Reference: X/AFR/017
Location: Malawi
Duration: Up to a maximum of 15 person days
Closing Date: 16 Jan 2012
Background
The Debt Management Section (DMS) of the Special Advisory Services Division (SASD), Commonwealth Secretariat implements the Commonwealth Secretariat’s capacity building programme in debt management in its member countries. In accordance with the mandate from the Commonwealth Heads of Government and the principles of the Millennium Development Goals to ensure sustainable debt of member countries, the central feature of the Secretariat’s debt management programme is to build capacity as well as to provide advisory support on debt strategies and institutional aspects. The programme has benefited a large number of developing countries both low and middle income.
Towards this end, DMS has developed and continuously maintains CS-DRMS (Commonwealth Secretariat - Debt Recording and Management System) software (http://www.csdrms.org/) which allows the user countries to record the portfolio of their public debt (external and domestic). Since its first launching in 1985, CS-DRMS has grown over the years in both Commonwealth and non-Commonwealth member countries to achieve leadership status in the area of debt information management solutions. CS-DRMS is currently actively used in 60 countries. As part of its capacity building programme, the Secretariat provides training to the debt management personnel from Debt Managements offices, central banks and other relevant agencies in the use of the software for debt recording, management and analysis.
DMS also provides advisory services in debt management to member countries in developing prudent debt strategies, restructuring debt portfolios, strengthening the domestic debt market and reviewing institutional arrangements and legal framework for debt management. In addition, DMS carries out in-depth studies on sovereign debt management and makes recommendations on broad areas of reforms and corrective actions for strengthening debt management policies, institutional arrangements, legal framework and capacity building in debt management.
The Assignment
The DMS has now been approached by a number of member countries for technical assistance in the area of domestic debt market development. In order to support the work of the DMS, the Commonwealth Secretariat will be hiring debt experts for consultancy services in this area. The Commonwealth Secretariat, accordingly, invites applications of the consultants having an extensive experience in development of domestic debt market in developing countries.
The Consultant will undertake a comprehensive study of the domestic debt market of the country concerned and submit a comprehensive report to the Secretariat after reviewing inter-alia the following:
- Money Market Conditions (Instruments [Treasury Bills and other money market instruments like call, repos], Central Bank operations, Money market rates, Short-term yield curve]
- Primary Market (Instruments, issuance mechanism and strategy of T bills and bonds, Cash management and linkages with primary market issuance, primary market yield curve, Role of Primary Dealers, Benchmark securities development, Transparency in Primary market)
- Investor Base Analysis (investor types, wholesale versus retail investors, asset base and holding of securities, prudential regulations on banks and financial institutions, ALM and investor appetite of G Secs), investor confidence
- Secondary Market (trading system and conventions, trading and transactions procedures, market intermediaries, trading turnover and pattern of various investor class, liquidity, secondary market yield curve, price discovery of yield curve and its linkages with other interest rates)
- Market Infrastructure (Securities settlement infrastructure – registry system, depository arrangement, dematerialised securities, securities settlement procedure, clearing and payments system)
- Regulatory Issues (legal issues, regulations, supervision issues, taxation)
- The report is also expected to provide (a) Summary of Recommendations and (b) Road map for reforms for the development of domestic debt market.
Required Expertise
The debt expert is expected to have a good knowledge of financial markets and extensive hands- on experience preferably at international organisation, central bank or Ministry of Finance in the area of development of domestic debt market.
Effort
The assignment will involve field visit to the country concerned to study the current status of the domestic debt market. During the field visit the expert will work closely with authorities in the Ministry of Finance, Central Bank and the officials from the Commonwealth Secretariat.
The level of effort anticipated for the assignment is 12-15 person days as follows:
- 2 days of preparatory work
- 7-10 days of field mission
- 3-5 days for preparation for mission and completion of the Report
Location
During the field visit, the debt expert will be located in that country. The other tasks including the preparation of report will be carried out at the consultants’ location.
Remuneration
The debt expert will be provided with the following by the Commonwealth Secretariat:
- Consultancy fees (Fees at a daily rate ranging from £400 - £499)
- One economy class return air fare from normal place of residence to duty station
- Daily subsistence allowance (based on UN per diem rates)
The following payment terms will apply:
- 30% of the consultancy fees after signature of contract.
- 50% after preparation and submission of draft report
- 20% after submission and acceptance of the final report
Download the Terms of Reference
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