Background
As part of the United Nations system’s efforts to enhance the effectiveness of development assistance, the United Nations Development Group (UNDG) Ex-Com Agencies, comprising the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund and the World Food Programme adopted a common operational framework called the Harmonized Approach to Cash Transfers (HACT) for transferring cash to government and non-government implementing partners.
The implementation of HACT requires the UNDG-Ex Com agencies to conduct a macro-assessment in order to gain a perspective and adequate awareness of the country’s public finance management (PFM) environment. The macro assessment in turn is expected to provide the national context in order to conduct micro assessment of each individual Implementing Partner to determine the specific risks involved when applying HACT. These terms of reference (TOR) have been developed to guide United Nations agencies, third party service providers and implementing partners (IPs) through the objectives, scope and deliverables of a requested macro assessment.
Objective and Scope of the Macro Assessment
The objective is to ensure adequate awareness of the public financial management (PFM) environment in which agencies provide cash transfers to Implementing Partners, a desk review of assessments of the PFM system will be conducted. The term ‘PFM’ in the harmonized approach to cash transfers (HACT) framework is broadly defined to include a range of considerations for operating within the country; it is not limited solely to the financial environment but also includes national procurement capacity, exchange rate volatility, presence of informal/black markets, etc. This assessment is called a macro assessment.
The two primary outputs of the macro assessment are:
a) An outline of the risks related to use of the PFM for cash transfers within the country by governmental IPs, as well as other country-specific knowledge for non-governmental IPs; and
b) A determination on whether the government’s supreme audit institution (SAI) has the capacity to undertake scheduled and special audits of government IPs.
Macro Assessment Procedures
The third-party service provider performing the macro assessment collects available PFM assessments to aid in detailing the risks related to the use of PFM systems for cash transfers within the country. This includes considerations regarding the use of the SAI and broader country conditions, such as environmental conditions, legal regulations, judicial environments, exchange rate volatility and the presence of informal/black markets, etc.
Typical sources of PFM assessments are:
World Bank
- Country financial accountability assessments. These vary in format and presentation.
- Public expenditure reviews. These analyse a country’s fiscal position, expenditure policies and public expenditure management systems.
- Country procurement assessment reviews. These review public procurement institutions and practices.
- Institutional and governance reviews. These review the quality of accountability, policymaking and service delivery institutions.
- Capacity assessments of heavily indebted poor country PFM. Performed jointly with IMF, this assessment covers some of the same issues as a country financial accountability assessment.
Assessments by other institutions
- Fiscal transparency reviews (IMF). These use the code of good practices on fiscal transparency adopted by IMF in 1998.
- Diagnostic study of accounting and auditing (Asian Development Bank).
- Ex-ante audits of PFM systems (European Commission).
- Assessments by CIDA, DFID, EU, ADB and other agencies.
The preliminary results of the macro assessment are discussed with the agencies implementing the HACT framework, both to provide a summary of the results and to incorporate agency-specific experience and knowledge of the country into the final assessment.
Deliverables
The third-party service provider summarizes the findings on the risks related to the use of PFM systems for cash transfers within the country in the macro assessment checklist (provided in Annex I).
Qualifications of the Third-Party Service Provider
The third-party service provider should be experienced in performing assessments similar to a macro assessment and assessing risks related to PFM systems. The provider should also have financial management experience and knowledge of the United Nations system and the development sector.
Curriculum vitae (CVs) of all members of the assessment team should be provided. They should include details on engagements carried out by the staff members, including ongoing assignments indicating responsibilities assumed by them, and their qualifications and experience in undertaking similar assessments.
Items to be Provided to the Service Provider before Fieldwork Begins
The agency provides the following documentation before starting fieldwork:
- Summary of primary programme initiatives and IPs in the country;
- Details of macro assessments previously performed in the country; and
- Any other documentation that may help the provider better understand the country context from a United Nations perspective.
The third-party service provider should review the information received before performing the assessment.
See the attached Terms of Reference for more information.
How to apply: Interested applicants should send applications, including CVs of all members of the assessment team clearly stated "Consultancy – Macro Assessment Performed by Third Party Service Provider " to recruitment.bw@unfpa.org
