Vacancy Type
International Personnel Service Agreement
Practice Area
Nature, Climate and Energy
Bureau
Regional Bureau for Africa
Contract Duration
1 Year
Education & Work Experience
Master's Degree - 7 year(s) experience
Required Languages
English
Vacancy Timeline
2 Weeks
Job Description
Background
UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.
UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.
The Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE) in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), and; Uganda National Meteorology Authority (UNMA) is implementing a wetland restoration project in Eastern and South Western Uganda titled “Building Resilient Communities, Wetland Ecosystems and Associated Catchments” Project. The 8-year (2017-2025), USD 44.262 million project is funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), Government of Uganda and UNDP. Building on the implementation of the GCF project, UNDP has secured funding from the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) for the expansion of wetland restoration through the project titled: “Restoration of wetlands and associated catchments in Eastern Uganda” over a period of 3 years (2021-2023) for the sum of Euro 1,019,000. Each of the projects is comprised of three similar components:-
Restoration and management of wetland hydrology and associated catchments.
Improved agricultural practices and alternative livelihood options in wetland catchments.
Strengthening access to climate and early warning information to farmers and other target communities.
Scope of Work
The Chief Technical Advisor (CTA) will provide technical support to several natural resources management programmes/projects including the following projects;
Building Resilient of Communities and Ecosystems through Restoration of Wetlands and associated Catchments project, with funding from GCF, UNDP and the Government of Uganda. This is a NIM project executed by MWE, MAAIF and UNMA;
Restoration of wetlands and associated catchments in Eastern Uganda project, funded by ADA. This is a DIM project executed by UNDP and ADA;
Karamoja Greenbelts’ Women-Led Large-Scale Farming of Cereals, Legumes and Oilseed;
Integrated Wetlands Management for Livelihoods and resilience building in Northern Uganda (GEF 8) Project.
This position involves project management, the development and implementation of management systems for the restoration of wetlands and associated catchments. The CTA will be responsible for technical advisory, partnership engagement, communication, and knowledge and programmes/project development on natural resources within the Nature, Climate, Energy and Resilience portfolio at UNDP. The CTA will provide guidance during implementation of the project activities and budget across these projects, in ensuring synergies, complementarities, and continuity. The position has a strong focus on project delivery, capacity building, and mentoring of staff at MAAIF, MWE and UNMA, and also other implementing partners like CSOs, communities etc. Monitoring and evaluation of outputs against actual outcomes also forms a key component of this position.
Duties and Responsibilities
Technical Advisory (35%)
Guide and/or lead the implementation of project activities especially wetland restoration and livelihoods;
Build capacity of the various institutions and/or other partners involved;
Promote a coherent work stream amongst watershed local authorities, central government and local government agencies, to foster project ownership and to identify habitat restoration opportunities and develop restoration concepts;
Guide the PMU to align project outputs with national development plan, strategies of ministries, community priorities and promote opportunities for collaboration towards planning and implementation of project activities;
Provide technical guidance to align project level interventions with national priorities and global environment commitments;
Support the PMUs in the management of project budgets; records, to enable timely communication with the Partners.
Project Management (30%)
Planning: Facilitate engagement and joint planning with the responsible parties for project implementation; the government ministries involved in with project implementation (MWE, MAAIF, Ministry of Meteorology), and UNDP:
Support the project management specialist and the whole PMU to develop detailed annual work plans, budget and implementation modalities;
Support the PMU in organizing and conducting training and capacity development workshops and experience sharing.
Communication: Plan for projects and share project updates with project steering committee, government ministries, UNDP, staff, partners, funders, and watershed communities:
Guide development pf project visibility actions and items;
Guide development of the technical content of project knowledge products and communication materials;
Provide quality assurance for information notes to Senior Management on specific events.
Contractor oversight: Development of TOR for recruitment of experts, schedule, oversee, write work orders and contracts for, and track contractors carrying out specific tasks of habitat restoration activities as part of the wetland and riparian habitat restoration projects.
Project coordination: Provide strategic guidance on collaboration mechanisms among the partners for timely implementation of the project, as well as participatory capture of project beneficiaries’ views and interests:
Develop and oversee implementation of a framework for habitat restoration opportunities and develop restoration concepts;
Alignment of project with national development plan, strategies of ministries and community priorities;
Provide advisory services to the National Project Coordinator in the management of staff and their assignment of responsibilities in project implementation;
Using GIS and other Spatial tools, provide advisory services on restoration strategies, impact monitoring and reporting;
Guide preparation of quarterly and annual activity-based reports(i.e. M&E outputs and indicators);
Take lead on preparation of Annual Performance reports;
Draft and submit post-implementation grant reports required by GCF and funding partners;
Participate in regular staff and board meetings, and partner meetings;
Provide support to project performance reporting including APRs, mid-term Evaluation and Terminal Evaluation;
Support the timely submission of results-oriented progress reports from all component leads.
C. Partnership Engagement (15%)
Support the team leader NCER and designated team members to effectively monitor and assess the impact (intended or non-intended/positive or negative) of nature-based solution projects in the NCER unit to ensure timely strategy readjustments. This should feed into resource mobilization efforts of the unit;
Provide quality inputs to the research and analysis of information on development partners preparation of substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation, identification of opportunities for technical and financial partnerships;
Collaborate with other partners to identify and develop additional restoration projects, scale out to other wetlands and riparian habitats, and capitalize on emerging opportunities, particularly for GEF8 programming cycle;
Develop and submit competitive grant proposals to private foundations, private sector investments, and other sources of program funding;
Support robust monitoring and evaluation of projects under the NCER portfolio of the Country Programme in close collaboration with the MSU.
D. Monitoring & Stewardship (20%)
Coordinate the implementing parties, and responsible parties etc. to ensure completion of planned activities;
Assess restoration project efficacy and carry out monitoring of project implementation;
Provide management recommendations to government entities and to UNDP to ensure compliance with requirements of GCF, ADA, IBSA, GEF and other donors’ rules, timelines and protocols designed to track project effectiveness and progress with riparian and wetland restoration and resilience;
Provide technical advisory services for implementation of the Karamoja Green Belts’ Commercialization.
4. Key Result Areas
Supporting management of the overall implementation of the projects towards the achievement of their development objectives, and targeted results by the end of the projects;
Building capacity, for implementation of environmental and social safeguards, and gender sensitive activities. Including monitoring risks and implementing mitigation measures outlined in the Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP), Livelihoods Restoration Plan (LRP), Gender Action Plan (GAP);
Ensuring timely performance of major project milestones including Inception, mid-term and terminal evaluations;
Preparing comprehensive progress and Annual Project Reports (APR) from all components of the projects for submission to the Project Boards of assigned projects;
Prepare lessons-learned report and identify follow-on actions and submit them for consideration to the Project Board;
Support the NPC of GCF and PMU of Karamoja Green Belt Project to prepare the financial reports to be certified by the implementing partner and submit the reports to UNDP, ADA, GCF, IBSA and GEF;
Ensure robust information sharing and coordination between the Ministry of Water and Environment as the Implementing Partner and UNDP.
Deliverables
Overall accelerated delivery of the project results/targets as per the ESMP and GAP;
Updated project risks, mitigation measures , social safeguards and Grievance redress actions implemented and documented;
Project progress Reports , Work Plans (AWPs, APRs, etc.) prepared and submitted to the project board, UNDP, ADA, IBSA, GCF and GEF and and specific milestones achieved on time;
Report on final lessons-learned with follow-on actions submitted to the project boards;
Certified financial Reports of the project assets and funds submitted regularly;
High Quality Reports on trainings, workshops, capacity building activities undertaken and annual performance reports shared between actors.
Institutional Arrangement
The CTA will work as part of the MWE, Project Management Unit (PMU), under the guidance of the Permanent Secretary of the MWE, for the attainment of project results. The incumbent will directly report to the UNDP – Resident Representative or her designates for operational and administrative issues, and on technical issues, to the Team Leader of the Nature, Climate, Energy and Resilience programme of the country office. The CTA will work closely with the National Project Coordinator (NPC) ,the PMU of the GCF, UNDP-ADA and F-Sure projects. The assignment is for a period of one year subject to performance.
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
Cross Functional & Technical competencies
Climate and disaster resilience – Nature, Climate & energy
Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation: concepts and advancing resilient development and low carbon development
Climate Change Adaptation
Embedding adaptation into development policy/planning/decision making
Disaster risk reduction and recovery
Disaster Recovery Policy, Planning, and Programming. Early Warning and Preparedness
Effective Decision-Making
Ability to take decisions in a timely and efficient manner in line with one’s authority, area of expertise, and resources
Results-based management
Ability to manage programmes and projects with a focus at improved performance and demonstrable results
Partnerships Management
Ability to 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
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
Master’s degree in natural resource management, wetlands & catchment restoration, Climate Change or related field is required. A combination of education in several fields will be considered an asset.
Experience:
Proven minimum of 7 years relevant practical working experience in the management of technical cooperation activities;
Experience in the field of natural resource management, working on wetlands restoration, catchment management, climate change and resilience preferably in least developed countries (LDCs) both at field level as well as senior management positions and in Africa;
Proven experience of project and programme management for large development initiatives with large teams of staff in multiple locations, including financial management, human resources management and annual work planning;
Proven record of efficient and effective delivery of funding and achievement of results;
Experience in working with national and subnational government in the area of natural resource management in Africa;
Substantial experience working at the global level on global policy dialogue and advocacy related to climate change and wetlands and catchment restoration in developing countries;
Experience in developing project documents and start-up of new projects with UNDP/UNCDF Programme and Project management standards;
Experience with new product development, testing, roll-out;
Resource mobilization experience and record of success in reporting to and managing donor grants and reporting mechanisms;
Strong programme and project management experience with emphasis on programme design, monitoring, evaluation and incorporating lessons learned into programmes;
Proven experience in partnership building and networking and in effective fundraising, resource mobilization and donor relations;
Excellent organizational, inter-personal, communication and administrative skills;
Experience in implementing the Performance-based Grant Management system using intergovernmental fiscal transfers, strong knowledge of local government finance;
Strong financial analysis and business project appraisal skills;
Familiarity with UNDP rules and procedures is an advantage;
Knowledge of GIS and GIS modeling for natural resource planning.
Language Requirement
Fluency in English is required.
Disclaimer
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Note: 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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Required Skills
Skills
Partnership Building
Project Management
Resource Mobilization
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