UNDP Jobs - 75023- Conservation Specialist

Conservation Specialist

Location :

Nicosia, CYPRUS

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

01-Nov-2017

Application Deadline :

19-Oct-17 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

6 months

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

The Agreement of 21 March 2008 reached between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots under the auspices of the United Nations (UN), paved the way for the establishment of the Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage (TCCH), dedicated to the recognition, promotion and protection of the rich and diverse cultural heritage of Cyprus. The TCCH is composed of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot experts. The TCCH works to provide a mutually acceptable mechanism for the implementation of practical measures for the proper preservation, physical protection and restoration (including research, study and survey) of the immovable cultural heritage of Cyprus. The TCCH is operating under the UN auspices and its work is an important tool for building confidence between the Turkish Cypriots and the Greek Cypriots.

The TCCH is supported in its work by an Advisory Board (AB) composed of archaeologists, architects, art historians and town planners from both communities.

In 2012, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) initiated with the implementation of the European Union (EU) funded activity “Support to Cultural Heritage Monuments of Great Importance for the communities in Cyprus – Phase 1” and since then it has continued with the successful implementation of the EU funded activities “Support to Cultural Heritage Monuments of Great Importance in Cyprus – Phases 2, 3 and 4”. In November 2016, UNDP started the implementation of the new EU funded activity “Support to Cultural Heritage Monuments of Great Importance in Cyprus – Phase 5”.

Within this framework of the activities of the Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage, vegetation removal on the historic walls of Nicosia are envisaged.

A pilot phase will be implemented in southern and northern part of the walls within the allocated budget. The magnitude of the implementation will be decided in due course.

The first walls surrounding Lefkosia (Nicosia) in the 14th century were built by the Franks and enclosed a much larger area than the 16th century Venetian Walls that still surround the old town. When the Venetians occupied Cyprus, they decided to demolish the Frankish Walls because they were old and did not offer adequate defense against new weapons such as artillery. The Frankish Walls were also too big to be manned by the Venetian army and too close to the hills in the east and southeast of the city.
Forming a circle, the walls built by the Venetians were fortified by eleven heart - shaped bastions and protected by an 80 metres wide moat. They were built of mud - brick, with the lower part only buttressed by stone. When the Ottomans occupied Lefkosia (Nicosia), they repaired the walls and covered the upper part with stones. The moat around the walls now has many different uses, serving as sports fields, public gardens, an open - air sculpture exhibition, car parks etc. (http://www.nicosia.org.cy/en-GB/discover/sights/the-medieval-walls )

Duties and Responsibilities

The Conservator will inspect the walls of Nicosia and prepare a project for the vegetation removal, treatment and any other related activity.For this purpose, a site inspection will be made.Specifications and description of works will be prepared.Advisory inspection will be made during the ‘works for the removal of vegetation’. Two trips to Cyprus (at onset and during vegetation removal) will be undertaken.

The conservator will submit two outputs;

Deliverable/output A ( output A, will be delivered after the first mission, upto 20 working days) :

Inspection report and suggested actions
Presentation to the stakeholders at the UNDP PMO and obtaining feedback.
Specifications

Deliverable/output B: ( output B, will be delivered after the second mission(final), upto 10 working days ) :

Inspection report during the vegetation removal works
Final report with ‘improved specifications/description of action’ for subsequent phases

Prior to the commencement of the contract the consultant and the supervisor will agree on the number of days required for each output.

Competencies

Other than the specific and technical competencies required in order to perform the duties described above, the following competencies will be needed:

Corporate competencies

Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Treats all people fairly without favoritism;
Fulfills all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment.

Functional competencies:

Overall Professionalism, Integrity, Enthusiasm & Commitment;
Good problem-solving skills; ability to apply good judgment in the context of assignments given;
Ability to plan own work and meet tight deadlines;
Attention to detail;
Able to work efficiently with minimal direction;
Self-disciplined with strong work ethic;
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive attitude;
Remains calm, in control and good humoured even under pressure;
Demonstrates integrity by behaving according to the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Maintains effective partnerships and working relations with sensitivity and respect for diversity;
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
Partner in a team effectively and work as team;
Good problem-solving skills; ability to apply good judgment in the context of assignments given; ability to plan own work and meet tight deadlines; attention to detail;
Demonstrates good oral and written communication skills;

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Conservation degree (bachelor)
Postgraduate degree/diploma in heritage related subject is an asset

Experience:

Minimum 3 years of post-graduate experience in ‘vegetation removal on historical surfaces
At least 1 project that involved ‘vegetation removal on historical surfaces’.

Language Requirements:

Fluency in spoken and written English

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

Motivation/Cover Letter: Explaining why they are the most suitable for the work.
CV or Personal History (P11): The UNDP P11 Form can be downloaded from: http://www.eurasia.undp.org/content/dam/rbec/docs/P11_modified_for_SCs_and_ICs.doc
References: Contact details of 3 references.

Financial Proposal:
a) Daily fee (up to 30 days average 5 days/month): the daily fee in EUR per working day and shall cover all expenditures including fees, health insurance, vaccination, international (all travel to join duty station/repatriation travel) or local travel (place of residence to office and office to place of residence), cost of living and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services. Leave benefits (annual, sick, paternity, maternity) are not applicable to Individual Contractor and absent days including weekends and office holidays are not payable.

b) Mission cost: There will be 2 missions (first mission, second/final mission) to Cyprus for this position. Each mission will be 5 days. Cost per mission to Cyprus shall be provided. This cost will include all expenses including air-ticket to/from Cyprus and all other applicable and per-diem.

Evaluation / Selection Process:

All applicants will be screened against qualifications and the competencies set above. Candidates fully meeting the requirements will be further evaluated based on the criteria below.

Technical Criteria – max. 100 points:

CV review/shortlisting : 40 points

Educational qualifications and certifications as defined in the ToR (20 points; Phd degree (20 points), Master Degree (16 points), Bachelors (12 points).
Relevant professional experience for ‘vegetation removal on historical surfaces’. (20 points – (20 points – candidate with the highest number of projects will be scored the maximum points obtainable and the rest will be calculated proportionally)

Only candidates who obtained at least 70% of points from the CV review (who will score at least 28 points) will be invited for the desk review.

Desk review : 60 points

Details on Projects that involved ‘vegetation removal on historical surfaces’. (20 points – candidate with the highest number of projects will be scored the maximum points obtainable and the rest will be calculated proportionally)

Only those individual consultants who obtained at least 70% of points from the desk review (42 out of 60) will be considered for financial proposal evaluation.

Financial Criteria

UNDP applies the “Best value for money approach” – the final selection will be based on the Lowest Price Method among technically qualified applicants.

Payment Term:
Payable upon submission of reports/outputs and the approval by the UNDP.

General Conditions:
General Conditions of contract for the services of Individual contractor can be downloaded from: http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/documents/procurement/documents/IC%20-%20General%20Conditions.pdf