Background and context

Supporting anti-corruption efforts in Ukraine is a high political priority for the European Union and Denmark. By combating corruption, the Program contributes to the consolidation of democracy and economic growth of Ukraine, as well as the successful approximation of Ukraine with the EU. 

The topic of reconstruction aid and integrity is one of the key activities of the program, both at the national and local levels and across the components of the EUACI. The Government of Ukraine is the key counterpart of the EUACI in this area.

The State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine (created by means of merge of the State Agency for Infrastructure Projects and the State Agency for Automobile Roads of Ukraine) was created (hereinafter – the Agency) under the Ministry for Restoration. Its task is to directly manage and oversee implementation of selected recovery projects, while the Ministry is tasked to develop relevant policy and oversee its implementation.

To support the Ukrainian government’s efforts to effectively manage the process of the war-time reconstruction and post-war recovery and to ensure that transparency and integrity considerations are taken into account, the EUACI has engaged with the Ministry for Restoration to establish the compact Integrity Support Group (ISG) consisting of several experts fully embedded into the Ministry work. The Agency has its Capacity Building Office (CBO) consisting of consultants and experts supported by international organizations and donors.

Given that all funds for reconstruction will be used through certain procurement procedures, and since construction projects are among the most complex forms of contracts, building an effective, competitive, and transparent procurement process for reconstruction is one of the key tasks of the Agency’s anti-corruption program. This task is made more difficult by the fact that historically, in recent years, the greatest corruption risks in the public sector have been observed in public procurement. As a part of the CBO, the EUACI has been requested to provide a Senior Public Procurement Expert will work and coordinate the work of other experts for providing the enhancement of procurements for territorial bodies of the Agency called Regional Offices for Restoration (RORs), The previous EUACI and The Agency cooperation in the field of analyzing and enhancing the procurements procedures for RORs is successful.

Objective:

The assignment’s main objective is to elaborate, support and oversee effective procurement processes to minimize corruption risks, including through centralization and standardization, as well as to build capacity within the Agency. Both at the national level as well as at the Agency’s Regional Offices for Restoration (hereinafter – ROR).

Scope of work

Scope of work contains several main directions

1. Procurement Strategy Development and Implementation to minimize corruption risks

• Design a comprehensive procurement strategy, including procurement control mechanisms for the Agency and the ROR`s that aligns with project goals and according to the new Law on Procurements and international best practices.
• Identify gaps in current procurement processes and introduce measures to address these, ensuring that each stage of the procurement cycle (planning, sourcing, execution, and monitoring) operates efficiently
• Create detailed guidelines, workflows, and templates to standardize procurement documentation and processes.
• Conduct risk assessments to identify and mitigate procurement vulnerabilities, ensuring resilience against fraud and other irregularities.
• Provide propositions for further development of the Risk Monitoring and Management system for procurement for the Agency and the RORs.
• Coordination and monitoring of processes for the implementation and using IT tools for risk monitoring of procurements.

2. Capacity Building

• Directly oversee the procurement enhancement team of experts, setting performance targets and delivering actionable feedback.
• Facilitate the team of procurement experts by organizing planning, meetings and coordination of work.
• Develop a mentorship program for capacity building and facilitate knowledge transfer for RORs officials and within the Agency procurement team (in cooperation with the EUACI Methodology and training expert for procurements).
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement by encouraging team members to share insights and innovations for process optimization.

3. Internal public procurement policy development

• Facilitate the team of procurement experts to provide analysis, propositions and draft documents for internal policies and guidelines.
• Partner with legal experts, policymakers, and industry stakeholders to draft amendments to internal procurement policies that reflect best integrity practices.
• Lead initiatives for the adoption of sustainable and socially responsible procurement policies, aligned with Ukraine’s recovery and development goals.
• Represent the Agency in discussions and working groups with government bodies, NGOs, and international partners to advocate for improved procurement standards and practices. 
• Coordinate with and assist EU stakeholders in their related work with the Agency.

4.  Standardize and centralize the procurement process in the Agency and Regional Offices for Restoration

• Work on the concept of Central Procurement Office (CPO) concept and develop a project plan and timeline to ensure alignment with Agency’s strategic goals.
• Coordinate with relevant stakeholders to gather requirements, design the CPO’s operational structure, and set up necessary technology infrastructure.
• Define the CPO’s scope of work, operational processes, and performance standards, focusing on centralized purchasing to optimize resources and reduce corruption risks.
• Develop and implement performance monitoring and reporting tools for the procurement process to track progress and continuously improve processes.
• Review of procurement procedures for the RORs.

Expected deliverables:

• Work plan with timelines.
• Comprehensive Procurement Framework Document: including guidelines, templates, risk assessment tools, and monitoring protocols.
• Monthly Reports: Summarizing team performance, procurement process improvements, and CPO implementation progress.
• Central Procurement Organization Blueprint: A detailed plan and roadmap covering the establishment, staffing, and operational strategies of the CPO.

The Deliverables are presented below in Table 1 with a tentative schedule. All results are expected to be provided in the Ukrainian language but summary and recommendations of the final report should also be in an English translation. Electronic copies are to be sent by email to the particular EUACI contact person. 

Table 1: Summary of deliverables/outputs and the tentative timeline for delivery

The timelines indicated in the table above are indicative. The Consultant will reflect on and update the timelines for different activities while preparing and updating the Consultant’s work plan. Other deliverables are agreed upon with the Agency and EUACI. 

Timeline

The intended commencement date is the date of signature of the contract with the consultant and the period of implementation of the contract will be 8 months, with a duration of up to 180 working days. 

Requirements to the Service Provider

The contract will be awarded to an expert meeting the following criteria: 

General qualifications: 

1. a minimum of a Master’s or Specialist’s degree in economics, finance, construction, engineering, or a similar field is required, 
2. professional construction or project certification will be an asset,
3. additional education or training in public procurement will be an asset, 
4. experience in the construction industry and project management, conducting corruption and/or managerial risks assessments,
5. experience in public procurement,
6. experience in monitoring/implementing of the Anti-corruption program implementation for the state and private sectors will be an asset,
7. excellent written and oral communication skills,
8. fluency in Ukrainian and good knowledge of English is required; 

Adequacy for the assignment:

1. a minimum of 10 years of professional experience working with construction projects, including tender and procurement procedures, as well as budget planning, cost optimization, and contract execution supervision;
2. proven experience in cooperation with stakeholders in the national government, local self-government, development partners, state enterprises, public contracting authorities, and civil society;
3. professional experience in public procurement is regarded as an asset;
4. professional experience in procurement category strategy implementation is regarded as an asset.

The expert is expected to work from the premises of the Agency for Restoration.

Monitoring and evaluation:

Definition of indicators

The performance of the contractor will be judged upon reaching the purpose of this contract as well as obtaining its results, as indicated in the sections “Objective” and “Expected Deliverables” herein respectively. 

Special requirements

By signing the contract, the contractor (and its representatives) agree to hold in trust and confidence any information or documents (“confidential information”), disclosed to the contractor or discovered by the contractor or prepared by the contractor in the course of or as a result of the implementation of the contract and agrees that it shall be used only for the purposes of the contract implementation and shall not be disclosed to any third party without EUACI authorization.

The contractor reports to the deputy head of the Agency and EUACI. The contractor shall de-brief the EUACI prior to finalizing the assignment. 

Bidding details

The bidder must submit the following information to be considered:

1. The CV (no more than three pages long).
2. A portfolio that includes a list of assignments similar to this project executed in the last five years.
3. A budget for the services in EUR, inclusive of all taxes or other such charges with a calculation of 180 working days.

The contract budget cannot exceed 32,400 euros (including all operational and business trip expenditures).

How to apply

The deadline for submitting the proposals is 6 December 2024, 18:00 Kyiv time. 

The proposals shall be submitted within the above deadline to [email protected] and [email protected], indicating the subject line “Senior Procurement Expert for Agency”.

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Bidding language: English 

Any clarification questions for the bid request should be addressed to [email protected], no later than 29 November 2024, 18:00 Kyiv time.

Evaluation criteria

Bids will be evaluated under the criteria provided below: