UNDP Jobs - 69475- Water Onion Restoration Researcher (open to Thai n

Water Onion Restoration Researcher (open to Thai national only)

Location :

Ranong Province, THAILAND

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

06-Dec-2016

Application Deadline :

28-Nov-16 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

National Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

6 December 2016 - 30 November 2017

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

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.

Background

Habitat loss and degradation has occurred and is happening as a result of combined rapid economic development and population growth resulting in an increasing demand for land for infrastructure (e.g. road and dam construction), agriculture and industry. The rapid expansion and intensification of industry and agriculture has also resulted in increasing demands on unsustainable use of natural resources. High demands for water within both agricultural and industrial has led to significant changes in the hydrology of many areas putting significant pressure on many freshwater species, an issue that is further heightened by high levels of pollution. Hunting of wild animals and endangered species for both domestic uses and international trade (both exotic pets and traditional medicine) remains a significant challenge in Thailand despite progress in the enforcement of laws and regulations. These threats are being further exacerbated by ongoing changes in climate that have the potential to significantly impact Thailand's major rice crops and water resources.

The "Conserving Habitats for Globally Significant Flora and Fauna in Production Landscapes" Project intends to mainstream the conservation of globally important and endangered biodiversity into the management of production landscapes through improved management of critical habitats. At the national level, it will develop a legislative, regulatory and enforcement framework to guide endangered species (ES) and critical habitat conservation and management. This will be supported by capacity building within key ministries and agencies to enhance cross sector coordination in critical habitat management, and to effectively monitor critical habitats and ES to better inform decision makers.

Piloting three species namely Eastern Sarus Crane (Grus Antigone sharpie), the Spoon-billed Sandpiper (Eurynorhynchus pygmeus) and the Water Lily (Crinum thaianum) in three geographical locations, the project will also build the capacity of local authorities, communities, private sector groups, and NGOs to develop environmentally friendly goods and services, which can provide a sound economic basis for ongoing critical habitat management and economic development. The project is financially supported by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), with the Office of National Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning (ONEP) as the Implementing Partner, and the Zoological Park organization (ZPO) as the Responsible Party.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objective of the assignment:

The objective of this assignment is to conduct a research on water onion restoration which will cover water onion populations and restoration modalities data collection, assessment and identify pilot sites and stakeholders for water onion restoration and database and monitoring system development. The consultant will also prepare a draft of water onion restoration plan.

Scope of Work:

The consultant will undertake the following specific tasks to undertake analysis related to a research on water onion restoration:

Data collection and analysis:

Collection of data on the water onion populations and restoration modalities;
Study of the advantages and disadvantages including factors and impacts of each modality to identify successful restoration methods and/or barriers to successful methods;
Assessment and identification of piloted sites and stakeholders for water onion restoration;
Development of database, data collection tools and monitoring system for water onion restoration in piloted sites in coordination with Ranong Provincial Office of Natural Resources and Environment (PONRE) and UNDP to ensure linkages to the national-level water onion conservation and restoration plan and accessibility by stakeholders and public;
Implementation of developed database and monitoring tools;
Liaison with relevant stakeholders and communities to ensure consistent and sustainable data collection and monitoring of water onion restoration.

Report:

Report on the conclusion of the study;
database, data collection tools and monitoring system for water onion restoration;
Provision of policy recommendations and strategies at all levels to improve water onion restoration methods and environmental-friendly legislations and practices;
Concrete lessons learned on water onion restoration and database that can be published for public dissemination/use.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables:

Proposed methodologies, workplan and identification of piloted sites and water onion restoration, submitted three weeks from contract signature;
Progress report, data collection tools, database and monitoring system, submitted three months from contract signature;
Final comprehensive report, submitted eleven months from contract signature.

Institutional Arrangement:

The consultant will report to the Project Director at ONEP and Programme Specialist, Inclusive Green Growth and Sustainable Development unit, UNDP Thailand. The consultant will work closely with the Project Manager and Project Management team, Conserving Habitats for Globally Important Flora and Fauna in Production Landscapes.

Contract Duration: 6 December 2016 until 30 November 2017

Duty station and expected places of travel: Ranong Province (with occasional travel within province)

Competencies

Strong interpersonal and communication skills;
Strong analytical, reporting and writing abilities skills;
Openness to change and ability to receive/integrate feedback;
Ability to plan, organize, implement and report on work;
Ability to work under pressure and tight deadlines;
Proficiency in the use of office IT applications and internet in conducting research;
Excellent presentation and facilitation skills.
Demonstrates integrity and ethical standards;
Positive, constructive attitude to work;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Thai national with advanced university degree in agriculture, environmental science, development, social science, or economics.

Experience:

At least 5 years experiences in research and knowledge of research methodologies in the fields of development agriculture, environmental science or related fields.
Experiences in project assessment is a plus.
Experiences in managing and administering research and project budgets and maintaining effective communications with project counterparts.

Language:

Fluency in written and spoken English.

Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments:

Consultant must send a financial proposal based on Lump Sum amount.

The total amount quoted shall be all-inclusive and include all costs components required to perform the deliverables identified in the TOR, including professional fee, travel costs, living allowance (if any work is to be done outside the IC´s duty station) and any other applicable cost to be incurred by the IC in completing the assignment. The contract price will be fixed output-based price regardless of extension of the herein specified duration. Payments will be done upon completion of the deliverables/outputs and as per below percentages:

Deliverable Milestones:

Deliverable 1 : Workplan -30% of total contract amount;
Deliverable 2 : Progress Report -40% of total contract amount;
Deliverable 3 : Final Report -30% of total contract amount.

In general, UNDP shall not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources.

In the event of unforeseeable travel not anticipated in this TOR, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and the Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed.

Travel costs shall be reimbursed at actual but not exceeding the quotation from UNDP approved travel agent. The provided living allowance will not be exceeding UNDP DSA rates. Repatriation travel cost from home to duty station in Bangkok and return shall not be covered by UNDP.

Evaluation Method and Criteria:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the Cumulative analysis.

The award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as

responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
having received the highest score out of set of weighted technical criteria (70%). and financial criteria (30%).

Financial score shall be computed as a ratio of the proposal being evaluated and the lowest priced proposal received by UNDP for the assignment. Financial score shall be computed as a ratio of the proposal being evaluated and the lowest priced proposal received by UNDP for the assignment.

Technical Criteria for Evaluation (Maximum 500 points) :

Criteria 1 : Education - max 150 points;
Criteria 2 : Experience in research and knowledge of research methodologies in the fields of development agriculture, environmental science or related fields - max 200 points;
Criteria 3 : Experience in managing and administering research and project budgets - max 100 points;
Criteria 4 : Understanding of environmental conservation and/or familiarity with development projects within United Nations system - 50 points.

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 350 points (70% of the total technical points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Documentation required:

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications. Please group them into one (1) single PDF document as the application only allows to upload maximum one document:

Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided in Annex 2;
Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references;
Financial proposal, as per template provided in Annex 2.

Incomplete proposals may not be considered.

Please click on the link below to download required documents :

http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=34173