Decentralization and Local Governance Advisor  

Experience has shown that high level government representation / commitment to decentralization and service delivery has enhanced good governance and service delivery reforms. To this end, the Office of the President, Southwest State was appointed by a presidential decree to be the champion for decentralization and local governance. The secretariat office will be headed by the state minister for the Presidency. The office will be responsible for coordination of decentralization and local governance initiatives of the ministries (through the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Local Governance).

To help in running the secretariat, the UN Joint Programme on Local Governance and Decentralized Service Delivery in Somalia (UN JPLG) which is a five-year joint programme comprising of ILO, UNCDF, UNDP, UN-HABITAT and UNICEF with the overall goal of “creating an enabling environment for improved service delivery and greater stability, through improved legal, policy and system frameworks – building the knowledge of those working in and with local governments” will support the OoP in recruiting the Decentralization and Local Governance Advisor who will  be based in the OoP in Baidoa and will be supervised by the state minister of the presidency. The position is for a limited period of seven months.

The Decentralization and Local Governance Advisor will be responsible for supporting the president’s office in facilitating discussion on decentralization and local governance reform in Southwest, the approval and implementation of the decentralization policy, with the primary goal of enabling local governments deliver services efficiently and effectively.

·        To provide technical inputs and recommendations on decentralization policy and its roadmap of implementation and local governance.  This will include working closely with the respective IMCLG sector ministries to review and analyse existing sectorial policies, strategies and systems and make recommendations on assignments of roles and responsibilities within the sectors to local governments, and with the other consultants attached to the sectors.

1. Ensure that the Office of the President plays an active role in decentralization policy, strategic thinking and knowledge and information sharing; informs government institutions, and other relevant stakeholders about government policy towards decentralization.
2. Review past experience on local governance and decentralization in Southwest, and relevant laws, rules and regulation, and advice the president’s office and the IMCLG on any discrepancies and relevant changes required.
3. Support the President’s office to ensure efficient day-to-day updates of all information and reports about decentralization policy and road map in Southwest state
4. Support Decentralization Dialogue forums between the districts and the Service Sector Ministries to promote mutual understanding and cooperation on the way forward for Decentralization Policy Implementation.
5. Support and facilitate IMCLG and the president to monitor the progress made in the implementation of the decentralization road map in Southwest state

·        Support the president’s office in the preparations of the IMCLG meetings, to produce better outputs of the IMCLG meetings

·        Facilitate report compiling, filing, summarizing and presenting decentralization meeting results, reports, outputs, agreements and progress to the office of president and the IMCLG meetings.

·        Coordinating progress on decentralization between the president’s office and the sector ministries

·        Advice the IMCLG on the decentralization process

·        Liaise with sector ministries in finalization of the draft decentralization policy for Southwest state

·        Advice the president and the IMCLG on bottle necks of decentralization in Southwest state

·        Supports IMCLG in developing and adopting a road map for the implementation of the Southwest decentralization policy

·        Frequently interacts and meets sector ministries to discuss decentralization challenges and advice the ired IMCLG on solutions to overcome these challenges

·        In collaboration with sector ministries and IMCLG, facilitate the implementation of the decentralization strategy and the road map  .

Review Past experience on Local governance and decentralization in Southwest, and relevant laws, rules and regulation, and advice the president’s office and the IMCLG on any discrepancies and relevant changes required.

·        Advice the president about the areas of support required to facilitate and promote local democracy, participation and accountability through viable stakeholder involvement in decentralization.

·        Gather information and related documents on how to promote demand driven as well as supply driven decentralization policy and advice the IMCLG.

·        Prepare presentations for and facilitate IMCLG meetings addressing technical/procedural aspects of decentralization with particular focus on decentralization policy implementation.

·        Identify challenges in devolving functions and related finance to the districts, these challenges include but not limited to sectoral laws, policies and strategies, financial regulations, strategies and policies.

·        Support the IMCLG to gather relevant information including sector line ministries plans, reports and other material to enhance knowledge and understanding of the different interest groups and stakeholders.

·        Identify blockages and bottlenecks within the central and local governments, and advice the IMCLG on how to create a  synergetic relationship  between the two levels of  the government, so that both are geared towards enhancing public service delivery.

Support President’s office to ensure efficient day-to-day updates of all information and reports about decentralization policy and road map in Southwest.

·        Assist in the preparations of the IMCLG meetings, and producing reports on decentralization discussions

·        Collaborate closely with all staff in the presidents and other Southwest State officials to help ensure effective implementation of the decentralization process and appropriate use of the support provided by the Joint Program

·        Identify gaps andchallenges on decentralization and suggest solutions for the MOILG

·        Help facilitate team building, communication and coordination between the office of the president staff and JPLG to ensure improved output.

Support Decentralization Dialogue forums between the districts and the Service Sector Ministries to promote mutual understanding and cooperation on the way forward for the Decentralization Policy Implementation.

·        Ensure districts and ministries participate in the dialogue forums and share the agenda and timing for the meeting in advance with all the relevant participants.

·        Facilitate the dialogue forums and ensure that information on decentralization services to the districts is clearly presented.

·        Produce media briefings including documentaries and videos and written reports on the dialogue forums and circulate.

·        Circulate all the dialogue forums reports among the meeting participants, districts IMC and other stakeholders.

Support and facilitate IMCLG and the president monitoring missions to the districts to monitor the progress made in the implementation of decentralization road map in Southwest state.

·        Conduct monitoring missions to the districts, collect information and data on decentralization of services.

·        Document the impacts and results of decentralization at the district level and prepare success stories (showing beneficiaries and with figures such as the sex dis-aggregated data).

·        Hold meetings with the district mayors, local councils and district’s administrative department directors and discuss decentralization implementation progress, document challenges and share with the president and the IMCLG.

·        Provide quality control of all activities related to decentralization and local governments to ensure efficient implementation.

1. The office of the president as the champion of decentralization plays an active role in decentralization policy road map implementation.

2.      The office of the President facilitates consultations and discussions between the central government and the local government to accelerate the decentralization process in Southwest.

1. Due to the support of the President’s office the sector ministries and the local government cooperate and are on the same page on the implementation of decentralized service delivery.
2. The president chairs the IMCLG meetings and discusses the decentralization policy road map implementation.
3. Services are provided at the district level in a participatory and transparent manner, to enhance ownership and empowerment.
4. The president’s office and IMCLG coordinate and collaborate in the decentralization policy implementation.
5. The presidents organizes dialogue forums between the sector ministries and districts, conducts tour to the districts and finds solutions for  decentralization policy implementationchallenges.

Women are strongly encouraged to apply

The OoP will only be able to respond to those applications in which there is further interest.