Background information about the job or company (e.g., role context, company overview)

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the leading global environmental authority. It sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system, and serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment. This consultancy is in UNEP’s Climate Change Division, Global Funds Mitigation and Transparency Section, Mitigation Branch, Europe and Central Asia team, and will be home based. UNEP’s Climate Change Division works with a portfolio of Global Environment Facility (GEF) medium-size and full-size climate change mitigation projects in Africa. The projects, which are in different stages of development (concept, design, implementation, closure), are executed by different partners (Ministries, NGOs, etc.). The Climate Change Division, in its role as implementing agency, provides oversight and ensures adherence to GEF guidelines.

Responsibilities or duties

Under the supervision of the Task Manager for Africa for Global Funds Mitigation and Transparency section, and in coordination with the Africa mitigation team, the consultant will execute the project preparation process (including developing the full GEF-8 CEO endorsement request package) for the “South-south cooperation for strengthening and establishing climate finance units” project.

Specific tasks and responsibilities: For the development of each CEO endorsement request packages:

• Lead the preparation of the CEO endorsement document and its attachments.
• Be responsible for the design of all substantive elements of the CEO endorsement document and its annexes, including sections such as the log frame, budget, workplan, results framework (indicators, end-of-o-project targets), baseline scenario, gaps and barriers analysis, alternative scenario, stakeholders engagement, risks, consistency with national priorities, institutional arrangements, gender action plan, knowledge management, theory of change (ToC), and monitoring and evaluation.
• Prepare an outline of the strategy and methodology to develop such elements, including a provisional timetable.
• In coordination with UNEP and with support from National Government, the consultant will take the lead in organizing a project scoping mission (first in-country mission) including a stakeholder consultation workshop, bringing together key stakeholders to discuss the project baseline, maps the gaps and barriers, collect relevant country data, co-financing, the problem tree, theory of change and proposed project interventions to prepare the project’s “skeleton” document. Prepare a report summarizing the workshop, with an attendance list.
• Prepare a mission report including main findings on scope and stakeholder consultations (following first country mission).
• Develop the project “skeleton” document, consisting in a 2-3-page document indicating the proposed project components, outcomes, outputs (with budget at output level), deliverables, as well as the proposed indicators, the problem tree and the theory of change.
• Prepare a presentation for internal discussion by UNEP management describing national circumstances and context, baseline, barriers, proposed intervention, and indicators.
• In consultation with the government, establish project and program specific indicators for the project results framework.
• Align substantive elements of the project with national strategic and planning documents.
• Undertake a gender analysis, ensure project deliverables are gender sensitive and prepare a Gender Action Plan with activities, indicators and targets.
• Undertake a stakeholder’s analysis and prepare a Stakeholder Engagement Plan.
• Participate in / contribute to other sectoral consultation workshops organized by the National Government as part of the project development process.
• Prepare a first draft of the CEO Endorsement Package, including relevant annexes (annexes to be included in the first draft will be discussed and agreed upon with UNEP).
• Prepare and organize in close coordination with the national counterparts a stakeholder validation workshop (second country mission) to validate the developed CEO Endorsement Document (log frames, results framework, budget, workplan, gender action plan, etc.) with key country counterparts.
• Prepare a mission report and validation workshop report summarizing the findings, recommendations and decisions taken during the workshop, and the participants' list.
• Lead the discussion of co-finance contributions, validate the amount and nature of contributions, identify to which project Component(s) the contribution is allocated, complete the co-finance budget template and provide any inputs required to obtain signed co-finance commitment letters.
• Prepare a final stakeholder consultation report. The GEF requires that a report is prepared and submitted on stakeholder holder consultations undertaken during the PPG.
• Prepare a final and complete version of the CEO Endorsement Document and annexes for UNEP internal review and submission to GEF Secretariat.
• Prepare the submission package of the CEO endorsement document and associated annexes to the UNEP Project Review Committee (PRC) and draft the responses to the Committee's reviews.
• Prepare the submission package of the CEO endorsement document and associated annexes to the GEF secretariat and draft responses to Secretariat reviews, until final approval.
• Inform UNEP on the status of work and highlight, in a timely manner, risks related to the quality of the information received and the fulfilment of the project's development schedule.

Performance indicators

• Submission of the four (4) deliverables in accordance with deadlines noted in section 2.3.
• Reports are considered high-quality, as determined by UNEP based on comparison with other CEO endorsement packages approved by the GEF.

Qualifications or requirements (e.g., education, skills)

Academic:

• Advanced university degree in economics, environmental sciences, business, management, or a related discipline is required;
• A first level degree with additional two years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree;

Experience needed

• Minimum of two (2) years of experience in developing, assessing, evaluating or managing projects in the field of climate change mitigation, climate finance, sustainable/green finance, environment or development is required;
• Experience in drafting project documents is required;
• Experience working with GEF, or UNEP projects is desirable;
• Experience in working for multilateral or bilateral funding entities in the field of environment, climate finance, climate change, sustainable mobility, or development is desirable.

Any other provided details (e.g., benefits, work environment, team info, or additional notes)

Languages: English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this consultancy, fluency (both oral and written) in English is required.

Additional Information: Not available.

No Fee: THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.

• Lead the preparation of the CEO endorsement document and its attachments.
• Be responsible for the design of all substantive elements of the CEO endorsement document and its annexes, including sections such as the log frame, budget, workplan, results framework (indicators, end-of-o-project targets), baseline scenario, gaps and barriers analysis, alternative scenario, stakeholders engagement, risks, consistency with national priorities, institutional arrangements, gender action plan, knowledge management, theory of change (ToC), and monitoring and evaluation.
• Prepare an outline of the strategy and methodology to develop such elements, including a provisional timetable.
• In coordination with UNEP and with support from National Government, the consultant will take the lead in organizing a project scoping mission (first in-country mission) including a stakeholder consultation workshop, bringing together key stakeholders to discuss the project baseline, maps the gaps and barriers, collect relevant country data, co-financing, the problem tree, theory of change and proposed project interventions to prepare the project’s “skeleton” document. Prepare a report summarizing the workshop, with an attendance list.
• Prepare a mission report including main findings on scope and stakeholder consultations (following first country mission).
• Develop the project “skeleton” document, consisting in a 2-3-page document indicating the proposed project components, outcomes, outputs (with budget at output level), deliverables, as well as the proposed indicators, the problem tree and the theory of change.
• Prepare a presentation for internal discussion by UNEP management describing national circumstances and context, baseline, barriers, proposed intervention, and indicators.
• In consultation with the government, establish project and program specific indicators for the project results framework.
• Align substantive elements of the project with national strategic and planning documents.
• Undertake a gender analysis, ensure project deliverables are gender sensitive and prepare a Gender Action Plan with activities, indicators and targets.
• Undertake a stakeholder’s analysis and prepare a Stakeholder Engagement Plan.
• Participate in / contribute to other sectoral consultation workshops organized by the National Government as part of the project development process.
• Prepare a first draft of the CEO Endorsement Package, including relevant annexes (annexes to be included in the first draft will be discussed and agreed upon with UNEP).
• Prepare and organize in close coordination with the national counterparts a stakeholder validation workshop (second country mission) to validate the developed CEO Endorsement Document (log frames, results framework, budget, workplan, gender action plan, etc.) with key country counterparts.
• Prepare a mission report and validation workshop report summarizing the findings, recommendations and decisions taken during the workshop, and the participants' list.
• Lead the discussion of co-finance contributions, validate the amount and nature of contributions, identify to which project Component(s) the contribution is allocated, complete the co-finance budget template and provide any inputs required to obtain signed co-finance commitment letters.
• Prepare a final stakeholder consultation report. The GEF requires that a report is prepared and submitted on stakeholder holder consultations undertaken during the PPG.
• Prepare a final and complete version of the CEO Endorsement Document and annexes for UNEP internal review and submission to GEF Secretariat.
• Prepare the submission package of the CEO endorsement document and associated annexes to the UNEP Project Review Committee (PRC) and draft the responses to the Committee's reviews.
• Prepare the submission package of the CEO endorsement document and associated annexes to the GEF secretariat and draft responses to Secretariat reviews, until final approval.
• Inform UNEP on the status of work and highlight, in a timely manner, risks related to the quality of the information received and the fulfilment of the project's development schedule.

• Experience in drafting project documents
• Experience working with GEF, or UNEP projects
• Experience in working for multilateral or bilateral funding entities in the field of environment, climate finance, climate change, sustainable mobility, or development

• Advanced university degree in economics, environmental sciences, business, management, or a related discipline is required;
• A first level degree with additional two years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree;
• Minimum of two (2) years of experience in developing, assessing, evaluating or managing projects in the field of climate change mitigation, climate finance, sustainable/green finance, environment or development is required;
• Experience in drafting project documents is required;
• Experience working with GEF, or UNEP projects is desirable;
• Experience in working for multilateral or bilateral funding entities in the field of environment, climate finance, climate change, sustainable mobility, or development is desirable.
• Fluency (both oral and written) in English is required.