Result of Service
The ultimate result of this service is to advise Fiji to develop and execute a financing strategy that aligns with its sustainable development priorities and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Through tailored technical assistance and country-specific advice, the consultant will assist Fiji in building its capacities related to Integrated National Financing Frameworks (INFFs). This will involve leveraging INFF guidance materials provided by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Financing for Development (IATF), as well as drawing insights from relevant analytical work conducted by development partners in the field of financing for development. Additionally, the consultant will benefit from technical support on INFFs from UNDESA/FSDO as part of the mentorship component.
Duties and Responsibilities
In the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA), Member States recognized that “cohesive nationally owned sustainable development strategies, supported by integrated national financing frameworks, will be at the heart of our efforts” to implement the 2030 Agenda. This commitment was carried forward through subsequent Financing for Development follow-up processes, including the 2018 FfD Forum, where Member States emphasized the need to translate national financing frameworks into investable projects and pipelines.
Most recently, in the 2025 Sevilla Commitment, Member States reinforced this approach by committing to develop and strengthen country-led and nationally owned sustainable development strategies, supported by INFFs, including through scaled-up technical assistance and capacity-building. In 2019, 16 countries committed to pioneering the INFF approach, and by 2025 Governments in over 80 countries were taking steps to develop and operationalize INFFs. INFFs provide a comprehensive framework and roadmap for countries to implement the SDGs and operationalize the AAAA at the country level.
INFFs map the landscape for financing sustainable development (including all financial and non-financial means of implementation of the AAAA) and lay out a country’s financing strategy to implement targeted policies and reforms in order to reach the SDGs. INFFs can help national authorities identify, mobilize, and align financing and other means of implementation to meet national sustainable development priorities and the SDGs.
As widely recognised in international agreements1, Small Island Developing States (SIDS) face particular challenges for financing sustainable development, which undermine their sustainable development gains and their progress towards the SDGs. The impact of the COVID-19 crisis and the heightened economic insecurity triggered by the war in Ukraine have affected SIDS disproportionately, undermining their ability to respond and recover. In this context, it is imperative that SIDS develop and implement financing strategies that can support their recovery and ensure their resilience.
As they seek to recover from the multiple crises and build back better, INFFs can help support financing strategies for SIDS to achieve national sustainable development priorities and the SDGs, including gaps identified by the Voluntary National Report (VNR). UNDESA designed a capacity development project to support INFF design and implementation in four selected SIDS -two in Africa, one in the Caribbean, and one in Asia-Pacific- with targeted technical assistance.
The project, currently funded by the Government of Italy, is part of the broader Financing for SIDS Initiative (FINS Initiative) jointly developed by the Financing for Sustainable Development Office (FSDO) and the SIDS Unit of Division for the Sustainable Development Goals (DSDG) at UNDESA and has a national component and a peer learning component. The key features of the national component of the project are:
(i) the deployment of country-based integrated experts (“embedded experts”); and
(ii) a mentorship program. As partner government departments in many SIDS have strained technical capacity and high turnover, the in-country support is critical to ensure knowledge transfer and sustainability. The embedded experts, who will be selected based on their financing expertise, will work directly in the country of assignment to support local structures and processes. FSDO will ensure technical backstopping and accompanied coaching via a mentorship program.
The country mentor(s) (a role taken on by FSDO/UNDESA) will undertake regular check-ins with the embedded experts and their government focal persons to establish and probe progress made, challenges and lessons, and next steps. Complementary to these efforts, online capacity development products will be leveraged to scale up in country technical assistance. In the spirit of INFFs, the technical assistance to be provided under the project has been designed to be flexible and responsive to the needs of the target SIDS governments.
It may be comprehensive, covering all sectors and relevant sources of financing for their national priorities, including consideration of the range of governance reforms needed; or it may focus on a specific sector of interest to the government, e.g., domestic resource mobilization, climate and disaster risk reduction finance, social protection, and/or infrastructure financing. The key principle is to ensure an integrated approach to addressing the focus area of selection.
As for the peer learning component of the project, UNDESA will encourage and co-facilitate information transfer and peer learning among SIDS on INFF implementation good practices and lessons learned, through regional and thematic meetings and workshops. This component will benefit from the support and close collaboration within UNDESA, which will provide the unique global, regional, and subregional SIDS perspective regarding common areas of concern, challenges, needs, priorities and possible solutions shared by SIDS.
UNDESA’s technical support will be complementary to the in-country support provided by UNDP and other development partners and falls within the programmatic work of the INFF Facility that was launched in April 2022 by UNDESA, UNDP, the OECD, the European Union and the Governments of Italy and Sweden in response to the increased demand for support on INFFs. The Financing for Sustainable Development Office (FSDO) of UNDESA is currently seeking the services of a consultant to support the INFF capacity-building activities to be carried out under the project, as embedded expert in Fiji.
The consultant will work at the Ministry of Strategic Planning, National Development & Statistics of Fiji (hereinafter referred to as the Ministry). The consultant will be based in Fiji and will report to UNDESA/FSDO through the Policy Analysis and Development Branch (PADB) staff designated as his/her Supervisor.
The objective of this assignment is to provide embedded technical support to the Ministry of Strategic Planning, National Development and Statistics of Fiji in advancing the Financing Strategy under the INFF process, in line with the National Development Plan (NDP) 2025–2029 and Vision 2050, the Ministry’s 5-year Implementation Booklets (IBs) which guide the Public Sector Investment Programme (PSIP) and the national budget, and the preparatory framework for the forthcoming NDP mid-term review.
The consultant will support the Ministry in reviewing and refining the draft Financing Strategy, identifying financing gaps, mapping potential financing options and partner engagement opportunities, and strengthening the institutional and coordination arrangements needed to support implementation.
The consultant will work in coordination with the Resident Coordinator’s Office (RCO) of the Fiji and in close collaboration with other UNDESA divisions, other relevant parts of the UN system, including UN Country Team, the UN Regional Commission, UNDP, as well as international financial institutions, including the World Bank Group, IMF, regional development banks and other international development agencies. Work Assignments: Under the supervision of PADB staff at FSDO and with the technical backstopping of FSDO, the consultant will be responsible for the following work assignments: 1.
Provide technical advice to the Ministry of Strategic Planning, National Development and Statistics of Fiji on the further development and refinement of the Financing Strategy, in line with the National Development Plan 2025–2029 andVision 2050, the Ministry's 5-year Implementation Booklets (IBs) and the NDP mid-term review preparation. In particular, the consultant will:
a. Provide technical advice on the financing strategy for the National Development Plan 2025-2029 and Vision 2050, in connection with the institutional arrangements and governance mechanisms required to advance the INFF process in Fiji and assist with the engagement of relevant national stakeholders, specifically including the Reserve Bank of Fiji (RBF), the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS), and the Ministry of Finance’s Budget and Fiscal Policy Units to align the strategy with domestic revenue and fiscal policy.
b. Review the existing draft Financing Strategy and support the Ministry in finalising it, including by incorporating consolidated feedback from the Ministry of Strategic Planning, National Development and Statistics, policy advisers and relevant government units, and identifying an action plan to guide implementation. In particular, the consultant will:
a. Formulate a dedicated Risk Management and Climate-Resilience Financing Matrix as part of the Financing Strategy to address Fiji's vulnerability to climate disasters and macroeconomic shocks
b. Support the Ministry in identifying relevant good practices and country experiences on closing financing gaps and translating them into practical options for Fiji’s Financing Strategy
c. Conduct a quality assurance and validation exercise of the 5-year costing data (capturing both government and donor-funded projects) in selected pilot high-impact Ministry IBs (e.g., Infrastructure and Education, or other selected ministries) to establish a realistic national financing gap baseline. Review the existing IB format and design a simplified, standardized Results-Based Management (RBM) template and costing guideline to enable PPSR and PPME staff to roll out the exercise to the remaining ministries in preparation for the NDP mid-term review.
d. Provide technical assistance to assist the Ministry to engage with other relevant parts of the UN system, including the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office, the UN Country Team, the UN Regional Commission, and UNDP, as well as with international financial institutions working on financing for development-related issues in Fiji (including the World Bank Group, IMF, regional development banks and other international development agencies), in order to provide the support on INFF in Fiji in collaboration and coordination with them
e. Develop and implement a demand-driven capacity-development plan, and lead and contribute substantively to the preparation and delivery of workshops, seminars, trainings, and other capacity development events, as well as develop training programs / resources on INFFs and other financing for development-related topics, aimed at increasing the capacity on INFFs of pertinent national authorities and other national stakeholders. 2. Actively contribute to the peer exchange activities undertaken as part of the project by:
a. Advising and assisting the Ministry of Strategic Planning, National Development & Statistics of Fiji with the preparations for participating in the sub-regional, regional and international peer knowledge exchange events.
b. Participating and making substantive contributions to the sub-regional, regional and international peer knowledge exchange events.
c. Participating in the regular discussions among the embedded experts deployed in the target countries under the project.
d. Contribute to the compendium of experiences of targeted SIDS on INFF design and implementation that will be produced as part of the project, by providing inputs and detailed information on the experience of Fiji advancing INFF.
3. Participate in regular technical backstopping sessions to be provided by FSDO experts as part of the mentorship program under the project to discuss and probe progress made, challenges, lessons, and next steps regarding the INFF activities undertaken in the country.
4. Support the required reporting, monitoring and evaluation of the project, including the preparation of the mid-term and final progress reports on the implementation of the project, by providing inputs on the activities carried out in Fiji.
5. Perform other relevant duties, as required.
Qualifications/special skills
Advanced university degree in economics, development studies or other relevant academic discipline is required; first university degree in the relevant academic discipline plus 2 additional years of experience maybe qualified in lieu of an advanced degree.
A minimum of 10 years of experience working in financing for development issues or related, particularly in a SIDS context (regional and/or national) is required;
Experience in public financial management (including national budget formulation and Public Sector Investment Programme coordination), climate finance, or long-term national development planning is desired;
Experience in engaging high-level officials and facilitating dialogues with varied stakeholders, including significant experience on building partnerships and coordination is desired.
Demonstrated ability to independently plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures, and protocols to achieve specific goals is desired;
Languages
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another UN official language is desirable.