Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Federal Government of Somalia 

THE UNIFIED SOCIAL REGISTRY (USR) COORDINATOR

TERMS OF REFERENCE (ToR)

Introduction

This Terms of Reference describes the scope of work required for the management and coordination of the Unified Social Registry (USR) and its Management Information System (MIS). The scope of this work builds on successful design and establishment of the USR as one way of ensuring a well-functioning integrated Social protection system in Somalia.

Background

The Federal Government of Somalia, through the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (MoLSA) is seeking a project coordinator to help operationalize and manage the Unified Social Registry and ensure its functionality as per the defined objective and purpose. The USR Coordinator will be expected to oversee and guide in the operationalization of the registry at both levels of government and ensure that it meets and serves the intended purpose and country vision.

The Unified Social Registry (USR) aims to establish a data repository of poor and vulnerable households. The USR is meant to collect socio-economic data of households, manage information (addition, editing, update) and provide a platform for dynamic data sharing for potential participating stakeholders to access the information of their needs for their targeting.

The USR will provide a gateway for individuals and households to be considered for inclusion in various social programmes and serve to bring efficiency and transparency in the system through better coordination and the reduction of administrative costs. The USR will be used to select potential beneficiaries and plan new interventions, aiming to mainstream programs to the most vulnerable by effectively offering coordinated bundles of transfers and services.

The USR design and development is financed under component 2 of the World Bank financed  Shock Responsive Safety Net for Human Capital Project (SNHCP). The relevant component aims to institute a unified social registry as a critical building block for a coordinated, inclusive and shock-responsive social protection system The USR will be managed by MoLSA as an independent “unit” reporting directly to the Minister.

An international consultancy firm has been contracted under the SNHCP to support MOLSA in the design and establishment of the USR.  The firm will be responsible to (i) design the USR data repository which will cover the main functions including data collection, storage, updating of the data and integration of information; (ii) procedures and protocols on data exchange and data privacy and security, and (iii) the requirement and specification of the IT architecture and the USR platform software to support the management of the registry. The USR system is being developed in consultation with relevant government stakeholders at the federal and member state levels, as well as key development and humanitarian partners and donors.

The scope of the assignment

The assignment shall see into the operations of the USR in MoLSA in the management of its social protection programs together with linkages with the relevant agencies from both State and None State Actors who are likely to interact with this system in any defined way and at any level. This will also include strategic outreach to the key stakeholders and actors within the social protection sector in Somalia as well as supervising the data sharing protocols and the general maintenance of the USR.

Deliverables in this work stream will include:

In line with the USR Strategy and the Operations Manual requirements, the USR should be able to achieve:

1. Collection, consolidation, analysis and storage of appropriate and accurate data and establishing appropriate database on the poor and vulnerable in Somalia.
2. Linkages of the USR to critical validation systems e.g. Civil Registration (e.g. ID) Database and service delivery  systems such as the Baxnaanocash transfer program, , the TIVET MIS, the Humanitarian Agencies MISs, pension systems as well as other existing Social protection systems within the social protection sector in both the Federal Government and the Member States.

• An assessment of functionality required on downstream systems that have integration with the USR, support the setup of an administrative interoperability interface that will help in setting up the links to external systems.

1. The realization of an adaptive/shock responsive mechanism to help rapid scale up of safety net programs and coordinate emergency activities in the sector by identifying those households that are impacted by shock. As well as functionality in the USR that can be used to include  a mechanism for referral to relevant programmes.
2. The realization of data sharing functionality to support the export of the data into statistical applications in order to further perform quantitative and qualitative analysis. The data should be exported in various formats, while an assessment should be made for the ability to download depersonalized raw datasets as open data.
3. Planning: Project implementation Plan (report) detailing the corresponding project management requirements and Risk Management Plan (report).

• Systems improvement: continuous advancement of the system functionality based on better and more efficient innovations. User feedback log to be developed through the realization of the various quality assurance tests and the prototype review workshop with key stakeholders
• Training: Continuous and well-structured capacity development and capacity building strategy of the Ministry staff and other relevant users for ownership and sustainability. This should be well timed and cascaded to other lower levels of administration and management.

1. Documentation: proper documentation of the various processes for continuous learning and system improvement. This should be backed up by a clear Monitoring and Evaluation Framework with very clear sector-wide indicators.
2. A transition plan, to document the necessary steps for the gradual transition of the information systems management, administration and daily operation by the key stakeholders’ IT staff including segregation of roles and responsibilities.
3. Review existing reports to ensure accuracy and develop additional functionality including but not limited to: generation of excel outputs from reports, functionality to upload key data from excel and updated charts and

• Where necessary, develop, review and update, in consultation with the Ministry, Memoranda of Understanding for all programs that link to the URS. (The MoUs will always be used with the USR data sharing protocols)
• Functional and updated API linkages to all existing programmes with automatic replication and real time updates to reporting modules.

Duties and responsibilities

The USR Coordinator will be responsible for the strategic and administrative planning and implementation of the USR in accordance with the deliverables described in the above section; support relevant  policies, objectives and plans of the MoLSA; and co-ordination of information management between institutional stakeholders at all levels, from the Federal Government, the Federal Member States, down to the local level, as applicable.

The Coordinator would be responsible for planning, management, implement, and maintaining MoLSA’s technical capacity for using technical infrastructure and resources to manage electronic information responsively and timely. He/she would also ensure that this infrastructure meets the operating requirements reliably, securely, and cost-effectively.

Finally, he/she would be responsible for the supervision of processes of data collection, input and processing. He/she will participate in the development of analytical reports based on the USR data and collaborate with other public sectors to enhance the efficiency of analytical and statistical operations of the USR.

More specifically, the Coordinator will have the following responsibilities among others:

• Managing the development, operations, and maintenance of USR system in support of social protection, including the coordination of the computerization of other social protection programs, infrastructure, and administrative systems of other MoLSA departments and other institutional stakeholders;
• Ensuring implementation of and compliance with established rules and procedures for efficient information management, use, and data sharing, including the introduction of data management standards. Maintaining coding systems for social protection and specific standards for instance data exchange and security.
• Planning, implementation, and maintenance of an integrated platform under the National Safety Nets, permitting synchronized operation, collaboration, and data sharing between critical registers, MoLSA information systems, and institutional and external information systems, as well as data storage.
• Providing quality control over the collection, processing, and use of data of USR data;
• Coordinating, planning, and implementing efficient electronic communication between the USR and various programs under the overall social protection system and linked to the USR;
• Providing input for budgeting to reflect requirements for systems maintenance and approved investment for future development;
• Contributing to the development, management, and maintenance of a secure disaster recovery for the USR platform, and planning and implementation of enhanced procedures ensuring system security complying with global standards.
• Collaborating on developing the USR operations manual and contribute to its operationalization.
• Training other USR staff on USR manual as needed.
• Collaborating with the eGovernment Office (if available) to ensure optimization of IT platforms, solutions, and structures;
• Cooperating humanitarian agencies on the use of USR data for social protection;
• Monitoring and documenting common issues faced by the system users to inform planning and management of basic and advanced training to allow all categories of users to better utilize the systems and shared services;
• Contributing to drafting of legislation governing information and communication security in the social protection system, including security standards ensuring beneficiaries’ data privacy;
• Supporting MoLSA and other institutions in applying best practices to ensure appropriate protection of personal information from their respective remits and ethical computer and data use so as to avoid abuse.
• Preparation of reports for financial analyses, monitoring and evaluation of programs and beneficiaries, performance monitoring, programs/services planning, USR GRM monitoring;
• Other duties and responsibilities linked to USR management and operation.

Duration of the assignment

The successful candidate will work under a one (1) year renewable contract based on competence, satisfactory performance, and approval by the Ministry.

Reporting

In the interim, the USR coordinator will report to the SNHCP PIU manager at the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (MoLSA). Line of reporting may change upon any change in the institutional set up of the USR, as applicable.  The Coordinator will work closely with all relevant departments at MoLSA, and will coordinate with the National Social Protection Steering Committee (NSPSC) and the foundational ID task force/agency.   and the Program Implementation Unit (PIU) within MoLSA.

Qualifications

1. The successful candidate MUST meet the following qualifications:
   1. Masters or equivalent degree in a relevant field/discipline of social science, economics, organizational behavior, development studies, engineers or IT specialist;
   2. Minimum of 5 years of relevant professional experience with Social/Unified registries, or program MISs;
   3. Minimum of 5 years of management experience;
   4. Significant practical experience and understanding of both the policy and the operational aspects related to Unified Social Registries;
   5. Experience in advising senior Government officials in the area of social safety nets/social protection;
   6. Strong spoken and written communications skills, including the ability to speak and write persuasively and present ideas clearly and concisely;
   7. Capacity to work simultaneously on a variety of issues and tasks independently, adjusting to priorities and achieving results with agreed objectives and deadlines;
   8. Experience in conducting stakeholder consultations and facilitating dialogue among key policy makers;
   9. Track record of capacity development provided to government stakeholders in similar contexts.
   10. Proficiency in English as well as in Somali languages is a must.

Application Details

To apply, send your CV to socialp@molsa.gov.so, indicating the vacancy number and location for the position you are applying to by 25/02/2021.