National expert on climate indicators norms and standards under EIMMS project

Background

This project has been designed to strengthen capacity for environmental monitoring and information management in Albania by establishing an operational environmental information management and monitoring system (EIMS). The project will address the need for an environmental monitoring system that is integrated throughout relevant government institutions and that uses international monitoring standards for indicator development, data collection, analysis, and policy-making. It will also build on existing technical and institutional capacity in Albania to align its management and monitoring efforts with global monitoring and reporting priorities. Increased capacity in this area will improve reporting to the Rio Conventions and lay the groundwork for sustainable development through better-informed environmental policy.

The project will aim at:

• Development of the EIMS to enable integration of global environment commitments into planning and monitoring processes.
• Development and application of uniform indicators encompassing UNFCCC, CBD and CCD concerns and global environmental threats.
• Stakeholder’s capacity for information management (collection processing) of key global environment data and utilization (interpretation and reporting) is enhanced at national and local level.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the guidance and in consultation with the project coordinator, the program officer for environment and energy at UNDP Albania,  the national expert on climate change and the relevant stakeholders, the consultant will provide on-going technical inputs to the project team and consultants regarding climate-related issues that are common to the three Rio Conventions:

• Review WMO Meteorological Standards and Recommended Practices related to observation of   meteorological elements (air temperature, precipitation, humidity, wind, pressure, solar radiation, etc.).
• Provide the information on the status of the Albanian National Meteorological Network and draft the methodologies on observations of the above mentioned meteorological elements in manned and automated stations.
• Draft the methodologies on data processing, including quality control and homogenization, statistical methods used in evaluation of climate indicators (mean values, standard deviation, extremes, etc.; the related indicators in regard with mentioned elements, e.g. heating and cooling degree days, growing season for agricultural crops, etc.), illustrated with examples from Albanian stations’ datasets.
• Provide the following information for the selected elements/stations and support the IT specialist to feed it in the EIMMS project platform:
  • the metadata for selected representative stations over the Albanian territory, (up to  15 stations manned or automatic);
  • the normal values for three respective climatological periods, 1961-90, 1986-2005 and 1981-2010 at monthly/seasonal basis;
  • monthly/seasonal and yearly averages and extremes  starting from the year 2000 – up to 2017.
• Deliver project presentations on climatological data monitoring and processing as needed by the EIMMS project.
• Provide inputs to project documentation, project reporting, and technical reports as needed by the EIMMS project.

Expected Deliverables and Payment Schedule

The Consultant shall receive payment in three installments from UNDP as follows:

1. 15 December 2017 – 30% - Report on Meteorological Standards and Recommended Practices by WMO; on methodologies of observations of the meteorological elements in Albania
2. 30 March 2018- 20%- Report on the status of the Albanian National Meteorological Network and methodologies on data processing, including quality control and homogenization, statistical methods used in evaluation of climate indicators, with examples from Albanian stations
3. 30 April 2018- 30%- Draft report on climatological indices for selected representative stations in Albania
4. 30 June 2018 -20%- Final report on climatological indices for selected representative stations in Albania

The reports should be submitted in Albanian and English languages.

Responsibility for Expenses and their Reimbursement

The Consultant will be responsible for all personal administrative and travel expenses associated with undertaking this assignment including office accommodation, printing, stationary, telephone and electronic communications, and report copies incurred in this assignment. 

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrates integrity by modelling 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.

Core Competencies:

• Communication - Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication.
• Planning & Organizing – Develops clear goals in line with agreed strategies, identifies priorities, foresees risks and makes allowances accordingly.
• Organizational Awareness - Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.
• Teamwork - Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi-ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.
• Accountability – Takes ownership of all responsibilities and delivers outputs in accordance with agreed time, cost and quality standards.

Functional Competencies

• Thorough understanding of disability issues, human rights, social inclusion and social services
• Excellent inter-personal and teamwork skills, networking attitude;
• Capacity to deliver as per deadlines;
• Strong expertise in environmental indicators in climate change and conventions related issues in Albania;
• Familiarity with the International Conventions and EU Regulations related to environmental indicator monitoring on climate change.
• Ability to pick up new terminology and concepts easily;

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• University degree in the fields of natural sciences, environmental sciences or related field.

Experience:

• At least 10 years of work experience in the climatology area.
• Proven experience in climate data processing and climate indicators evaluation;
• Knowledge and experience with UNDP project implementation modalities is an advantage;

Languages:

• Excellent English writing skills are essential.

Evaluation of Applicants

• Only those applications which are responsive and compliant will be evaluated;
• Individual consultants will be evaluated based on Combined Scoring method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal;
• Combined weighted scoring: Technical (70%); Financial (30%).

25% or 25 points: - Advanced university degree in the fields of natural sciences, environmental sciences or related field.

25% or 25 points: Proven expert knowledge in climate data processing and climate indicators evaluation;

20% or 20 points: Methodology on how the consultant intends to carry out this assignment.

Application procedure

Qualified candidates are requested to apply online via this website. The application should contain:

Cover letter explaining why you are the most suitable candidate for the advertised position. Please paste the letter into the "Resume and Motivation" section of the electronic application.

• Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability-please fill in the attached form...http://www.un.org.al/doc/PSU_%20Individual%20Contract_Letter%20to%20UNDP.docx
• Filled P11 form including past experience in similar projects and contact details of referees, please upload the P11 instead of your CV. Download here.
• Financial Proposal in ALL* - specifying a total lump sum in Albanian Lek  for the tasks specified in this announcement.  The attached template may be used - http://www.un.org.al/doc/Financial%20Offer%20template.doc Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant during the contract period (e.g. fee and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services).
• Copy of Diplomas and copy of Passport.

*Kindly note that Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability and Financial Proposal are two separate documents and should be both part of your application.

How to Submit the Application:

How submit your application online, please follow the steps below:

• Download and complete the UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs);

• Merge your UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs), Financial Proposal, Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability  and cover letter into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded;

• Click on the Job Title (job vacancy announcement); 

• Click “Apply Now” button, fill in necessary information on the first page, and then click “Submit Application;”

• Upload your application/single file as indicated above with the merged documents (underlined above);

• You will receive an automatic response to your email confirming receipt of your application by the system.

• Merge your UN Personal History Form (P11) for Service Contracts (SCs) and Individual Contracts (ICs), Financial Proposal Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability and cover letter into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded

Due to large number of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process.

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Qualified women and individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence