Title: National Technical Expert - Digital Single Window systems for Free Economic Zones
โโRequisition ID: 6869
Grade: ISA-NOB
Country: Home Based
Duty Station: Home Based
Category: National Consultant
Type of Job Posting: Internal and External
Employment Type: NonStaff-WAE
Application Deadline: 27-Jan-2026, 11:59 PM (Vienna, Austria time)
Vacancy Announcement
TEMPORARY APPOINTMENT OF PROJECT PERSONNEL
Female candidates are encouraged to apply.
ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) is the specialized agency of the United Nations that promotes industrial development for poverty reduction, inclusive globalization and environmental sustainability. The mission UNIDO, as described in the Lima Declaration adopted at the fifteenth session of the UNIDO General Conference in 2013 as well as the Abu Dhabi Declaration adopted at the eighteenth session of UNIDO General Conference in 2019, is to promote and accelerate inclusive and sustainable industrial development (ISID) in Member States. The relevance of ISID as an integrated approach to all three pillars of sustainable development is recognized by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which will frame United Nations and country efforts towards sustainable development. UNIDOโs mandate is fully recognized in SDG-9, which calls to โBuild resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovationโ. The relevance of ISID, however, applies to a greater or lesser extent to all SDGs.
The medium-term programme framework (MTPF) is UNIDOโs core strategic document. As the Organization moves from the 2022โ2025 cycle to the 2026โ2029 MTPF, it sets a renewed vision to support Member States shape their industries for development. The new priorities include renewable and clean energy, sustainable access and climate action, ending hunger through innovation and local value addition, and fair and sustainable global and regional supply chains. Cross-cutting priorities focus on industrial and economic policy advice, skills development, fostering digitalization and artificial intelligence, gender equality and the empowerment of women, supporting youth, promoting cleaner production and circular economy, and leveraging private sector investment and development finance.
Each of these programmatic fields of activity contains a number of individual programmes, which are implemented in a holistic manner to achieve effective outcomes and impacts through UNIDOโs four enabling functions: (i) technical cooperation; (ii) analytical and research functions and policy advisory services; (iii) normative functions and standards and quality-related activities; and (iv) convening and partnerships for knowledge transfer, networking and industrial cooperation. Such core functions are carried out in Divisions/Offices in its Headquarters, Sub-regional Offices and Country Offices.
The Directorate of Technical Cooperation and Sustainable Industrial Development (TCS), headed by a Managing Director, ensures the Organization's application of strategies and interventions for sustainable industrial development related to environment, energy, Micro, Small and Medium-Enterprises (MSMEs), and digitalization. The Directorate also oversees the Organization's normative contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals through industrial policy advice and capacity development. Through coordination in-house and with Member States and industry stakeholders, it ensures that the services provided in these areas contribute to effective and appropriate technical, business and policy solutions and are focused on results, scaling up and positioning UNIDO as a leading platform for industrial development in developing countries and global fora. The Directorate is responsible for the Division of Industrial Policy Advice and Capacity Development (TCS/IPC), and technical Divisions of Circular Economy and Green Industry (TCS/CEG), Energy and Climate Action (TCS/ECA), Climate Innovation and Montreal Protocol (TCS/CMP); MSME Competitiveness, Quality and Job Creation (TCS/SME); and Digital Transformation and Artificial Intelligence (TCS/DAI). Leveraging the diverse skill sets of UNIDO personnel and the services provided by the two TC directorates, TCS collaborates closely with IET to develop and implement programmes and projects, aiming at enhancing synergy and complementarity and maximizing UNIDO corporate performance and impacts on the ground. The Directorate also ensures close coordination and collaboration among the Divisions as well as with relevant entities in all Directorates across the Organization.
The position is located under the Division of Digital Transformation and Artificial Intelligence (TCS/DAI) promotes digital transformation and Artificial Intelligence as well as associated technologies as part of innovation ecosystems consisting of productive capacities in manufacturing, services and digital firms, with the purpose to advance the competitiveness of industries and manufacturing firms in Member States. It helps industries to benefit from the rapid progress in digital and convergent technologies associated with the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), ensuring a smooth transition towards safe and secured cyber- physical industrial systems and a smart society and mitigating any negative adverse effects on employment and quality of work. Through the Division's services, the productive transformation is the key, by integrating industrial businesses, dynamic entrepreneurship, and acceleration services, and by applying technological innovation to smart manufacturing, smart energy, smart agribusiness and others, in developing countries, transition and emerging economies, with emphasis in developing countries to provide the opportunity to technologically catch up instead of falling behind industries in more advanced countries.
PROJECT CONTEXT
ID 230121: Establishing a single window system for the facilitation of economic activity in free economic zones in Tajikistan
The project aims to establish a Single Window Platform integrating Tajikistan's government ministries and other relevant public bodies to better streamline free economic zones (FEZs) investment processes, enhancing transparency and efficiency to attract and support FEZ residents in alignment with the Mid-Term Program for the Development of the Digital Economy and the 2030 National Development Strategy. The implementation of the Single Window Free Economic Zones is expected to significantly improve administrative efficiency and transparency by reducing processing times and bureaucratic procedures for businesses. This streamlined approach is further expected to attract additional investments in the FEZs, fostering increased economic activity through foreign and domestic capital, and generating new jobs. By facilitating import and export processes, the trade competitiveness would be boosted, thus contributing to revenue growth, driving infrastructure development, encouraging innovation, and strengthening public-private partnerships, which would position the FEZs as a strong instrument of economic growth and regional economic integration in Tajikistan.
FUNCTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES
Under the supervision of the Project Manager and in close collaboration with the International Lead Expert, the National Expert will:
Days
Main duties
Concrete measurable Outputs to be achieved
Expected duration
Location
25 days
Activity 1.2: Conduct comprehensive process audits (business process analysis (BPA): map and evaluate existing application-and-approval processes across all relevant ministries and FEZs to establish a detailed baseline.
Assist in data collection, mapping, and organization of existing application and approval processes in the relevant ministries/organizations and FEZs in the country. Conduct preliminary analysis and prepare draft process maps under expert guidance. Gather and summarize background materials on international practices (global, CIS, WTO TFA). Provide analytical inputs to support early identification of opportunities for process improvements and interoperability. Draft process maps and consolidated datasets on existing workflows. Summary note outlining key elements of international Single Window models and standards. Inputs supporting initial recommendations on business process simplification and interoperability.February 2026 โ March 2026
Home-based
Potential mission to the ministries/agencies and FEZs
15 days
Activity 1.3: Perform gap analysis: identify gaps in the current system that can be addressed through digital solutions, ensuring alignment with international best practices.
Support identification of procedural gaps, bottlenecks, and missing digital functionalities. Conduct comparative checks against international standards and benchmarks. Prepare analytical summaries informing targeted business process re-engineering (BPR) actions and system enhancement options. Draft gap analysis tables highlighting inefficiencies and alignment gaps. Inputs for the risk log and proposed mitigation measures. Contributions to targeted BPR recommendations addressing identified gaps.February 2026 โ March 2026
Home-based
15 days
Activity 1.4: Develop process documentation: document all current processes as a reference point for System/Platform development.
Prepare initial drafts of process documentation based on verified workflows. Organize and structure inputs supporting functional and technical specifications. Maintain an organized repository of process documentation for the development team. Draft documentation of FEZ application and approval processes. Structured inputs for the Functional Requirements Document (FRD) and Technical Requirements Document (TRD).February 2026 โ March 2026
Home-based
10 days
Activity 1.5 Assess infrastructure needs: evaluate the existing IT infrastructure to determine requirements for the Single Window Platform.