Terms of reference (TOR)

Transcription

1 Terms of reference (TOR) Preparation of the Investment and Action Plans for Development of the Social Protection System s Unified Transaction Center - One Stop Shop (OSS) 1. Background information The Government of Croatia requested from the World Bank in January 2014 the Project Preparation Advance (PPA) for the Social Protection System Modernization Project (SPSMP). The objective of the PPA, is to engage in project preparation activities until the SPSMP becomes effective in The objective of SPSMP, expected to be implemented over period will be to support the Government of Croatia s ambitious, wideranging reform agenda in social protection. The goal of the proposed reforms is to achieve the financial and procedural rationality and efficiency of the social assistance system by i) reducing fragmentation in the delivery of social assistance cash transfers through establishment of the Unified Social Transaction Center One Stop Shop (OSS), ii) harmonizing disability certification procedures, iii) reducing error and fraud in social assistance programs, iv) supporting the adoption of incentives for work able social assistance beneficiaries to seek employment, and v) reducing the number of children and adults in residential institutions. The single Guaranteed Minimum Benefit (GMB), comprising of four previously-existing social benefits that merged into one new benefit, has been created under the new Law on Social Welfare that was approved in December The GMB will be the first benefit to be transferred to, administered and paid by the Public Administration Offices (PAOs) in the Ministry of Administration (MOPA). The GMB, currently administered by the centers for social welfare, is targeted to be transferred to PAOs by September The administration of the GMB by PAOs will be piloted in several localities before the official transfer in September The pilot would allow identifying critical areas that should be addressed before the official transfer of GMB administration, including the level of understanding of the legal framework and the new information system by PAO staff and the ease of access to the new system by beneficiaries. Based on the pilots, the PPA will support preparation of the operational investment and action plan for development of the OSS over the period. Establishment of the OSS project is also one of nine measures under Government s Plan for Implementation of Long-Term Fiscal Consolidation Reform Measures for A Government-level working group (WG4) responsible for the implementation of the OSS project has been created. The SPSMP PPA and the project will utilize and rely on existing coordination mechanisms of the WG4 for the OSS subcomponent of the project. 2. Objectives of the provided services

2 The Consultant is expected to perform activities as described under heading Scope of Work and provide the deliverables as described in detail under heading Deliverables. The Consultant will perform of the assignment starting from the Law on Social Welfare (Official Gazette 157/2013) introducing the OSS. 3. The Client The Clients are the Ministry of Social Policy and Youth of Croatia (MSPY) and the Ministry of Public Administration (MOPA). The services would be provided by CQ (Consultants Qualifications) method. The standard Lump-sum Payment format of the contract will be used. 4. Scope of work The first phase of the OSS development has commenced in January 2014 with replacement of the four social benefits with a Guaranteed Minimum Benefit (GMB), administered by the social centers. The transfer of GMB administration to the PAOs is planned to commence by September In the meantime the WG4 will initiate one or more pilot projects of GMB transfer. The Government plans to gradually transfer other social benefits, administered by other agencies, into the OSS. Child benefit (administered by the CIPI) and five maternity benefits (administered by CIHI) are planned to be transferred to the OSS by end-2015, and the unemployment benefit (administered by CEI) in This activity will analyze the experience of GMB administration by the social centers, and other social benefits by CIPI, CIHI, and CEI; results of pilot migrations of the GMB to PAOs; current technical and operational capacity of PAOs to assume GMB administration and in the next stage administration of child, maternity and unemployment benefits; determine the target capacity needed for GMB administration by PAOs, analyze the capacity gap, and produce the investment and action plan for strengthening PAO capacity to assume all social benefits in the period. The activity will analyze the current state of PAOs capacity based on survey conducted in January 2014, and field visits to the offices. It will furthermore analyze capacities in CIPI, CIHI, and CEI engaged in administering child, maternity, and unemployment benefits. The options and recommended elements of the target capacity in regional and branch PAO offices (To-Be capacity) will be discussed with the Clients. PAO status report, To-Be capacity and Gap analysis will have to be approved by the Client prior to proceeding to preparation of the Investment and Action Plan for OSS in PAOs. This activity will result in Investment and Action Plan for OSS in PAOs as an essential input for strengthening the PAOs organization, human resources, and IT system in order to administer the GMB effectively. It should also determine the scope and level of support of the World Bank s SPSMP project to PAOs capacity over the Project period, and develop the key Terms of Reference for technical assistance and training, and technical specifications for equipment to be procured. Key tasks and activities The key tasks and main activities of the project are the following (but not limited to): Phase 1: Assessment of current status, future system, and capacity gaps During the first two months of the project, the Consultant will carry out the following activities:

3 o Organize Project Kick-off Presentation to ensure project awareness to agencies involved in the analysis (MOSPY, MOPA, Croatian Pension Insurance Institute - CIPI, Croatian Health Insurance Institute - CIHI, Croatian Employment Institute CII, local governments social assistance offices, etc.), the Consultant shall organize one project presentation targeted to WG4, representatives of ministries, local governments and agencies administering social benefits; o Prepare OSS As-Is Analysis Review and analyze current operational capacity of PAOs, costs of pilots of administering GMB, and benefit administration costs in CIPI, CIHI and CEI administering child, maternity and unemployment benefits. Assess the benefit administration processes in CIPI, CIHI and CEI and their transferability to PAOs in the envisaged period. Review the legal framework for integration of these and other social benefits in the OSS. o Present and Elaborate the ultimate (To-Be) OSS structure, scope of work and capacity Describe how the ultimate OSS will be structured (network, office organization and structure), what social benefits it would administer (in addition to GMB and already announced maternity, child and unemployment benefit other benefits should be considered), and the office, IT and human capacity required for its full operation. Estimate the future operative costs and estimate the financial savings expected to emerge from improvement in administrative efficiency and benefit delivery. o Prepare the Gap analysis Analyze the difference between As-Is and To-Be OSS structures and the options for sequencing the transfer of social benefits to the OSS, related costs, and overall implications for the OSS establishment process. Present the recommended sequencing, path, and transition process, as a basic input for development of the OSS Action and Investment Plan. Submit recommendations to the Client. Phase 2: Developing the OSS Action Plan Following the Client s acceptance of the first phase findings and recommendations, the Consultant will, during the next 2 months of the task, carry out the following activities: o Prepare Action and Investment Plan The Action and Investment plan will include all components of OSS implementation. It will include the implementation diagram (GANTT) of all components of incorporating each of the social benefits into the OSS; The Action and Investment plan will include a detailed sequence of actions to be undertaken, roles and responsibilities of involved agencies, required investments, and training activities for each of the following areas: IT solution and application of benefit s administration and accounting. The solution must take into account the integration with other public databases and data sources in central and local governments. The IT application will have to support further integrations of social benefit administration and implementation of web services for automatic data exchange; Legal changes and amendments needed for successful implementation of the GMB; Establishing adequate and efficient office network. The Consultant will particularly consider solutions to utilizing the network of the City of Zagreb; Building competent and efficient OSS staff in the PAOs;

4 o The Consultant will prepare the Terms of Reference and technical specifications for investment and training activities that should commence in the first two years of the Project. o The Consultant is also expected to prepare the training plan for PAO staff for the September 2014 transfer of GMB administration to PAO offices. The Consultant will assess if the training program could be delivered through State School for Public Administration (SSPA) or not. If not, the Consultant will prepare the TOR for its implementation. The Consultant will also prepare the Training plan for the first two years of the project and estimate required investment in training; o Organize the Wrap-up Event The Consultant will organize a final wrap-up event in order to present the OSS Action and Investment Plan to the WG4 and other ministries and agencies involved in the process of OSS development. 5. Deliverables All deliverables in the first phase should be submitted to MSPY and MOPA for acceptance and/or approval, in order to continue to the next project phase. The project will result in the following deliverables and work products, which will be made available both in all suitable electronic (html, pdf, mpp, and doc) and printed forms: Phase 1 a) Project Inception, which shall consist of the detailed Project Work Plan to carry out the assignment. The Project Work Plan shall have details of the Project team, detailed timelines, detailed note on the proposed approach and methodology. The terms of reference may be improved and refined for better achieving the outcomes, through mutual discussions at the inception report stage. b) As-Is, To-Be, and Gap s, including a detailed implementation diagrams for OSS development. Phase 2 a) Action and Investment Plan. Action and Investment Plan will include a detailed list and timetable of actions, roles and responsibilities, and investments to be undertaken in the development of the OSS. b) Training Plan for September 2014 and Terms of Reference for its implementation. The Training Plan will include the training program for the PAO staff in September 2014 for administration of GMB; If the training is not to be delivered through SSPA, the Terms of Reference for training implementation will be used to hire the consultant for its implementation. c) Training Plan for the first two years of the project. d) Terms of Reference (TORs) and technical specifications for investments in the OSS development activities. The TORs have to be precise and detailed regarding the scope of work, deliverables, timetable, and expected team qualifications. The technical specifications have to be sufficiently detailed to be used in the tender documentation. e) Final Project, containing the following sections: Project Summary; Introduction; Objectives Statement; Methods and Resources; Project Results (quantitative and qualitative results, with proper visualizations); Conclusions and Discussion (findings, project usefulness, challenges and limitations, future work directions, lessons learned); References; Addenda (project-related materials and resources).

5 Across both phases: Monthly Progress, consisting of progress vis-à-vis agreed work plan and Consultant s report on existing/possible constraints and mitigation measures; Participation in the meetings of the WG4 and coordinating the work with WG4 regularly; The official language for the assignment shall be Croatian. All deliverables, reports and artifacts produced by the Consultant in this project shall be made available to MSPY and MOPA in English and in Croatian in hard/printed copy and in all suitable digital forms (such as html, pdf, doc, mpp, etc.). 6. Work plan and time-table The following table provides detailed (but not limited to) key tasks and activities to be performed by the consultants at each phase of the assignment, timelines and the deliverables thereof. Phases Activities Deliverables I. Assessment Project Kick-off Presentations Prepare OSS As-Is, To-Be and Gap Analyzes Project Inception Monthly Progress As-Is, To-Be and Gap Analyzes Monthly Progress Tentative per deliverable 1 week Timelines 4 weeks 7 weeks total II. Action and Investment Plan Prepare Action and Investment Plan for the OSS Prepare the Training Plan for the PAO staff for September 2014 GMB administration and the TOR for its implementation unless implemented by SSPA Prepare the Training Plan for the first two years of the project Prepare Terms of Reference (TOR) and technical specifications for investments in the OSS project Wrap-up event OSS September 2014 Training Plan Monthly Progress OSS Training Plan OSS Action and Investment Plan TOR and technical specifications for the OSS investment Project Final 2 weeks 4 weeks 7 weeks 7. Client input The Client will provide to the Consultant all relevant documents related to the assignment. MSPY and MOPA will also nominate the contact/liaison persons.