Chief Technical Specialist [Open to internal and external applicants]

Tiered Approach

In line with the commitment to safeguard capacity and support personnel already in the Organization, a majority of UNDP UNCDF/UNV vacancies are advertised using a tiered application process whereby:

• Tier 0: UNDP/UNCDF/UNV IP staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed-term (FTA) appointments, whose posts will be abolished, or contracts will be terminated or not renewed during 2026.
• Tier 1: Other UNDP/UNCDF/UNV staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed-term (FTA) appointments
• Tier 2: UNDP/UNCDF/UNV staff holding temporary appointments (TA), personnel on regular PSA contracts, and Expert and Specialist UN Volunteers
• Tier 3 or no tier indicated: All other contract types from UNDP/UNCDF/UNV and other agencies, and other external candidates

Please make note of the Tier(s) indicated in the vacancy title, if any, and ensure that you satisfy the eligibility to apply.

Background

UNDP is the knowledge frontier organization for sustainable development in the UN Development System and serves as the integrator for collective action to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP's policy work carried out at HQ, Regional and Country Office levels offers a spectrum of deep local knowledge to cutting-edge global perspectives and advocacy. UNDP invests in the Global Policy Network (GPN), a network of field-based and global technical expertise across a wide range of knowledge domains in support of the signature solutions and organizational capabilities envisioned in UNDP's Strategic Plan.

UNDP is an accredited Implementing Agency for the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Trust Fund and the family of funds such as the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF), the Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF), and the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund (GBBF). As an Implementing Agency, UNDP offers countries highly specialized services for eligibility assessment, project formulation and due diligence, co-financing mobilization, implementation oversight, results management and evaluation, and knowledge management.

Papua New Guinea (PNG) harbors exceptional marine biodiversity of global significance, including the highest marine biodiversity richness in the Pacific Ocean. The country's 3.12 million km² Exclusive Economic Zone encompasses 13,840 km² of coral reefs, 4,200 km² of mangrove forests and extensive seagrass beds, supporting more than 500 species of stony coral and 1,635 reef-associated fish species. Despite this extraordinary natural endowment, PNG's coastal and marine ecosystems face severe and accelerating threats from illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, destructive fishing practices, coastal pollution, climate-induced coral bleaching, habitat conversion, governance failures and limited access to appropriate finance for conservation-positive enterprises and community livelihoods.

This project 'Accelerating PNG's Sustainable Blue Economy through Strengthened Governance and Investment in Marine Areas' (PIMS 9532, GEF ID 11262) is a child project of the GEF-8 Blue Green Islands (BGI) Integrated Program. With a total GEF grant of USD 16.76 million and co-financing of over USD 43.2 million, it represents a major GEF-funded marine conservation investment in PNG.

The project aims to strengthen the protection and sustainable use of coastal and marine ecosystems through four integrated components:

1. Integrating Natural Capital Accounting (NCA) into national economic planning.
2. Strengthening governance through Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and Marine Spatial Planning (MSP).
3. Demonstrating Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and innovative public-private-community partnerships.
4. Ensuring robust Knowledge Management and learning, linking PNG to the global BGI platform.

Through these interventions, the project aims to place 3.9 million hectares of marine areas under improved management, restore 20,000 hectares of mangroves, move over-exploited fisheries toward sustainable levels, and avoid 19 million tonnes of CO₂e emissions, while directly benefiting 10,000 people, at least 50% of whom are women.

The project operates in three critical seascapes: the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (AROB), New Ireland Province (NIP), and Bootless Bay (National Capital District & Central Province), reflecting diverse ecological and governance contexts. 

The project strategy is built around the four transformation levers of the GEF-8 Blue Green Islands Integrated Program, governance and policies, multi-stakeholder dialogue, financial leverage, and innovation and learning, and operationalizes them through a sustainable blue-green economy agenda spanning natural capital accounting, area-based conservation, nature-based solutions business models and innovative conservation finance. This agenda is delivered in close coordination with the PNG Biodiversity and Climate Fund (BCF, established under GEF-6 and transitioning to an independent entity), the GEF-8 Biodiversity Finance Program for PNG (BIOFIN), the Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR) Blue Economy Incubation Facility, and co-financing partners including the EU-funded Forestry-Climate Change-Biodiversity (EU-FCCB) Programme, Rainforest Trust, The Nature Conservancy, the Wildlife Conservation Society and Infinity Blue.

The Chief Technical Specialist (CTS) will provide overall technical leadership, strategic guidance, and quality assurance for the project. The CTS is the project's principal international technical expert, responsible for ensuring that that conservation, sustainable blue-economy development, private-sector engagement and access-to-finance interventions are technically sound, commercially informed and coherent across all all outcomes and geographies. S/he will provide critical capacity building to the Project Manager, Project Management Unit (PMU), and the national Implementing Partner, the Conservation and Environment Protection Authority (CEPA) – to ensure that the project meets GEF, UNDP and Government of PNG requirements throughout its lifecycle.

Duties and Responsibilities

The CTS will report primarily to the Assistant Resident Representative (ARR), Environment and Climate Change Portfolio, UNDP PNG Country Office and liaise with the UNDP Bangkok Regional Hub Regional Technical Advisor for Ecosystem and Biodiversity.

The CTS will work in close collaboration with the national project team (Project Manager/Coordinator, M&E Specialist, Gender-Safeguards Specialist, Communications Officer, Community Mobilizers and Technical Specialist ), as well as with other international advisors engaged under the project.

On the project’s sustainable blue-green economy, business development and innovative financing agenda, the CTS provides strategic and technical leadership, leads day-to-day private sector engagement, deal origination and PPCP/grant administration; the CTS also liaises directly with Treasury, the Department of National Planning and Monitoring, the National Statistical Office, the National Oceans Office, and the PNG Biodiversity and Climate Fund (BCF) on matters of natural capital accounting, blue economy policy and conservation finance.

The CTS will maintain regular communication with the BGI IP Global Coordination Project team and the UNDP Planet Hub technical advisors at the Bangkok Regional Hub.

The CTS will be office-based in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, with travel to the three target geographies (NCD, New Ireland Province and AROB) as required and approved by the UNDP Country Office.

The CTS will be given access to all relevant project documentation, databases and information systems necessary for the execution of tasks under this assignment.

The CTS will be provided with office space and standard equipment at the Project Office in CEPA and UNDP Country Office in Port Moresby.

Given the regional and international nature of the assignment, the CTS is expected to be reasonably flexible with availability across different time zones for coordination with the Bangkok Regional Hub and BGI-IP global project coordination teams.

Primary responsibilities include:

Strategic Technical Leadership, Market Development and Quality Assurance - Lead technical oversight and ensure high-quality implementation is aligned with international best practices, market realities and conservation objectives. 

• Provide substantive technical leadership and oversight across all project outcomes, ensuring that the integrated approach to blue economy, MPA governance, NbS,NCA, private-sector development and access to finance is coherent, evidence-based and aligned with international best practices and local market conditions;
• Prepare and/or review all major technical documents, terms of reference, analytical reports, baseline assessments and knowledge products produced under the project;
• Review and provide high-quality technical inputs on deliverables produced by consultants and sub-contractors, ensuring they meet UNDP, GEF and national government standards;
• Ensure consistency and coherence of technical approaches across the three target geographies (NCD/Central Province, New Ireland Province and AROB), adapting approaches to local ecological and socioeconomic conditions while maintaining methodological consistency for results aggregation;
• Provide technical guidance on ecosystem assessment, MPA management effectiveness, MSP framework design, mangrove/coral reef/seagrass conservation and restoration strategies, and the design of viable Nature-based Solutions (NbS) Blue Economy business models that generate sustainable revenues while delivering measurable conservation outcomes;
• Provide technical guidance on the design and implementation of natural capital accounting (NCA) exercises, including application of the UN SEEA Ecosystem Accounts framework to coastal and marine ecosystems, and translate valuation evidence into policy, investment and business decisions;
• Lead or guide market and value-chain assessments to identify commercially viable, conservation-positive opportunities, barriers to enterprise growth, financing gaps and incentives across fisheries, aquaculture, eco-tourism, waste and circular-economy solutions, ecosystem restoration and other relevant blue-economy sectors;
• Ensure that proposed business and financing models include credible biodiversity safeguards, benefit-sharing arrangements, gender and social inclusion, transparency, and systems to prevent greenwashing or displacement of environmental and social risks.

Monitoring, Evaluation, Investment Performance and Adaptive Management - Guide project monitoring, risk management, reporting, and adaptive management processes. 

• Ensure that the indicators included in the project results framework are monitored annually in advance of GEF Project Implementation Reports (PIRs) submission deadlines and provide substantive technical inputs to the annual GEF PIRs;
• Oversee and guide the implementation of the project M&E plan, including periodic appraisal of the project's theory of change and results framework against conservation, inclusion, enterprise-development and financing results;
• Establish and monitor relevant market and finance indicators, including enterprises supported, financing deployed, private capital mobilized, leverage, revenue and job outcomes, participation of women- and community-owned enterprises, portfolio performance, and the conservation results attributable to financed activities;
• Oversee and guide the design of surveys, assessments and monitoring protocols commissioned for evaluating project results, including GEF Core Indicators and METT/OECM tracking tools;
• Provide guidance to Technical Officers and Community Mobilizers for conducting field-level M&E activities and carry out project site visits to appraise on-the-ground progress and validate written reports;
• Manage and monitor project risks, identifying critical issues and proposing mitigation measures; update the project risk register in coordination with the Project Manager;
• Guide and assist the Project Manager in adaptive management processes, including revisions to multi-year workplans as needed;
• Guide and assist the Project Manager in preparing for, participating in, and responding to the mid-term review (MTR) and terminal evaluation (TE) of the project, including preparation of management responses.

Capacity Building and Institutional Strengthening - Strengthen capacities of the project team and partners through technical training and support. 

• Design and deliver on-the-job training for the Project Manager, PMU staff and CEPA counterparts on technical and programmatic aspects of the project, including marine biodiversity monitoring, MPA governance, MSP frameworks, GEF reporting requirements and UNDP programme management standards;
• Build national capacity in NCA methods and application, ecosystem-based fisheries management, marine spatial planning and sustainable blue economy business models, investment readiness and the structuring of conservation-positive financing solutions;
• Provide strategic input to strengthen the capacity of national partners to sustain project results after the close of GEF funding, including supporting the development of viable financing mechanisms, institutional arrangements, revenue models and policy frameworks that crowd in responsible private capital without weakening conservation safeguards;
• Provide technical advocacy among key stakeholders at national and sub-national levels, including assisting government units and service providers in the design and implementation of project interventions;
• Strengthen the capacity of community enterprises, MSMEs, incubators and business-development service providers to prepare viable business plans, improve governance and financial management, meet environmental and social standards, and engage effectively with financiers and markets.

Partnerships, Private-Sector Engagement, Coordination, and Knowledge Management - Support coordination, market partnerships, knowledge exchange, and participation in technical and investment platforms.

• Liaise with the BGI Integrated Program global coordination platform, GEF-funded projects active in PNG and the Pacific region, and complementary initiatives implemented by co-financing partners, promoting synergies and collaboration;
• Participate in national, regional and international fora as appropriate, including technical working groups, GEF community of practice platforms and UN inter-agency coordination mechanisms;
• Capture lessons learned during project implementation; coordinate with the Communications Officer to provide technical inputs to the development of knowledge products, including brochures, policy briefs, lessons-learned reports and case studies;
• Provide technical inputs to the development and dissemination of outreach materials and ensure that knowledge management activities support scaling up of project results;
• Participate in project board meetings, technical steering committees and other project governance mechanisms on an as-needed basis. 

Sustainable Blue-Green Economy, Business Development and Innovative Financing - Provide technical leadership on nature-based business models, blended conservation finance and public-private-community partnerships to mobilize investment for coastal and marine biodiversity conservation and sustainable use. 

•  Provide technical leadership on the design and implementation of nature-based business models, blended conservation finance instruments and public-private-community partnerships (PPCPs) ensuring technical soundness, financial viability and alignment with UNDP Social and Environmental Standards;
• Guide the development and technical review of the business case for the Blue Economy and Nature-based Solutions versus business-as-usual approaches, ensuring that natural capital accounting and ecosystem service valuation outputs are translated into investment-ready evidence for public and private decision-makers;
• Provide technical oversight to the design, screening and appraisal of grant-funded PPCP investments and NbS business proposals, including decentralized wastewater and solid waste management ventures in the National Capital District and sustainable fisheries, culture fisheries, ecotourism and blue carbon enterprises in New Ireland Province and the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, working closely with the Gender-Safeguards Specialist on social and environmental risk screening;
• Provide substantive technical inputs to the mainstreaming of Papua New Guinea’s Sustainable Blue Economy Investment Strategy 2030 and to the development of policy and regulatory frameworks for financial mechanisms and incentives for sustainable blue investments under Output 2.5, including blue carbon trading, biodiversity offsets and earmarking of extractive-industry revenues;
• Guide project engagement with, and technical contributions to, the PNG Biodiversity and Climate Fund (BCF), including support to the short-term blue economy advisor engaged to structure blended investments, and ensure complementarity with the GEF-8 Biodiversity Finance Program for PNG (BIOFIN) and the Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR) Blue Economy Incubation Facility;
• Provide strategic and technical guidance to the project’s Private Sector Specialist on private sector engagement strategy, due diligence and deal structuring, ensuring coherence between private sector and business development activities and the project’s technical strategy, results framework and safeguards requirements;
• Support engagement with development partners, financial institutions, impact investors and private sector actors – including co-financing partners such as Rainforest Trust, The Nature Conservancy, the Wildlife Conservation Society, Expertise France/EU-FCCB and Infinity Blue – to promote sustainable blue-green economy investments and partnerships aligned with project outcomes;
• Provide technical inputs to the development of concept notes, investment cases, funding proposals and blended finance opportunities linked to marine conservation, Nature-based Solutions, mangrove/blue carbon restoration and sustainable coastal and green livelihoods, including opportunities that support land degradation neutrality and forestry-linked co-financing;
• Facilitate coordination with Treasury, the Department of National Planning and Monitoring, the National Statistical Office and other government economic agencies to align project investments and natural capital accounting outputs with national blue-green economy priorities, budgetary processes and financing frameworks;
• Provide strategic input to strengthen the capacity of national partners and community-based organizations/MSMEs to sustain project-supported business models and financing mechanisms beyond the life of GEF-8 financing, including support to institutional arrangements for hosting and capitalizing the BCF as an independent entity.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Competencies

Core competencies:

• Achieve Results: LEVEL 3: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact
• Think Innovatively: LEVEL 3: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems
• Learn Continuously: LEVEL 3: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences
• Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 3: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands
• Act with Determination: LEVEL 3: Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results
• Engage and Partner: LEVEL 3: Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration
• Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 3: Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity

People Management:

UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site.  
 

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies:

Business Direction & Strategy

• Strategic Thinking: Develop effective strategies and prioritised plans in line with UNDP’s mission and objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, opportunities and potential risks; link the general vision to reality on the ground to create tangible targeted solutions; learn from a variety of sources to anticipate and effectively respond to both current and future trends; demonstrate foresight.
• Systems 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 other parts of the system

Business Management

• Project Management; Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals.
• Communications; Communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels.
• Partnership Management; Build and maintain partnerships with wide networks of stakeholders, Governments, civil society and private sector partners, experts and others in line with UNDP strategy and policies

2030 Agenda: Planet

• Nature; Ecosystems and Biodiversity

2030 Agenda: People

• Gender; Gender and Environment

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• An advanced university degree (Master's degree) in Environmental or Development Economics, Sustainable Finance , Business Administration, Natural Resource Management, or a closely related discipline is required, or
• A first-level university degree (Bachelor's degree) in the above fields in combination with two additional years of relevant experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced degree.

Experience:

Minimum of 7 years (with Master's degree) or 9 years (with Bachelor's degree) of progressively responsible experience in the following areas:

• Sustainable blue-green economy business development, innovative conservation finance, payments for ecosystem services, biodiversity offsets or comparable mechanisms, and structuring or appraising public-private-community partnerships.
• Marine biodiversity conservation, Marine Protected Area (MPA)  management, marine spatial planning and/or sustainable fisheries management;
• Project advisory and technical support to GEF-funded or similar international development projects, including technical quality assurance, results-based management and project reporting.
• Stakeholder engagement and capacity building with government counterparts, civil society, indigenous people and local communities, private sector, and financial institutions.

Required skills:

• At least 5 years of demonstrable experience in an advisory or CTS role with a major international organization;
• Proven experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc) and advanced knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages, experience in handling web-based management systems;
• Demonstrated experience integrating biodiversity or natural-resource conservation with private-sector development, market systems and access-to-finance approaches, including the development of investable pipelines or financing mechanisms;
• Demonstrated experience engaging financial institutions, investors, businesses, government, civil society, Indigenous Peoples and local communities, and translating between conservation, policy and commercial perspectives;
• Prior work experience in the Pacific Islands region and/or Papua New Guinea.

Desired Skills:

• Experience developing or implementing projects with financing from the GEF Trust Fund (including GEF-8 or equivalent generation) or Green Climate Fund, particularly in the biodiversity focal area;
• Experience with natural capital accounting (NCA) using the UN SEEA Ecosystem Accounts framework applied to coastal or marine ecosystems;
• Experience designing or implementing blended-finance, guarantee, results-based finance, impact-investment or other de-risking mechanisms for nature-positive enterprises;
• Experience in enterprise diagnostics, investment readiness, financial modelling, transaction structuring, due diligence or private-capital mobilization;
• Demonstrated experience in the design and implementation of NbS and/or blue economy business models, market systems or conservation enterprises in the Pacific Islands or comparable island developing state contexts;
• Prior experience working with or in Papua New Guinea or the Melanesian Pacific;
• Experience with FPIC processes, IPLC engagement standards, UNDP Social and Environmental Standards (SES) and gender-responsive approaches in conservation programming;
• Experience working with UNDP or similar international organizations including; familiarity with UNDP POPP.

Required Languages:

• Fluency in English is required; 
• Knowledge of Tok Pisin or other official PNG languages is an advantage.

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.

Use of AI by candidates

Applicants are invited to read UNDP’s guidance for candidates on using AI responsibly in UNDP recruitment and selection

Scam alert

UNDP does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process. For further information, please see www.undp.org/scam-alert.