Background
- Tier 1: UNDP/ UNCDF/ UNV staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed term (FTA) appointments (defined as “internal” candidates)
- Tier 2: UNDP/ UNCDF/ UNV staff holding temporary appointments (TA) and personnel on regular PSA contracts
- Tier 3: All other contract types from UNDP/UNCDF/UNV and other agencies, and other external candidates
1. Office/Unit/Project Description
The Green Growth and Jobs Accelerator Project will be implemented in Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan building on UNDP’s work and experience with implementing the SDG Accelerator for SMEs methodology. The SDG Accelerator for SMEs methodology is unique in the United Nations family as it directly supports sustainable business development and commercial green growth in SMEs. The SDG Accelerator is a part of UNDP’s service offer UNDP Impact Venture Accelerators (IVA). The IVA is a practical approach to help businesses focus on delivering products/services, business models and business plans which contribute to the SDGs. The IVA is a part of UNDP’s Private Sector Strategy note which, along with other UNDP strategic areas, works towards achieving the goal of promoting over $1 US trillion of public expenditure and private capital investment in the SDGs, as outlined in UNDP’s Strategic Plan 2022-25.
The Green Growth and Jobs Accelerator Project is one out of three projects under the Danish-Arab Partnership Programme’s (DAPP) new five-year cycle, launched September 2022. The owner of the initiative DAPP is the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and DAPP has existed since the early 2000s. DAPP comprises of two programmes, the Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship Programme and the Human Rights and Inclusion Programme. The Green Growth and Jobs Accelerator is project 2 out of three projects under the Youth Employment Programme.
The objective of the Green Growth and Jobs Accelerator Project is to support established entrepreneurs and SMEs, of which a proportion will be youth-led, to accelerate green growth in their businesses and through this, support the local transition to a green and sustainable economy, and enable green jobs for youth.
The Country Offices (CO) in the four DAPP countries will implement the Accelerators at country-level and leverage on their longstanding local networks of relevant stakeholders across sectors (SMEs). Choosing the right sectors and sub-sectors with high potential for job-creation will be key to ensure results and will be based on a sector analysis surveying mapping of growth, job drivers, and much more. The implementation will be done in close collaboration with local management consulting firms in each country (or regionally) who will assist the CO team in implementation and deliver strategic business development consulting on green growth and business instruments to grow business. The strategic business development consulting will consist of e.g. consulting on the development of business plans for new environmentally friendly products and services, through implementation of greener production or operational processes, and/or through the integration of selected standards that can enable some companies to get access to new markets.
The Green Growth and Jobs Accelerator project will be implemented in 3 outputs:
Output 1: Accelerators:
Established entrepreneurs and SMEs, of which at least 10% will be youth-led enterprises, will be supported with green growth business instruments and advisory through an intensive 5-months business development process called the Green Growth and Jobs Accelerator. The youth-led enterprises will follow the same process in the accelerators as the non-youth-led companies. The overall goal of Output 1 is to target companies enabled to grow their business and create green jobs for youth.
Output 2: SME Finance:
Many of the target companies in the Accelerator are expected to need risk capital to realise their green growth business plans. UNDP will function as a connector between the target companies and relevant financial institutions providing capital to SMEs in and outside the region. Here, UNDP will also make use of the SDG Investor Maps, if available, identifying supply and demand of investment appetite in the countries. Through the Accelerator, target companies that need finance will also be offered some coaching aiming to strengthen their ability to pitch green growth business plans to potential investors and capital providers. The overall goal of Output 2 is to ensure that green business solutions of target companies accelerated by increased access to finance.
Output 3: Learning Modality
In the MENA region, young entrepreneurs and businesses using digital platforms and technology and taking advantage of digital payment opportunities are on the rise. Output 3 will work to strengthen the capacity of entrepreneurs and SMEs to take advantage of these new digital growth opportunities which will be delivered through a targeted learning modality. The learning modality will comprise different learning assets including Digital learning on:
Sustainable business development and innovation,
Impact Management and Measurement (IMM); and
e-Commerce.
The overall goal of Output 3 is for youth and companies to be capacitated to accelerate and manage green, sustainable growth.
2. Scope of Work
- Project Management:
- Lead the implementation, execution, control, and reporting on two 5-month Accelerators each year between 2023-2027 in close collaboration with management consultant firms.
- Take part in country-level coordination group consisting of partners in the DAPP, to ensure on the ground coordination and collaboration, to avoid duplication of efforts and ensure maximum synergies between the three DAPP projects.
- Lead stakeholder dialogue with external partners relevant to the project implementation. The key stakeholder from the private sector is the local management consultancy firm which will entail the majority of the stakeholder engagement. Other private sector stakeholders include private sector outside the accelerators, business associations, innovation hubs, other accelerators, and risk finance, such as venture capital, angel investors, investment funds and so on the second stakeholder dialogue group is the public sector at both local and national level, including local and national government, networks of academia, and so on.
- Bring in and leverage on existing project experience and capabilities relevant to this project; e.g. project management, understanding of and direct work with private sector/enterprise development/local investment landscape/green growth/innovation/digital transformation.
- Project management of local accelerators and country-level project team. This includes monitoring of the implementation of activities and the expenditure of funds, and potentially conducting monitoring visits at SME premises as well. Project management related to local management consultants will include project coordination with the management consultants on country level and ensuring timely and on-target delivery of the output agreed on contractually with the consultants.
- Ensure structured progress reports for SME cohorts.
- Support and feed into the development of a regional adaptive management framework with country specific frameworks.
- Lead on capturing results from project progress against an adaptive management results framework
- Lead on collecting country-level project data for reporting and M&E.
- Contribute relevant cases and materials that can be turned into communication products and stories by RBAS (local and regional audiences) and UNDP Nordic (Danish audiences).
- Participate in meetings and coordinate activities with local DAPP secretariats consisting of representatives of the projects in the overall Danish-Arab Partnership Programme’s Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship Programme.
- Develop all required reports, presentations, knowledge products and other relevant materials as requested.
Duties and responsibilities within Output 1:
- Lead on implementation of two 5-month Accelerators each year between 2023-2027 in tandem (close collaboration) with management consultant firms.
- Lead on recruitment of SMEs to accelerators through own channels and through partners with support from RBAS and UNDP NRO.
- Lead on daily project coordination with local management consultant firm.
- Take part in green growth consulting services to individual SMEs in accelerator cohorts together with management consultant firm.
- Take part in weekly check-ins with UNDP RBAS and NRO.
- Take part in fortnightly learning sessions with UNDP RBAS, NRO and other COs focusing on SME progress, methodology/tools application and other items relevant to the project.
- Deliver all joint sessions for SMEs including Joint Kick-off workshop, IMM workshop, Showcase and Finale
- Lead on capturing results from SME progress against results framework.
- Establish partnerships with academic institutions to recruit relevant youth to serve as interns/consultants to deliver support to SMEs as partners.
- Lead on and develop all required reports, presentations, knowledge products and other relevant materials as requested.
Duties and responsibilities within Output 2:
- Lead on mapping sustainable finance and risk finance providers in the country and the region, relevant for the SMEs in the accelerators.
- Lead on matchmaking SMEs with relevant investors and finance providers.
Duties and responsibilities within Output 3:
- Lead on stakeholder dialogues with networks and entities such as business schools, universities, innovation hubs, already established accelerators and incubators etc. that have access to larger groups of youth that would benefit from the digital learning assets, ensuring maximizing the utilization of Regional Youth Project Platform (NextGen Youth Platform).
- Support in design and setup of Green Growth Community to ensure local relevance.
- Support the utilization and spread of e-learning materials and curricula through relevant channels, and outlets of stakeholders.
- Lead on onboarding SMEs alumni to the Green Growth Community.
- Map viable accelerators existing in the national-level ecosystems.
3- Institutional Arrangement
Reports to Assistant Resident Representative/ Inclusive Growth and Innovation Team Leader.
4- Competencies
| Core | |
| Achieve Results: | LEVEL 2: Scale up solutions and simplifies processes, balances speed and accuracy in doing work |
| Think Innovatively: | LEVEL 2: Offer new ideas/open to new approaches, demonstrate systemic/integrated thinking |
| Learn Continuously: | LEVEL 2: Go outside comfort zone, learn from others and support their learning |
| Adapt with Agility: | LEVEL 2: Adapt processes/approaches to new situations, involve others in change process |
| Act with Determination: | LEVEL 2: Able to persevere and deal with multiple sources of pressure simultaneously |
| Engage and Partner: | LEVEL 2: Is facilitator/integrator, bring people together, build/maintain coalitions/partnerships |
| Enable Diversity and Inclusion: | LEVEL 2: Facilitate conversations to bridge differences, considers in decision making |
|
People Management UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site. Cross-Functional & Technical competencies |
| Thematic Area | Name | Definition |
| I. Business Direction & Strategy | Entrepreneurial Thinking | Identify and seize opportunities to service and add value to clients, create clarity around UNDP value proposition to beneficiaries and partners, develop clear service offers responding to client needs in |
| line with UNDP’s organizational priorities and mandate. | ||
| I. Business Direction & Strategy | System Thinking | Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system |
| II. Business Development | Knowledge Generation | Ability to research information and to turn it into useful knowledge, relevant for context, or responsive to a stated need. Ability to apply existing concepts to new situations, and to develop new concepts to generate workable solutions and new approaches. Knowledge of relevant concepts, conceptual models, and theories that can be useful in addressing new situations. |
| III. Business Management | Project Management | Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals |
| III. Business Management | Monitoring and evaluation | Ability to systematically monitor results of strategies, programmes, and activities with a view to make sure that they are being implemented effectively; Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback and reporting on the consistency or discrepancy between planned activities and programme management and results. |
| Ability to make independent judgment of the management and results of strategies, programmes and activities based on set criteria and benchmark, keeping in mind the needs and | ||
| concerns of client, current and upcoming. Knowledge and understanding of monitoring and evaluation frameworks, concepts, methodologies, systems, processes, and tools. Ability to make an independent judgement based on set criteria and benchmarks. Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns. | ||
| Digital & Innovation | Innovation ecosystem curation | Ability to identify key players in an ecosystem, engage with them and mobilise them to build a community and over time a movement around a common mission that can bring about changes at the system level. |
| Ability to give sense of purpose and build trust, develop programmes of activities and platforms to build and strengthen relationships. | ||
| 2030 Agenda: Planet | Climate | Circular economy and green economy |
4- Minimum Qualifications of the Successful NPSA
| Min. Education requirements | Advanced university degree (master's degree or equivalent) in Business Administration, Economics, or related field is required, or |
| A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas mentioned above in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree. | |
| Min. years of relevant work experience | Minimum 2 years (with master’s degree) or 4 years (with bachelor’s degree) of relevant experience at the national in project management, business incubation and acceleration, green startups and environmental projects, job creation and employment, and entrepreneurship. |
| Required skills | Experience in leading teams and working in diversified business environment |
| Experience in project management, reporting, monitoring and evaluation, partnerships, youth capacity building, and entrepreneurship. | |
| Good technical experience in managing business incubators and accelerators, and working in social entrepreneurship, environmental and climate action projects, employment and job creation, training and capacity building programs, and business investment. | |
| Experience in building development programmes and use cases. | |
| Experience in project management software and digital tools and using ERP digital systems. | |
| Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section | Hands-on experience in digital systems and digital transformation. |
| Good knowledge of using different authoring tools | |
| Proven experience in managing projects in entrepreneurship, startups, SMEs, incubation, acceleration and/or angel investment and ventures capital | |
| Experience in Youth and/or digital transformation | |
| Knowledge in climate issues, environmental sustainability, eco-friendly and green business, green and blue economy, and biodiversity | |
| Knowledge of data analytics, representation, visualization, and ERP digital systems | |
| Prior experience with UN Agencies or UN project | |
| Required Language(s) | Fluency in English and Arabic is required. |
| Professional Certificates | - |
5- The following documents shall be required from the applicants:
Personal CV or P11, indicating all past positions held and their main underlying functions, their durations (month/year), the qualifications, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate, and at least three (3) the most recent professional references of previous supervisors. References may also include peers.
Equal opportunity
As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination.
UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.
Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority
UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles.
Right to select multiple candidates
UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.
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