Regulatory Policy Specialist

Background:

The leading government institution was established in November 2019 to coordinate, support, and drive the implementation of reforms under the Reform Matrix. Additionally, the leading government institution will provide necessary technical assistance and capacity building to Government Ministries and entities to support and expedite the implementation of reforms.

The leadig government institution will oversee the implementation of the Reform Matrix; ensure reforms are designed in consultation with stakeholders; report to the Government of Jordan (GoJ) and development partners on progress; and coordinate between GoJ entities and development partners to ensure implementation and alignment of donor programs with national priorities. Furthermore, the leading government institution will produce and disseminate information and communication materials to inform all target groups, including the private sector and the public, of the progress of implementation and impact of reforms.

The Reform Matrix consists of twelve pillars:

1. Pillar 1: Pursue Macroeconomic Adjustment.
2. Pillar 2: Improve Public Sector Efficiency and Governance
3. Pillar 3: Reduce Business Costs, Improve Regulatory Quality, and Increase Competition.
4. Pillar 4: Drive FDI and Promote Export Development of Products, Services, and Markets.
5. Pillar 5: Deepen Access to Finance from Banks and Non-Bank Financial Institutions.
6. Pillar 6: Create More Flexible Labor Markets for Job Creation.
7. Pillar 7: Expand and Improve Social Safety Nets to Better Protect the Poor and Vulnerable.
8. Pillar 8: Improve Public Transport Efficiency and Access.
9. Pillar 9: Increase Energy Efficiency and Access.
10. Pillar 10: Promote Water Security.
11. Pillar 11: Promote Agribusiness.
12. Pillar 12: Strengthen the Tourism Sector.

The Reform Support Fund is lodged at the leading government institution. It will finance just-in-time technical assistance in support to line ministries involved in designing, implementing, and monitoring the Reform Matrix.

Project Context

Regulatory frameworks across most sectors and policy domains in Jordan are characterized by complex, unpredictable, poorly enforced, and often overlapping and opaque regulations. The environment is also inefficient due to a high frequency of regulatory changes, poor interagency collaboration, lack of clarity of requirements, and burdensome procedures. This creates regulatory failures (societal goals and priorities are not met, and unintended consequences emerge) and disproportionate or unnecessary burdens on citizens and business. Businesses’ ability or incentives to set long-term operating plans and investments are hindered; compliance and general trust in government are undermined; and informal or corruptive behaviors persist. High-quality legislation and good regulatory practices such as public consultation, ex-ante assessments of impacts and ex-post evaluations of regulatory performance are foundational for regulatory effectiveness and a pre-condition for fostering sustainable, inclusive economic growth.

The objective is to improve the quality, predictability and effectiveness of policies and regulation in Jordan by supporting the sustained implementation of Good Regulatory Practices such as public consultation and impact assessment of major policy proposals.

Main Function:

The Regulatory Policy Specialist will be seconded by the leading government institution to support the drafting of RIAs, public consultations, and ex-post evaluation throughout the policy-making process. S/he will have the responsibility to provide technical support to line ministries for the conduct of RIAs and ensure that they are conducted in compliance with the RIA guidelines. S/he will be reporting the Director of Decision Support Unit / at the Leading Government Institution on the program and projects implementation and will serve as the contact point for the project. S/he will be responsible also to coordinate and communicate with project’s stakeholders.

Responsibilities:

The Regulatory Policy Specialist will be responsible for the following key tasks:

• Provide technical support to line ministries for the conduct of RIAs and ensure that they are conducted in compliance with the RIA guidelines.
• Support the development of the line ministries’ RIAs, including
  • Carry out and/or support the analytical steps of an RIA which include determining proportionality of analysis including the carrying out problem definition, option identification; quantification; and implementation arrangements.
  • Plan and execute specific data collection activities.
  • Contribute to government-internal co-ordination; and report (to the Regulatory Oversight Body) on RIA performance.
• Support the line ministries’ public consultation of draft legislation and other similar policy proposals, including:
• Plan and execute of ministerial consultations in line with government guidelines.
• Manage ministerial activities on the Public Consultation web-portal.
• Manage inputs from stakeholders and citizens during/after the consultation process.
• Provide feedback to public consultation contributors.
• Report to the Regulatory Oversight Body on public consultation performance.
• Contribute to and/or lead the selection of legislation subject to ex-post evaluation in relation to the Center of Government / Regulatory Oversight Body.
• Execute ex-post evaluations including data collection, management of external exerts and review of outsourced analyses and government coordination.
• Recommend tailored regulatory amendments and simplification, if appropriate.
• Draft ex-post evaluation reports.
• Support the ministry’s ex-post evaluation initiatives, including:
• Establish and manage working-level collaboration with relevant external regulatory agencies and stakeholders.
• Provide monthly progress reports to the leading government institution on all tasks assigned and performed based on a template to be appended to the contract.
• Provide advice to the leading government institution as needed.

Deliverables:

The following are the expected deliverables from the Regulatory Policy Specialist:

• Monthly progress reports.
• Technical reports and presentation on assigned tasks.
• Project briefs.

Qualifications:

• BA degree in social sciences namely public policy analysis, public management, law, economics or related fields. MA degree is preferred.
• At least five years of relevant public policy work experiences in government, legal practices, consulting firms, think tanks, or equivalents.
• Experiences from working within government.
• Experience in public policy development, preferably combined with empirical data analysis.
• Strong familiarity with Jordan’s policy-making and regulatory processes.
• Experience with evidence-based analysis, statistics, advanced knowledge of data gathering and quantification techniques.
• Excellent writing and editing skills with ability to write for multiple audiences and to support multiple modalities.
• Additional skills should include team spirit; analytical rigor; as well as good relational and communication abilities.
• Highly motivated with excellent interpersonal and team skills.
• Demonstrated skills with a variety of computer programs to produce professional quality communication materials.
• Fluency in both English and Arabic.
• Excellent presentation skills.
• Flexible under pressure and in response to changing needs.
• Jordanian national only.

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