What You’ll Be Doing
The USAID Moldova Institutional and Structural Reform Activity (MISRA) project is actively seeking an ICT Consultant/Business Analyst (further Consultant) for its project in Chisinau, Moldova. Period of Performance: February-July 2024. Total Level of Effort: up to 70 days. Work Plan Activity: (WP FY24) Task 1.2.3.: Upgrade of the governmental notification service (MNotify).
Who We Are
Background
MISRA is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by Nathan Associates Inc. MISRA’s objective is to stimulate a sustainable and inclusive recovery from the regional crisis, improve the institutional, business, and trade enabling environment in Moldova by supporting Moldova’s public institutions and the private sector to accelerate the implementation of trade liberalization mechanisms, adopt structural and investment climate reforms, accelerate financial sector reforms, improve economic governance in the public sector, and enhance strategic communications between the private and public actors. MISRA builds on prior and ongoing USAID and US Government activities in the business enabling environment and trade facilitation space to strengthen Moldova’s economic growth and resilience, and by doing so, increase transparency and accountability.
The main objective of the Component 1 “Strengthening Public Economic Governance Institutions for Resilience and Accountability” is to support public institutions to implement streamlined procedures and systems, interagency coordination and good governance, and digitalization to improve transparency, public service delivery, and access to information.
Activity Overview
MNotify is a public service developed by the e-Governance Agency (EGA) to manage notifications from more than 30 clients (i.e., government institutions). The notifications are mainly sent by e-mail, but also through MCabinet and WebPush.
While MNotify multichannel delivery is impressive, its practical application has shown that MNotify users should be more versatile to associate particular contacts with particular notification categories or client systems, a feature which is not available in the current version. For example, a user might want to receive notifications for social payments through a particular e-mail address, while notifications related to taxes and invoices would be delivered faster through SMS messages and push notifications. It is also necessary to extend the channels of communications, such as WhatsUp, Viber, and the Government of Moldova’s new EVO mobile app, i.e., using its mobile push notification capability.
To enable the utilization of channels for paid services like SMS, MNotify needs to incorporate a billing subcomponent. This feature would facilitate the tracking of messages sent through these channels, attributing them to the initiating client for comprehensive auditing and cost recovery purposes.
MNotify is part of the e-Governance infrastructure, and it is integrated with MPass, MLog, MConnect, and Identity Resolver (IDR). The IDR can reconcile identities such as: vehicle numbers to the vehicle owner; or legal entity identifier to a person or business; etc. However, such services are not effectively integrated to be user friendly and fully functional.
While the basic architecture is relatively strong, completely asynchronous, and event-driven based on Kafka, there are aspects that can be improved, such as observability (e.g., better logging, metrics, and monitoring), resilience (e.g., retrying deliveries), and greater agility.
MISRA will support EGA in upgrading the MNotify module to ensure on-time, quality communications of the government’s public services, including the public services developed through MISRA.
Under this scope of work, the Consultant will analyze the current MNotify service and prepare terms of reference for new or enhanced functionalities in close coordination with the EGA and MISRA teams.
Responsibilities and Tasks
The Consultant will be responsible for carrying-out the following tasks:
Analyze the existing MNotify service by reviewing the functionalities and the technological platform and recommend appropriate enhancements.
Interview MNotify stakeholders and collect their ideas for new or enhanced features of the system.
Based on the analysis and interviews, in coordination with EGA and MISRA, prepare the terms of reference for improving MNotify.
Contribute to the preparation of the request for proposals (RFP) for improving MNotify.
Deliverables
Assessment report based on the conducted analysis.
Draft terms of references for improving MNotify for review by EGA and MISRA.
Final Terms of References for improving MNotify.
Bi-weekly Progress Reports.
Final report summarizing the work completed, findings, and recommendations, using the MISRA template.
All deliverables must be submitted in editable electronic format, in Romanian.
Consultant Qualifications
University degree in economics, computer sciences, engineering, telecommunications, business administration, public administration, or other relevant field. Minimum of 7 years of experience in the IT area. Knowledge of the Republic of Moldova’s e-Governance architecture and platforms. Excellent understanding of software development lifecycle. Excellent understanding of systems’ design process. Knowledge of the regulatory framework in the ICT field. Proven track record of business analysis and writing technical specifications and terms of reference for platforms and services, preferably with experience working with the public sector. Knowledge of international best practices for development and implementation of comparable platforms in other countries is an advantage. Excellent communication skills, written and spoken, in both Romanian and English.
Supervisory Responsibilities and Reporting
The Consultant will report to the Lead of MISRA’s Component 1 Team.
How to Apply
We welcome your CV and preferably cover letter at Moldovajobs@nathaninc.com. Please apply by January 24, 2024, with “ICT Consultant – Upgrade MNotify Service” in the subject line. This short-term position will remain open until filled.
Who We Are
At Nathan, a Cadmus company, we recognize that solving the world’s most challenging problems can’t be accomplished alone or with cookie-cutter solutions. That’s why we look for team players and problem solvers who are driven to use their unique perspectives and intellectual curiosity to help deliver breakthrough solutions that achieve transformative goals. On the Nathan team, you’ll collaborate with leading experts to help our clients across the globe.
Nathan’s mission is to deploy industry-leading expertise to help our clients achieve extraordinary results that strengthen society and the natural world. We offer competitive compensation, outstanding health care and retirement benefits, a vibrant and collaborative work environment, and opportunities for professional growth. We are committed to advancing diversity and fostering a culture of equity in the workplace and across society, and we strive to maintain an inclusive environment where all employees feel connected, respected, and valued.
Nathan, a Cadmus Company, is a leading provider of analytic and economic consultancy services worldwide. In the past decade, we have implemented more than 120 projects in more than 50 countries leveraging our global presence in Washington DC, London, and India. From improved transparency and deeper stakeholder engagement to more effective policies and more resilient businesses, we deliver results that impact economic growth, human development, and poverty reduction. We are passionate about applying our deep analytical expertise and advanced proprietary tools to generate economic solutions tailored to our clients’ unique challenges. Nathan focuses on a range of economic development subject matter areas including Trade & Logistics; Economic Policy & Governance; Private Sector Development; Women’s Economic Empowerment; and Financial Solutions.