Background

The purpose of this consultancy is to provide substantive technical input to project design, guide other  local consultants and provide technical support to develop a detailed project proposal for submission to GEF Secretariat in September and respond to the technical review queries raised by GEF Secretariat. The National Consultant is expected to produce the draft situation analysis, barrier analysis and project framework. The National Consultant will lead activities that are needed for sound project design and ensure overall sustainability of the project. The National Consultant is also expected to ensure that all stakeholders including communities are consulted in the process of project preparation. He/she will work with the International Consultant to produce a project document for the project of requisite technical quality by the submission deadline in September 2014. The National Consultant will also suppor the UNDP CO to source potential co-financiers for the project and procure co-financing letters as part of the submission package.

• Necessary land use planning and governance frameworks to protect and manage ESAs including (i) An analysis of threats to biodiversity in the priority landscapes; (ii) The developmental context (key business sectors, socio-economic development, political environment) and its current and future impacts on the biodiversity conservation in the landscapes; (iii) the spatial distribution, and conservation status of critical biodiversity areas in the ESA regions; (iv) the spatial extent and development of satellite images and maps of the identified pilot sites; (v) and establishment of baseline information these areas;
• Compliance monitoring and enforcement systems for land use permits and allocation in ESAs are with safe guards to balance conservation and development objectives; and
• Mechanisms to protect major habitat blocks and ensure structural and functional connectivity across the landscapes.
  

In this regard the project document will ensure that the indirect impacts of development (e.g. impacts of roads and other infrastructure) are adequately understood and factored into decision making. While designing the systemic capacities necessary to manage ESAs (plan, regulate, and enforce management prescriptions), the proposal will also select and plan a method to operationalize Sri Lanka’s first ESA considering the Galoya and Kubukkan basin, among other sites. To be in line with GEF requirements the project design should clearly outline how the project deliver short, medium and long-term global benefits, while improving long term conservation prospects across the country.

Duties and Responsibilities

The NRM Expert / Local PPG lead will be responsible for planning and coordination of the work of PPG team and partners of the project; evaluation and analysis of the current conditions and threats to biodiversity in the ESA regions; feasibility studies on establishing ESAs. Specifically, the NRM expert will be responsible for the following tasks:

• Support the international consultant to develop the GEF project document, drafting key sections especially on the situation analysis fully compliant with the enforced GEF rules and standards. Within the framework of this TOR, the Consultant is expected to play the lead role to support the development of the UNDP project document as well as the GEF CEO endorsement format using the relevant inputs from all local consultants.
• Guide other local consultants identified by UNDP and Ministry of Environment and Renewable Energy to conduct necessary desk reviews, baseline assesments, rapid assessments and provide requisite technical inputs to project design.
• Review existing data, reports and studies to collate detailed information on the ESA regions and landscapes in order to establish the baseline and landscape specific project interventions and targets, and identify high biodiversity areas.
• Review available information and conduct field-based studies to identify critical information gaps, including operationalising the ESAs, capacity and communications needs for national and field level  stakehodlers
• Assess current mechanisms for compliance and norms and suggest improvements to reduce pressures on biodiversity resources including suggestions on applying the landscape level land use planning to reduce and off-set biodiversity impacts.
• Collect information on the government and partners’ baseline activities, as well as complementary activities by various partner organizations.
• Identify / confirm the threats and causes of threats to biodiversity conservation in the identified ESA regions and develops proposals to address them.
• Analyze the key project stakeholders, including NGOs/CSOs; assesses their capacity and identifies capacity building needs;
• Define project risks and risk mitigation strategies;
• Together with the Policy and Land Use Expert, define the key criteria of a baseline study and a feasibility study and the documentation that will be needed to formally designate the pilot ESA.

In order to address potential social and environmental impacts of the project the expert (together with the Policy and Land Use expert and under the guidance of the International Biodiversity Specialist) will:

• Explore the opportunities and ways for cooperation with other relevant initiatives;
• conduct indicative community level consultations at the project locations including targeting to ensure that the views and interests of women, poor and marginalized groups are taken on board in the design of the land use planning framework and to ensure that they are adequately represented on the local decision making structures related to land use planning and permitting processes. These consultations will also identify the role the local communities will play in implementation, monitoring and enforcement of the land use planning framework and the ESA management and zoning plans;
•  Simultaneously conduct a rapid inventory and identification of sites of religious and cultural significance by making use of local resource persons and participatory processes. Hold consultations with local communities to elicit views and recommendations on ensuring that their visitation to these sites and practice of traditional and cultural practices are not affected;
• Carry out a detailed gender analysis to identify gender roles, responsibilities and access related to natural resource management. Such analysis should primarily be led by a gender expert with support from local resource persons knowledgeable about gender relations in the communities and trained in participatory approaches. This will inform design of project activities especially at the community level so that project interventions do not negatively affect gender equality;
• Develop the Terms of Reference for the feasibility study to be undertaken during project implementation for the designation of pilot ESA and clearly articulate the need for socio-economic studies as well as environmental impact screening.

The key products to be delivered are as follows:

• Draft inputs to the UNDP Project Document, Project Results Framework, and allied implementation plan and budgets.
• Support International Consultant to complete the GEF Tracking Tool and Request for CEO Endorsement and GEF Tracking Tool fully compliant with the enforced GEF rules and standards.

Competencies

Required Skills and Experience