Budget Analysis Consultant
Position Circumstances
- Career Category: Advisor / Individual Consultant
- Schedule:Short-term
- Salary: N/A
Location: Cambodia, Phnom Penh-based preferred
Duration: 17 August – 27 November 2026 (30 working days)
Payment Terms: 3 installments, paid against completion of each milestone
Objectives
Main Objective: analyze 2020–2024 Budget and Settlement Laws to provide actionable, evidence-based recommendations for Budget Law 2027/2028, with a focus on fiscal space for priority sectors and expenditure efficiency.
Specific Objectives
- Analyze macro and sectoral budget trends, including revenue generation and expenditure allocations, using Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) data.
- Analyze key ministries' expenditure using economic classification to identify efficiency and reallocation opportunities.
- Coordinate BWG member consultations to ground the analysis in sectoral/macro member expertise.
- Produce a CSO position paper with recommendations for overall budget law (process and allocation) and sector focuses such as agriculture, climate, WASH, education, health, and social protection.
Scope of Work
Duration: 17 August – 27 November 2026 (30 working days), with bi-weekly consultation/check-ins with NGOF.
Duties & Responsibilities:
- Core Tasks
- Develop a dual analysis outline covering both budget law trends and ministry expenditures.
- Collect and verify 2020–2025 Budget and Settlement Laws from the MEF website and other official sources.
- Analyze macro/sectoral trends and key ministries' expenditure using economic classification.
- Cross-reference findings with the Rectangular Strategy Phase IV, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) reports, and relevant sectoral strategies.
- Coordinate with BWG members on sectoral/macro consultations to validate assumptions and gather sector input.
- Present preliminary findings to BWG members for validation before finalizing the report.
- Produce a 15–20-page Khmer-language report plus a 2–3-page English executive summary.
- Present final findings at a multi-stakeholder workshop organized by NGOF.
- Consultancy Role and Reporting
- The consultant reports to NGOF's SCOPE-PFM Project Manager and works closely with the BWG Coordinator.
- Bi-weekly check-ins with NGOF to review progress against the schedule in Section 4.
- All data, drafts, and the final report are subject to NGOF/BWG review and approval before publication, and before each payment is released.
- The consultant is responsible for their own equipment and workspace; NGOF arranges and pays for the multi-stakeholder workshop venue directly (not part of the consultant's fee).
Expected Profile of Candidates
Languages:
- Khmer - Fluent
- English - Fluent
Qualifications:
- Postgraduate Degree in Economics, Development Studies, or Public Policy
- Master's Degree as a minimum
Work History:
- Budget analysis / PFM research experience in Cambodia for 3 to 5 years as a minimum
- CSO engagement and advocacy product development experience for 5 years
Skills & Knowledge:
General & Technical Skills
- Strong data analysis skills (economic classification, ministry expenditures).
- Proven data visualization skills (charts, infographics from raw MEF data).
- Fluent Khmer and English, with the ability to translate complex technical findings into accessible language.
- Understanding of Cambodia's PFM framework, budget cycle, and the Rectangular Strategy Phase IV.
- Gender-sensitive analytical approach.
- Applicants should be prepared to submit a sample of previous budget analysis or similar technical work.
Citizen Climate Budget Consultant
Position Circumstances
- Career Category: Advisor / Individual Consultant
- Schedule:Short-term
- Salary: N/A
Location: Cambodia, Phnom Penh-based preferred
Duration: 17 August – 16 October 2026 (20 working days)
Payment Terms: 3 installments, paid against completion of each milestone
Objectives
Primary Objective
Produce 2020–2026 Citizen Climate Budget (CCB) booklets (15 pages, Khmer/English) with infographics and summaries for citizen-led monitoring and advocacy of climate budgets.
Specific Objectives
- Conduct desk review and consultations to tag climate expenditures and optimize content/formats for diverse audiences (e.g., communities, Civil Society Organizations).
- Integrate SCOPE-PFM priorities: gender/climate vulnerability disaggregation, youth/women empowerment visuals, and recommendations for CSO advocacy on climate finance gaps.
Methodology
- Mixed methods: desk review, consultations, production.
- Data: Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) laws, Ministry of Environment (MoE) plans, approx. 20 respondents (diverse per project inclusivity).
- Tools: Excel/Stata (analysis), Canva/Illustrator (visuals like pie charts for spending shares, gender-disaggregated), KoboToolbox (surveys).
- Quality Assurance (QA): triangulation, gender/climate disaggregation, peer review.
Budget
Total: US$5,000 (incl. 10% Value Added Tax (VAT)), for consultant fee and tax only, paid in the 3 installments. NGOF covers printing and dissemination of 500 CCB copies separately.
Administrative Arrangements
- Contract: Fixed-term (individual/firm), 17 August – 16 October 2026.
- Reports: Bi-weekly to job@ngoforum.org.kh.
- Logistics: NGO Forum on Cambodia covers workshop costs; consultant handles virtual tools.
- Intellectual Property (IP): NGO Forum on Cambodia owns all outputs; a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) is required.
Duties & Responsibilities:
- Lead analyst for climate tagging; facilitator for consultations; writer/designer for infographic-heavy outputs.
- NGO Forum on Cambodia provides budget data, introductions, workshop logistics, and project networks (e.g., BWG, youth programs).
Expected Profile of Candidates
Languages:
- English - Fluent
- Khmer - Fluent
Qualifications:
- Phd
- Master's Degree in Climate Finance, Public Finance, Economics, or equivalent.
Work History:
- 5+ years of Cambodian budget/climate analysis experience (e.g., Climate Public Expenditure Review (CPER) tagging). for 5 years as a minimum
Skills & Knowledge:
General & Technical Skills
- Civil Society Organization (CSO) experience (e.g., BWG, METRI youth initiatives); fluent Khmer/English.
- Quantitative skills (Excel/Stata) plus visualization skills (submit a Citizen Climate Budget (CCB)-style sample).
Research Consultant
Position Circumstances
- Career Category: Advisor / Individual Consultant
- Schedule:Short-term
- Salary: N/A
Location: Cambodia, Phnom Penh-based preferred
Framework Period: 24 August 2026 – 31 May 2028 (3 years; 6 review sessions per year, undersigned annual Call-Off Orders)
Indicative Total Ceiling (Consultant Fee Only): US$9,000 (US$3,000 per year × 3 years), (6 sessions/year × US$500 consultant fee/session)
This assignment is for the first year only. Future contract extensions will be considered based on overall performance and task completion.
Purpose and Structure of This Framework Agreement
- This Framework Agreement is a single competitive tender covering the full 2026–2028 period. It sets the general terms (Section 5), qualification requirements (Section 6), and the 3-year budget ceiling.
- The Framework Agreement itself creates no obligation for NGOF to purchase any specific volume of work, and no entitlement for the consultant to any specific volume of income.
- Actual work only happens, and payment only becomes due when both parties sign a Call-Off Work Order for a specific year, confirming that year's exact session dates, deliverables, and budget.
Budget and Payment Terms
- This assignment is for the first year only for the period of 24 Aug – 18 Dec 2026. Future contract extensions will be considered based on overall performance and task completion.
- Total Contract Value: US$3,000 (incl. 15% Value Added Tax).
Duties & Responsibilities:
- How the Call-Off Mechanism Works
- This Framework Agreement is signed following a one-time competitive tender (this recruitment round).
- Call-Off Order #1 (Year 1, 2026) is issued and signed at the same time as the Framework Agreement - its 6 session dates and budget are already confirmed (see Section 4 and the attached Call-Off Work Order #1).
- For each subsequent year, NGOF prepares a draft Call-Off Work Order confirming that year's 6 session dates, focus topics, and budget (US$3,000), informed by the prior year's findings.
- NGOF shares the draft Call-Off Work Order with the consultant. The consultant may raise questions or propose minor scheduling adjustments.
- Both parties sign the Call-Off Work Order before any sessions for that year begin. A signed Call-Off is binding for that year only.
- If NGOF does not issue a Call-Off Order for a given year, the Framework Agreement continues, but that year's sessions simply do not occur. Neither party owes the other anything for a year with no signed Call-Off.
- The consultant may decline a specific year's Call-Off Order without breaching the Framework Agreement. Repeated declines may lead NGOF to open that year's work to a new competitive tender instead.
- NGOF will offer each year's sessions to the Framework consultant first, subject to satisfactory performance review (Section 5), before considering a new tender for that year.
- General Terms Applicable to Every Call-Off Order
- Governing terms: every Call-Off Order is governed by this Framework Agreement's general terms (intellectual property, confidentiality, quality standards) plus its own specific session dates, deliverables, and budget.
- Payment: paid against the milestones defined in each signed Call-Off Order. No work begins, and no payment is due, until that year's Call-Off Order is signed by both parties.
- Level of effort: 6 working days per year (1 day per review session), consistent with the Budget Justification.
- Reporting: a short session note/analysis brief after each review session, plus a consolidated annual report at year-end, to NGOF/BWG.
- Intellectual Property (IP): NGOF retains full ownership of all outputs produced under every Call-Off Order.
- Confidentiality: a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) applies for the full life of the Framework Agreement (2026–2028).
- Performance review: NGOF reviews consultant performance at the close of each Call-Off Order. Sustained underperformance may lead NGOF to terminate the Framework Agreement or decline to issue further Call-Off Orders.
- No exclusivity or minimum guarantee: this Framework Agreement does not guarantee the consultant any minimum volume of work or income. It only guarantees that if NGOF issues a Call-Off Order for this activity during 2026–2028, it will be offered to the Framework consultant first, subject to satisfactory performance.
Expected Profile of Candidates
Qualifications:
- Master's Degree in Public Finance, Economics, or Law; fluent Khmer/English
Work History:
- PFM research/analysis experience in Cambodia; CSO collaboration experiences an asset for 3 to 5 years
Skills & Knowledge:
General & Technical Skills
- Relevant expertise in Public Financial Management (PFM) legal/regulatory analysis, with familiarity with Cambodia's 2023 Public Financial System (PFS) Law.
- Working knowledge of green budgeting/climate tagging and fiscal space analysis.
- Ability to produce concise session notes and contribute to a consolidated annual report; Excel proficiency required.
- Demonstrated capacity to sustain a working relationship with NGOF/BWG across multiple years.
