Climate Change Technical Specialist-Home based

Background

The Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) has the responsibility for developing all relevant policy and guidance to support the results of UNDP’s Strategic Plan. BPPS’s staff provides technical advice to Country Offices; advocates for UNDP corporate messages, represents UNDP at multi-stakeholder fora including public-private dialogues, government and civil society dialogues, South-South and Triangular cooperation initiatives, and engages in UN inter-agency coordination in specific thematic areas. BPPS works closely with UNDP’s Crisis Response Unit (CRU) to support emergency and crisis response. BPPS ensures that issues of risk are fully integrated into UNDP’s development programmes. BPPS assists UNDP and partners to achieve higher quality development results through an integrated approach that links results based management and performance monitoring with more effective and new ways of working. BPPS supports UNDP and partners to be more innovative, knowledge and data driven including in its programme support efforts.

Through various projects and activities, and more specifically through the Low Emission Capacity Building Programme, UNDP has support to countries globally to access, manage, deploy and monitor scaled-up climate finance; identify opportunities for Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs); design and implement scaled-up climate change mitigation actions and NAMAs; design Low Emission Development Strategies (LEDS); design of systems for measuring, reporting, and verification (MRV) of mitigation actions and means to reduce GHG emissions; develop greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory management systems; as well as promote and design climate change adaptation solutions.

UNDP  launched a global NDC Support Programme to provide direct financial and technical support to countries on NDC implementation in the context of the Paris Agreement and countries' national development priorities. The program seeks to enhance the capacities of public- and private-sector actors to deliver on NDC targets through strengthened climate governance; implementation of mitigation actions and mid-century low-emission development strategies; and improved investment environments. It will initially support 27 countries in a variety of NDC-related work areas that also include the development of NDC implementation plans, strengthening of monitoring systems, and mainstreaming of gender-responsive approaches. The program will also collect and disseminate best practices and lessons learned to advance global progress on NDC implementation. This support builds on UNDP's Low Emission Capacity Building (LECB) Programme, which has been providing support to countries on LEDS, mitigation actions, monitoring systems, and related areas since 2011.

Duties and Responsibilities

SCOPE OF WORK, RESPONSIBILITIES AND DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED ANALYTICAL WORK

Under the direct supervision and guidance of the Manager of the NDC Support Programme, the Consultant will:

• Provide technical backstopping during the NDC Support Programme’s initial phase at the global level, by ensuring the timely and accurate provision of technical advice for project design;
• Provide substantive expertise to developing countries on the implementation of national project activities and ensure the technical quality, accuracy, and relevance of global and country-level climate change activities during the programme’s implementation;
• Provide direct technical assistance to at least two countries in their studies under the NDC Support Programme; and
• Ensure countries are equipped with the financial tools and knowledge to support the implementation of the climate actions identified under their NDCs.

Expected outputs and deliverables:

1. Project Implementation

Provide technical backstopping and guidance in at least 2 countries:

• Scoping national scope of work and deliverables with partner countries under the NDC Support Programme, taking into account management considerations such as available budget, timelines, national expertise, etc.;
• Undertake country visits, as needed, to perform inception meetings with relevant stakeholders and local authorities and to provide technical guidance for programme implementation. This includes follow up with UNDP Country Offices and government counterparts to ensure work plans are developed and implemented in alignment with the global programme;
• Once national activities are underway, support progress through field missions to each country, on the basis of country support requests and with the approval of the NDC Support Programme Manager;
• Provide technical backstopping on the delivery of project outcomes and track progress of the technical work towards project objectives;
• Conduct reviews of country reports when all deliverables are obtained in order to ensure alignment with the component of the programme at the global level; and

1. Technical Support

As climate finance expert for the NDC Support Programme’s global support unit, the consultant will:

• Prepare technical materials to support training activities on UNDP’s various climate finance approaches and methodologies, which includes Climate Public Expenditure and Institutional Reviews - CPEIR, Private Climate Expenditure and Institutional Reviews - PCEIR, Investment and Financial Flows Assessments - I&FF, Derisking Renewable Energy Investments - DREI;
• Support the Programme’s team on climate finance approaches and methodologies to help countries identify finance needs for the implement their NDCs. This will include preparing brief papers and visuals on how the finance approaches help countries develop a financial strategy for the NDC actions and providing inputs to NDC Regional dialogues to present the financial approaches.
• Update the I&FF methodology to ensure coherence of the guidance for financial assessment in the context of NDC implementation; and

Provide inputs on how to implement UNDP’s private climate finance tracking methodology:

• Carry out technical backstopping activities in participating countries (Thailand and Vietnam) for the implementation of UNDP’s private climate finance tracking methodology[1];
• Provide technical assistance for the finance tracking workstream in Thailand and Vietnam, coordinating the termination of activities in each country;
• Act as a global consultant on this workstream to foster collaboration and the exchange of experiences among countries; and
• Carry out technical review of the final finance studies from participating countries and provide feedback to improve the quality of the reports, as needed.

Train and lead two countries to conduct Investment and Financial Flows (I&FF) assessments:

• Guide and inform national counterparts on the overall process to conduct I&FF assessments;
• Prepare and tailor guidance and training material on the I&FF process and methodology;
• Discuss and organize national stakeholder engagement events per country:

1. One at the beginning of the I&FF process to create buy-in and national ownership.
2. One at the end of the I&FF process to present and follow up on results.

• Provide training to national experts on the I&FF methodology; and
• Lead technical backstopping on the preparation of I&FF assessments, including the regular follow up with national teams, sharing resource materials and guidance, and reviewing draft assessments.

3.Inter-Agency Collaboration

• Provide technical inputs to the NDC Support Cluster Thematic Group on Finance;
• Participate in country-level inter-agency coordination under the NDC-Cluster (e.g. in Morocco under GIZ-leadership); and

Act as focal point on climate finance tools towards the NDC Cluster Toolbox, including the registration of information and the response to requests from external parties.

[1] http://www.lowemissiondevelopment.org/docs/UNDP_LECB_Methodology_v_2_Tracking_private_finance.pdf

Competencies

Corporate Competencies

• Excellent communications and networking skills;
• Ability to work effectively as part of a team;
• Strong interpersonal and negotiating skills;
• Ability to work in a multicultural environment; and
• Sound judgment and discretion.

Functional Competencies

Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise

• Understands technical and policy considerations as well as challenges in the national development of NDCs, LEDS, NAMAs and MRV systems;
• Good understanding of all thematic areas of climate change, as well as of climate change groundwork in countries;
• Understands fundamental concepts of Programme-related issues (e.g., GHG inventories, national communications, climate change finance assessment/tracking approaches etc.);
• Substantial knowledge of climate finance approaches;
• Good understanding and experience with UNDP rules and regulations, particularly as they relate to project development and implementation. Good understanding of initiatives and projects of the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS), as well as on green Low Emission Climate Resilient Development (LECRD) strategies;
• Understanding of UNFCCC international climate negotiations;
• Ability to work in diverse cultural working scenarios comprising different cultural and professional backgrounds;
• Keeps abreast of new developments in area of professional discipline and job knowledge and seeks to develop him/herself professionally; and
• Demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of information technology and applies it in work assignments.

Management and Leadership

• Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills;
• Focuses on impact and results for the client and responds positively to feedback;
• Leads teams effectively and shows conflict resolution skills;
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
• Builds strong relationships with clients and external actors;
• Remains calm, in control, and composed even under pressure;
• Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities;
• Communicates effectively with staff at all levels of the organization;
• Acts with tact and diplomacy;
• Proves outgoing and comfortable in handling external relations at all levels;
• Demonstrates compelling communication skills and cross-cultural effectiveness;
• Demonstrates experience in bilateral and/or multilateral negotiations, and negotiating and training/facilitation skills; and
• Possesses the ability to convey difficult issues and positions to senior officials, proven political judgement, sensitivity to local cultures.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic qualifications:

Master’s degree in environment-related areas, geography, economics, or international relations is required.

Experience:

• At least 7 years of relevant work experience on climate change and climate finance is required;
• Proven experience to plan and conduct technical trainings to address climate change is required;
• Experience with methodologies for tracking climate finance is required;
• Experience in collecting and analyzing lessons learned from UN projects and programmes is an added value;
• Experience with the partner organizations of the programme, including the European Commission (EC), the Government of Germany, and the Government of Australia is an asset;
• Experience in working with national governments of developing countries in the field of climate change, and particularly on NDC development/implementation planning is required;
• Experience in designing climate change planning concepts, such as LEDS, NAMAs, MRV, and related areas is required
• Experience in the development and management of thematically relevant web-platforms, is an asset.

Language:

• English is the working language for this assignment; therefore, excellent oral and written communications and presentation skills in English are required; and Knowledge of Spanish and/or French is an asset.

Application Procedure

The application package containing the following (to be uploaded as one file):

• Online application with brief description of why the Offer considers her/himself the most suitable for the assignment; and
• Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects and specifying the relevant assignment period (from/to), as well as the email and telephone contacts of at least three (3) professional references.

Note: The above documents need to be scanned in one file and uploaded to the online application as one document.

Shortlisted candidates (ONLY) will be requested to submit a Financial Proposal.

• The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount, and payment terms around the specific and measurable deliverables of the TOR. Payments are based upon output, i.e. upon delivery of the services specified in the TOR, and deliverables accepted and certified by the technical manager.

• The financial proposal must be all-inclusive and take into account various expenses that will be incurred during the contract, including: the daily professional fee; cost of travel from the home base to the duty station and vice versa, where required; living allowances at the duty station; communications, utilities and consumables; life, health and any other insurance; risks and inconveniences related to work under hardship and hazardous conditions (e.g., personal security needs, etc.), when applicable; and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services under the contract.

• This consultancy is a home-based assignment, therefore, there is no envisaged travel cost to join duty station/repatriation travel. 

• In the case of unforeseeable travel requested by UNDP, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between UNDP and Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed. In general, UNDP should not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources.

• If the Offeror is employed by an organization/company/institution, and he/she expects his/her employer to charge a management fee in the process of releasing him/her to UNDP under a Reimbursable Loan Agreement (RLA), the Offeror must indicate at this point, and ensure that all such costs are duly incorporated in the financial proposal submitted to UNDP.

The Financial Proposal is to be emailed as per the instruction in the separate email that will be sent to shortlisted candidates.

Evaluation process

Applicants are reviewed based on Required Skills and Experience stated above and based on the technical evaluation criteria outlined below.  Applicants will be evaluated based on cumulative scoring.  When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Being responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
• Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation where technical criteria weighs 70% and Financial criteria/ Proposal weighs 30%.

Technical evaluation - Total 70% (700 points):

• Criteria 1. Demonstrated knowledge on climate finance tools and methodologies that can assist countries carry out financial analysis for climate change actions Weight = 10%; Maximum Points: 100;
• Criteria 2. Substantive experience in providing technical assistance at national level (government officials and experts) to apply finance tools (CPEIR, PCEIR, IFF, others) for the design of climate actions. Weight = 10 %; Maximum Points: 100;
• Criteria 3. Expertise in the design of NAMAs and LEDS to assist countries develop their climate strategies, including the design/implementation of their national determined contributions (NDCs) Weight = 15 %; Maximum Points: 150;
• Criteria 4: Experience in supporting national-level processes in other relevant climate-change related activities Weight = 10%; Maximum Points: 100
• Criteria 5: Practical experience in carrying out capacity building initiatives in developing countries for the design of climate actions with a focus on climate finance and related areas Weight = 10 %; Maximum Points: 100

• Interview: Weight = 15 %; Maximum Points: 150.

Having reviewed applications received, UNDP will invite the top three/four shortlisted candidates for interview. Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% (490 points) of the maximum obtainable points for the technical criteria (70 points) shall be considered for the financial evaluation.

Financial evaluation - Total 30% (300 points)

The following formula will be used to evaluate financial proposal:

• p = y (µ/z), where
• p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated
• y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal
• µ = price of the lowest priced proposal
• z = price of the proposal being evaluated

Contract Award

Candidate obtaining the highest combined scores in the combined score of Technical and Financial evaluation will be considered technically qualified and will be offered to enter into contract with UNDP.

Institutional arrangement

The consultant will work under the guidance and direct supervision of NDC Support Programme Manager and will be responsible for the fulfilment of the deliverables as specified above.

• The Consultant will be requested to work remotely;
• The consultant will be supervised by and report directly to the NDC Support Programme Manager;
• Payments will be made upon submission of a detailed time sheet and certification of payment form, and acceptance and confirmation by the Supervisor on days worked and outputs delivered;
• The consultant will be given access to relevant information necessary for execution of the tasks under this assignment;
• The consultant will be responsible for providing her/his own working station (i.e. laptop, internet, phone, scanner/printer, etc.);
• Any necessary missions must be approved in advance and in writing by the NDC Support Programme Manager;
• The Advanced and Basic Security in the Field II courses must be successfully completed prior to commencement of travel;
• The selected candidate is responsible for ensuring that s/he has the necessary vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director;
• The selected candidate is responsible for obtaining any visas needed in connection with travel with the necessary support from UNDP;
• Consultants are required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under https://dss.un.org/dssweb/;
• All related travel expenses will be supported by the project travel fund and will be arranged according to UNDP entitlements and travel policy.Costs for airfares, terminal expenses, and living allowances should not be included in financial proposal.

Payment modality

• Payments are based upon output, i.e. upon delivery of the services specified above and deliverables accepted and upon certification of satisfactory completion by the manager.
• The work week will be based on 35 hours, i.e. on a 7 hour working day, with core hours being between 9h00 and 18h00 daily.

Annexes (click on the hyperlink to access the documents):

• Annex 1 - UNDP P-11 Form for ICs
• Annex 2 - IC Contract Template
• Annex 3 – IC General Terms and Conditions
• Annex 4 – RLA Template

Any request for clarification must be sent by email to cpu.bids@undp.org 

The UNDP Central Procurement Unit will respond by email and will send written copies of the response, including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry, to all applicants.

Framework Agreement

UNDP plans to enter into the Long-Term Agreement (LTA) with the TOP ranked successful Individual Contractor/s to assure resources availability at the required timeframe and/or increased demand for services requested. The service of who will be used on an intermittent and repetitive basis when needed and based on the fixed daily rate. Other prospective applicants that are not contracted, at the UNDP discretion, will be placed in the roster of consultants to be used based on call basis for similar services.

Please note that the LTA does not form a financial obligation or commitment from UNDP at the time the LTA contract is signed, and that such an agreement is non-exclusive. When a specific need arises, the successful Individual Contractor/s will be approached and be provided with a specific TOR and deliverables (and time frame) but still within the scope of the responsibilities stated in the LTA. The successful Individual Contractor/s is expected to provide Confirmation of Interest on the specific services required. Financial commitments will only be established each time a Purchase Order for the specific services/TOR for Individual Contractor is committed. The purchase order will be based on the agreed LTA Daily Rate Consultancy Fee.

This LTA has a cumulative ceiling amount that may accrue to the individual contractor during the life of the LTA, but said amount shall remain as an upper limit, and must not and cannot be interpreted nor understood as neither a financial commitment nor guarantee of business volume.

The duration of LTA is for 3-year period subject to satisfactory contract performance, funding and project demand.