Senior Officer - Climate Finance, Jordan GCF Readiness Program

GGGI has a diverse portfolio of programs in developing countries and emerging economies around the world, managing a diverse set of programs and projects focused on four key thematic areas of energy, green cities, water, and land-use, which hold significant potential in achieving green growth in developing countries. These in-country programs, together with global products and services, focus on delivering results through an integrated approach of evidence-based green growth planning and implementation aligned to countries’ development priorities. The organization also focuses on knowledge development activities which build a strong theoretical and empirical basis for green growth, and knowledge management and sharing activities that provide concrete options and guidance for policymakers, as well as help build the conditions for public and private green infrastructure investments.

GGGI has had a program of cooperation in Jordan since 2015, under a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Environment. GGGI’s work in Jordan to date has primarily focused on the development and implementation of the National Green Growth Plan (NGGP), which is a road map to guide Jordan’s green growth through 2030. The NGGP and GGGI’s implementation support are aligned to Jordan’s Vision 2025 strategy, the Sustainable Development Goals and the Nationally Determined Contribution, as well as sectoral plans and strategies in the waste, water, energy, tourism, agriculture and transport sectors.

According to the NGGP, lack of access to climate finance (particularly the Green Climate Fund, GCF), lack of bankable projects, and low participation of the domestic private sector in green project development are key gaps that must be addressed for Jordan to reach its climate change and sustainable development objectives. In response, GGGI is working directly with Jordan’s Nationally Designated Authority (NDA), the Ministry of Environment’s Climate Change Directorate, on the project “Improving Jordan’s Readiness to Access Finance for Climate Change and Green Growth.” The 18-month project, supported by the GCF, aims to:

• Achieve GCF accreditation for a national direct access entity (DAE)
• Build capacity to develop bankable project concepts within key government institutions
• Engage private sector by showcasing Jordan’s green growth potential

POSITION SUMMARY

The Climate Finance Senior Officer will serve as the lead climate finance expert on GGGI’s GCF Readiness project for the 2018-19 period. This person will be responsible for designing and supervising the process of building local capacity within the Climate Change Directorate to increase Jordan’s overall access to climate finance. The Climate Finance Senior Officer will work one-on-one in a twinning arrangement with the National Climate Finance Senior Associate to ensure strong knowledge transfer and adequate support is delivered during the GCF accreditation support process.

PURPOSE

The purpose of the Climate Finance Senior Officer position is primarily to oversee the development and employment of a set of criteria for selecting national financial institutions to become accredited as DAE to the GCF. This will include managing technical consultants supporting the potential DAE, working as senior advisor to Jordan’s NDA on all matters of GCF Accreditation, designing the capacity building process of the NDA to support future GCF accreditation applications, providing one-to-one twinning experience for a national counterpart on the issue of climate finance, and designing and supervising capacity building for project development to key government stakeholders.

ENGAGEMENT

The Climate Finance Specialist shall play a critical role in fostering collaboration among colleagues within GGGI as well as government officials in Jordan to gather international best practices for GCF accreditation and bankable project preparation and apply them in the Jordanian government context. The Climate Finance Specialist shall actively collaborate with counterparts across the government, and at the GCF, GGGI-HQ, partner organizations such as UNEP, GIZ, World Bank and private sector stakeholders. This person will ensure the quality of all deliverables developed by GGGI are aligned with the expectations of the FPA or other stakeholders.

DELIVERY

The general roles and responsibilities of the Climate Finance Senior Officer include:

DAE Accreditation – 50%

• Advise NDA on the establishment of DAE nomination criteria based on GCF standards, strategic considerations, international best practice and national context
• Produce guidance on accreditation process for national stakeholders in English language
• Access to finance and Capacity Development) – 30%
• Design a capacity development needs assessment for government agencies’ bankability training program
• Develop capacity building materials (including handbook for “Project preparation for bankability” and presentation/training materials)
• Design a training module targeting the government officials
• Private Sector Engagement  – 20%
• Support the development of the online knowledge platform through providing guidance on the international best practices
• Participate in investor forum

REQUIREMENTS

QUALIFICATIONS

• An advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in finance, climate change, sustainable development, development economics, statistics, engineering, environmental science, international development, law and policy, or other disciplines related to sustainable, development, environmental management, or green growth;
• At least 8 years of professional experience with an emphasis on developing bankable projects in support of national sustainable development and/or climate change mitigation and adaptation targets, preferably in developing countries;
• Experience supporting national, regional or international financing institutions with building capacity to apply international best practice standards to increase access to finance for sustainable development and/or climate change (such as GCF accreditation)

FUNCTIONAL

• Strong background in project finance, origination and development, including experience developing public-private partnerships, and engaging with development partners in support of government climate change objectives
• Strong understanding of global landscape of climate change policy and finance, including a deep understanding of the Green Climate Fund mandate, functions and requirements for accreditation;
• Proven experience and expertise in producing quality analytical inputs in project origination, feasibility assessment, and preparation;
• Proven track record of successfully working in multi-cultural teams in an international environment;
• Experience in implementing development projects by delivering agreed outputs on time and managing relationship with stakeholders;
• Experience working closely with government and non-government stakeholders, particularly in developing countries, and with intergovernmental organizations (IOs); experience in policy consultation and project development is a plus;
• Experience managing and guiding a team of experts and consultants;
• Strong command of utilizing Microsoft Excel, Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), and other complex data management software is a plus;
• Excellent analytical skills, critical thinking ability, and data mining skills; and
• Exceptional writing, editing, and proofreading skills in English are a must; knowledge of other relevant languages is an asset.

CORPORATE

GGGI needs a person who can bring more than knowledge and passion to the role: someone who has the grit and resilience to lead a flagship initiative, someone who is proactive, dynamic, and able to work together with minimal supervision. The successful candidate is a skillful team member with an ability to interact within and beyond GGGI, a thoughtful communicator, a deep thinker, and a diplomatic change agent who understands the dynamics and tensions in this kind of diverse, global landscape. The individual should be:

• Able and have a proven track record of coordinating and leading a team in a dynamic work environment
• Able to handle multiple projects in parallel and prioritize between multiple tasks and projects
• An experienced program manager, including budget planning
• Able to have the capacity and willingness to develop a longer-term strategic vision for the team, beyond the existing project assignments
• Able to handle complex multi-stakeholder relationships
• Keen on maintaining a high degree of professional integrity
• Willing to travel internationally and curious about new environments and new countries
• Able to work effectively with other teams with a high degree of cultural/professional diversity