Background

The Drylands Development Centre (DDC) is one of the three UNDP Thematic Centres around the world. Based in Nairobi, Kenya, DDC provides core support for development and poverty reduction in the drylands to affected countries world-wide through the Integrated Drylands Development Programme (IDDP). The overall goal of the IDDP is to contribute to poverty reduction through the sustainable development of drylands leading to reduced vulnerability and improved livelihoods. The expected outcomes of the IDDP are:

  • Drylands issues, climate change adaptation and mitigation mainstreamed into national policies, planning and development frameworks and contributing to the effective implementation of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD);
  • Vulnerability of drylands communities to environmental, economic and socio–cultural challenges (such as climate risks, drought, land degradation, poor markets, migration) reduced and adaptation/mitigation capacity built; and
  • Drylands communities benefit from improved local governance, management and utilization of natural resources. This support is provided through the UNDP country offices.
Under the framework of the IDDP in particular in support of the achievement of the second outcome area, DDC has been managing the Africa-Asia Drought Risk Management Peer Assistance Project (hereafter the Project) with the financial support from the Government of Japan since 2010. The project seeks to: (a) create an enabling environment for inter-regional knowledge sharing and technical cooperation among drought-prone countries in Africa and Asia; and (b) increase the use of best practices in DRM for development in the two regions.
 
A wealth of knowledge-based resources on drought risk management (DRM) exists in Africa, yet the opportunities for sharing successful experiences, disseminating lessons learnt and up-scaling innovative practices are still limited. In recognition of this, the Project has established a robust, yet flexible, inter-regional network, called the Africa-Asia Drought Risk Management Peer Assistance Network (AADP). It is expected to serve as a clearing-house for identifying, documenting and promoting the application of experiences, expertise and models of good practices in DRM along the chain of regional, national and local development practitioners in Africa and Asia. It also intends to improve the capacity of decision-makers and practitioners in their efforts for policy-setting, development planning and programme/project implementation in the two regions. AADP builds on the pool of experiences and expertise of, and leverages the proven operational modalities of, the preceding African Drought Risk and Development Network (ADDN), which has been managed jointly by the UNDP-DDC and the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN-ISDR) since 2005.  

Context and Justification for the Exercise

One of the main outputs of the Project (Output 2) is to increase the availability of knowledge and experiences in DRM in the two regions. To this end, a range of peer learning and information dissemination activities have been carried out to promote dialogue, communication and discussion among the DRM stakeholders on what works, why and what conditions are required to translate innovative approaches into practical plans and actions across the two regions. Some of these activities include, among others: facilitation of DRM stocktaking exercise[1]; organization of annual inter-regional drought adaptation forums[2] and study tour[3]; and publication and dissemination of monthly newsletters[4].
The Project secured complementary financial support from the Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Department of the European Commission to help develop a clear and common approach to define and identify “good DRM practices”. This is in recognition of the current absence of shared understanding of "good", "best" and "success" and indicators/comparable data to measure tangible long-term impacts of the DRM interventions. 

Under this support, a conceptual framework and methodology to measure the impacts of short-/ long-term DRM practices on resilience building, i.e., Community Based Resilience Analysis (CoBRA)[5], has been developed based on an extensive literature review, rounds of key informant interviews, group discussions both in hard and soft formats, including the AADP’s 2nd Africa-Asia Drought Adaptation Forum of October 2012 and the ADDN’s 5thAfrica Drought Adaptation Forum held in February 2013. The CoBRA methodology has also been pilot-tested in selected districts in Kenya and Uganda since late 2012. These rounds of consultations have provided a critical overview regarding the drought-affected communities’ understandings on good DRM practices. [6]

After some 3 years of implementation of the Project, it is imperative to compile the information and knowledge resources on time-tested and proven DRM approaches, techniques and measures accumulated from these and other activities and to make these more accessible and easier to use to/for the AADP users and other interested audience in a comprehensive, structured and innovative manner. 

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[1]Results of the exercise were incorporated into a publication which is available for download at http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/librarypage/environment-energy/sustainable_land_management/drought-risk-management-from-africa-and-asia.html. 

[5]The latest version of the CoBRA conceptual framework and methodology is available for download at http://www.disasterriskreduction.net/drought-online/documents/detail/en/c/2693/

[6]Findings and lessons learned from the CoBRA field testing in Kenya and Uganda thus far can be viewed at http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/Environment%20and%20Energy/sustainable%20land%20management/ADAF5/3.2.%20Fitzgibbon.pdf.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objective and Scope of the Exercise

The Terms of Reference at hand is for an individual consultant, who will support the AADP Secretariat housed in the UNDP -DDC based in Nairobi, Kenya to realize objectives of Output Indicator 2.4 of the Project. In particular, “Good practices identified by the Network captured and widely disseminated through various knowledge products.” This will be carried out by collating, analysing, sorting and synthesizing the key DRM approaches, techniques and measures, which have been captured through the above mentioned and other AADP activities and/or identified by other partners working in different aspects of the drought management cycle, into a comprehensive database.  It is planned that the online DRM database content will be created on the AADP’s Drought Online website based on the outputs of this consultancy.

Specific Tasks of the Consultant

Under the direct supervision of the Project Manager and in close collaboration with other Project partners, the tasks of the consultant will be the following:
  • Undertake a thorough desk review of all the relevant Project documents and other information materials related to DRM and consult with the key resource persons to identify the main categories to be used/applied to sort various time-tested and established DRM practices;
  • Conduct an e-survey and organize 1 online discussion using the online discussion forum page established under the "Drought Online" to solicit further evidence-based information and data on various DRM approaches, techniques and measures;
  • Develop the database which contains the list of the identified DRM approaches, techniques and measures, each with the brief outline of the resources, links to more information (sources of information) and/or contact persons as per the above categories;
  • Present the preliminary findings of the assignment and the draft skeleton of the DRM database at the side event during the 11th Conference of Parties (COP) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) which will be held in Windhoek, Namibia, from 16 to 27 September 2013, for joint review;
  • Integrate the inputs and comments from the side event into the final DRM database, which will be integrated into the online DRM database content on the Drought Online site;
  • Produce a summary report on the DRM database for dissemination in hard format.
Expected Outputs and payment schedule

Payment will be made based on satisfactory submission of deliverables as follows:
  • 20 % upon the satisfactory submission of a draft data set with the completion of Task 1-3). 
  • 20% upon the completion of the presentation at the UNCCD COP 11 (Task 4).
  • 30% upon the satisfactory submission of the final database (Task 5).
  • 30% upon the satisfactory submission of the summary report on the DRM database (Task 6).
Duration and Consultancy Implementation Modalities
 
The service of the consultant is needed for period of 50 working days, spread between August and October 2013. This consultancy is home-based with a mission to Windhoek, Namibia, for one day presentation during the period of the UNCCD COP11. Exact date of the side event will be communicated at a later date. These will fall between 16 and 27 September 2013.  

The consultant will work under the supervision of the Project Manager in Nairobi, Kenya. S/He will be briefed at the beginning of the assignment by teleconference. The working language is English.

Competencies

Functional competencies:
  • A demonstrated ability to conceptualize, analyse, compile and synthesize information in coherent and succinct formats.
  • Strong communication and writing skills with proficiency in English;
  • High attention to detail and ability to work under tight deadlines;
  • Ability to work independently and as part of a team and in a multi-cultural environment; and
  • IT competencies at least in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and internet.

Core competencies:

  • Demonstrates commitment to UNDP’s mission, vision and values;
  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
  • Highest standards of integrity, discretion and loyalty.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:
  • Advanced University Degree in disaster management, natural resources management/environment or related disciplines;

Experience 

  • At least 5 years of demonstrated relevant work experience in the fields of DRM in the targeted regions;
  • Previous experience with the United Nations and/or other multilateral, bilateral organizations and international civil society development partners would be an added value;
  • Profound knowledge and/or familiarity with drought policies and practices specifically in Asia and Africa.
Language:
  •  Fluency in written and spoken English.

Application Procedures

Interested applicants are required to submit their applications to UNDP DDC by email at ddc@undp.org by 26 July 2013.

The application should contain:

  • CV with at least three (3) professional references;
  •  A brief write-up (max. 1 page) of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment;
  • A brief write-up (max 2 pages) on the individual understanding/interpretation of the TORs and how the assignment would be conducted (work plan ); and
  • Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price in USD. The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount, inclusive of the travel cost to be incurred for the participation in the UNCCD COP 11 in Windhoek, Namibia, and payment terms around specific and measurable (qualitative and quantitative) deliverables (i.e. whether payments fall in installments or upon completion of the entire contract). Payments are based upon output, i.e. upon satisfactory delivery of the services specified in the TOR.

A Procurement Notice which contains more details on the above assignment can be accessed on:

Procurement Notice: http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=11972

Applications submitted should indicate in the subject line: “UNDP/DDC- DRM Good Practice Collection”.