Background

GENERAL BACKGROUND

UNCDF makes public and private finance work for the poor in the world’s 47 least developed countries. With its capital mandate and instruments, UNCDF offers “last mile” finance models that unlock public and private resources, especially at the domestic level, to reduce poverty and support local economic development. UNCDF’s financing models work through two channels: financial inclusion that expands the opportunities for individuals, households, and small businesses to participate in the local economy, providing them with the tools they need to climb out of poverty and manage their financial lives; and by showing how localized investments — through fiscal decentralization, innovative municipal finance, and structured project finance — can drive public and private funding that underpins local economic expansion and sustainable development. By strengthening how finance works for poor people at the household, small enterprise, and local infrastructure levels, UNCDF contributes to SDG 1 on eradicating poverty and SDG 17 on the means of implementation. By identifying those market segments where innovative financing models can have transformational impact in helping to reach the last mile and address exclusion and inequalities of access, UNCDF contributes to a number of different SDGs.

UNCDF’s Local Climate Adaptive Living (LoCAL) facility was designed and launched in 2011 with the aim of promoting climate change–resilient communities and local economies by establishing a standard and internationally recognized country-based mechanism to channel climate finance to local government authorities in LDCs and to increase local resilience, thereby contributing to achievement of the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly the goals of poverty eradication (SDG 1) and climate action (SDG 13). LoCAL increases awareness and capacities to respond to climate change at the local level, integrates climate change adaptation into local governments’ planning and budgeting systems in a participatory and gender-sensitive manner, and increases the amount of finance available to local governments for climate change adaptation.

LoCAL combines performance-based climate resilience grants (PBCRGs) with technical and capacity-building support. PBCRGs ensure programming and verification of climate change expenditures at the local level and offer strong incentives for general performance improvements targeting areas of importance for enhanced resilience. The PBCRG can be seen as an earmarked cross-sectoral grant with conditions attached to the use of its funding for climate change adaptation beyond business as usual. Combined with regular grant allocations, PBCRGs enable 100 per-cent of the investments in climate-sensitive sectors to become climate resilient over time. They include a set of minimum conditions, performance measures and a menu of eligible investments.

LoCAL focuses on the delivery of four outputs that will directly contribute to increasing local governments’ access to climate finance and building resilience to climate change:

Output 1 – Awareness and capacities to respond to climate change adaptation at the local level are increased;

Output 2 – CCA is mainstreamed into government’s planning and budgeting systems and investments are implemented in line with the PBCRG mechanism;

Output 3 – The PBCRG system is effectively and sustainably established in participating countries and leads to an increased amount of CCA finance available to local government and local economy;

Output 4 – The role of local authorities and of the PBCRGS in addressing climate change are increasingly recognized at international level, through outreach, learning and quality assurance.

The mechanism operates in three distinct phases:

Phase I: Piloting, consists of an initial scoping analysis, followed by testing in two to four local governments. As of 2019, The Gambia, Lesotho, Nepal, Tanzania and Tuvalu are in Phase I; Ghana, Mali, Niger are preparing to enter Phase II.

Phase II: Consolidating, takes place in 5–10 local governments in a country. It involves collecting lessons and demonstrating the mechanism’s effectiveness at a larger scale. As of 2019, Bangladesh, Benin, Mozambique, are in Phase II.

Phase III: Scaling-up, is full national roll-out of LoCAL based on the results of the previous phases and lessons learned. LoCAL is gradually extended to all local governments, with domestic or international climate finance, and becomes the national system for channeling adaptation finance to the local level. Bhutan is in Phase III, with budget support from the European Union; Cambodia has also entered Phase III.

Since its global scale-up in 2014, LoCAL has evolved considerably. As of 2019, LoCAL engages 280 local governments, representing over 10 million people in 14 countries : Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Cambodia, The Gambia, Ghana, Lao PDR, Lesotho, Mali, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Tanzania and Tuvalu. 8 countries will be joining as new countries in 2020, counting 19 LDCs in total: Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Malawi, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Solomon Island, Uganda, which potential scale up reach to 500 million people.

LoCAL has delivered close to $17 million directly to countries – including through grants and technical assistance.

In this context, LoCAL provides technical support to national government for the prospective National Implementing Entities for the Green Climate Fund (GCF), inter alia, by supporting them with the GCF application procedures/processes, undertaking institutional gap assessment, supporting the development of documentation required by the GCF (ex. policies and procedures), supporting in answering questions raised by the GCF accreditation review committees, etc. LoCAL also supports the development and submission of GCF concept notes and full project proposals for a LoCAL scaling up in target countries.

Green Climate Fund (GCF)

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) was created to support the efforts of developing countries to respond to the challenge of climate change. GCF helps developing countries limit or reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and adapt to climate change. It seeks to promote a paradigm shift to low-emission and climate-resilient development, taking into account the needs of nations that are particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts. It was set up by the 194 countries who are parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2010, as part of the Convention’s financial mechanism. It aims to deliver equal amounts of funding to mitigation and adaptation, while being guided by the Convention’s principles and provisions

The portfolio of national LoCAL initiatives requires technical advice and support in the field of climate change adaptation mainstreaming into local development planning and budgeting, providing quality assurance of the LoCAL mechanism, and supporting the national government to achieves the GCF NIE’s accreditation and direct access. As LoCAL expands, there is also an increasing need for the recipient countries in mainstreaming climate change adaptation and seek for additional financing to reach phase III of LoCAL for full national roll-out of performance-based climate resilience grants (PBCRGs) with technical and capacity-building support.

Duties and Responsibilities

OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT

The objective of this consultancy is to support LoCAL portfolio in participating countries in respect to:

Climate change adaptation mainstreaming, local development planning/budgeting process

• Supporting the scoping and design of LoCAL programme in participating countries taking into account experience and lessons learned in the countries and by LoCAL more broadly, including the development or update of the annual performance assessment manual;
• Supporting the implementation of LoCAL programme in participating countries, at the various stages of the process (i.e. assessments and planning; financing and budgeting; mainstreaming of climate change issues into public planning and budgeting, implementation of adaptation measures; performance assessments and reporting);
• Support Quality Assurance efforts for LoCAL programme in participating countries, ensuring standards are maintained.

Green Climate Fund (GCF)’s National Implementing Entities (NIEs) Accreditation support

• Develop GCF concept notes and full-fledged GCF project funding proposals including required technical annexes for GCF financing of the LoCAL mechanism in existing or candidate LoCAL countries;
• Provide Accreditation support to candidate National Implementing Entities of the GCF in participating LoCAL countries.

SCOPE OF WORK

Working under the direct supervision of the LoCAL manager, in close collaboration with the governments and UNCDF LoCAL regional and country teams, the consultant will be responsible for providing high quality technical support to programmes including:

Climate change adaptation mainstreaming, local development planning/budgeting process

• Supporting the implementation of LoCAL country programmes at the various stages of the process (i.e. assessments and planning; financing and budgeting; climate change mainstreaming into public planning and budgeting, implementation of adaptation measures; performance assessments and reporting);
• Supporting the strengthening of institutions and systems in the various abovementioned areas of work;
• Documenting experiences, lessons learned and best practice, thereby contributing to the development of knowledge and communication products;
• Supporting the design of LoCAL Programme in selected countries taking into account experience and lessons learned in the countries and by LoCAL;

Green Climate Fund (GCF)’s National Implementing Entities (NIEs) Accreditation support

• Develop Concept Notes for GCF funding of LoCAL country programmes (usually, countries in Phase II or in transition from Phase II to Phase III). Concept Note preparation will include:
  • Desk review of the existing design and implementation of LoCAL in the country, including LoCAL MOU, PRODOC or other relevant documents’;
  • Desk review of country climate change risk and vulnerability assessments;
  • Consultation with country stakeholders including the NDA and the LoCAL implementing agency(ies);
  • Development of project concept note on the focus area as a concrete starting point for the full-fledged proposal, addressing all relevant sections of the GCF Concept Note template;
  • Present the draft Concept Note to stakeholders, review and finalize based on feedback received.

• Prepare full GCF Funding Proposals based on the agreed Concept Note and taking into account feedback received on the Concept Note from GCF Secretariat. The Funding Proposal will be prepared using the GCF Funding Proposal Template and in compliance with GCF guidelines and requirements;

• Assist the implementing agency to prepare the full set of annexes for the GCF funding proposal, which include, as applicable:
  • No-objection letter from the NDA;
  • Feasibility study (project feasibility assessment) (LoCAL design);
  • Integrated financial model that provides sensitivity analysis of critical elements (Ms Excel format);
  • Confirmation letter or letter of commitment for co-financing commitment;
  • Project/programme confirmation (term sheet);
  • Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) or Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP);
  • Appraisal report or due diligence report with recommendations;
  • Evaluation report of the baseline project;
  • Map indicating the location of the project/programme;
  • Timetable of project/programme implementation;
  • Procurement plan;
  • Detailed budget;
  • Gender assessment and Gender Action Plan (GAP);
  • Economic analysis;
  • Stakeholder consultations at national and project level implementation including with indigenous people if relevant;
  • Operations and maintenance plan if relevant;
  • Loan or grant operation manual as appropriate.

• Support to candidate National Implementing Entities (NIEs) of the GCF in participating LoCAL countries, by demonstrating that the nominated institution’s operational procedures and track record meets GCF’s fiduciary standards, environmental and social safeguards and gender equality standards, according to the NIE accreditation template, rules and guidelines. The consultant will assist the nominated NIE throughout the accreditation process, and shall include, the following sub-outputs/activities:
  • Assist the candidate NIE to understand the requirements of GCF accreditation and identify how the agency’s profile, operating procedures and track record can match GCF requirements;
  • Assist the candidate NIE to identify any readiness gaps and develop strategies and workplans to fill the gaps (e.g. development of strengthened operating procedures, strategies to develop track record);
  • Development of the roadmap for the candidate NIE to reach the Green Climate Fund (GCF) accreditation application submission, with detailed information and mapping of the steps it must take to strengthen its capacities to meet the GCF’s accreditation standards, and simultaneously complete and submit the application for GCF accreditation;
  • Assist the agency to prepare the GCF online accreditation application form, identify the necessary supporting documents and submit to GCF via its Online Accreditation System (OAS) (Stage 1)
  • Assist the agency to respond to questions submitted to the agency by GCF’s Accreditation Panel (Stage 2)
  • Assist the agency to mobilise additional support needed for GCF readiness (e.g. through GCF Readiness Funds).

• Support to strengthening institutional and policy capacities of candidate NIEs to gain direct access to the GCF, in consultation with the NDA:
  • Provide guidance to establish and strengthen the prospective NIE’s Task Team;
  • Provide technical assistance to implement GCF strengthening recommendations, based on Sub-output 1 above, including collection or development and operationalisation of existing or newly developed policies, frameworks and systems internally and with other ministries, as well of evidence of policy, system and framework implementation and related documentation;

• Carrying out other relevant tasks

In performing the tasks, the incumbent will, inter alia, undertake, organize or facilitate consultations, training and planning workshops, and on-the-job learning.

DURATION OF ASSIGNMENT, DUTY STATION AND EXPECTED PLACES OF TRAVEL

Contract Duration: The Framework Agreement shall be signed for a period of up to 210 days spread over a period of three (3) years.

Duty station and expected places of travel: Home based with extensive travel to countries where LoCAL operates, including (but not limited to) the following countries: Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Cambodia, The Gambia, Ghana, Lao PDR, Lesotho, Mali, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Tanzania and Tuvalu. 8 countries will be joining as new countries in 2020, counting 19 LDCs in total: Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Malawi, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Solomon Island, Uganda.

The schedule of travel will be agreed on with the incumbent according to the requirements of each programme country.

Travel costs associated to the assignment will be paid on reimbursable basis and following the UNDP/UNCDF rules and regulations which states that consultants shall only be paid the most direct and most economical ticket, as will be quoted by the official UN travel agency. Any amount in excess of the said quotation, such as class and airline preference of the consultant, shall be borne by the consultant and the daily living allowance will be paid as per UN Rate.

Contract modality: This solicitation is for a Framework Agreement, also known in UNCDF as the Long-Term Agreement (LTA) for three years.

LTA refers to a mutual framework agreement by and between UNCDF and an individual whereby the latter may, at any time within the duration of the LTA, be required to render the agreed services at the agreed and fixed unit prices. An LTA specifies the unit price (daily rate), scope of work, allowing for a framework agreement to be used when the consultant’s services are needed.

When a request for service arises, and within the scope of the LTA, UNCDF can engage the individual or company holding an LTA through a “call-off” of the LTA. Every call-off shall have specific TORs which includes tasks, scope of services and outputs to be delivered within a specific period of time. For this particular process, the call-off shall be formalized through the issuance of a Purchase Order, attaching thereto the TOR, and any other document relevant to the call-off. Financial commitments will only be established each time a Purchase Order for the specific services/TOR for Individual Contractor is issued.

The LTA shall have a cumulative ceiling amount that may accrue to the individual contractor during the life of the LTA, but said amount shall remain as an upper limit, and must not and cannot be interpreted nor understood as neither a financial commitment nor guarantee of business volume. It is important to note that, under an LTA, UNCDF does not guarantee that any specific quantity of services shall be made during the term of this agreement. The LTA does not form a financial obligation nor commitment from UNCDF at the time the LTA contract is signed.

As a result, the consultant under this position will be engaged on a need-based consultancy basis, as and when called upon to do so by UNCDF LoCAL Programme Manager (Global a.i) or designate(s) from UNCDF LoCAL Programme Manager (Global a.i), at an agreed upon “daily rate” and “number of days” per an agreed TORs for each call-off.

FINAL PRODUCTS

The consultant will deliver the following final products:

·A descriptive and analytical back to the office report following each assignment that provides full details of the mission schedule, copies of substantive inputs produced and recommendations for follow up action.

·Substantive reports and other inputs as requested by the LoCAL Project Managers based on the ToR of the specific assignment as mentioned under section 3 of this Procurement Notice.

PROVISION OF MONITORING AND PROGRESS CONTROLS

The consultant will work under the direct supervision of the LoCAL Project Manager based in Brussels and in close collaboration with other relevant colleagues, experts and/or institutions designated by the LoCAL Project Manager.

The consultant will have weekly communication with the Regional Office in Bangkok via email and skype, for coordination and guidance purposes, ensuring consultants’ output quality and targets.

The Consultant is responsible for providing his/her own laptop during the course of his/her engagement with UNCDF.

This contract is under a framework agreement that will work on a call-off mechanism. The consultant will be ‘called’ upon to deliver a specific set of deliverables under a TOR and a purchasing order, indicating the total number of days required to complete the services. The contractor shall submit the invoices specifying the outputs delivered and the Certificate of Payment form for the approval of UNCDF.

The following supporting documents will serve as conditions for payments to an Individual Contractor(s): (i) submission of an invoice and Certificate of Payment (COP); (ii) submission of all deliverables / workplan / progress report with the relevant supporting documentation; and (iii) review, approval and written acceptance of each deliverable by the LoCAL Project Manager and any other Project/Programme Manager designated by LoCAL Project Manager;

Where payment is based on days worked and not on milestone outputs, the submission of time sheet and expenses with relevant documentation may be required by UNCDF.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise

• Demonstrated knowledge of relevant climate change, decentralisation, local economic development and sustainable development issues;
• Strong analytical skills, particularly applied to climate change and mainstreaming and project design;
• Knowledge and/or experience with GCF accreditation procedures and processes;
• Proven experience in providing support to strengthening institutional and policy capacities of national institutions in the field of decentralisation, finance, environment and/or climate change;
• Proven experience in developing full-fledged funding proposals that have been approved and financed by the GCF including in relation to the development of technical annexes in particular:
  • Feasibility study (project feasibility assessment);
  • Integrated financial model that provides sensitivity analysis of critical elements (Ms Excel format);
  • Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) or Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP);
  • Appraisal report or due diligence report with recommendations;
  • Evaluation report of the baseline project;
  • Gender assessment and Gender Action Plan (GAP);
  • Economic analysis;
  • Loan or grant operation manual as appropriate.

Functional Competencies:

• Ability to identify needs and interventions for capacity enhancement of counterparts, clients and potential partners;
• Ability to take responsibility for achieving agreed outputs within set deadlines;
• Openness to change and ability to receive/integrate feedback;
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

Required Skills and Experience

DEGREE OF EXPERTISE AND QUALIFICATIONS

Education:

• A Master’s degree in Environmental Science or Management, Engineering in Climate Change Adaptation, International Development, Urban Planning, Economics or other related fields.

Professional Experience:

• At least 10 years of professional experience in the fields of local development, decentralization and/or environment and climate change adaptation with a specific emphasis on local or climate governance, adaptation and development planning and/or climate change mainstreaming;
• At least 10 years of experience with performance-based grants and similar tools like budget support, ideally for climate change adaptation;
• At least 3 years of experience in providing support to strengthening institutional and policy capacities of national institutions in the field of decentralization, finance, environment and/or climate change, ideally in supporting nominated entities in getting accredited to the GCF as a NIE;
• At least 10 years of experience of working with other development partners, especially in the area of local development, decentralization and/or environment and climate change adaptation with a specific emphasis on local or climate governance, adaptation and development planning, public financial management/budgeting, climate finance, and/or climate change mainstreaming;
• At least 3 years of evidence of knowledge and understanding of the GCF functioning and architecture, including accreditation modalities;
• Strong analytical and writing skills and track record in producing relevant reports and other communications and knowledge materials;
• Work experience in Africa and/or Asia and the Pacific, ideally working with a number of the LoCAL countries would be an advantage;
• Fluency in English (Speaking, Reading, Writing) is required.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Interested individuals should submit the documents mentioned below as proposals in order to demonstrate their qualifications (Note: the system does not allow multiple uploads of documents. Applicants must make sure to upload all documents in one PDF file).

All applications must contain the following information:

1. Duly accomplished Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability;
2. Personal profile including 

• CV or P11, indicating all past experiences in similar projects as well as the contact details (e-mail and telephone number of the candidate)
• 1 page (or up to 4 pages) of cover letter, indicating track record and experience of direct relevance to the assignment and describing why the candidate is the most suitable for the assignment;
• Name and contact details (e-mail addresses, telephone numbers) of 3 professional references

      3. One sample of written work or publications related to the assignment.

      4. Signed Financial proposal for the assignment, outlining All-inclusive fee (including professional fees and other professional expenses, such as insurance, taxes, etc.). Available at http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_file.cfm?doc_id=29916).

• Daily professional fee should ideally be quoted in US Dollars.

If an Offeror is employed by an organization/company/institution, and he/she expects his/her employer to charge a management fee in the process of releasing him/her to UNCDF under Reimbursable Loan Agreement (RLA), the Offeror must indicate at this point, and ensure that all such costs are duly incorporated in the financial proposal submitted to UNCDF.

Failure to submit all the below mentioned documents may result in rejection of the application

EVALUATION CRITERIA

Applications will be rated on both technical and financial submissions. The following selection method will be used: Highest rated proposal using the combined scoring method, which assigns the weight distribution between the technical and financial proposals. The overall combined score will be 100 points, where weight distribution shall be 70% technical (30% desk review + 40% interview) and 30% financial.

Step I: Screening

Applications will be screened and only applicants meeting the following minimum criteria will progress to the pool for shortlisting:

• A Master’s degree in Environmental Science or Management, Engineering in Climate Change Adaptation, International Development, Urban Planning, Economics or other related fields.
• At least 10 years of professional experience in the fields of local development, decentralization and/or environment and climate change adaptation with a specific emphasis on local or climate governance, adaptation and development planning and/or climate change mainstreaming.
• Submission of one sample of written work or publications related to the assignment.

Step II: Shortlisting by Desk Review: (100 Points X 30%)

UNCDF will conduct a desk review to produce a shortlist of candidates and technically evaluate candidates as follows:

Step III: Technical interviews (100 points x 40%)

A competency-based Interview shall be conducted with the top three or four candidates who score the highest in Step II (minimum of 70 points). Candidates will be tested on the same key work areas, in greater depth, with the same weighting, namely:

• Relevant experience
• Sector Technical Knowledge
• Program Development and Management
• Understanding of the mission

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% on the total of Step II: Desk Review and Step III: Interview will be considered as technically qualified and will be reviewed further for financial evaluation.

Step IV: Financial Evaluation:

The following formula will be used to evaluate financial proposal:

Lowest priced proposal/price of the proposal being evaluated x 30%.

Step V: Award of Long-term Agreement (LTA) :

The award of the LTA will be made to the applicant whose offer has been evaluated and determined

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable vis-à-vis the requirements of the TOR and the project operating environment; and
• Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical (70%) and financial (30%) criteria.

Both individual consultants and individual employed by a company or institution are welcome to apply.

Any individual employed by a company or institution who would like to submit an offer in response to a Procurement Notice for IC must do so in their individual capacity (providing a CV so that their qualifications may be judged accordingly).

Women candidates or women-owned businesses are strongly encouraged to apply.

UNCDF 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.

Individual Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when traveling 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. If the consultant is over 65 years old, UNCDF reserves the right to require full medical certification and clearance from the consultant’s physician prior to commencing the travel.

References

UNDP’s Individual Consultant’s General Terms and Conditions are provided here:
http://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/documents/procurement/documents/IC%20-%20General%20Conditions.pdf

CONSULTANT’S PRESENCE REQUIRED ON DUTY STATION/UNCDF PREMISES

X INTERMITTENT

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