UNDP Jobs - 77047- International Specialist in Microfinance

International Specialist in Microfinance

Location :

Home-Based with travel to Luanda, ANGOLA

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

01-Mar-2018

Application Deadline :

12-Feb-18 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

20 working days spread through May 2019

Languages Required :

English Portuguese

Expected Duration of Assignment :

20 working days

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 Government of Angola has sought UNDP support to implement the Project Preparation Grant (PPG) for the UNDP-GEF full-sized project “Promoting sustainable energy access for rural communities in South-Eastern Angola”. The project seeks to enhance access to renewable energy technologies in rural areas of Angola through three components: 1) Policy de-risking and finance for decentralised renewable energy, 2) Developing a market for off-grid renewable energy systems, including solar home systems, advanced cook stoves and solar lanterns, and 3) Outreach program and dissemination of results. The GEF grant amount allocated to the project is US$ 3,540,468.

The GEF Council approved the Project Identification Form (PIF) on 30 November 2017. Project development now will include a preparatory phase in the form of a Project Preparatory Grant (PPG). During the PPG, a team of international consultants together with the UNDP Country Office in Angola and the responsible UNDP-GEF Regional Technical Advisor – and working in close collaboration with key government officials, donors, NGOs and CBOs – will undertake literature reviews, studies, stakeholder consultations and field visits, with the view to further develop the approved PIF into a fully formulated project ready for implementation.

The UNDP Country Office in Angola will lead the PPG/IP, in close coordination with the Ministry of the Environment of Angola. The Key Expected Outputs of the PPG/IP will be a technically robust UNDP Project Document (PRODOC), a Request for CEO Endorsement, the climate change mitigation tracking tool, and co-financing commitment letters ready for submission to the GEF Secretariat. The preparatory phase will moreover fully determine the baseline and GEF incremental benefits, confirm the lead national implementing agency, identify further implementing partners and responsible parties, and negotiate and define implementation arrangements. Consultation with stakeholders relevant for project activities will put emphasis on building the partnerships required for realizing the project’s objectives and the mobilization of co-financing. The national consultation process will also include the local communities that are expected to benefit from the Project, and address gender issues as well as social and environmental safeguards as indicated.

In light of the new GEF cancellation policy, failure to meet the project development milestones established by the GEF will lead to automatic cancellation of the project by the GEF Secretariat. The PPG team (which includes the PPG consultants, the Government of Angola, UNDP Angola and the UNDP-GEF regional support team) is requested to submit final draft versions for internal clearance to UNDP by 31 October 2018. Subsequent revisions addressing UNDP-GEF or GEF Secretariat queries may be required and are part of the PPG. The final submissions to the GEF will require prior government validation and clearance. Submission to the GEF will only be effected after all due clearances have been obtained.

The UNDP Country Office (CO) in Angola is seeking the services of an International Specialist in Microfinance to support the implementation of the Project Preparation Grant (PPG).

The International Specialist in Microfinance will be part of a team of consultants to work closely with, and under the overall guidance of, the UNDP Country Office, the UNDP-GEF Regional Technical Advisor and the project counterparts in the Angola Government. The team is expected to consist of the following five consultants who will work under the supervision of the Team Leader:

International Specialist for GEF Renewable Energy Project Development (Team Leader);
International Specialist in Renewable Energy;
International Specialist in Micro-finance;
International Specialist in Mobile Payment Systems;
National Specialist in Stakeholder Engagement and Gender.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Microfinance Expert will engage with BAI Micro Finanças (BMF), Development Workshop, and other microfinance institutions to assess the potential for setting up a microfinance programme specifically designed to support rural households to purchase small-scale clean energy products such as solar lanterns and improved cook stoves. Based on the stakeholder consultations and assessment, s/he will recommend the most suitable business model for MFIs to finance energy lending.

Deliverables:

Preparatory Technical Studies and Reviews (Component A): Prepare inputs and support the required analyses/studies, as agreed with the PPG Team Leader, including:
Prepare inputs for the baseline/situational analysis for the full-size project (FSP). This will include a baseline assessment of the microfinance market in Moxico Province and the key microfinance actors in the country;
Support the stakeholder analysis and consultations and ensure that they are complete and comprehensive;
Support the completion of the pre-feasibility study and any additional studies that are determined to be needed for the preparation of the ProDoc and all other final outputs. This will include an assessment of the potential for setting up a microfinance programme designed to support rural households in Moxico Province to purchase small-scale household energy products such as solar lanterns and improved cook stoves. It will also include a financial assessment of which products are affordable to rural households with microfinance;
Formulation of the ProDoc, CEO Endorsement Request and Mandatory and Project Specific Annexes (Component B): Prepare inputs and support the development of final PPG deliverables, as agreed with the PPG Team Leader.

Validation Workshop (Component C):

Contribute to the validation workshop; and
Support all necessary revisions that arise during the workshop, as appropriate.

Final Deliverables:

Pre-feasibility assessment of setting up a microfinance programme in Moxico Province, with recommendations on the most suitable business model for MFIs to finance energy lending.

key UNDP/GEF References for this Project/PPG:

GEF-6 Focal Area Strategy for Climate Change Mitigation;
PIF for “Promoting sustainable energy access for rural communities in South-Eastern Angola”;
GEF Secretariat Review Sheet and GEF STAP Review of the PIF/Project;
GEF Council comments;
UNDP Project Document and GEF CEO Endorsement Request package guidelines and templates;
UNDP & GEF M&E Guidance;
GEF Tracking Tools and UNDP Capacity Development Scorecard;
UNDP Environmental and Social Screening Procedure - Guidance Note and PIF Environmental and Social Screening;
UNDP Guidance on Gender Assessment;
Relevant UNDP Programme and Operations Policies and Procedures.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables:?

The International Specialist in Microfinance will contribute to the timely completion of the GEF CEO Endorsement Request Package and PRODOC in appropriate quality. This will involve writing and contributing to background documents, annexes and sections of these documents. The key deliverables under this contract will be reports on each of the items listed in Section 3 of this ToR;
UNDP may contact the contractor at any time during working hours and request the contractor’s expert support and guidance, technical inputs, participation in meetings (including by skype or telephone) and elaboration of a document pertaining to the execution of the PPG/Initiation Plan outlined above;
Payment is based upon output and will be made upon confirmation by UNDP that contract obligations have been met in a satisfactory manner in accordance with milestones, i.e. delivery of the services specified in the ToR to be approved by UNDP and meeting agreed deadlines. The tentative payment schedule is as follows: Upon contract signature: 20% of the total amount. Upon submission of a complete draft CEO Endorsement Request Package and a complete draft PRODOC and clearance for submission by UNDP: 40% of the total. Upon subsequent review and final approval by the GEF Secretariat of the PRODOC and issuance of CEO Endorsement: 40% of the total;
Approval: Review of the deliverables regarding quality and timeliness will be undertaken by the UNDP Country Office and the Angola Government counterparts, then the UNDP/GEF Regional Technical Advisor and eventually the UNDP/GEF Principal Technical Advisor to ensure alignment and compliance with UNDP and GEF requirements.

Implementation arrangements:

The Team Leader will supervise the other national and international consultants who are part of the team.
To guide and assist the team of national and international consultants, a joint project development and facilitation team will be established that includes the UNDP-GEF Regional Technical Advisor, the UNDP Country Office, as well as project focal points at the Ministry of Environment of Angola. The main responsibilities will be to provide the required data/information and feedback to the team of consultants; backstopping and providing relevant templates; supporting stakeholder consultations and ensuring their participation; supporting problem analysis; liaising with partners and leading national stakeholder involvement on project strategy and institutional and management arrangements and on co-financing matters; and supporting alignment with national priorities and understanding of the local and national contexts.
Individual Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director. Consultants are also required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under dss.un.org. Consultants are responsible for obtaining valid visas for travelling to Angola, however the CO will support visa applications.

Duration of the work/assignment:

The duration of the work is estimated at 20 days spread over the period from 01 March 2018 to GEF CEO Endorsement (expected at the latest by May 2019).

Duty Station:

Home-based with one travel to Angola (Luanda and possibly Luena) of a total of 10 days.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates commitment to UNDP´s mission, vision and values;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Highest standards of of integrity, discretion and loyalty

Functional Competencies:

Ability to work with multidisciplinary and multicultural teams;
Result oriented;
Analytical ability;
Logical ability;
Able to work under pressure in an adverse environment;
critical ability;
Capacity to dialogue with different sectors;
Determination and focus on goals and results;
Ability of facilitation;
Good communication skills;

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Master’s degree or higher in a relevant field, such as finance or microfinance.

Experience:

Minimum 10 years of demonstrable experience in the technical area of finance or microfinance.
Previous experience working in Africa is an advantage.

Language requirements:

Fluency in English is required, ability to communicate in Portuguese is required.

Submission of Application:

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;
Technical Proposal explaining why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment, and a methodology on how they will approach and complete the assignment.
Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs, with separately listed travel costs.

Proposals not including all items listed above will not be considered.

Evaluation criteria:

Applicants will be screened against qualifications and competencies specified in this TOR through a desk review or an interview process. Those selected for the next stage of the selection process will be reviewed based on the cumulative analysis through a combination of the Technical (70%) and Financial Scores (30%). Only candidates obtaining 70 points out of 100 in the technical review/evaluation will be considered for the financial evaluation.