Background

UNDP in partnership with the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief is implementing the second phase of the Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme 2010-2014 (CDMP II) with funding from the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), the European Union, Norway, Sweden, Australia and UNDP. The 5 year programme is supported by a grant of USD 78.2 million.

The overall aim of CDMP II is to contribute to poverty alleviation in Bangladesh through disaster risk reduction and adaptation to climate change. It is designed to extend and expand the risk reduction efforts of the first phase of CDMP (2004-2009) following a multi-hazard approach to disasters to make the ‘paradigm shift’ in disaster management, away from relief and rehabilitation towards disaster risk reduction. CDMP II aims to institutionalize the adoption of risk reduction approaches, not only in its host Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief (MDMR) but more broadly across 12 key ministries and departments. In addition, CDMP II works with 40 districts, 1,700 plus disaster management committees, 9 city corporations, 16 universities, 8 training institutes, and over 30,000 volunteers. The programme aims to support 4 million vulnerable people is reducing their vulnerability to disaster risk.

The project has six outcomes:

• The development of strong, well-managed and professional institutions in Bangladesh that are able to implement a comprehensive range of risk reduction programmes and interventions.
• Reduced risk to rural populations through structural and non-structural interventions, empowerment of rural communities and improved awareness of, and planning for, natural hazard events, including the likely impacts of climate change.
• Reduced risk to urban populations through structural and non-structural interventions, improved awareness of natural hazard events and the piloting of urban community risk reduction methodologies that target the extreme poor.
• Improved overall effectiveness and timeliness of disaster preparedness and response in Bangladesh by strengthening management capacity and coordination, as well as networking facilities at all levels.
• Improved and broadened disaster-proofing of development funding in eleven government ministries by generating increased awareness of hazard risks and providing technical information, advisory services and resources to stimulate positive changes in planning and investment decisions over the long-term.
• Community-level adaptation to disaster risks from a changing climate is effectively managed.

Local Disaster Risk Reduction Fund (LDRRF) came into existence as an innovative funding mechanism under the first phase of the Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme 2005-2009 (CDMP I). The key objective of LDRRF is to support the implementation of risk reduction measures identified by vulnerable communities. LDRRF provides small grants to NGOs and local government (through union and upazilla disaster management committees) which implement risk reduction measures at the community level. Grants are sanctioned on the basis of Risk Reduction Action Plan (RRAP) developed through Community Risk Assessment (CRA), the tools developed under CDMP to identify and address risks at the community level. The initiative was reaffirmed by the Government in the Standing Orders on Disasters 2008 (Rev. 2010).

Following successful piloting under the first phase, LDRRF has grown considerably under the second phase. LDRRF related activities now constitute 47% of CDMP II’s overall budget. The fund remains open for additional funding to support urban and rural risk reduction. LDRRF is set to deliver USD 30 million over the next 2 years. The majority of these funds will be locally managed through union and upazilla disaster management committees headed by elected representatives, with smaller volumes being delivered through NGOs, where the projects are either technically complex or of a high value.

Ratification of the Disaster Management Act in September 2012 has a provision to establish the National Disaster Management Fund and thus a newfound mandate for LDRRF to be the scheme that CDMP II will hand over to the government upon the project conclusion. To that end, LDRRF has recently been reformed, and now functions as a self-reliant secretariat under CDMP II. The LDRRF Secretariat comprises of a Fund Management Specialist and a number of engineers, field monitoring associates and administrative staff. In addition, the Secretariat manages third-party contracts for field engineering supervision and field monitoring.

In order to achieve the programme’s second and third outcomes, Fund Manager is required to lead and manage the day-to-day operations as well as provide strategic guidance to CDMP II’s Local Disaster Risk Reduction Fund (LDRRF) Secretariat.
The Fund Manager will will report to the Project Manager and work closely with the National Project Director (NPD) to ensure the achievement of project objectives. The Fund Manager will also work closely with the Climate Change, Environment and Disaster Cluster, UNDP Country Office.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of Key Functions:

• Manage a funding mechanism and build capacity of stakeholders to ensure achievement of related project results and outputs ensuring value for money (VfM) and addressing fiduciary risks;
• Policy and Programme services, provision technical, financial and managerial oversight and ensure efficient service delivery including internal control framework
• Partnerships and resource management; and
• Knowledge services including leadership and networking at the national and international level and form partnerships with high level disaster management stakeholders.

Manage a funding mechanism and build capacity of stakeholders to ensure achievement of related project results and outputs ensuring value for money (VfM) and addressing fiduciary risks:

• Lead and oversee the LDRRF Secretariat including day-to-day functioning through systematic planning, monitoring, and implementation of planned interventions;
• Manage the human and financial resources, in consultation with CDMP II management, for achieving targeted results;
• Supervise and provide overall strategic guidance to LDRRF team tentatively comprising technical and operation professionals and assess work performance on regular basis;
• Ensure appropriate planning and utilization of LDRRF resources in a transparent and accountable manner and by ensuring ‘value for money’ (VfM) in achieving LDRRF results;
• Develop, review and apply effective Internal Control System/Framework for smooth functioning of LDRRF secretariat and fiduciary risk management;
• Ensure capacity building of LDRRF stakeholders to ensure sustainable results;
• Organize meetings of the LDRRF Approval Committee, and support the LDRRF Technical Committee and Progress Review Committee;
• Ensure an effective M&E system to assess achievement of related objectives and identify problem affecting LDRRF performance. Manage independent entities engaged in process and financial monitoring for LDRRF activities;
• Ensure technical soundness of LDRRF outputs with equal emphasis on ‘software’ (gender, disability, inclusiveness, etc.) and ‘hardware’.

Policy and Programme Services:

• Provide intellectual and substantive leadership and policy guidance to manage LDRRF implementation;
• Lead the process to assist government’s formulation of the appropriate implementing rules and regulations on the National Disaster Management Funds;
• Ensure highest UNDP standards in the provision of technical and advisory inputs, organization of workshops, seminars, training and delivery of outputs (products);
• Lead and manage the analytical and policy development work of the team and ensure high quality policy or knowledge products, reports and publications;
• Contribute in the process of bringing together the disaster risk reduction and climate change work streams at the national level toward the Post-2015 development framework;
• In cooperation with UNDP ensure development partners are kept informed about LDRRF progress.

Partnerships and Resource management:

• Lead the process for strengthening partnership with Local Government Institutes, NGOs, International and national partners towards promoting coordinated and systematic planning for DRR/CCA at the local level;
• Lead the coordination of LDRRF and other financing mechanism under the remit of the climate change, principally the Bangladesh Climate Change Resilient Fund and the Bangladesh Climate Change Trust Fund as well as other similar financing mechanisms ;
• Mobilize and network with the experts of national and regional offices of the UN system, international development organizations, sub-regional and regional associations, affiliations and bodies (inter-governmental, non-government or private sector) and prominent private sector organizations;

Knowledge Services:

• Lead the process of knowledge creation and wider dissemination of technical know-how and best practice management for local risk reduction and climate change adaptation in the form of technical manual, guide and handbooks;
• Ensure LDRRF results are captured and recorded in knowledge products to communicate project results and impact; and
• Ensure systematic archival of field monitoring reports, CRAs and contract documents in an easily accessible manner and  ensure regular updating of CDMP websites with LDRRF contents The Fund Manager will conduct any other function or responsibility which may be assigned by management.

Impact of Results:

The position will strengthen CDMP’s results achievement by contributing to the effective and successful management of LDRRF, supervision and coordination of activates, financial management and disbursement, policy advice and support and liaison with government and development partners.

CDMP will have, as part of its sustainability strategy,  a robust disaster management financing that operates in accordance to the government budgetary discipline but with sufficient flexibility and transparency to ensure effectiveness, appropriateness, and value for money

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

• Promotes UN's Values and ethical standards (tolerance, integrity, respect, results orientation, impartiality)
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and sensitivity and adaptability
• Demonstrates integrity by modelling in the UN's values and ethical standards (human rights, peace, understanding between people and nations, tolerance, integrity, respect, results orientation, UNDP core ethics, impartiality.

Functional Competencies:

Knowledge Management and Learning:

• Promotes knowledge management and a learning environment in the office through leadership and personal example, excellent knowledge of capacity building theory and the application of methodology, good understanding of capacity assessment methodologies, excellent ability to identify significant capacity building opportunities, ability to get capacity building, excellent ability to demonstrate national capacities building (mastery of the tools and their application)
• Excellent communication skills (written and oral)
• Display understanding of the relevant contemporary ICT tools and continuously act towards personal capacity building

Development and Operational Effectiveness:

• Ability to engage with high ranking UNDP Managers, Government Officials and international donor community and provide policy advisory support services
• Ability to identity opportunities, conceptualize and develop project reports
• Ability to effectively support in strategic planning, results-based management and reporting :
• Ability to implement new systems and affect staff behavioural/attitude change
• Ability to undertake result based management and reporting

Management and Leadership:

• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude
• Builds strong relationship with clients, focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback, timely responses to queries
• Demonstrates good oral and written communication skills
• Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities
• Demonstrates strong administrative skills and result oriented approach to work
• Provides inspiration and leadership to project staff as well as all the partners.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in development or relevant discipline 

Experience:

• Minimum 7 years of relevant experience, of which 2 years must be at a managerial / team leader level
• Proven track record in the management of small grants programme, preferable in a rural context
• Sound understanding of disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation activities at the community level
• Sound understanding of disaster risk reduction issues
• Work experience with UN/UNDP/other development partners is preferable
• Excellent writing skills, as well as strong analytical aptitude, communication and presentation skills is required
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages, experience in handling of web based management systems

Language Requirements: 

• Excellent command of written and spoken English.
  

FC : 04000