Technical Assistance in Rural Infrastructure in Liquiçá District

Bilateral cooperation framework with the Government of Timor-Leste (GoTL)

AGENCIA ESPAÑOLA DE COOPERACIÓN INTERNACIONAL PARA EL DESARROLLO (AECID)

Terms of Reference (ToR)

Technical Assistance in Rural Infrastructure in Liquiçá District

(Timor-Leste)

BACKGROUND

Timor-Leste is a very young country situated in the Polynesian islands, it shares a border with Indonesian West Timor; the country is 467 kilometers from west to east and in places up to 90 kilometers wide. The climate is hot and humid and temperatures range between 34ºC in summer and 24ºC in winter. The character of Timor-Leste's vegetation reflects the islands' position between tropical Indonesia and the dry North West Australia.

Liquiçá is a district situated on the north coast about 28 km west of the capital, Dili, and has three sub-districts Liquiçá, Bazartete and Maubara. It is composed of 23 villages, and has an area of 543 km2. Liquiçá has a potential for agriculture, fishing, trading and tourism and industrial development and has many resources inside of Liquiçá. On the other hand, Liquiçá has poor infrastructure due to recent conflicts and environmental conditions.

Liquiçá has the following infrastructure characteristics:
1. Roads: Liquiçá has the main of road that connecting to Dili capital with Indonesia. The road network is about 300km long and the main road near to the coast and has bad or good condition depending on the season. There are other roads that connect with the sucos. About 40% of the population lives along or near the main road, the other 60% lives in scattered villages in the hills with poor road access. These are in poor condition and need serious repair and rehabilitation. The access for these roads is cut in the rainy season raising transport costs, limiting the access of the more vulnerable population to the local markets for to sale of their produce, the purchase of consumer goods and opportunities for off-farm employment.
2. Water supply: The most sustainable water source was destroyed during the 1999 violence; accordingly, the water supply amount was reduced to about 40% of the total demand. People spend a considerable amount of time fetching water, time which could be spent in other more productive activities. In addition, there are several waterborne diseases which reduce human resource productivity in rural areas. So, Liquiçá needs to rehabilitate the water supply system for the agriculture uses and the households.
3. Agricultural infrastructure: The economy of Liquiçá depends mainly on agricultural activities, but, this requires more technology and support to develop infrastructure such as terraces and water channels for improving productivity. The water channel network was destroyed by environmental conditions and a lack of maintenance.


1. PROJECT DESCRIPTION


The intervention framework of the Rural Development Project in Liquiçá II (RDPL II) comes from the vision of rural development under a territorial approach, which includes a coordinated participatory process which aims to improve the quality of life of the inhabitants in the rural area.

The territorial approach is based in the strengthening of a territorial identity through a value enhancement strategy of the endogenous resources, based on the identification and coordination of different groups or persons who are interested in the social, cultural and economic development of the territory.
The objective is to develop a common rural development strategy, creating the basis for the productive transformation of the territory (Liquiçá District), promoting partnership and civil society participation through a Rural Development Commission to guarantee the sustainability of the projects.

An appropriate methodology for development of the territorial strategy should follow, in theory, the following steps: selection and identification of the territory; definition and analysis of the territorial capital (natural, human, social, cultural, economical, physical capitals); development of the territorial strategy; and creation of a collective dynamics around such a strategy; and the strengthening of local institutions focused on the implementation of an inclusive development strategy.

This project aims to create a platform for interaction between actors with the aim of strengthening the social fabric of the territory, hence promoting participatory processes in which international staff supervision begins, in a second phase, to act as facilitators rather than an executing agency.

The overall objective of the project is to reduce poverty levels in rural areas in Liquiçá through the social organization of the territory and introducing a gender equity approach. While the specific objective is to improve income levels and facilitate social cohesion in the district of Liquiçá, the establishment of a Rural Development Commission may also serve as institutional platform to enhance competitiveness of the territory. This may be achieved through the promotion of private initiatives, improving rural infrastructure, encouraging the participation of women, youth and organized groups and taking into account the conservation of the environment.

Furthermore, the project budget has been designed primarily for two programs of implementation, one encourages private initiatives, and the other seeks to improve rural infrastructure and services in order to enhance productivity, facilitate access to markets and social cohesion of the territory.

2. PURPOSE OF THE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

One primary outcome of this project is to prompt efforts to improve rural infrastructure and services in order to enhance productivity, facilitate access to markets and improve social cohesion within the territory. In this sense the RDPL II is seeking an international civil engineer to provide technical assistance. The purpose of this consultancy is to give professional support to RDPL II staff for a duration of one year; to coordinate all aspects of infrastructure development activities including conducting monitoring of the interventions in rural roads, agricultural infrastructure, water and sanitation infrastructure provision, rehabilitations works, heritage reconstruction, and other construction related activities in close coordination with the community.

Other duties of the technical assistant include contract management; technology transfer; capacity building for the management of rural infrastructure projects with a participatory base; and the preparation of training on infrastructure maintenance for community members in Liquiçá District. The consultant will need to have work experience in tropical and rural areas,




1. SPECIFIC DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES


The assistant will carry out the following duties and responsibilities:

4.1. Construction Assistance and Monitoring:

* Provide technical advice and support in planning and budgeting of construction activities for the RDPL II team.
* Conduct regular site visits, oversee and provide technical instructions and guidance to the staff and/or construction enterprises in infrastructure activities (roads rehabilitation, rebuilds, water and sanitation construction, etc)
* Provide technical recommendations on problems encountered at the construction sites.
* Provide support and guidance to community and the government counterparts who are responsible for system maintenance in order to strengthen community participation and ensure abidance by environmental standards.
* Identify problems and propose remedial actions to accelerate/improve program delivery.
* Undertake work in accordance with construction standards and safety measures and follow-up on government certification of each project.


4.2. Contract Management:

* Understand the scope and critical elements of approved or proposed projects including but not limited to: financial, geographical, technical, project sequence, logistical, manpower and safety requirements, providing advice and support to other functions in areas of expertise
* Design and establish a schedule and initiate activities related to infrastructure as per the Liquiçá District Strategic Plan.
* Coordinate all aspects of infrastructure provision for RDPL II, including contract management and monitoring of constructions enterprise activities.
* Work closely with the district administrator, directors of Ministries in Liquiçá, sucos chiefs and other partners in ensuring government participation. Coordinate RDPL II activities with other planned infrastructure activities in Liquiçá made by other institutions.
* Ensure that bills of quantities prepared for all enterprises are in accordance with the technical specifications and estimates provided.
* Prepare and organize logistical issues in relation to the various aspects of construction, i.e. procurements, delivery, distribution of materials and other resources etc. under the project in accordance with the work schedule


4.3. Capacity Building:

* Build capacity of community groups, partners and RDPL II staff on technical monitoring of infrastructure activities.
* Build capacity of community groups, representatives of the local government, or representatives of other organizations in maintenance of infrastructure.
* Prepare training packages specifically designed according to the characteristics of communities, local governments or other organizations, to increase the capacities and to carry out works and infrastructure projects and rural services.




4.4. Reporting and Administration:

* Prepare, organize and analyze communications, progress activity reports, and financial documentation in relation to the activities in construction activities, and regular reporting to the Program Coordinator.
* Participate in meetings with partners and other RDPL II stakeholders.
* Prepare presentations, when required, of both proposed and ongoing work for approval by Program and Operations management, using visual aids such as bar charts, critical path analysis, and network and diagrams procedures
* Provide interpretation/translation into English or Tetun/Portuguese as required for the relevant documents on infrastructure issues.




1. EXPECTED BACKGROUND AND EXPERIENCE

Advanced university Degree in civil engineering, construction engineering, architecture or other relevant technical areas.
Minimum 5 years of professional experience in the field of design, engineering and construction, preferably in rural tropical zones with difficult access.
Minimum 3 years of experience associated with construction work: organizing community groups; capacity building & training on both technical and institution building aspects
Good technical knowledge of construction methods, sequence of events, logistics and other factors that will impact the development, progress and safe completion of individual and multiple projects.
Experience in monitoring schedules for multiple, simultaneous projects

* Experience in reporting under a logical framework method, in critical path analysis, and network and diagrams procedures.

Experience in conducting trainings, and in capacity building for different local groups.

* Experience in use the Windows tools, and other software necessary for the assistance.

Fluency in English and knowledge of Spanish/Portuguese, both written and oral is a requirement.

* License to drive a car and/or motorbike



1. REQUIRED SKILLS


Aptitude or Personality Requirements

* Ability to work productively in a multi-cultural environment; good health and willingness and ability to work under a multidisciplinary team/approach
* Commitment to participation of key stakeholders
* Ability to integrate activities with the RDPL II coordination and technical team
* Facilitation and negotiation skills
* Good understanding of development issues with emphasis on participation and sustainability
* Ability for to work under pressure

Communications skills

* Excellent report writing and reporting skills
* Ability to learn local languages
* Patience and understanding at working with local community groups

Other skills

* Ability to travel and live in locations with difficult conditions



1. CONDITIONS


Duty Station: The position is based in Liquiçá district (Timor-Leste), with travel to the sub-districts and communities required.
Duration: The duration for the contract is 12 months. Starting at third week of January 2011
Direct supervisor: Rural Development Project in Liquiçá II Project Coordinator

The total agreed price for the all services as assistance constituting the purpose of the contract is fixed at: 40.800,00 (Forty thousand eight hundred 00/100 U.S. Dollars) as follows:

* The quantity of 33.800 USD as Technical Assistance service total salary.
* The quantity of 7.000 USD for preparing training packages.


The modality of payment will be monthly (3.400 U.S. Dollars per month)
All the expenses related to the travel, accommodation, transportation, insurance and visas will be fully covered by the assistant.

7. DEADLINE AND SUBMISSIONS OF CVS

The deadline for submission of CV´s is 3rd December 2010 at 23:59 hrs. in Timor Leste (UTC+9:00).
Interested candidates should submit their Application Letter and CV with two references by email to:

Ms. Beatriz Marciel – RDPL II Project Administrator
beatriz.marciel@fundacionetea.org

With cc. to Ms. Zeidy Edith Chunga Liu – RDPL II Project Manager
zeidy.chunga@fundacionetea.org

The work is expected to start in third week of January 2011.
Short listed applications will be contacted for interview by Skype.