Background
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If you already have a supplier profile, please login to the Supplier Portal, then search for the negotiation using the reference number UNDP-BRC-00006, following the instructions in the user guide.
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Following growing need in scaling up financing for the SDGs, UNDP’s priorities include involvement with the private sector to mobilize its capital towards achieving the SDGs at policy and specific investments levels through facilitating and providing advice on blended finance, impact investment, SDG alignment and Impact Measurement and Management. UNDP’s Sustainable Finance Hub (SFH) developed several service lines availed to businesses and investors to align their investments towards the SDGs - these include engaging and enabling institutional and private investors; co-creating and innovating impact factored financial tools for development; leveraging private capital into SDG and climate aligned investment opportunities. In Asia and the Pacific region, the SDG Finance team of Regional Bureau for Asia Pacific (RBAP), in collaboration with UNDP Global Policy Network, provides support to 24 UNDP Country Offices in the region in pioneering dedicated catalytic facilities and engagement frameworks to implement those service lines and through their application elevate social, economic and environmental impacts of private sector investments in the context of SDGs.
Mobilizing private sector sources for SDG finance is achieved through combination of activities focused on impact advisory (impact measurement and management (IMM) approaches, metrics and standards), identifying SGD targeting business-based solutions, aligning business strategies and operations with SDGs, impact performance incentives for both capital providers and recipient businesses.
SDG Finance in Bangkok Regional Hub (BRH) have been working on developing range of business cases through structured research on identifying SDG investment opportunities, setting-up network of impact venture accelerators (IVA), partnerships with PE/VC funds, working with banks, stock exchanges and other capital market ecosystem stakeholders. Following range of successful cases, UNDP currently plans going beyond pilots to scaling up and expanding the successful frameworks for such engagements with the private sector.
The above goals require the services of experienced SDG Finance experts to be based out in one of the Country Offices (CO) listed below and to support other COs in the region in collaboration with Bangkok Regional Hub and SDG Finance Private Sector Advisor in the Bangkok Regional Hub across the sub-region.
Host Country Offices: China, Malaysia, Cambodia, Singapore/Sri Lanka (tbc).
Duties and Responsibilities
The Consultants will be working on implementing the following focus areas:
- Expanding UNDP Impact Advisory Services for enterprises, business accelerators, private equity funds, bond issuers to help them to integrate sustainability and the SDGs into business and investment strategies, management systems and decision-making to enhance their performance on sustainability and positive contribution to achieving the SDGs.
- Developing, piloting and scaling UNDP offering in blended finance and engagements with banks through offering multifaceted technical assistance (TA), development of financial and non-financial de-risking tools, return enhancement mechanisms, pay for performance schemes and other impact factored blending approaches to facilitate access to and crowd in capital in the fields of climate and energy, biodiversity, gender, agriculture, WASH and waste etc.
- Developing UNDP initiative on capital markets and bonds to have sustainability and SDG impact vision promoted and integrated in the strategies and business processes of capital market ecosystem players such as regulators, stock exchanges, issuers etc. This includes supporting sustainability frameworks and related tools for operations, activities, financial transactions, regulatory processes for issuance of thematic bonds, compliance with the ESG and multi-dimensional sustainability objectives for listed companies etc.
- Scaling UNDP offerings related to generating risk-informed and impact focused investment opportunities throughout stages of enterprise development (investible pipeline generation and SMEs). This includes structured research on identifying SDG investment opportunities (SDG Investment Maps), network of impact venture accelerators (IVA), along with efforts for MSME support and development focused on their business development, resilience, scaling, SDG-alignment of ventures, policy and advocacy efforts and financial access.
While the work in these areas should relate to the developments in the regional context, it is expected to have the each of the 4 Consultants addressing one focus area and be based in one of the Country Offices (CO) listed below:
Focus area # | Host Country Office | Focus Area to addressed |
1 | Malaysia | Impact Advisory Services |
2 | China | Capital Markets and Bonds |
3 | Cambodia | Blended Finance and Engagements with Banks |
4 | Singapore | Investible pipeline generation and SMEs |
Competencies
Core:
- Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact
- Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems
- Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences
- Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands
- Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results
- Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration
- Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity
- People Management: Foster learning or development of others by giving feedback, guidance, and support; support career development of others
Technical and Cross Functional:
- ESG standards
- Impact Investment, incl. SDG Impact Finance
- Financial Inclusion
- Responsive investment and impact measurement
- Innovative Finance
- Ability to develop and work with innovative financing mechanisms and instruments, e.g. social/development impact bonds, guarantees, climate finance, etc.
- Business Acumen and Commercial Thinking: Ability to understand and deal with a business situation in a manner that is likely to lead to a good outcome
- Entrepreneurial thinking: Ability to create clarity around UNDP value proposition to beneficiaries and partners and to develop service offers responding to client needs based on UNDP’s organizational priorities and mandate
- Knowledge Generation: Ability to research and turn information into useful knowledge, relevant for content, or responsive to a stated need
- Knowledge Facilitation: Ability to animate individuals and communities of contributors to participate and share
Required Skills and Experience
Min. Academic Education | Master’s degree in business, finance, economics, development finance or closely related field is required. |
Min. years of relevant Work experience | Minimum 7 years of experience in working in the corresponding focus areas pertaining to the position/country(ies) applied:
Irrespective of focus area, candidate is required to have a minimum 3 years of work experience in financial, corporate and/or SME sector in developing countries and understanding of emerging market environments, opportunities and barriers to investing.
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Required skills and competencies |
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Desired additional skills and competencies |
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Required Language(s) (at working level) | Excellent oral and written communications and presentation skills in English are required; Knowledge of host-country language is an asset. |