Regional Office Vientiane, c/o Mekong River Commission Secretariat P.O. Box: 3802, Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR, Tel/Fax: (856 21) ext 4402

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1 Regional Office Vientiane, c/o Mekong River Commission Secretariat P.O. Box: 3802, Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR, Tel/Fax: (856 21) ext 4402 Terms of Reference for International Consultant Support to the Human Resources Section of the MRC on the review and revision of the existing human resources reform framework 18 March 2015 Project: MRC-GIZ Cooperation Programme Type of service: Short term consultancy Position: International expert Reports to: Chief of Human Resources Section (HRS) of MRCS, and MRC-GIZ Cooperation Programme Duration: A maximum of 12 working days, from April to May 2015 Starting date: Duty station: Home-based and MRCS Office in Vientiane, Lao PDR I. Introduction and background The Mekong River Commission The Mekong River Commission (MRC) was established by the 1995 Agreement on Co-operation for the Sustainable Development of the Mekong River Basin, between the governments of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. In accordance with this Agreement, the mission of the MRC is: To promote and coordinate sustainable management and development of water and related resources for the countries mutual benefit and the people s well-being by implementing strategic programmes and activities and providing scientific information and policy advice. The MRC possesses a three-fold governance structure, consisting of the Council as the highest level decision-making body (at ministerial level), the Joint Committee (JC) and the MRC Secretariat complemented by National Mekong Committees (NMCs) in each MRC Member Country. The MRC Secretariat is the operational arm of the MRC. It provides technical and administrative services to the JC and the Council to achieve the MRC s mission. Since 2010/2011, the MRCS is stationed in two locations, Phnom Penh and Vientiane, with two divisions and associated programmes in each of the offices. The MRC has, since its establishment, realised its mandate through project and programme-based structures assisted by the corporate services units at the MRC Secretariat (MRCS). The implementation of the projects and programmes is usually led by MRCS programme/project teams working with national agencies coordinated by the Secretariats of the National Mekong Committees (NMCs), and mostly funded by donor agencies. The Human Resources Section (HRS) The Human Resources Section (HRS), as one corporate services unit of the MRCS, aims to provide the Secretariat and its teams with modern and efficient human resources management and development 1

2 services. Furthermore it aims to ensure the development of the right skills, competencies, and organisational culture in the MRC to support full implementation of the MRC Strategic Plan, its five-year planning document. The HRS is also responsible for interacting effectively on human resources services with the National Mekong Committees, riparian national agencies, international agencies, and Development Partners. The MRC reform The Mekong River Commission is in the process of organisational and financial transformation to meet the commitments of the 2010 Hua Hin Declaration (which were reaffirmed in the 2014 Ho Chi Minh City Declaration) in downsizing the MRCS structural setup as a result of the current strategy of decentralising the core river basin management functions (CRBMFs) from MRCS to member countries. The move will enhance effectiveness, increase efficiency and strengthen ownership of the management of the Lower Mekong Basin. The transformation process hopes to attain MRC s financial self-sustainability by The MRCS has been adopting a sequential five-yearly strategic planning cycle to lay out its programme implementation direction and priorities. The Strategic Plan for , which is currently on the drafting board, is focusing on the gradual transition of MRC s organisational functions so that, over the next 5 years, the member countries will take on greater responsibility for implementing certain core river basin management functions funded by their own resources thus, paving the way for complete financial autonomy before Intended to be implemented in 2016, some organisational and structural shifting will be experienced like gradual changes in management processes, staffing pattern, communications protocol, and operating environment. The decentralisation of the CRBMFs will create an impact on the human resources requirements of the MRCS in which gradual reduction on the number of operating staff will take place over the next 5 years to correspond to the actual operational needs on a year-to-year basis. The number of staff estimated would be reduced to about by 2020 and staff by The number of administrative support positions is expected to decrease at a faster rate than that of the technical staff which is due to the phasing out of the programme and project implementation protocols and the gradual taking over of the routine activities by the member countries. Eventually, only a core group of technical and management specialists will be maintained by the MRCS with functions mainly concentrated on coordinating the activities of member countries on decentralized CRBMFs and consolidation of reports and information for reference and perusal of all member countries that are relevant in the management of the Lower Mekong River Basin. The activities to implement the human resources re-organization and new staffing pattern are briefly described in the Human Resources Reform Framework (HRRF) that was drafted by the HR Section. The framework document identifies 4 phases of activities implementation, such as: 1) Phase I Staffing Reform Preparation The bulk of the work is in this phase as one of the activities to be undertaken is the reviewing of the current staffing of MRC and sorting out the existing Job Descriptions (JDs) and employment Terms of Reference (ToRs) of staff with the purpose of identifying who can be retained or not, when compared to 2

3 the JDs/ToRs of staff in the proposed new MRC organisation. In short, the bulk activities involve human resources inventory and staff requirements mapping. 2) Phase II Transition Plan and Implementation This consists of planned activities for the gradual deployment of people to the new trimmed MRC organisation but at the same time retaining skeletal workforce from existing staff who will continue the transition for the complete the decentralization of CRBMFs. The activities in this phase are dependent on the activities conducted and deliverables produced in Phase I. 3) Phase III New Structure Establishment This consists of planned activities for the complete transition and leveling off of staff deployment (through retention of some existing staff, transfer of other qualified staff to other job positions, and hiring of new staff) to the new MRC organisational setup. The activities in this phase are also dependent on the activities conducted and deliverables produced in Phases I and II. 4) Phase IV Organisation Development and M&E Mechanisms This consists of planned activities required for the maintenance of the new MRC organisation and the monitoring and evaluation of the organisational setup, staff management process and performance. The activities in this phase can be carried out when Phase III is completed. II. Objective of the assignment The main objective is to review and adjust the human resources reform framework referred above. It requires detailing out the activities and incorporate a timeframe for implementation, in line with the overarching MRCS reform. III. Description and deliverables The Consultant will be responsible to undertake the following tasks: a) Review and revision of the existing Human Resources Reform Framework as regard to the following aspects:- (1) Organization and logical sequencing of activities to be undertaken; (2) Trimming out of redundant activities; (3) Merging of similar activities into concise activities; (4) Identifying activity gaps and putting additional relevant activities; (5) Proper sectioning/grouping of related activities; (6) Short explanation of each activity (i.e. captioning) for clarity. b) From the revised HRRF, incorporate implementation plan clearly identifying the following components: 3

4 (1) Implementation timetable (Timeframe); (2) Persons responsible and involved for implementation, and level of decision-making required; (3) Method or process of implementation; (4) Resources needed; (5) Assumptions and risks on implementation, if any c) Discuss the preliminary output with HR Section and relevant resource persons and synthesize relevant comments; d) Make a revised Human Resources Reform Framework document, taking into consideration the relevant comments from HR Section Chief and other resource persons. IV. Timeframe A maximum of 12 person days is expected. The assignment will start in April and end in May The indicative consultancy time allocation is as follows: Item Consultant s Activities Allotted Days 01 Kick-off meeting and documents review 2 02 Further clarification/discussion with HR and other persons 1 03 Revision of HRRF document 3 04 Discussion of preliminary output and synthesis of comments 1 05 Drafting of HRRF document 5 Total 12 V. Working relationship and contractual arrangements - The Consultant will be working under overall supervision of the Chief of HRS and will liaise and coordinate with other staff from MRC Programmes and Sections as required; - He/she will work closely with the HRS team, the MRCS Organisational Transition Project s team, and the MRCS Task Team for Core Function Decentralisation and Organisational Transition, as required; - GIZ is responsible for contractual arrangements, participation at briefings, inception, reporting; moreover, GIZ staff working on the MRCS Organisational Transition Project will provide additional guidance on the assignment where needed; - The MRCS Organisational Transition Project (managed under MRCS International Cooperation and Communication Section or ICCS) will bear the costs for the Consultant s in-region travel upon the assignment s work plan approved by the Chief of HRS and of the MRCS Organisational Transition Project, or upon request by the Chief of HRS and approval by the Chief of ICCS. 4

5 VI. Qualifications and requirements a) A Master s degree in Human Resources Development, Personnel Management, Change Management, Sociology, or related fields; b) Minimum of 15 years of work experience in human resources development, personnel management, or organisational analysis and development; c) Practical experience in development of policy and strategy for human resources development and capacity building; d) Proficient in handling complex projects and with excellent background in project management, coordination and monitoring; e) Demonstrated experience of facilitation and working with senior public servants and executive/senior management teams; f) Demonstrated understanding of capacity development of human resources; g) Fluency in English, both written and spoken. Fluency in one or more languages of the riparian countries forming the lower Mekong River Basin a distinct advantage. h) Demonstrated experience and international standard level of competency in documentation and presentation. VII. Key reference documents The Consultant will have full access to all relevant documents as needed to undertake the assignment namely: 1. HRS report on the assessment and review of the current HR policies and practices 2. HRS report on the Conceptual Framework for Competency-based JDs and TORs 3. Independent Organisational, Financial and Institutional Review of the MRC Secretariat and the National Mekong Committees, January Assessment of Progress in Implementing Reforms after the Independent Organisational, Financial and Institutional Review of the MRCS and NMCs (Final Report, February 2008) 5. Regional Roadmap for MRC s core river basin management function decentralisation Parts 1 and 2 (final draft, version 1.3 dated 13 February 2014 ) 6. First and Second MRC Summit Declarations & Statements (Member Countries, Joint Development Partner community), 2010 and Working paper on the proposed options for the new organisational structure of the MRCS (draft version dated 26 September 2014, as presented to the 40 th JC Meeting) 5