Consultant for the National Stocktaking Exercise on Trends and Opportunities for South-South and Triangular Cooperation in Peru

Result of ServiceRESPONSIBILITIES/DELIVERABLES: Key activities include: • Engage with the national entity responsible for overseeing international technical cooperation and for promoting South-South and triangular cooperation on behalf of the Government of Peru in order to identify existing evidence, documents and other relevant data it has produced and/or identified. • Conduct a desk study of: current national development cooperation initiatives and relevant South-South and triangular cooperation frameworks and institutional arrangements; the Government of Peru’s long-term policy priorities and strategic themes, including subnational and cross-regional dimensions (e.g. Visión del Perú al 2050; Plan Estratégico de Desarrollo Nacional al 2050; and the National Policy on Science, Technology and Innovation to 2030); relevant South-South and triangular cooperation initiatives of other development partners, including bilateral and multilateral institutions; and successful practices, challenges and lessons learned. • Conduct a survey among key stakeholders aimed at identifying current and emerging South-South and triangular cooperation policy developments, opportunities and priorities of the Government of Peru and other partners; and review results of the mapping exercise to compile South-South and triangular cooperation initiatives of the UNCT in Peru and analyze the information for national stocktaking. • Hold consultative meeting(s) with all key stakeholders to discuss: national and subnational priorities; the conditions, systems, policies and relationships that shape the implementation of South-South and triangular cooperation initiatives; institutional arrangements; lessons learned; and latest trends and opportunities that can be advanced through South-South and triangular cooperation strategic partnerships. • Identify the areas/themes in which other countries of the Global South are requesting or could request assistance from Peru, and analyze how these demands align with Peru’s identified offers. • Based on key priorities identified in the preceding activities, conduct a ‘deep-dive’ on or around selected thematic areas. • Organize one to two stakeholder consultations to present and validate the key findings. • Identify successful practices in South-South and triangular cooperation by the Government of Peru, the UN system and other stakeholders for further promotion—especially by the UNOSSC through online and other platforms. • Identify the current capacities, resources, regulatory frameworks and institutional arrangements, and identify specific gaps and challenges that affect the enabling environment for South-South and triangular cooperation in Peru, including within the UN system. • Produce a report in English and Spanish with key findings and practical recommendations covering short-, medium-, and long-term projections. These recommendations may feed into a policy dialogue in 2026 as part of the UNSDCF preparation process (see below for more details on the report). • Present the report to UNOSSC, RCO and the UNCT. • Coordinate with the RCO on the design and delivery of the workplan throughout the process and keep the RCO informed of any issues and progress. Note: For consistency of definitions, concepts and further guidance on South-South cooperation and triangular cooperation, adhere to New Directions and the Nairobi Outcome Document (A/RES/64/222) and the Outcome document of the Second High-level Conference on SSC BAPA+40 The key deliverables are: 1. Workplan The Consultant is expected to develop a detailed workplan outlining the proposed approach to delivering the assignment. The workplan should include key activities and tasks to be undertaken, including stakeholders to be engaged; and timelines for each activity, including milestones and deliverable deadlines. The workplan will serve as a guiding document for monitoring progress and ensuring timely delivery. 2. Report It will consider various approaches to South-South and triangular cooperation practiced in Peru, including their modalities, geographic coverage and sectoral scope. It will also identify and analyze current and emerging demands from other countries, sectors and regions, and assess how these align with Peru’s existing cooperation offers and solutions. The document will have two sections, with the following required contents: Section A - Situational analysis: Focused on South-South and triangular cooperation objectives, conditions, patterns, successful practices and challenges in the country, including but not limited to the activities of government agencies, civil society and private sector organizations, as well as relevant plans and support priorities of UN agencies, funds and programmes active in the country. This section lays out the architecture for development cooperation, including the approach taken with regards to South-South and triangular cooperation. The section also showcases initiatives, policies or activities that are unique, successful and recognized (or perceived) to have had a profound impact on development priorities through South-South and triangular cooperation with Peru as the recipient and/or provider, as well as the demand other Global South countries might have for Peru’s technical cooperation. The section can be divided into several subsections as per the final structure of the report. Section B - Recommendations: A set of practical follow-up recommendations addressing opportunities and challenges identified, as well as proposing ways to harmonize the activities of various actors with a view to further advancing South-South and triangular cooperation and enhancing the impact of national development efforts, as well as positioning the country as an important player in South-South and triangular cooperation in the region and beyond. A separate set of recommendations will focus on practical steps to further increase the role of the UNCT in supporting the South-South and triangular cooperation agenda through the UNSDCF, including joint programmes and country programmes of individual UN entities. Coordination and roles: The stocktaking exercise will be implemented by the Consultant with the oversight and supervision of the RCO, and in collaboration with the national government agency responsible for coordinating development cooperation. • RCO: Provide the Consultant with general oversight of the process and strategic guidance as needed, and serve as the reporting line for the assignment. Once the contract is signed, the RCO will appoint a responsible officer to coordinate with the Consultant. • UNOSSC: Provide technical support and quality assurance throughout the exercise. Annex 1: Definitions of South-South Cooperation and Triangular Cooperation South-South cooperation is a form of partnership “whereby two or more developing countries pursue [through concerted efforts] their individual and/or shared national capacity-development objectives through exchanges of knowledge, skills, resources and technical know-how and through regional and interregional collective actions, including partnerships involving Governments, regional organizations, civil society, academia and the private sector” and other relevant actors, “for their individual and/or mutual benefit within and across regions”10 and taking into account the principles of South-South cooperation. Source: Note by the Secretary-General on the framework of operational guidelines on United Nations support to South-South and triangular cooperation (SSC/19/3), 14 March 2016. Triangular cooperation involves Southern-driven partnerships between two or more developing countries supported by a developed country/countries or multilateral organization(s). Guiding Principles of South-South Cooperation The guiding normative and operational principles of South-South cooperation were set out in the Buenos Aires Plan of Action of 1978[1] and reiterated in the Nairobi outcome document. Normative Operational ▪ Solidarity ▪ National ownership and leadership ▪ Mutual benefit ▪ Partnership among equals ▪ Non-conditionality ▪ Complementarity ▪ Respect for national sovereignty and non-interference in domestic affairs ▪ Mutual accountability and transparency ▪ Development effectiveness ▪ Coordination of evidence- and result-based initiatives ▪ Multi-stakeholder approach Types of South-South Cooperation Activities: Glossary of Key Terms As South-South cooperation is grounded foremost in the principles of national sovereignty and ownership, it is the prerogative of developing countries to initiate, organize and manage South-South cooperation activities as well as their financing and programming. UN development system organizations may play promotional and catalytic roles to support partner governments in leveraging South-South and triangular cooperation, as requested. Main types of South-South Cooperation activities are listed below. UN support to such activities could be in the form of facilitation, project design, implementation, technical support, capacity development and monitoring. 1. Loans – Loans are transfers for which the recipient partner incurs legal debt (and the resulting claim is not intended to be traded). These loans can be concessional or non-concessional. 2. Concessional loans – Concessional financial terms typically involve more favorable conditions than market-based loans, such as lower interest rates or extended repayment periods, designed to support the economic development of the recipient. The most commonly used method for measuring concessionally is through the calculation of the “grant element”. Loans are considered concessional if they include at least a 35% grant element, calculated using a 5% discount rate, in accordance with the definition of the IMF (2018). 3. Interest-free loans – Interest-free loans are loans to a partner without interest charges. 4. Grants –transfers in cash or in kind for which no legal debt is incurred by the recipient. 5. Direct cash transfers under social development public programmes in partner countries – Direct cash transfers expenditure benefiting individuals, in the context of public programmes of sustainable development in partner countries (with the consent and support of the partner country). 6. Technical cooperation - activities to foster capacity building through knowledge sharing, including advisory and consultation activities, promotional activities (e.g., seminars) to raise awareness, delivery of training, including conferences, seminars and workshops). 7. South-South Grants and other research subsidies (and capital investment in joint research projects) – Research grants awarded to foreign researchers from countries of the global South and capital investment in joint research projects for sustainable development, supported by bilateral, triangular or multilateral agreements. 8. Scholarships – Includes financial awards for individual students from countries of the global South, contributions to trainees and indirect (“imputed”) costs of tuition in provider partner countries to nationals of south countries. 9. Infrastructure projects - Expenses with infrastructure projects with development purposes. 10. Goods and materials – Donation of goods and materials with development purposes. 11. Humanitarian assistance (between developing countries) – Assistance that is either delivered directly by a partner country or through multilateral channels in benefit of developing economies. Includes contributions, donations of food, medicine, medical supplies, and other materials in case of humanitarian distress circumstances. It also includes dispatch of humanitarian missions incl. health professionals; first-aid workers; and teachers. 13. Assistance to refugees - Expenses with temporary assistance to refugees and individuals in refugee-like situations in the provider country, as well as material or technical support to refugees in other host countries. Also, includes support to refugees returning voluntarily to their countries of origin. 14. Participation in Peace Keeping Operations - Disbursements related to UN peacekeeping operations and related operations mandated or authorized by a United Nations Security Council resolution. 15. Deployment of experts - mobilization of experts/ specialists/ government officials from developing economies to other developing economies. 16. Volunteers – experts who volunteer without renumeration. 17. Contributions to International Organizations, Development Banks and Funds - Capital paid-in to International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and Regional/Multilateral Funds. Work LocationLIMA Expected durationOCT - DEC 2025 Duties and ResponsibilitiesDescription: The UN Resident Coordinator’s Office, Peru (RCO) in partnership with the UN Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC) are looking for a consultant to conduct a national stocktaking exercise to capture the institutional eco-system, including policies, strategies, institutions to plan, manage and measure/ report on South-South and triangular cooperation (see Annex 1 for definition), successful initiatives and activities that leverage South-South and triangular cooperation and lead to the achievement of development goals in Peru. It will also identify potential demand from other countries for Peru’s support as cooperation provider. The outcome of the exercise will be a report and recommendations which will inform the UN Country Analysis (UNCA) and the formulation of the next UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) in Peru. It will equip national partners and the United Nations Development System (UNDS) entities in Peru to further leverage South-South and triangular cooperation for greater impact, especially in accelerating progress towards the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development. BACKGROUND and OBJECTIVES South-South and triangular cooperation is an effective tool to mobilize global solidarity, and drive progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The outcome document of the second High-level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation (BAPA+40) encourages developing countries to strengthen national policies in advancing South-South and triangular cooperation, while enhancing the capacity of national and subnational coordination mechanisms. Furthermore, the BAPA+40 outcome document has urged the UNDS to enhance its assistance to developing countries in seeking potential cooperation partners in strategic areas, whilst assisting those countries in building the human and institutional capacity needed to formulate and implement national development policies, strategies and programmes for South-South and triangular cooperation (para. 27 c, d). The 2020 UN System-wide Strategy on South-South and Triangular Cooperation for Sustainable Development commits the UN system to support Member States in establishing and strengthening national institutional arrangements for South-South and triangular cooperation (para. 22). In 2021, 2022 and 2023, the UNGA resolutions, A/Res/76/221, A/Res/77/185 and A/Res/78/167 called upon the UNDS to continue to mainstream South-South and triangular cooperation into the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks (UNSDCFs) at the country level, and through regional collaborative frameworks at regional level, as means to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its SDGs. In line with this mandate, the UN Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC) is supporting Resident Coordinators (RCs) and UN Country Teams (UNCTs) to integrate South-South and triangular cooperation in their work through Guidelines and e-modules, webinars and quality assurance to UNSDCF Roadmaps, UN Country Analyses (UNCAs) and UNSDCFs via the Regional Peer Support Groups. In 2025-2026, UNOSSC will provide demand-based, targeted advisory support and technical assistance to select UNCTs (such as Peru) developing UNSDCFs in 2025 and 2026. To scale up and sustain this support, going forward, UNOSSC will i) develop concrete tools that RCOs and PSGs can use, ii) develop their capacity to use these tools and iii) develop a pool of experts to conduct mapping exercises for national partners and UNCTs. The Resident Coordinator’s Office (RCO) and the UNCT in Peru have embarked on the preparation of the next UNSDCF for the period 2027-2031. The National Policy for International Technical Cooperation highlights the priorities of the Government of Peru to position itself as a provider of South-South cooperation. In line with this, and based on discussions with national partners, the RCO and UNCT plan to integrate South-South and triangular cooperation in the UNCA. In this context, RCO has engaged APCI to do a comprehensive review of the development cooperation ecosystem at the national and subnational levels. Building on the evidence and analyses already developed by APCI and other partners, the exercise aims at consolidating and updating information and analyzing and assessing the environment. UNOSSC, as part of its vision to enhance knowledge sharing and matching development cooperation and solutions through South-South and triangular cooperation, is encouraging countries to assess and identify gaps and comparative strengths in advancing South-South and triangular cooperation as a tool for attaining development objectives. This has also been highlighted in the Guidelines for Integration of South-South and triangular cooperation in the country and regional level work of the UN development system. Taking lessons and learning from previous national-level stocktaking exercises conducted with UNOSSC support in Azerbaijan, Djibouti, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Montenegro, Somalia, Sudan, Tajikistan and Tunisia, the national stocktaking exercise in Peru will serve as a critical element of the overall support of the UNCT in advancing national development priorities, within the overall mandate of UN’s operational activities for development. The activity will be tailored to the national context to best fit the country’s needs and aspirations. More specifically, the national stocktaking exercise will: • Take stock of the development cooperation ecosystem at both the national and subnational level, reviewing the institutional arrangements, national policies and frameworks in place and assessing how they support an enabling environment for South-South and triangular cooperation; • Identify policy priorities (including regional), relevant initiatives of government and other partners, successful practices; • Identify the main challenges, lessons learned, latest trends and opportunities in strengthening South-South and triangular cooperation, as well as opportunities that can be advanced through South-South and triangular cooperation strategic partnerships; and • Develop a set of practical recommendations covering short-, medium-, and long-term projections for national stakeholders and UNCT. The outcome of the exercise will be a report and policy recommendations which will inform the UNCA and the formulation of the next UNSDCF in Peru. It will equip national partners and UNDS entities in Peru to further leverage South-South and triangular cooperation for greater impact, especially in accelerating progress towards the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This is not a standalone or an ad hoc activity, but rather a process integral to the so-called ‘national ecosystem’ for South-South and triangular cooperation. Qualifications/special skillsRequired: Master's degree in economics, public policy, or related fields. Required:At least 5 years of relevant international professional experience, including substantial involvement in exercises related to these Terms of Reference such as national institutional assessments/ stocktaking/ mapping. Desirable: Demonstrated experience in analysis, research and assessment of international development cooperation, particularly in the areas of South-South and triangular cooperation, among others. Desirable: Experience working in collaboration with government partners, demonstrated knowledge of government institutions, management, policies and programmes. Desirable: Knowledge of the United Nations Organization, the UN joint programming process at the country level, the UN System Reform and coordination system. Required: Technical ability for data collection, reviewing information, analysis, drafting succinct reports to inform policy formulation and programmes. LanguagesRequired: Language: Fluent oral and written English and Spanish. Additional InformationNot available. No FeeTHE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.