Background
UNDP Moldova mission is critical in supporting the complex and dynamic landscape of sustainable development in Moldova. The engagements across government sectors, civil society, and academia are crucial in achieving the ambitious targets set by the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. In this context, the UNDP Moldova is strategically positioned as a reliable, responsive, and trusted provider of development services, supporting the Government's efforts to pursue its priorities.
As part of the Country Programme Document (CPD) 2023-2027, UNDP Moldova has committed to adopt integrated approaches to strengthen resilience of system and institutions. Aligned with the UNSDCF 2023-2027, and in the spirit of building a #FutureSmartUNDP, part of the UNDP Strategic Plan 2022-2025, corporate โenablersโ such as digital transformation and strategic innovation are deployed to support the Government to tackle complex development challenges that affect progress towards sustainable human development.
As digital technologies rapidly evolve and vary in its availability, accessibility, and impact, it is important that UNDP Moldova focuses to leverage existing and emerging technologies in a pragmatic and structured manner to become a better partner. UNDP Moldova ambition is not only to support the Government and local communities to become โdigital by defaultโ, but also to make sure digital solutions deliver impact โ strengthen resilience of systems and institutions. The pandemic, war in Ukraine, and other compounded crises have highlighted the necessity and reliance on digital tools and timely data as well as emphasized the need for digital transformation - a national priority for Moldova.
Rethinking digital transformation opportunities: Digital transformation is already visible in Moldova as the country has begun to transfer legal, social, public service delivery to online platforms. Although Moldova has (i) a developed digital infrastructure, with 4G coverage at 98%, (ii) a well-placed e-Governance architecture, and (iii) an advanced ICT sector, the country needs to systemically rethink digital transformation opportunities and focus on a โwhole of Governmentโ and โwhole of societyโ systemic transformation, including digitalize higher number of services, closing the digital divide between rural and urban areas, people of different ages and genders, and improve/harmonize the legislative framework to align with international standards.ย
UNDP Moldova has supported the Government in developing a comprehensive National Digital Transformation Strategy 2023-2030, which represents a bold engagement to accelerate digital transformation of the nation by exploring a โwhole of Governmentโ and โwhole-of-societyโ approach and is further actively engaged in ensuring that digital transformation is inclusive and sustainable.
A โwhole of Governmentโ and โwhole-of-societyโ approach at the epicenter of digital transformation: The National Digital Transformation Strategy 2023-2030, as well as the UNDP Digital Strategy 2022-2025, serve as the cornerstones of the current UNDP Moldova engagements to expedite digital transformation across various sectors, integrate digital tools in both public administration and the private sector, simplify interactions between citizens and the state, and propel the achievement of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs.ย
From e-Governance to digital Government: National policies and regulatory frameworks for digital transformation are often implemented reactively. In an era of accelerating digital transformation, the Moldova Government with its institutions must take proactive action to lead the way despite imperfect digital infrastructures and modest skill capacities. Governments need to increase their use of digital technology to deliver more effective services to the population. This involves adding new value, promoting innovation, and reimagining development for the digital age.
Data for policy development: Advancing digital transformation in Moldova generates significant data, which the Moldova Government can leverage for better decision-making and governance. The experience of EVRF through providing on-bill compensation to reduce the energy vulnerability of the Moldovan public, supported by UNDP Moldova, demonstrated the successful use of data to automate effective government processes. Following this experience, UNDP Moldova is working to create a Data Governance Framework to provide standards for data collection, processing, verification, and validation. This framework will ensure that data is accurate, trustworthy, safe, secure, and compatible for exchange on national and local levels.
Digital literacy for a digital society: To help all people thrive in a digital society, regardless of their gender, age, level of education, and income, UNDP Moldova is undertaking efforts to ensure that all people in Moldova are digitally literate โ have basic digital skills to use electronic public services, make the most of an ever-changing job market, etc. UNDP Moldova is also modernizing public services and the digital infrastructure to meet current standards. Since 2021, UNDP has supported the development of two new digital solutions as key enablers of the digital transformation of public services: an advanced digital signature/identity application (EVO) and the digital wallet (MWallet), part of the EVO app. These digital solutions are expected to enable at least 70% of the Moldovan public to be active users of digital public services. In addition, UNDP Moldova has supported womenโs and girlsโ integration in science and technology, particularly promoting STEEAM-based education, resulting in about 50% female participation in the โTekwill in Every Schoolโ Programme. UNDP Moldova also supports women entrepreneurs, providing grants for women to establish and grow their businesses, including in ICT, with successful examples in agro-tech and cybersecurity.
Private sector engagement: UNDP Moldova recognizes the private sector's role in strengthening e-Governance and transitioning to a digital governmentโone of the six objectives laid out in the National Digital Transformation Strategy 2023-2030. To facilitate private-sector engagement, UNDP Moldova contracts private entities to enable ICT companies and start-ups to develop innovative and digital solutions in governance, finance, social protection, education, local development, digital identity, and more. This has been possible through the Moldova Digital Innovation Challenges, launched in partnership with Government partners.
Digital transformation in sectors: UNDP Moldova has initiated the development of several portfolio interventions with cross-cutting digital transformation components in numerous projects, including โAccelerating a Just Energy Transitionโ, โDigital Transformation of Social Protectionโ, โAccelerating Digital Governanceโ, โAccelerating Digital Transformation in Agricultureโ, and others. Additionally, UNDP Moldova has embedded a network of Chief Digital Officers within several line ministries to lead the sectoral digital transformation agenda in line with Digital Transformation Strategy 2030.ย
Overall, the focus of UNDP Moldova on integration of digital components across projects and sectors requires a coherent approach to ensure that the promise of digital transformation is fully harnessed across economic, social, and environmental domains. Therefore, the role of a Digital Development Specialist is envisaged to be a horizontal function that will provide a cross-sectoral support to effectively embed the digital into policy and programmatic work of UNDP Moldova.ย
The Digital Development Specialist will also enable the UNDP Moldova to better harness the local digital ecosystem for more effective and efficient development assistance, while also advancing the internal UNDP Moldova digitalization priorities.
Duties and Responsibilities
The Digital Development Specialist will be responsible for strengthening UNDP Moldovaโs digital transformation portfolio, ensuring strategic coherence, quality assurance, and alignment with national and international digital policies. The Specialist will also contribute to both shaping the strategic digital direction and ensuring day-to-day operational delivery.
The Specialist will act as a product (co-)owner for digital and ICT solutions across UNDP projects, ensuring a structured, scalable, and consistent approach. The role includes providing technical oversight of digital procurements, leading the drafting of technical specifications, overseeing contract execution, and validating the technical quality of digital solutions.
The Digital Development Specialist will work closely with the UNDP Moldova ICT Unit, ensuring digital initiatives align with internal IT policies, infrastructure requirements, and enterprise security frameworks. The Specialist will also liaise with key government institutions to ensure digital solutions comply with Moldovaโs digitalization policies, cybersecurity frameworks, and technical capacities.
Advise and support the design, integration, and scalability of digital solutions across UNDP Moldovaโs portfolio:
Act as a product (co-)owner for digital and ICT solutions, ensuring alignment with national digital policies, UNDP digital strategies, and interoperability standards. Co-design, jointly with project teams, the Terms of Reference (TORs) for digital services and solutions, ensuring clarity, feasibility, and alignment with UNDP standards. Assist in identifying and engaging digital service providers, substantively contribute to the procurement, evaluation contracting of ICT firms, software developers, and technical experts. Work closely with the UNDP Moldova ICT Unit to ensure all procured digital solutions align with internal IT policies, enterprise architecture requirements, and security protocols. Provide technical advisory support to UNDP projects, enabling them to integrate scalable, user-centric, and sustainable digital solutions. Facilitate the standardization of digital approaches, ensuring projects leverage existing digital assets, platforms, and methodologies. Provide regular technical oversight and quality assurance for digital solutions, ensuring they meet security, functionality, and sustainability benchmarks. Monitor and evaluate the impact of UNDP Moldova digital interventions, provide feedback and facilitate the adjustment of implementation strategies to enhance outcomes.Ensure alignment with national digitization policies and technical standards:
Support the translation of national digital policies in close coordination with Digital Integration Analyst into practical implementation frameworks, ensuring UNDP-supported digital solutions comply with technical, cybersecurity, and data governance regulations. Facilitate collaboration with key national institutions, including: Information Technology and Cybersecurity Service (STISC) - ensuring compliance with national cybersecurity and IT governance policies. E-Governance Agency (EGA) - ensuring digital solutions align with national e-government architecture and interoperability frameworks. Cybersecurity Agency - integrating cyber resilience, risk management, and security measures into UNDP-supported digital initiatives. Oversee contract execution and technical validation of digital solutions to ensure compliance with national standards, cybersecurity frameworks, and user requirements. Provide advisory support on regulatory compliance, ensuring project teams adhere to national data protection and digital security standards.ยEnsure coherence and technical consistency across digital transformation initiatives:
Facilitate internal coordination among UNDP project teams, ensuring digital transformation efforts follow a unified and scalable approach. Collaborate with the UNDP IT Unit and Digital Integration Analyst to ensure consistency in the implementation of digital initiatives. Oversee the technical validation of contracted digital solutions, ensuring they meet required interoperability, security, and performance criteria. Support the development and adoption of digital governance frameworks, ensuring solutions are interoperable, scalable, and adaptable to evolving national needs. Assist in the mapping and tracking of digital transformation initiatives, ensuring they are strategically integrated and complement existing investments.Facilitate knowledge and capacity building, knowledge sharing, and advocacy relevant to the digital transformation initiatives:
Identify capacity building needs and opportunities. Ensure appropriate training, project workshops and other relevant activities are organized and implemented in a consultative manner, involving technical experts and stakeholders that may include the government, private sector, NGOs, donors, and/or academia. The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of UNDP Moldova.ย Institutional arrangements
The Digital Development Specialist will work under the supervision of the UNDP Moldova Deputy Resident Representative and the complementary guidance of the Policy Specialist, closely collaborating with Project Teams, Operations, Communications, and the ICT Unit to support the integration and quality assurance of digital transformation initiatives.ย
The Specialist will supervise national and international consultants, as well as short-term NPSA positions for digital- and ICT-related expertise, ensuring coherence and technical consistency across projects.
He/she will also coordinate with the UNDP Moldova ICT Unit to align digital initiatives with internal IT governance and security standards, engage with the UNDP Strategic Innovation Unitโs global and regional teams to leverage best practices, and liaise with national digital institutions such as STISC, EGA, and the Cybersecurity Agency to ensure compliance with national policies and standards.ย
Additionally, the Specialist will work with UN agencies, development partners, and private sector stakeholders to strengthen partnerships and resource mobilization for digital transformation. The Specialist is expected to ensure full compliance with UNDP policies, financial, procurement, and administrative regulations.
Competencies
Core competencies:
Achieve Results: LEVEL 3: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact. Think Innovatively: LEVEL 3: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems. Learn Continuously: LEVEL 3: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences. Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 3: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands. Act with Determination: LEVEL 3: Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results. Engage and Partner: LEVEL 3: Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration. Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 3: Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity.Cross Functional and Technical competencies:
Business Management-Project Managementย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Ability to plan, organize, prioritize, and control resources, procedures, and protocols to achieve specific goals. Business Direction & Strategy- Strategic Thinkingย ย ย ย Develop effective strategies and prioritized plans in line with UNDPโs mission and objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, opportunities and potential risks; link the general vision to reality on the ground to create tangible targeted solutions; learn from a variety of sources to anticipate and effectively respond to both current and future trends; demonstrate foresight. Business Direction & Strategy- System Thinkingย ย ย ย ย ย ย Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system. Business Development- Knowledge Facilitationย ย ย ย ย ย ย Ability to animate individuals and groups, internally and externally, and to design and facilitate activities, to share and exchange knowledge, information and ideas. Knowledge of tools and approaches to stimulate active participation, contribution, and exchange. Data- Data analysisย ย ย ย Ability to extract, analyze and visualize data to form meaningful insights and aid effective business decision making. Digital ย - Digital transformation designย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Practical and strategic skills in digital transformation for governments and organizations.ย Partnership management- Relationship Managementย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย Ability to engage with a wide range of public and private partners, build, sustain and/or strengthen working relations, trust and mutual understanding.Required Skills and Experience
Education:
Advanced university degree (masterโs degree or equivalent) in Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Engineering, Business Administration and/or Public Administration, Economics or related field is required; orย A first-level university degree (bachelorโs degree) in the areas mentioned above in combination with an additional two (2) years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.Experience:
Minimum 5 years (with masterโs degree) or 7 years (with bachelorโs degree) of progressively responsible relevant experience (at the national or international level) design, implementation, management, monitoring, and evaluation of digital transformation, ICT, data governance, public policy or development projects.Required skills:
Experience in leading or coordinating multi-stakeholder teams is required. Knowledge and experience in thematic areas relevant to digital transformation, public services, private sector engagement, data knowledge, institutional development, etc is required.ยDesired skills:
Experience in ICT, smart technologies, digital innovation, and business development projects will be an advantage. Experience in procurement, contracting, and oversight of ICT service providers, software developers, or digital solution vendors will be an advantage. Prior experience in collaborating with UN agencies, government institutions, NGOs, or international development organizations will be an advantage. Training and/or certification in project management (e.g., PRINCE2, PMP, Agile) will be an advantage. Training and/or certification in data governance, IT architecture, cybersecurity, or digital transformation (e.g., TOGAF, ITIL, COBIT, ISO/IEC 27001) will be an advantage.Languages:
Fluency in English and Romanian is required. Knowledge of one or more minority languages relevant for Moldova, including Russian, Romani, Gagauzian, Bulgarian, Ukrainian and sign language, is an asset.Equal opportunity
As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination.ย
UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.
Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority
UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles.ย
Right to select multiple candidates
UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.ย We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.
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