master’s Degree or higher in any of the related fields such as public policy, public administration, political science, law, human rights, or conflict mitigation will be prioritized.

Experience: The successful candidate is required to have 5-7 years of progressively responsible experience in any of the following fields: public policy, public financial management, political processes, civil society, governance, human rights, rule of law, or conflict mitigation. Experience working in Nepal is preferred.

Knowledge and Abilities: The incumbent must demonstrate knowledge of democracy and governance principles as demonstrated through previous program design, implementation, and monitoring within a related democracy and governance field. The incumbent must exercise good judgment with regard to information sharing and protection as demonstrated through past assignments. The incumbent must show flexibility, the ability to meet short deadlines, and show positive collaboration as demonstrated through past performance and reference checks.

Skills: The successful candidate is required to have excellent communication and interpersonal skills as demonstrated through their application, writing samples, and, if selected for an interview, their written exam.

Language Proficiency: Excellent written and oral English language proficiency is required. Some knowledge of Nepali is desirable.

  1. Position Elements

Supervision Received: The incumbent will report to the DGO Director.

Travel: The incumbent will travel on a periodic basis within Nepal to monitor and evaluate USAID-funded activities. The incumbent will be required to attend training held outside Nepal. Approved professional travel to perform the duties of DGO or the Mission will be paid for by USAID.

Available Guidelines: The incumbent will use available guidelines on including the USAID Automated Directives System (ADS), DG Technical Handbooks to assess, manage and monitor DG sector activities, as well as other USAID resources. Upon commencement of work, the incumbent will read USAID/Nepal’spolicies, Country Development Cooperation Strategy,Mission Orders, and DGO-related background documents.

Exercise of Judgment:Securing procurement sensitive information, the incumbent will exercise good judgment on a broad range of areas related to the DGO portfolio.

Authority to Make Commitment: The incumbent will have no unilateral authority to make commitments using USG financial, technical, or personnel resources.

Nature, Level, and Purpose of Contracts: The incumbent will maintain a range of mid-level contracts with GON, USG Mission in Nepal, USAID/Washington, locally represented international donor organizations, international and local NGOs working in the DG sector.

Period of Performance: The incumbent will enter into a two year contract with the possibility of extension.

Supervision Exercised: The incumbent will not supervise other DGO personnel.