Details
Mission and objectives
UNICEF works in the world's toughest places to reach the most disadvantaged children and adolescents – and to protect the rights of every child, everywhere.
Context
The UN Volunteer is part of UNICEF Maldives Country Office’s Climate Resilient Education initiative. The UN Volunteer will be placed in the Education Section and will work closely with the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Climate Change, Environment and Energy and the National Disaster Management Centre.
Task description
Under the guidance of the Education and Skills Development Specialist, the Program Officer - Climate Resilience will be responsible for the following key functions/ accountabilities:
A. Programme development and mainstreaming of climate change and environmental issues across UNICEF Country Programme
• Manage day to day coordination of the Climate-Resilient Education Portfolio, ensuring timely implementation of planned activities.
• Support development, monitoring, and reporting of project work plans, budgets, and results frameworks.
• Facilitate coordination between UNICEF, the Ministry of Education, National Designated Agency (NDA), the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Technology (or relevant institutions), and other stakeholders.
• Ensure alignment of project activities with national climate strategies, National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and education sector priorities.
• Provide technical input on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR)/Disaster Risk Management (DRM) integration, and climate adaptive education policies and systems.
• Contribute to evidence generation, assessments, tools, and guidelines led by UNICEF or partners.
• Facilitate technical exchanges and collaboration with the UNICEF Centre of Excellence (CoE) and other UNICEF country offices
B. Climate Finance Mobilization through the Green Climate Fund (GCF)
1. Coordination of GCF Project Proposal Development.
• Oversee the preparation and submission of a Funding Proposal and relevant annexes (Stage 3), embed UNICEF’s early screening and feedback, and embed UNICEF internal quality assurance screening and feedback.
• Manage and oversee the work of consultants and institutions in the drafting of relevant project documents (Funding Proposal, associated annexes) and assessments or studies (feasibility studies, economic and financial analysis), ensuring clear TORs, delivery timelines, and quality assurance of the outputs.
• Ensure the project documents and submissions adhere to the latest GCF templates, strictly following guidelines and word limits, and ensuring consistency across sections (context, barriers, climate rationale, Theory of Change, intervention, financial structure, log frame, risks, and Monitoring and Evaluation framework).
• Manage the project development budget (consultants, studies, workshops), including procurement processes and financial tracking.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for project development bottlenecks: identify, escalate, and propose mitigation for strategic, technical, fiduciary or reputational risks that may jeopardise submission timelines or Board approval.
2. Quality assurance and compliance with UNICEF’s and GCF’s requirements
• Lead the internal and external quality assurance of project notes, Funding Proposal and relevant annexes to ensure alignment with GCF investment criteria and UNICEF standards (eg: climate impact, paradigm shift, co‑benefits, needs of beneficiaries, country ownership, and efficiency/effectiveness, etc), coordinating approvals from Country Office, government and CoE as well as other HQ divisions. This includes rapid consolidation and tracking responses to comments and feedback, ensuring timely delivery of re-submission files and anticipating subsequent reviews, and ensuring both UNICEF’s comments and GCF’s secretariat feedback are well addressed.
• Ensure robustness of the theory of change, log frame/Integrated Results Management Framework (IRMF) indicators, risk register, procurement plan, and co‑financing confirmations, verifying consistency between narrative, budget, and results.
• Ensure all technical studies (eg: feasibility studies, economic and financial analysis, etc), gender analysis, safeguards documentation, and cost‑benefit/viability assessments linked to the proposed financial structure meet GCF expectations and are fit‑for‑purpose.
• Ensure timely response during GCF Secretariat review, Independent Technical Advisory Panel (iTAP) appraisal and pre-Board phase, including preparation of response matrices, re-submission material, NDA and CoE briefing notes and other engagement materials.
• Anticipate and mitigate potential Independent Technical Advisory Panel (iTAP) and Board-level concerns (climate rationale, paradigm shift, financial viability, Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS) risk exposure, implementation readiness).
• Ensure alignment of the proposal with UNICEF’s accreditation scope (fiduciary and ESS category, etc.)
• Work closely with Office of Social and Environmental Sustainability (OSE)’s Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS) and Centre of Excellence (CoE) Gender teams to ensure early ESS risk screening and appropriate categorisation (B/C/I-2), including preparation of appropriate ESS annexe, stakeholder engagement plans, Indigenous Peoples Plans (if applicable), Gender Assessment and Gender Action Plan, and Grievance Redress Mechanism alignment.
3. In-country coordination and stakeholder engagement
• Develop and lead a structured coordination process with the NDA, line ministries, and partners to ensure country ownership, alignment with national strategies (e.g., NDC, NAP, national climate, environment and energy policies, etc) and timely issuance of the No‑Objection Letter (NOL) as per GCF procedures.
• Oversee assessment of proposed Executing Entities and implementing partners, including fiduciary capacity, procurement systems, safeguards readiness and implementation risk. Structure implementation arrangements to minimise start-up delays post-approval.
• Prepare the Climate Resilience CoE to position the project within the broader GCF portfolio balance (geographic, thematic, adaptation/mitigation split) to enhance competitiveness and strategic fit.
• Convene and facilitate multi‑stakeholder write shops/consultations/workshops bringing together stakeholders (but not limited to government, civil society, academia, private sector, children and young people, community representatives) to inform the project’s climate rationale, theory of change, and safeguards approach, and incorporate stakeholders feedback to inform the project design.
• Maintain regular dialogue with NDA, partners, Country Office leadership and CoE to synchronise country inputs during decision gates, missions to or from GCF, and submission schedules.
• Lead discussions on financial structuring, identify co-financiers, develop co-financing plan and ensure timely submission of co-financing letters in appropriate GCF template.
4. Internal UNICEF coordination, knowledge management and timely reporting.
• Serve as the UNICEF’s in-country project coordination lead for the particular GCF project development, ensuring regular and timely coordination with Climate CoE and other HQ divisions (relevant sectoral CoE, OSE, etc.) to complete internal quality reviews and sign‑offs prior to submission.
• Coordinate inputs across the Country Office teams and sectors (Programme Sections, Supply/Procurement, Finance, Legal, Partnerships, Operations) during the development of the project to incorporate sector expertise and child‑centred design across the package.
• Schedule regular meetings (quarterly or as needed) bringing together the CO team, Climate COE and relevant UNICEF’s focal points to update and brief about the GCF project development process.
• Maintain a document repository in UNICEF’s SharePoint (version control, decisions log, review trackers) and provide periodic progress reports and risk/issue escalations to UNICEF (Representative, CoE levels) and the NDA.
• Develop a post-approval readiness plan (implementation start-up roadmap, recruitment, procurement sequencing, advance actions).
• Document learnings (what worked and did not work), challenges and bottlenecks, and innovative approaches to guide future GCF project development
C. Reporting & Documentation
• Prepare technical briefs, updates, donor reports related to the climate change program and document lessons learned.
• Contribute to the preparation of annual and quarterly progress reports for UNICEF on Climate Resilient Education
• Ensure proper documentation of processes, consultations, studies, and outputs produced under the portfolio.
A. Programme development and mainstreaming of climate change and environmental issues across UNICEF Country Programme
• Manage day to day coordination of the Climate-Resilient Education Portfolio, ensuring timely implementation of planned activities.
• Support development, monitoring, and reporting of project work plans, budgets, and results frameworks.
• Facilitate coordination between UNICEF, the Ministry of Education, National Designated Agency (NDA), the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Technology (or relevant institutions), and other stakeholders.
• Ensure alignment of project activities with national climate strategies, National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and education sector priorities.
• Provide technical input on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR)/Disaster Risk Management (DRM) integration, and climate adaptive education policies and systems.
• Contribute to evidence generation, assessments, tools, and guidelines led by UNICEF or partners.
• Facilitate technical exchanges and collaboration with the UNICEF Centre of Excellence (CoE) and other UNICEF country offices
B. Climate Finance Mobilization through the Green Climate Fund (GCF)
1. Coordination of GCF Project Proposal Development.
• Oversee the preparation and submission of a Funding Proposal and relevant annexes (Stage 3), embed UNICEF’s early screening and feedback, and embed UNICEF internal quality assurance screening and feedback.
• Manage and oversee the work of consultants and institutions in the drafting of relevant project documents (Funding Proposal, associated annexes) and assessments or studies (feasibility studies, economic and financial analysis), ensuring clear TORs, delivery timelines, and quality assurance of the outputs.
• Ensure the project documents and submissions adhere to the latest GCF templates, strictly following guidelines and word limits, and ensuring consistency across sections (context, barriers, climate rationale, Theory of Change, intervention, financial structure, log frame, risks, and Monitoring and Evaluation framework).
• Manage the project development budget (consultants, studies, workshops), including procurement processes and financial tracking.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for project development bottlenecks: identify, escalate, and propose mitigation for strategic, technical, fiduciary or reputational risks that may jeopardise submission timelines or Board approval.
2. Quality assurance and compliance with UNICEF’s and GCF’s requirements
• Lead the internal and external quality assurance of project notes, Funding Proposal and relevant annexes to ensure alignment with GCF investment criteria and UNICEF standards (eg: climate impact, paradigm shift, co‑benefits, needs of beneficiaries, country ownership, and efficiency/effectiveness, etc), coordinating approvals from Country Office, government and CoE as well as other HQ divisions. This includes rapid consolidation and tracking responses to comments and feedback, ensuring timely delivery of re-submission files and anticipating subsequent reviews, and ensuring both UNICEF’s comments and GCF’s secretariat feedback are well addressed.
• Ensure robustness of the theory of change, log frame/Integrated Results Management Framework (IRMF) indicators, risk register, procurement plan, and co‑financing confirmations, verifying consistency between narrative, budget, and results.
• Ensure all technical studies (eg: feasibility studies, economic and financial analysis, etc), gender analysis, safeguards documentation, and cost‑benefit/viability assessments linked to the proposed financial structure meet GCF expectations and are fit‑for‑purpose.
• Ensure timely response during GCF Secretariat review, Independent Technical Advisory Panel (iTAP) appraisal and pre-Board phase, including preparation of response matrices, re-submission material, NDA and CoE briefing notes and other engagement materials.
• Anticipate and mitigate potential Independent Technical Advisory Panel (iTAP) and Board-level concerns (climate rationale, paradigm shift, financial viability, Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS) risk exposure, implementation readiness).
• Ensure alignment of the proposal with UNICEF’s accreditation scope (fiduciary and ESS category, etc.)
• Work closely with Office of Social and Environmental Sustainability (OSE)’s Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS) and Centre of Excellence (CoE) Gender teams to ensure early ESS risk screening and appropriate categorisation (B/C/I-2), including preparation of appropriate ESS annexe, stakeholder engagement plans, Indigenous Peoples Plans (if applicable), Gender Assessment and Gender Action Plan, and Grievance Redress Mechanism alignment.
3. In-country coordination and stakeholder engagement
• Develop and lead a structured coordination process with the NDA, line ministries, and partners to ensure country ownership, alignment with national strategies (e.g., NDC, NAP, national climate, environment and energy policies, etc) and timely issuance of the No‑Objection Letter (NOL) as per GCF procedures.
• Oversee assessment of proposed Executing Entities and implementing partners, including fiduciary capacity, procurement systems, safeguards readiness and implementation risk. Structure implementation arrangements to minimise start-up delays post-approval.
• Prepare the Climate Resilience CoE to position the project within the broader GCF portfolio balance (geographic, thematic, adaptation/mitigation split) to enhance competitiveness and strategic fit.
• Convene and facilitate multi‑stakeholder write shops/consultations/workshops bringing together stakeholders (but not limited to government, civil society, academia, private sector, children and young people, community representatives) to inform the project’s climate rationale, theory of change, and safeguards approach, and incorporate stakeholders feedback to inform the project design.
• Maintain regular dialogue with NDA, partners, Country Office leadership and CoE to synchronise country inputs during decision gates, missions to or from GCF, and submission schedules.
• Lead discussions on financial structuring, identify co-financiers, develop co-financing plan and ensure timely submission of co-financing letters in appropriate GCF template.
4. Internal UNICEF coordination, knowledge management and timely reporting.
• Serve as the UNICEF’s in-country project coordination lead for the particular GCF project development, ensuring regular and timely coordination with Climate CoE and other HQ divisions (relevant sectoral CoE, OSE, etc.) to complete internal quality reviews and sign‑offs prior to submission.
• Coordinate inputs across the Country Office teams and sectors (Programme Sections, Supply/Procurement, Finance, Legal, Partnerships, Operations) during the development of the project to incorporate sector expertise and child‑centred design across the package.
• Schedule regular meetings (quarterly or as needed) bringing together the CO team, Climate COE and relevant UNICEF’s focal points to update and brief about the GCF project development process.
• Maintain a document repository in UNICEF’s SharePoint (version control, decisions log, review trackers) and provide periodic progress reports and risk/issue escalations to UNICEF (Representative, CoE levels) and the NDA.
• Develop a post-approval readiness plan (implementation start-up roadmap, recruitment, procurement sequencing, advance actions).
• Document learnings (what worked and did not work), challenges and bottlenecks, and innovative approaches to guide future GCF project development
C. Reporting & Documentation
• Prepare technical briefs, updates, donor reports related to the climate change program and document lessons learned.
• Contribute to the preparation of annual and quarterly progress reports for UNICEF on Climate Resilient Education
• Ensure proper documentation of processes, consultations, studies, and outputs produced under the portfolio.
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