UNDP Jobs - 35380- International Consultant: Ecosystem Management and

International Consultant: Ecosystem Management and Strategic Planning Specialist

Location :

Homebased with travel to the fields in China

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

18-Mar-2013

Application Deadline :

01-Mar-13 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

5 weeks starting from March till December 2013

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

The Government of China, in collaboration with UNDP, is developing a new project under the umbrella of the China Biodiversity Partnership Framework (CBPF) for action. The new project is named UNDP-GEF Payment for Watershed Services in the Chishui River Basin for Conservation of Globally Significant Biodiversity, aiming to catalyze land and natural resources use system that conserve biodiversity and ecosystem processes by operationalization of a replicable Payment for Watershed Services (PWS) in the Chishui River Basin. The Project Identification Form (PIF) is expected to be cleared by Global Environment Facility (GEF) CEO by February 2013, and will be implemented by Foreign Economic Cooperation Office (FECO) of Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) and Environmental Protection Department (EPD) of Guizhou Province, with support from UNDP. Project Preparation Grant (PPG) period of the project will last from February 2013 to December 2013, during which the full-sized project (FSP) will be planned and project document be developed. In order to ensure timely and effective delivery of qualified project document in PPG stage, a technical team with multi-expertise is to be established. The team will consist of four local specialists and 2 international consultants, namely Environmental Policy and Legislation/PES Institutional Capacity Development Specialist, Biodiversity and Ecosystem Management Specialist, Hydrology and Water Resource Management Specialist, Stakeholder Engagement and Gender Specialist, Ecosystem Management and Strategic Planning Specialist (International), PWS Expert (International). The team will work together with UNDP(GEF Implementing Agency), FECO/MEP (Government Executing Agency) and Guizhou EPB to plan the full project. This TOR is developed for the international specialist on Ecosystem Management and Strategic Planning, who is expected to provide strategic guidance and lead the process of formulating the full project.

Duties and Responsibilities

OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT

To coordinate and facilitate the international and Chinese specialists’ substantive technical inputs and guidance to the formulation of a full project proposal for the project.
To produce technically sound Project Documents and CEO endorsement request for the project in a timely fashion.

The consultant will work closely with other team experts, FECO/MEP and UNDP.

SCOPE OF WORK:

Closely supported by the lead national consultant (Environmental policy and legislation / PES institutional capacity development specialist), the international specialist will serve as the overall team leader of the project preparation process. S/he will provide strategic technical guidance to the PPG process and ensure all necessary information is collated and required analysis, assessments, baseline establishment and project plans development are undertaken by the national specialists, as well as take the lead in collaboration with key stakeholders, implementing and executing agencies in designing the full project document. The work involves facilitating the following process;

Ensure full stakeholder consultation including communities in the target watersheds so as to ensure project ownership and full participation in implementation through generating buy-in on the project contents;
Review baseline information delivered by the local experts and ensure the information quality and usability in the final deliverables;
Develop the threats and root causes matrix, and the description of the barriers to the development and effective management of the PWS scheme;
Conduct the Environmental and Social Screening for the project and compile a social screening summary;
Carry out an incremental analysis and cost effectiveness analysis of the project strategy;
Assess the sustainability of suggested project outcomes and outputs;
Assess global environmental benefits sought from the project;
Propose a project monitoring and evaluation framework with a set of measurable impact and progress indicators;
Develop budget plans for the project;
Ensure linkages with other government, donor and GEF biodiversity and land degradation projects in the country and region;
Prepare necessary ToRs for the project staff and key consultancies during the implementation phase ;
Take the lead in collating the inputs of different team specialists and draft the full project document and CEO request. Revise as necessary to satisfy all parties.

DURATION OF ASSIGNMENT, DUTY STATION AND EXPECTED PLACES OF TRAVEL:

The consultancy will be for a maximum of 5 weeks from March 2013 to December 2013. The consultant will be home-based, however will be required to spend approximately 2 weeks in China and will need to travel to related project sites as necessary.

DELIVERABLES AND OUTPUTS:

Closely collaborating with other experts, the Ecosystem Management and Strategic Planning Specialist will responsible for delivering the full project document, GEF CEO endorsement request document and GEF BD-2 Tracking Tool with all necessary information and annexes. The expert is specifically responsible for delivering the following elements of the Project Document and CEO endorsement request document:

Verification and confirmation of baseline and targets;
Feasibility study for PWS and designing of a viable mechanism, including cost-benefit analysis;
Threats and root causes matrix, and description of barriers of PWS practice;
A environmental and social screening summary for the project including gender assessment, UNDP Environmental and Social Screening Procedures(PESS), risks and opportunities, etc.;
A monitoring and evaluation(M&E) system and budget of the project;
A financing plan, including co-financing commitments for all project outputs and activities;
An assessment of cost-effectiveness of project outputs and outcomes, and their social, economic and financial sustainability;
TORs for the project staffs and key consultancies during the FSP implementation phase;
Draft and revision of the full project document and CEO endorsement letter.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability
Treats all people fairly without favoritism;
Fulfills all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment.

Functional Competencies:

Demonstrated facilitation and coordination skills, ability to coordinate work of different technical team members and ensure high efficiency of the team.
Demonstrated ability to work in an independent manner.
Demonstrated ability to work in a team, ability for managing timely and effective delivery of both quantity and quality before the deadlines.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Master’s Degree or equivalent in natural sciences, environmental management or related fields.Minimum of 15 years of demonstrable experience and knowledge in the field of ecosystems and biodiversity management.

Experience:

Excellent communication (both oral and written) and partnership building skills with multi-dimension partners, people skill for solve conflicts and negotiation skills;
Experience in project formulation that addresses technical assistance and capacity development for implementing partners;
Extensive experience with project development, implementation and management, direct project formulation and management experience is preferable;

Working experience with international organizations is an advantage as is knowledge of GEF, UNDP policies, procedures and practices;

Experience in working in the relevant field in China and its government, experiences working in international organizations in China or abroad is a strong assets;

Computer proficiency, especially related to professional office software packages (Microsoft Office).

Language:

Excellent English language skills, particularly in the preparation of written documents.