UNDP Jobs - 89165- Senior Consultant to support ESFD in the design of

Senior Consultant to support ESFD in the design of development interventions for the EU funded Local Development Programme along the Litani River Basin.

Location :

Beirut, LEBANON

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

26-Dec-19 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

National Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

Languages Required :

Arabic English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

150 working days spread over a period of 1 year

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 Economic and Social Fund for Development (ESFD) is a public entity linked to the President of the Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR) and aims at contributing to poverty alleviation in Lebanon. Since its inception in 2002, the ESFD has launched many programs to improve living conditions. These operations included: i) the job creation program which supports the development of small enterprises and ii) the community development program which improves living conditions in poverty pockets in a participatory process. Since 2013, and in light of the Syrian Crisis, the ESFD has expanded its operations to contribute to the response of the Lebanese Government to the Crisis. In addition to the Community Development and Job Creation Programs, the ESFD designs and implements Municipal Services/Infrastructure and local economic development programs that target the communities mostly affected by the influx of Syrian Refugees.

In December 2018, the Government of Lebanon has received a 20 million euros grant from the European Commission (EC) Delegation to implement “the Local Development Programme along the Litani River Basin” LRB Programme, aiming at complementing the efforts deployed by the Government of Lebanon to address the negative consequences of LRB degradation on natural resources and the deteriorating living conditions of communities in this geographical area. The programme will be implemented by the ESFD along the Litani River Basin (LRB), which includes the Governorates of the Bekaa valley, Baalbeck-Hermel, Nabatiyeh and South Lebanon.

The LRB Programme, with a time frame of 5 years ending on December 23, has an integrated and multi-sectoral approach to local development. It consists of well targeted and integrated interventions in the following Activities:

Establish Co-operation modalities at the local-local and local-national levels to ensure that government priorities are in line with local needs,
Empower local communities to participate in the process of local development.
Improve capacities of Unions of Municipalities (UOMs) to assume their roles and responsibilities entrusted to them in the Municipal law.
Improve municipal services delivery.
Support the Litani River Authority to assume its coordination role of the governance sector.
Support polluting entities along the River Basin to become environmentally compliant.
Contribute to employment generation through provision of financial and non-financial support to Small and Medium Enterprises.
Reduce agricultural pollution through the promotion of best agricultural practices and extensive guidance.

The LRB Programme envisages implementing infrastructure projects in nine Unions of Municipalities (UOMs) located in the upper, middle and lower part of the Litani Basin. The selected infrastructure projects should be demand driven while being in harmony with or complementing government initiatives in the Litani Basin[1]. In this regard, the ESFD team will conduct a participatory rapid assessment in the targeted UOMs in order to identify and assess the needed interventions in infrastructure. Another source of projects identification consists of mapping the initiatives of several stakeholders in the LRB, which will help ESFD identify gaps and niches to be captured by the LRB Programme.

The objective of this Terms of Reference is to recruit a Senior Consultant to advise ESFD in setting an integrated, and multi stakeholder approach to local development in the Litani River Basin, namely in the component related to municipal services delivery (Infrastructure). The overall objective of the mission is to complement government’s initiatives in responding to pressing needs in the sectors of waste water management, solid waste management, potable water and other related services. The mission’s end-result is to come up with a proposed list consisting of potential infrastructure projects to be implemented in 9 Unions Of Municipalities (UOMs) supported with justification and validation. To this end, the Contractor will help compile and synthesize previous and existing initiatives taking place in the Litani Basin, through liaisng with national stakeholders such as the Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR), Litani River Authority (LRA), Ministry of Energy and Water, Ministry of Environment, Water Authorities…, and building on various needs assessments conducted by ESFD team in the targeted UOMs. Based on this, the Contractor will identify activities that help complement government initiatives in the LRB, will validate these activities/projects with relevant stakeholders, conduct preliminary feasibility and cost assessments, and then submit to ESFD for financing by the LRB Programme. In parallel, the Contractor will support ESFD in elaborating pilot and innovative models/activities that aims to reduce pollution at UOM level (such as alternative ways to deal with wastewater management, solid waste management, potable water management…).

[1] In 2016, the Lebanese Parliament approved Law no.63 dated 27/10/2016 (amended on 23/2/2017), which aims at allocating funds for the execution of a number of projects and expropriating lands located in the River Basin from source to estuary, for a total of L.L.1.100 billion (to be secured through grants, loans and government treasury). Five sectors were identified: 1) governance; 2) domestic wastewater; 3) solid waste; 4) industrial waste; 5) pollution from agriculture. Following this, a ministerial committee was formed to address issues affecting the Litani River waters (CoM resolution no.32 dated 9thMay 2014). Accordingly, a roadmap for the “implementation of the necessary measures for the Abatement of Pollution in the Qaraoun Lake” (2014) has been developed and regularly updated. Another detailed roadmap is expected to be developed in the lower Basin.

Duties and Responsibilities

Provide advisory and technical support to ESFD in the municipal service delivery component. This includes:

Undertake a thorough compilation, review and analysis of on-going municipal service delivery projects underway in the Litani River Basin in close consultation with national counterparts including but not limited to the Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR), Ministry of Energy and Water (MoEW), Ministry of Environment (MoE), Ministry of Social Affairs, Litani River Authority (LRA), Ministry of Interior and Municipalities (MoIM), international organisations, and the targeted UOMs. Information could include, but is not limited to, municipal assessments (UN-MoSA mapping of services and risks MSR or other), land-use plans, local development plans, solid waste plans, water and wastewater strategies, etc.
Based on the above, identify interventions that complement government initiatives in the Litani River Basin in sectors related to waste water management, solid waste management and potable water services at the scale and size compatible with the EU-funded project.
Validate projects with relevant stakeholders, in close coordination with ESFD management, including site visits and structural reviews.
Prioritise projects based on discussions with the ESFD team and on the information collected, including the feasibility and cost assessments as well as sustainability issues and in line with national and local needs
Explore possibilities of partnership with the private sector in operating and maintaining infrastructure projects.
Elaborate pilot projects/activities (in the sectors of wastewater, solid waste and potable water) that could be implemented at the UOM level and which presents alternative and innovative models to address pollution (such as alternative models to address waste water management, solid waste management, water management…). These pilot activities could serve later as models to be replicated in future similar programmes to address the main sources of pollution.
Upon final selection of projects by ESFD, provide support in monitoring and following-up the scoping, and design of the selected infrastructure projects.

For additional information, please refer to ANNEX I – Terms of Reference

Competencies

Other Assets:

Proficiency in English and Arabic languages. French is an asset,
Demonstrable analytical skills and report writing skills,
Excellent proven management and communication skills,
Good organizational skills,
Ability to adapt quickly to different working environments, to establish and maintain good working relations with individuals of different backgrounds, and to work under pressure,
Basic knowledge in areas related to community development and mobilization,
Self-motivated and able to recommend options for resolution of issues; excellent inter-personal skills and ability to negotiate and built partnerships,
Excellent communication (spoken and written) skills, including the ability to draft/edit a variety of written reports, both in Arabic and English.

Competencies:

Strong problem solving, communication, negotiation and interpersonal skills,
Familiarity with external aid programs and procedures,
Excellent organizational and report writing skills.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualifications:

Bachelor degree in Civil Engineering, Environmental Engineer or closely related field.

Years of General experience:

At Least 15 years of relevant professional experience in Infrastructure and Development projects.

Technical experience:

At Least 10 years of demonstrated experience in identification and analysis of infrastructure projects (wastewater management, potable water and solid waste management).
Working with Public Sector utilities related to water and wastewater management is a plus.
Solid knowledge of the Lebanese public sector and legal context such as: i) Lebanese regulations related to environmental compliance, waste water and water management; ii) national master plans related to service delivery; iii) Rules and regulations governing Lebanese administrations and institutions.

How to apply:
The consultancy is open for all national consultants who meet the selection criteria and propose a competitive fee. Interested consultants are requested to apply only through this UNDP jobs portal.
Submissions through any other media will not be considered.
The application must include all of the following documents:
1. P11,
2. Annex 3 (Offerors Letter) and
3. Financial proposal.
All files shall be submitted in one single document and uploaded as word or PDF file to the UNDP job site.
It has been observed that bidders don’t submit all requested documents and thus reducing their chance to be selected for a contract with UNDP. before you submit your offer please revise that the application is complete and comprises all documents.
Incomplete applications will not be considered.