Background

Background

Lesotho`s National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP) 2012-2017 identified access to sustainable and affordable energy as a prerequisite for economic growth and poverty alleviation in Lesotho. Inadequate access to clean energy constitutes a significant obstacle to poverty reduction and food security and the development of the country’s enterprise sector, as well as climate change management and maintenance of indigenous ecosystems. The total primary energy supply for Lesotho is currently 37.2 PJ and the country’s energy mix is dominated by traditional biomass with a 66% share of the energy mix. Traditional biomass mainly comes from non-commercial indigenous sources (shrubs, crop residues, and dung) whose harvest and use has been closely associated with environmental degradation and poor soil fertility. It is estimated that more than 1.8 million tonnes of woody biomass, shrubs, dung cakes and about 100,000 tonnes of crop residues are used annually as energy sources. Petroleum products, coal, electricity and LPG constitute the remaining 34% of the energy mix. Lesotho is highly dependent on imported fossil fuels (>95%) for its energy requirements for transport and industries. Electricity only contributes 6% of the national energy mix and the local electricity generation is 522.3 GWh from an installed capacity of 76 MW. More than 95% of electricity consumed in the country is from hydropower. The peak demand of 145 MW in winter is met through extremely GHG-intensive energy imports from the South African Power Pool (SAPP), which has a combined grid emissions factor of 0.9801 as some 77% of South Africa’s electricity supply comes  is from coal.

In light of the country’s low electrification access rate and despite limited resources, the Government of Lesotho has set ambitious energy access targets under the National Vision 2020 and NSDP, to achievement of these targets and this is also expressed in their official commitment to and participation in the Sustainable Energy for All Initiative (SE4ALL) as part of their Rio + 20 Plan of Action. Lesotho prepared and approved a Rapid Assessment and Gap Analysis for SE4ALL in 2013 and in line with Vision 2020 and the NSDP, is now committed to undertaking the remaining SE4ALL Country Action Processes (Country Action Agenda and Investment Prospectus as stipulated by the SE4ALL Secretariat),  a sequence of strategic steps which will ensure the country’s coherence with the global initiative, assist in leveraging additional investments, and monitor progress and results towards achievement of the country’s SE4ALL targets.

To achieve these ambitious targets Lesotho is now facing a critical choice regarding its energy future. As regards electricity provision, it can either seek to expand the national grid and increase imports of GHG-intensive energy from SAPP or it can seek to develop its own indigenous renewable energy sources, become more self-reliant, and pursue a more environmentally-friendly energy trajectory.

Current developments point towards pursuit of the second path. Lesotho has a variety of unexploited renewable energy resources. The hydropower potential in the country is significant while as regards solar energy resources the country has on average over 300 sunny days in a year with annual average insolation levels of 5.25 – 5.53 kWh/m2/year. The country also has good wind energy resources with measured annual average wind speeds of 3.7 to 4.7 m/s at 10 m heights. Because of the complex mountainous terrain of the country and the low load density of many communities dispersed over different areas, large-scale rural electrification through grid extension has been deemed to be costly and unviable in many areas and therefore government is increasingly focused on distributed generation schemes and support for village-based energization models and mini-grids as the best alternatives.

However achievement of the country’s preferred scenario of a sustainable energy transformation is hampered by several factors, including: the absence of the required policy and legal frameworks;  a lack of baseline data for proper analysis and planning of energy access programs and investments (particularly for thermal applications and decentralized energy services); lack of standards for RETs; and the absence of proven and sustainable models for provision of village-based energy service delivery.

Scope of Work

A Project Preparation Grant (PPG) has been approved by the GEF Secretariat to prepare a Full-Size Project Document (FSP) for the above-mentioned project based on the approved project concept note/Project Identification Form (PIF).

The PPG phase will support various data collection and analysis efforts and undertake several stakeholder consultations with the view to further develop the approved project concept into a fully formulated project document. The PPG will allow for the recruitment of 1 local consultant and 1 international consultant to produce a Request for CEO Endorsement and a complete UNDP Project Document (PRODOC) using the appropriate templates, including required letters of co-financing and all relevant annexes. These documents will be prepared under the guidance of the relevant UNDP/GEF Regional Technical Advisor and the UNDP Lesotho’s Energy and Environment Team, working in close collaboration with key government agencies, donors, NGOs, CBOs, and the private sector. The final output of the PPG phase will be a UNDP-GEF project document and GEF CEO Endorsement template ready for submission to UNDP and GEF, with all required supporting annexes, tracking tools and background information.

The Request for GEF CEO Endorsement and the UNDP Project Document (together with all annexes and supporting documentation) will  be finalized and submitted by the consultants no later than June 2015 with the expectation that the submission will be approved by the GEF Secretariat no later than October 2015.

The PPG phase will include four interrelated work packages (Components) to be undertaken by the various consultants hired as part of the PPG phase.

Component 1:  Technical Review /design and Baseline Analysis:

The following specific data collection and analytical tasks are expected to be performed during the PPG phase

• Collection of all relevant baseline information, identifying and filling key gaps in information to strengthen the project design;
• Analyses to address any opportunities/risks identified during an environmental and social screening of the project proposal (ESSP); the ESSP will be provided to the consultants;
• The development of comprehensive responses and design modifications in the project proposal submission to address all issues identified in the GEF STAP (Scientific and Technical screening of the Project Identification Form) and GEFSEC PIF reviews;
• All reviews will be provided to the consultants as they have to be clarified/addressed by CEO endorsement as indicated in the GEFSEC and GEF STAP reviews;
• Assessment of institutional capacity and potential location for  establishment of energy national database;
• Integration and alignment of the project with relevant national or district development plans, policies, budgets and complementary projects;
• Completion of the GEF Climate Change Mitigation tracking tool together with a detailed analysis of the project’s direct and indirect contribution to the stated Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emission reduction targets; and stakeholder consultations during technical review;
• The consultants will mobilize and engage stakeholders during project design and document these consultations in detail as appropriate. They will negotiate partnerships with on-going projects to align GEF-funded activities with related initiatives and build synergies wherever possible;
• Development of clear Terms of Reference for a national energy survey.

Component 2:  Institutional arrangements, monitoring and evaluation:

 The outputs of Component 1 will be used as technical input to Component 2 for the formulation of the UNDP-GEF project document

• Finalization of project results framework:  Further define the results framework with appropriate objective-level and outcome-level quantitative and qualitative (SMART) indicators, and end-of-project targets.  Special attention will be made to include socio-economic and sex disaggregated indicators. As noted in the PIF “A full break-down of all direct and indirect benefits from project activities will be provided at CEO Endorsement;”

Definition of monitoring and evaluation (M&E): 

• A detailed M&E work plan will be developed, including clear identification of responsibilities and accountabilities, as well as an appropriate M&E budget. The plan will be based on the standard template provided in the UNDP-GEF project document template that reflects the mandatory requirements of the GEF M&E Policy.  Under Component #4 a variety of specific knowledge management and information dissemination activities will be discussed;
• A detailed list of activities will be developed during the PPG phase and presented at CEO Endorsement.

Define sustainability plan: 

• The sustainability plan will outline the principles and guidelines for ensuring the long-term sustainability of project achievements. It will also outline an exit strategy, seeking the continuation of key activities/achievements without the need of long-term international financing;
• A full assessment of all project-related risks with appropriate mitigation measures will be identified.

Definition of management arrangements:

• The organisational structure governing and implementing the project will be decided.  This will include identification of the project board.

Stakeholder consultations during Component 2: 

• Involve key agencies in the development of the project strategy to ensure a strong national ownership. In close collaboration with key government representatives and other stakeholders ensure full participation in the development of the project results framework and ensure agreement on the project objectives and outcomes. Undertake consultations to secure agreement(s) on project implementation arrangements; including roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities of lead and partner agencies.  Document these consultations.

 Component 3:  Financial planning and co-financing investments: 

• Prepare a detailed multi-year budget following the standard template provided in the UNDP-GEF project document template that reflects the mandatory requirements of the GEF M&E Policy.

• Ensure linkage and harmonization of the project with the relevant frameworks and indicators of the UNDP Strategic Plan (2014-2017) and NSDP.

Explore multilateral and bilateral co-financing opportunities:

• Undertake series of consultations with partners to ensure a coherent and sustainable financing package for the project including post- GEF grant phase.

Ensure completion of required official endorsement letters: 

• An official endorsement letter will be prepared by the GEF Operational Focal Point of the Government.  A co-financing guarantee will be collected from participating government institutions, bilateral development partners, multilateral development partners and NGOs who wish to provide cash or in kind contributions to the project;
• The detailed proposed structure, governance, fiduciary regulations and administrative elements of the financial scheme to be supported by GEF INV will be provided at CEO ER as well as matching co-finance. Additionally letters of support and proposed co-finance will be solicited from selected entities in Lesotho who can confirm their interest to participate in the project implementation (these will be provided at CEO ER).

Stakeholder consultations during Component 3: 

• Intensive consultations will be carried out with key stakeholders during project design where both government and non-government actors will be engaged to ensure that they are all well informed about the proposed initiative in order to strengthen national ownership. Negotiations on co-financing with key stakeholders carrying out projects of relevance to the proposed project will be carried out.

 Component 4:  Inception and Validation workshops

The consultants under leadership of the international consultant will present to relevant stakeholders methodology and workplan to carryout this assignment during an inception workshop that will to be held no later than December 2014. A validation workshop will gather representatives from all relevant stakeholders to present, discuss and validate the final draft project document and this will also be led by international consultant.

A validation workshop – facilitated by MEMWA and UNDP – will be held in Lesotho no later than March 2015 to gather representatives from all relevant stakeholders to present discuss and validate the final draft project documents and all materials developed by the consultants.

Following this workshop, the international consultant – with strong support from the national consultant – will move as quickly as possible to finalize the complete package of documentation for clearance internally by UNDP for submission to the GEF Secretariat. Once GEF Secretariat comments have been received, the international consultant (with support from the national consultant) will prepare a ‘UNDP Response to GEF Secretariat Comments’ and then make changes to the text of the UNDP project document and GEF Request for CEO Endorsement with the ultimate objective of obtaining GEF approval of the full project.

The complete documentation package to be submitted by PPG consultants’ team should include the following documents:

• Finalized UNDP Project Document with all relevant annexes;
• Finalized GEF Request for CEO Endorsement;
• Finalized GEF CCM Tracking Tool;
• Finalized ESSP (Environmental and Social Screening Procedures);
• All co-financing letters including official endorsement letter from GEF Operational Focal Point;
• Responses matrix to GEFSEC, and council and STAP comments.

To finalize the documentation, the team of consultants, led by the international consultant, needs to take into account comments and feedback received from the following stakeholders:

• Key stakeholders in Lesotho (Government, Private Sector, NGOs);
• UNDP Lesotho;
• UNDP/GEF Regional Service Centre and UNDP/GEF HQ (New York);
• GEF Secretariat.

Component #4 should see the complete documentation package being formally approved by the GEF Secretariat.

Duties and Responsibilities

In approximately 10 person weeks of total work throughout the duration of the PPG process (various tasks are expected to be done concurrently), the overall purpose of the consultancy is the preparation of a UNDP/GEF compliant full-sized project. The international consultant is expected to undertake two short-term missions to Lesotho (2-3 weeks in total from both missions).

The International consultant for the Preparation of the Project Document is expected to:

• Serve as team leader of other PPG consultant(s) and together be responsible for the timely drafting of the required documents for submission to the GEF strictly adhering to the deadlines agreed to and ensuring quality control. The national consultants will be responsible for Component #1, most of the outputs under Component #2 and organizing all stakeholder consultations (under Component #4) while the International Consultant will utilize that information for the completion of Components #3 and #4;
• Ensure that all tasks and elements proposed under under components #1-4 are adequately covered.

More specifically, the international consultant will produce, with support from the national consultant, a UNDP Project Document with minimum requirements and an accompanying GEF CEO Endorsement Request (both using the appropriate templates with all supporting annexes) by June 2015. The consultant should be available for any further revisions to the project documents after submission to the GEF Secretariat.

Key project drafting tasks will be accomplished under the guidance of the UNDP/GEF regional service center and the UNDP Country Office, working in close collaboration with key government officials, donors, NGOs and the private sector. An early draft of the required submission documents will be submitted to the UNDP Country Office and UNDP/GEF technical staff at a date agreed at the inception workshop.

Play a pivotal role in developing a work plan and coordinating the input and outputs of all consultations and sub-contractors (where applicable), overseeing quality.

Finalize the project results framework:  Further define the results framework with appropriate objective-level and outcome-level quantitative and qualitative SMART indicators, and end-of-project targets.  Special attention will be made to include socio-economic and gender-disaggregated indicators.

Develop a detailed M&E work plan, including clear identification of responsibilities and accountabilities, as well as an appropriate M&E budget. The plan will be based on the standard template provided in the UNDP-GEF project document template that reflects the mandatory requirements of the GEF M&E Policy.

Define a sustainability plan which will outline the principles and guidelines for ensuring the long-term sustainability of project achievements. It will also outline an exit strategy, seeking the continuation of key activities/achievements without the need of long-term international financing.

Lead the identification of climate change risks associated with the project implementation and address any opportunities/risks identified during the initial environmental and social screening of the project proposal (ESSP) at PIF stage.

Define the logical framework (including all outcomes and outputs) and work plan for the project.

Clarify the additionality of the proposed outcomes and activities, and ensure that the project approach is the most cost-effective according to GEF guidelines.

Complete the GEF Climate Change Mitigation tracking tool together with a detailed analysis of the project’s direct and indirect contribution to the stated GHG emission reduction targets, using the prescribed GEF methodology.

Propose institutional and implementation arrangements consistent with a GEF Full-Sized project and in synergy with already existing arrangements for other UNDP/GEF projects in the country.

Address all comments on the project design by the Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel and in the GEF review sheet.

Facilitate the process of confirming the co-funding and co-financing plan.

Facilitate consultations with all relevant stakeholders with regards to the proposal, including detailed budget, detailed TORs for all project staff, and a detailed activity and work plan, in line with GEF eligibility principles.

Competencies

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent team player with good interpersonal skills;
• Ability to manage workload with minimum supervision;
• Ability to work under pressure and tight deadlines;
• Ability to accommodate additional demands at short notice;
• Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing in English in order to communicate complex, technical information to technical and general audiences;
• Strong strategic planning, results-based management and reporting capabilities;
• Strong analytical abilities;
• Proven leadership skills;
• Excellent business development, negotiation, analytical, research and presentation skills;
• Ability to conduct detailed quantitative GHG emission reduction calculations (direct and indirect) according to GEF policies and procedures;
• Ability to conduct research and analysis with strong synthesis skills;
• Ability to build strong relationships with national consultants; focuses on impact and results for the client and responds positively to critical feedback; consensus-oriented;
• Highly developed inter-personal, negotiation and teamwork skills, networking aptitude;

Core Competencies:

• Displays cultural, gender, religion, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Highest standards of integrity, discretion and loyalty;
• Ability to work in a multi-cultural environment.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Minimum postgraduate degree in Engineering, Applied Sciences, Energy, Economics and/or related subjects.

Experience:

• At least 10 years experience designing and/or implementing energy and/or climate mitigation activities in developing countries;
• Proven and extensive international experience in energy projects, with demonstrated experience working with different forms of energy applications; experience with energy data assessments and management;
• Understanding of the technical, engineering, environmental and financial considerations of planning and constructing energy projects including energy databases;
• Proven past experience in UNDP/GEF project formulation/design, including drafting of GEF-compliant project documents and endorsement requests;
• Regional (SADC) experience and knowledge of the national context (Lesotho) is highly desirable;
• Experience working with international organizations, including UNDP, is preferred but not required.

Language:

• Excellent English language writing and communication skills;
• Writing and communication will be in English.

Other:

• The consultant must bring his/her own computing equipment.

Application procedure:

• Interested candidates are required to submit CV and/or P11 Form, technical and financial proposals.

Evaluation Method:

• Only those applications which are responsive and compliant will be evaluated; Individual consultants will be evaluated based on a combined scoring method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal;
•  Combined weighted scoring: Technical skills and competencies (70%), financial proposal (30%).