Iraq: CfP from Individual Consultants -Translator/Interpreter for Curriculum Development (Iraq)

UNESCO Office for Iraq is inviting written proposals from Individual Consultants for the work assignment described in (Annex A).
Your proposal and any supporting documents must be in English.
Your written proposal should include the following parts:
1) A Technical Proposal (maximum of 5 pages excluding the CV – P.11) should consist of:
a) A description of your proposed approach and methodology for undertaking the assignment which is supported by examples of past relevant work;
b) Description of the main deliverables and milestones related to the assignment;
c) A work plan with a detailed time frame;
d) Comments on the Terms of Reference, if any (in brief);
e) An up-to-date curriculum vitae based on P11 form (Annex B).
2) A completed vendor’s form (Annex C).
3) A lump sum amount to be charged for the assignment (excluding travel, accommodation and subsistence costs), which should be quoted in United States Dollars or in Euros. Please fill in the price schedule (Annex D).
4) UNESCO's Contract template for individual consultants for reference (Annex E)
5) A completed Declaration of Compatibility of the Professional Status (Annex F)

For annexes please visit:http://www.unesco.org/new/en/iraq-office/about-this-office/vacancies/

The Iraqi Technical and Vocational Education and Training system comprises both formal and non-formal components administered by different government ministries:
 Vocational Education is provided by Ministry of Education (MoE) to secondary students (grades 10 to 12).
 Technical Education is provided by Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MoHESR) through the Technical Institutes which offer two-year programmes leading to a technical diploma and the Polytechnic Universities which offer 4-year programme leading to a technical Bachelor (BA, B.Sc. and B.Eng.).
 The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (MoLSA) runs a large number of training centres in specialised centres all over the country.
 A number of other ministries and institutions such as the Ministry of Industry, the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, and the Ministry of Oil either operate institutes or run vocational courses dedicated to different purposes and target groups.
The MoE is responsible for establishing and managing vocational schools and has responsibility for elaboration of the educational policy; planning and monitoring of implementation; curriculum development; management of teachers and other educational personnel; educational research and innovation; development of standards for vocational guidance and counselling; development of standards for assessment and examinations; and coordination and cooperation with local, national and international partners and stakeholders.
The General Directorates of Education in the 18 governorates are in charge of the delivery of educational services, teacher training and employment, rehabilitation and maintenance of schools, and coordination with the Provincial Education Committees. There are also Education Offices at the district level.
The MoHESR sets higher education policy and supervises the administration and organization of the higher education system. In the Kurdistan, the MoHESR also administers Polytechnic Universities and Technical Institutes.
MOLSA is responsible for all aspects of labour market training delivery and management in a large number of training centres workshops in specialised centres all over the country.
The Government Iraq has strongly established traditions and institutional arrangements that define how the different strands of the TVET system are managed. Government rules and regulations tend to be rigid and based on highly centralised approaches to management with little autonomy devolved to more local levels. Furthermore, management procedures often lack transparency and are not sufficiently well developed to serve the TVET planning and decision-making process. There is lack of coordination between the different ministries operating in the TVET sector with regard to policy setting and strategy development. The private sector, social partners and civil society are largely absent from the TVET sector and there are not appropriate mechanisms to facilitate their participation.
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Besides a dysfunctional governance structure, the TVET system in Iraq suffers from many years of insufficient policy development and limited budget allocation. Some symptoms of the current situation are poor and obsolete educational infrastructure and equipment, irrelevance of curricula in relation to labour market requirements, lack of substantial practical training, fragmentation of responsibilities into different ministries, very low quality of teachers with no updated knowledge and skills, decreasing number of students, weak or inexistent vocational career guidance orientation and counselling, inadequate opportunities for youth and adults in life-long professional education and training, weak organizational structures and partnerships, and inefficient resource mobilization, distribution and utilization.
In order to address these issues, over the past few years the Government of Iraq (GoI) has shown renewed interest in improving the TVET system and adopted several national policies that support the expansion and improvement of TVET opportunities.
In 2010, the Cabinet established the TVET Permanent Advisory Higher Committed headed by the Deputy Head of the Prime Minister’s Advisory Commission. This committee includes high ranking representatives of the line ministries (MoE, MoHESR, MoLSA, and MoP) and private sector but it plays only an advisory role with no decision-making power or authority and not allocated budget.
To support the GoI on these on-going efforts, UNESCO with funds of the European Union is currently implementing the project ´Reforming TVET in Iraq´ which aims at increasing access to and improving the quality, relevance and responsiveness of the TVET system to the needs of the labour market and transform TVET in a key driver for Iraq’s economic growth, increased employment and improved social cohesion.
TVET is a complex policy area, situated at the intersection of education, training, social, economic and labour market policies. It is expected to address a range of issues such as the present and future skill demands of the economy; individual citizens’ needs for short- and long-term training and lifelong learning opportunities, employability and personal development; and society’s requirement for active citizens among others. As such, successful TVET systems and their reforms should be based on the implementation of a whole series of interconnected policies, rather than a single-policy solution.
Accordingly, UNESCO has developed a multi-dimensional Reform Project with four specific objectives:
 Specific Objective 1: TVET quality system improved and revised governance model operationalized
 Specific Objective 2: A modern, demand-driven TVET curricula supported by comprehensive interpretation of the current and expected future needs of the labour market
 Specific Objective 3: Improved capacities and competencies of TVET stakeholders
 Specific Objective 4: Improved ‘school to work transition’ of TVET graduates

1. Purpose and Objectives of the Assignment:
   The Request for Proposals for individual consultants focuses on the second specific objective.
   Most of the TVET curricula in Iraq are supply-driven. As in the other education subsectors, TVET practices are currently obsolete, and subjects do not include the required interaction with the employers and the work environment.
   Therefore, a multi-sector labour market survey of firms was undertaken November 2016 - March 2017 by statistical agencies in Iraq to obtain statistically representative data on the structure of employment by the size of firms, recruitment patterns, current employment of occupations, skills needed, skills shortage/gap, growth projections, and other relevant information. The results and
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   analyses of this survey will create the basis for a sectorial approach to the development of demand-driven curricula.
   Additionally, during 2017-2018, the UNESCO Office for Iraq will support the development and implementation of a Technical and Vocational Qualification Framework (TVQF) for the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) subsector in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KR-I).
   To support the curriculum development process, the UNESCO Office is seeking to hire a qualified translator/interpreter to translate curricula and teaching & learning materials aligned to the newly proposed TVQF, and to provide interpretation services at workshops and meetings.
2. Duties and Responsibilities:
   Under the overall supervision of the Director of UNESCO Office for Iraq and the direct supervision of the Senior Project Officer, the curriculum development Team Leader and Linguistics Expert, the consultant shall undertake the following responsibilities:
   i. Provide interpretation and translation services (EnglishArabic, and preferably EnglishKurdish)
   ii. Provide general support to the wider curriculum development team with tasks such as making telephone calls, drafting and reading emails etc.)
3. Expected Outputs/Deliverables:
   The following outputs/deliverables are required:
   4.1 Monthly Reports describing work undertaken, deliverables and outcomes achieved, the work plan for the coming period, project issues and risks.
   4.2 In additional to Monthly Report further specific deliverables will be agreed on the basis of the inception report and the responsibilities set out above. These will include, but are not limited to:
    Provide translation of approximately 3,500 pages of curricula (EnglishArabic, with some material preferably EnglishKurdish)
    Provide interpretation services for approximately 50 days (EnglishArabic, with some meetings preferably EnglishKurdish)
4. Timeframe and Location:
    Duration: initial 11 months (renewable based on satisfactory performance and budget availability)
    Estimated start: January 2018
    Remuneration will be paid monthly according to qualifications and experience
    The consultancy will be based in Baghdad or Erbil Iraq, with missions to the other.
5. Language of Submitted Reports/Materials:
   Language: English and Arabic
6. Qualifications and Experience:
    University degree in a relevant field, with demonstrated expertise at national and international levels
    At least 5 years of relevant experience in translating and interpreting
    Experience in similar international development projects
    Excellent planning and reporting skills
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    Good facilitation skills; excellent communication capabilities; ability to adapt to dynamic environments
    Previous experience in the Middle East would be an advantage
    Excellent knowledge of English and Arabic; knowledge of Kurdish would be an advantage
    Ability to work effectively in a multicultural/multinational environment
    A commitment to UN values of non-discrimination on the basis of race, gender, economic status, or religion.

Note on Travel Costs:
UNESCO Office for Iraq will cover all the travel cost including airline tickets (at economy class), and daily substance allowance covering costs of accommodation, meals and internal transportation in Iraq according to UNESCO’s established rules and regulations.
Applicant must indicate the estimated cost of airway ticket from home country to Baghdad, Iraq (round ticket/ economy class).
UNESCO places great emphasis on ensuring that the objectives of the work assignment, as described in the Terms of Reference, are met. Accordingly, in evaluating the proposals for the assignment, attention will focus first and foremost on the technical elements. From those proposals deemed suitable in terms of the criteria in the Terms of Reference, UNESCO shall select the proposal that offers the Organisation best value for money.
NB. UNESCO will evaluate the proposed fee against its standard international consultant rates for similar assignments.
Your proposal should be submitted by e-mail no later than close of business on or before 5 January 2017 (18:00 Iraq time) at the following email addresses ONLY:
baghdad.proc@unesco.org and d.chang@unesco.org
Email proposals should not exceed 10MB.
To ease the email tracing and facilitate quick processing, kindly use the following script “Submission of Proposal: Translator/Interpreter for Curriculum Development (ref: IRQ/CONS/17/27)” in the email subject.
It is the individual’s responsibility to ensure that his/her proposal is received by the deadline.
Potential experts contacted should not treat this letter in any way as an offer. However, their proposal may form the basis for an eventual contract with UNESCO.
Any expert receiving this letter is requested to acknowledge its receipt and to indicate whether or not s/he will be submitting a proposal. For this purpose, and for any requests for clarification, please contact: David Chang at d.chang@unesco.org.
Submissions will be acknowledged by email upon receipt but ONLY selected expert will receive further notification and correspondences.
Thank you for your eventual interest in this UNESCO assignment. We look forward to receiving your proposal.