Country: Vientiane, Lao PDR.

Description of the Assignment:

Background

The Strengthening Capacity and Effectiveness of the People’s Assemblies System in Laos (STEPS) Project is a five-year initiative (2022-2026) implemented by UNDP, together with the National and Provincial People’s Assemblies, with financial support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The overall goal of STEPS is to strengthen the capacity of the legislature in Laos to effectively represent, engage and respond to citizen’s needs. The project will support the national and provincial assemblies (members, technical committees and staff) in enhancing their mandates and ability to revise and approve the legislation, monitor the implementation of the country’s socio-economic development plan and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), better analyze societal concerns and communicate with citizens, and enhance the overall accountability and transparency system.

Until now the National Assembly Human Resource Department has never been trained or familiarized with state-of-the-art and international practices in human resource management in parliaments. The requirements of parliamentary staff as well as their respective mandates in Committee Secretariats or in Departments and Divisions of the Secretariat Affairs Committee are extremely high. Working when requested, endless overtime, and working on ad-hoc issues under high time pressure is challenging, especially in a country like the Lao PDR, where education itself is challenging. That requires an HR Department team who is trained and qualified on a regular basis in close feedback to all NA Committees, Department and Divisions. Parliamentary staff is the core and the institutional memory of a parliament, where parliamentarians come and go. They are the backbone of the parliamentarians. They need to serve and facilitate them in their day-to-day work in exercising their parliamentary mandates. So, the HR Department embedded in the Secretariat Affairs Committee of the National Assembly plays a crucial role in facilitating the smooth operation of the NA.

Objective:

The National Human Resources Consultant will:

1. Assess the priorities and needs of the Human Resources Department on human resources development of the National Assembly (NA) and Provincial People’s Assemblies (PPA).

2. Develop a capacity building plan and approach for staff of the NA Human Resources Department.

3. Provide training to specific groups in NA on Human resource management.

4. Support the Human Resources Department to develop tools to conduct capacity development assessments of NA staff.

STEPS envisages that the National Human Resources Consultant will work with international consultants assigned under STEPS on Human Resources to help develop a long-term programme targeting improvements human resource management in line with best practice and international standards for parliaments.

Scope of Works:

The National Human Resources will be responsible for the following scope of work:

Task 1: Develop a methodological framework for competency assessments of NA and PPA departments.

– Develop guidelines to conduct assessment of competencies of NA and PPA staff.

– Refine the guidelines based on trial results.

Task 2: Trial competency assessments

– Support the HR department to trial the competency assessment guidelines with selected departments of the NA and PPAs.

– Debriefing on trial results.

Task 3: Develop a capacity building programme for HR staff

– Develop a capacity building programme for HR Department staff, including mandatory training, induction, welcoming package and performance evaluation.

-Deliver trial mandatory training for HR staff.

Period of assignment/services: 72 working days.

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