Call within the framework of the project “WB Reform and Growth Monitor”

Grant agreement number: IPA III/2024/458-693

Respected,

The Think for Europe Network (TEN) invites applications for expert/s to develop a methodology and support activities for monitoring the implementation of selected policy areas’ actions under the Reform Agendas within the framework of the project “WB Reform and Growth Monitor,” funded by the European Commission.

The project is coordinated by the European Policy Institute (EPI) – Skopje with the overall objective to enable civil society organizations (CSOs) in the Western Balkans (WB) to actively contribute to the design and credible implementation of reforms aligned with the four pillars of the Growth Plan for the WB (Growth Plan). The project seeks to strengthen participatory democracy and EU approximation in the region, focusing on economic reforms and promoting good governance, economic development, and regional cooperation.

Scope of Work: The selected expert/s will:

– Design and develop a comprehensive monitoring methodology, including data collection tools, reporting templates, and evaluation frameworks, ensuring adaptability to national contexts across the Western Balkans (WB6);

– Incorporate evidence-based approaches and gender-sensitive indicators into the methodology, promoting alignment with EU standards and best practices (e.g., NextGenEU, IPA);

– Support consultations and workshops to present the draft methodology and refine the methodology based on inputs from CSOs, public institutions, and the business sector​;

– Provide technical guidance to researchers during the piloting phase, ensuring effective application, testing, and adjustment of the methodology based on data validity, reliability, and consistency;

– Assist in piloting the monitoring methodology, supporting data analysis, validating findings, identifying gaps, and making recommendations for improving implementation and progress tracking​;

– Refine the methodology based on feedback and lessons learned during consultations and piloting, ensuring it remains adaptable to different national contexts and policy areas under the Reform Agendas (RAs);

– Prepare and finalize a professionally designed methodology booklet, consolidating tools, templates, and guidelines into a user-friendly resource for CSOs, researchers and stakeholders;

– Support the preparation of bi-annual monitoring reports, providing input and analysis to strengthen reform implementation and regional cooperation efforts.

For more details, please find the Terms of Reference (ToR).

ELIGIBILITY:

Applications may be submitted:

– Individually, or

– As part of a team of two experts

REMUNERATION:

The fee for this position is 10,500 EUR gross, covering 30 working days. Payment will be made in three instalments, as outlined in the ToR.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE:

Interested applicants should submit their applications to reform-monitor@epi.org.mk no later than February 3, 2025, with the subject line: “Application for expert/s for preparation of RA monitoring methodology.”

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

– Detailed resume (biography) in English, outlining relevant experience in accordance with the qualifications envisaged in the ToR (for each team member, if applicable).

– Overall work plan, including a division of tasks among members, if applying as a team of experts. The work plan should also include a breakdown of the 30 working days in accordance with the tasks and deliverables specified in the ToR.

– Organization and approach for developing the monitoring methodology (maximum 2 pages).

– Three references to previous work (academic papers, research reports, policy papers, etc.) for each member.

NOTE: For any questions or clarifications regarding this call, applicants may submit inquiries to the same email address (reform-monitor@epi.org.mk) no later than January 15, 2025. Responses to all submitted questions will be published on the official websites of TEN (www.thinkforeurope.org) and EPI (www.epi.org.mk).

The PAR Monitor 2021/2022 is the result of monitoring work performed during 2022 by the Think for Europe Network, and it represents a compilation report of all the key findings for the entire Western Balkan region in six areas of PAR defined by the SIGMA Principles of Public Administration. Furthermore, as the third systematic PAR monitoring in the region by civil society, this report offers benchmarking between WB administrations and comparison with the baseline 2017/2018, and 2019/2020 monitoring cycles.

PAR Monitor reports are based on a comprehensive methodological framework designed by the WeBER research team, combining quantitative and qualitative evidence sources. With the EU-SIGMA Principles as the building blocks of monitoring work, PAR Monitor reports complement the same type of work of the SIGMA/OECD and the European Commission and offer citizen and civil society perspectives on these Principles. Together with this comparative regional report, the PAR Monitor package consists of six national reports, each including findings on the 23 compound indicators to monitor a selection of SIGMA Principles.In

line with the WeBER mission, these monitoring exercises are driven by the necessity to strengthen domestic, bottom-up pressure for PAR from the civil society in the region, especially from the view of keeping demand for this reform ongoing in the event of loosening of the EU’s conditionality in PAR domain eventually. All findings from this report, PAR Monitor 2019/2020, and the baseline PAR Monitor 2017/2018 can be accessed and compared via the Regional PAR Scoreboard.

The Western Balkan PAR Monitor is available for download here: English

15 March 2023 – Today, a kick-off meeting of WeBER 3.0 – Western Balkan Enablers for Reforming Public Administrations project was held, marking the beginning of three and a half-long initiative that the TEN will implement(European Policy Centre – CEP Belgrade, European Policy Institute – EPI Skopje, Institute for Democracy and Mediation – IDM Tirana, Insititute Alternative – IA Podgorica, Group for Legal and Political Studies – GLPS Pristina, Foreign Policy Initiative – FPI Sarajevo) coordinated by the European Policy Centre – CEP Belgrade, and in partnership with the EU-level partner, Centre for Public Administration Research – KDZ from Vienna.

Milena Lazarevic, Team Leader of the WeBER 3.0 initiative, opened the kick-off meeting by greeting participants and reflecting back on the experience gathered during previous projects. Jovana Knezevic, Project Manager, then presented project roles and responsibilities & project timeline to the partners, as well as the process of monitoring project implementation and reporting. Lead Researcher, Milos Djindjic, presented research and analytical activities, and Anesa Omeragic, Communication Coordinator, talked about the visibility and communication activities of the project. Participants discussed key priorities for the project and how it will strengthen the role of civil society in monitoring and evaluating public services, promoting citizen participation in decision-making, and improving the efficiency and effectiveness of government institutions.

The implementation of the third phase of the WeBER initiative is, as has been the case with the previous two (WeBER 2015 – 2018 & WeBER 2.0 2019 – 2023), principally financed by the European Commission.