International Consultant to Develop Terms of Reference and Technical Requirements for a Digital Statistical Population Registry in Turkmenistan

Under the overall supervision of UNFPA and in close collaboration with the Interagency Technical Working Group (TWG) and designated national counterparts, the International Consultant will undertake the following key activities:

Based on the findings of the assessment, the consultant will develop a comprehensive Draft Terms of Reference for the subsequent development of the Digital Statistical Population Registry in Turkmenistan.

The Draft TOR should, as appropriate:

• Define the specific objectives, main components, and layers of the proposed system, describing the relationship between existing institutional information systems and the future digital registry environment, as well as the proposed interoperability and data exchange model.
• Identify requirements related to unique identification and record linkage, taking into account existing national identification arrangements.
• Define functional expectations, scalability, performance, availability, system resilience, and future extensibility parameters.
• Identify requirements for APIs, digital services, data exchange protocols, data formats, synchronization, validation, and updating.
• Address mechanisms for data quality assurance, deduplication, consistency, and the roles/responsibilities of participating institutions in relation to data exchange.
• Outline requirements for data access, user roles, cybersecurity, access management, authentication, hosting, backup, and business continuity.
• Establish requirements for system environments, testing protocols (functional, security, acceptance), technical documentation, capacity-building, and handover.
• Define the scope of work, deliverables, quality acceptance criteria for the future software vendor, and key legal or regulatory issues to address.
• Prepare the Draft TOR and associated technical requirements for review and validation by UNFPA and the TWG.

UNFPA requires its consultants to adhere to ethical principles and standards when doing research. The selected consultant should clearly identify any potential ethical issues and approaches, as well as the processes for ethical review in the inception report.

• Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in Information Technology, Computer Science, Information Systems, Software/Systems Engineering, Digital Transformation, or a related field.
• A minimum of 10 years of professional experience in digital information systems, information systems architecture, digital transformation, interoperability, e-government or related areas.
• Demonstrated professional experience in the design and/or development of digital registries or large-scale information systems, preferably for government institutions or public-sector organizations.
• Demonstrated experience in information systems interoperability, data integration and electronic data exchange, including experience in defining system interfaces, data exchange mechanisms and interoperability requirements.
• Demonstrated experience in developing Terms of Reference, technical specifications or functional/technical requirements for the procurement and development of digital information systems, registries or similar technology solutions.
• Experience with population or statistical registers, CRVS systems, or administrative data systems used for official statistics is highly desirable.
• Prior working experience with UN agencies or international development partners is highly desirable. Experience in Central Asia or a similar context (CIS) is an asset.
• Strong analytical, writing and facilitation skills. Ability to work independently and engage diverse stakeholders.

• Fluency in English is required. Proficiency in Russian is highly desirable.

   

  Inputs / services to be provided by UNFPA or implementing partner, if applicable: UNFPA will provide the consultant with all the necessary materials, data, information, and available reports. The UNFPA Country Office will put together a list of core sources and readings before the start of the consultancy.

Other relevant information or special conditions, if any: The consultancy fee will be calculated based on the P-5 level of the of the UN Salary Scale for Professional and higher categories effective 1 January 2026 and will be paid in a lump sum upon successful completion of deliverables.
 

• Conduct an inception meeting with UNFPA and the TWG to confirm the objectives, scope, methodology, work plan and expected outputs of the assignment. Additionally, the meeting shall map respective mandates and roles of relevant national institutions in relation to population and vital-event data 
• Review available documentation on existing CRVS, population statistics, administrative data sources, relevant information systems, existing data workflows and national digital-government arrangements.
• Prepare an Inception Note, including a proposed structure and outline of the Terms of Reference for the subsequent development of the Digital Statistical Population Registry.

• Assessment of the current arrangements for the collection, processing, management and exchange of population and vital-event data among relevant national institutions. 
• Document and, where feasible, map key business and data workflow processes related to civil registration and vital events, including birth, death, marriage and divorce related to statistical population-data management.
• Identify the key datasets, data sources, data elements, data custodians and users relevant to the proposed system and assess the structure, formats, coding systems, identifiers and data standards used by relevant information systems. The assessment will document existing data exchange arrangements, including manual processes, document flows and any existing electronic or digital arrangements, as applicable. The assessment will be based on available documentation and consultations with national counterparts and will not require independent technical audits or detailed source-code/system-level assessments.
• Assess data quality, completeness, consistency, timeliness and duplication risks, to the extent that the required information can be made available by national counterparts.
• Identify existing and potential data linkages and interoperability requirements.
• Assess the availability and suitability of existing APIs, digital services, data exchange mechanisms and other relevant technical solutions.
• Identify gaps in data standards and interoperability arrangements and propose areas for harmonization, as well as identify gaps, duplication, manual processes, data-quality issues, institutional constraints, technical dependencies and other requirements that should be addressed through the future Digital Statistical Population Registry
• Identify prerequisites and dependencies that should be addressed before connecting individual systems.
• Consolidate the findings into an Assessment Report to serve as the evidence base for development of the TOR.

• Conduct structured technical consultations and working sessions with members of the TWG and relevant national technical specialists to review the assessment findings and Draft TOR.
• Facilitate discussions on the proposed Digital Statistical Population Registry, data workflows, interoperability requirements, system architecture, data governance, cybersecurity and other key technical requirements.
• Support the TWG in reviewing and prioritizing the technical requirements to be reflected in the final TOR.
• Provide technical recommendations regarding possible sequencing and dependencies for subsequent implementation, while recognizing that the final institutional priorities and implementation roadmap will be determined through the national coordination mechanism and relevant authorities.
• Provide presentation materials, concise technical guidance and/or reference materials to support knowledge transfer and national ownership.
• Conduct up to two capacity-building activities and knowledge-transfer sessions online or in person, as agreed with UNFPA and subject to the availability of national counterparts.
• Document key conclusions, recommendations and issues requiring further consideration by the TWG.

The consultant will identify areas requiring further legal or regulatory review by the competent national authorities.

• Facilitate a technical validation workshop or structured validation consultations with the TWG and relevant national stakeholders, which may be conducted online or in person. 
• Document the comments and recommendations received and incorporate agreed feedback into the final TOR.
• Finalize the Terms of Reference and associated technical requirements for the subsequent procurement and development of the Digital Statistical Population Registry.
• Provide recommendations on the immediate next steps required for national review, approval and subsequent procurement.
• Submit a Final Consultancy Report summarizing the work undertaken, consultations conducted, key findings, recommendations, capacity-building activities, outstanding issues and proposed next steps.

The final recommendations should provide a clear pathway from the existing institutional information systems toward a progressively integrated digital CRVS environment and, ultimately, a State Digital Population Registry.

The consultant will coordinate closely with UNFPA Turkmenistan CO and the designated government counterpart(s). Regular progress updates (e.g. weekly brief emails or calls) should be provided.

The involvement of appropriate national partners will be a critical condition for the development of all the consultancy outcome materials in ensuring stakeholder ownership and its subsequent utilisation.