Background

According to the World Bank report “What a Waste” (2018), the average global municipal solid waste (MSW) generation per person was about 1.2 kg/day and the figure is expected to rise up to 1.5 kg by 2025. This increasing trend of MSW generation is fueled by unparalleled consumerism in which companies strive to maximize profits and consumers enjoys convenience from single use products without prioritizing on reuse, recycling or the use of environmentally friendly materials.

Urbanization is a mega trend in the Asia Pacific region and the urban population in the region has been growing at about 2.6% per year. Consequently, waste generation in cities has increased rapidly, in most developing countries in the region, recycling is carried out under both formal and informal market mechanisms. The safety and health of informal waste pickers collecting valuable secondary materials from landfill sites, the air and water pollution from the recycling of e-waste and used lead acid batteries, water pollution from paper mills using waste paper, and the improper dumping of waste by recycling companies are all problems that affect society (Curea, 2017)

This makes solid waste management an urgent development priority for many municipalities. Yet, effectively addressing the issue requires a solution that is designed and placed in the broader context of the aspiration towards a green and circular economy, which goes well beyond the purview of a municipality. At the same time, the emerging issue of plastics pollution is driving policy, regulatory and behavioral change in many countries, especially in the Asia Pacific region, without commensurate progress on the broader waste management or circular/green economy discourse.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is providing technical assistance globally, regionally and nationally to the interconnected issues of waste management, plastics and circular/green economy, and is in the process of developing a coherent development assistance framework which allows these three interrelated issues to be addressed in a holistic and sustainable manner.

Within this context, UNDP is seeking a waste management specialist to assist select countries in the Asia Pacific region in developing and implementing locally suitable waste management solutions while working closely with national consultants hired in these countries. At the same time, the consultant is required to work closely with the global plastics team and other relevant teams in the region and make substantive contribution towards the development of UNDP’s global offer on plastics as well as the regional circular economy strategy that encompass waste management and plastic pollutions.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objective

The Consultant shall provide technical services for the development and implementation the Green Economy programme in the region, deploying technical assistance, guidance and coordinated actions in the thematic areas of waste management, plastics waste management and circular economy approaches.

The consultant shall collaborate with different thematic areas within the Bangkok Regional Hub and Headquarters Units/Teams, and 3 to 4 Country Offices in the region.

Under the Programme, a national consultant will be recruited in each target country and the selected IC is expected to provide technical guidance to, and work with, the national consultants.

Scope of Work

The consultant will be responsible to

• In close coordination with UNDP Country Offices (COs) and the Regional Innovation Centre (RIC) Team, support the assessment of waste-related issues and challenges and support the development of regional technical assistance approaches in the waste management sector in the targeted countries;
• Assess and review relevant waste management policies and regulations in targeted countries in coordination with national consultants;
• Produce Concept Notes on waste management chain (3-5 pages each) for the target countries, addressing the relevant initiatives to promote green, circular and resilient waste management systems, looking into financial schemes to assure economical sustainability of circular approaches;
• In close coordination with the RIC Team, assist UNDP Country Offices and Governments of the target countries in identifying strategic complementarities with the Nationally Intended Contributions of the Paris Agreement; and
• Support knowledge sharing and knowledge management of the outputs obtained at national level, coordination actions between countries, support the development of awareness strategies and deliver at least one (1) webinar on the subject in conjunction with the RIC Team.
• Provide assistance to units of UNDP Bangkok Regional Hub that are handling different aspects/dimensions of plastics waste and waste management issues in liaising with the Headquarter units and COs and ensure that technical guidance from BRH to COs on the plastic and waste management issues are consistent, coherent and technically robust.
• Consolidate information, data and experiences generated at country and regional level, as well as result of performing this assignment, and assure feedback is provided to the development of UNDP´s Global Offer on Plastics, liaising with the Global Senior Expert on Plastics.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables

Institutional Arrangement

The consultant will work under the direct supervision of the UNDP’s Regional Team Leader (RTL) of the Nature, Climate and Energy (NCE) Unit, based in Bangkok, who will act as Task Manager to the Contract. But for specific thematic tasks, different supervisors will be assigned according to the table in 5).

The consultant will coordinate his/her work with relevant focal points of UNDP’s Bangkok Regional Hub, such as the NCE, SDG Integration Team, Innovation Team/Regional Innovation Centre, etc. 

Duration of the Work

10 September 2020 – 10 April 2021 (Up to 120 working days).

Duty Station: Home-based with possible travels.

• Once travel restrictions are lifted and it is safe to do so, mission travel as per country requests may be required and to be determined by the supervisor;
• Any necessary mission travel must be approved in advance and writing by the Supervisor;
• The BSAFE course must be completed before the commencement of travel;
• 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 https://dss.un.org/dssweb/; 
• The consultant will be responsible for making his/her mission travel arrangements in line with UNDP travel policies;
• All travel expenses will be reimbursed as per UNDP rules and regulations for consultants. Costs for mission airfares, terminal expenses, and living allowances should not be included in financial proposal.

Competencies

Corporate:

-         Demonstrates integrity by modelling 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;

-         Fulfils all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment

Technical:

-         Ability to analyses policy documents and make constructive policy suggestions;

-         Strong interpersonal, communication and diplomatic skills, ability to work in a team;

-         Capacity building skills and flexibility depending on the public;

-         Demonstration of commitment to the Project’s mission, vision and values;

-         Good writing and reporting skills;

-         Good presentation skills;

-         Ability to work under pressure and stressful situations, and to meet tight deadlines.

Professionalism:

-         Works toward creative solutions by analyzing problems carefully and logically – inspires and fosters innovation by highlighting innovative;

-         Shares knowledge and is willing to provide support to others who request advice or help;

-         Facilitates meetings effectively and efficiently;

-         Resolves conflicts as they arise.

Client Orientation:

-         Sets priorities, produces quality outputs, meets deadlines and manages time efficiently;

-         Maintains strong relationships with partners and clients.

Required Skills and Experience

Educational Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering/Environmental Sciences or related field is a must;
• Advanced degree (Masters or Higher) in relevant area is desirable.

Experience

• At least 10 years of working experience in the implementation of similar assignment is a must;
• Knowledge and working experiences related to Basel Convention on transboundary movement of wastes policies and procedures is highly desirable;
• Working experience developing countries in the area of waste management is highly desirable, particularly in Asia-Pacific Region;
• Experience in recycling activities and disposal technologies/waste treatment, particularly of Solid Waste, is an added value;
• Experience in Plastics issue, particularly related to recovery and recycling strategies, disposal/treatment, and/or circularity is an added value.

Language requirement

• Proficiency in English;
• Ability to write reports, facilitate meetings and communicate technical matters effectively to stakeholders is desirable.

Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments

The contract will be based on Daily Fee.

Consultant shall quote an all-inclusive Daily Fee for the contract period. The term “all-inclusive” implies that all costs (professional fees, communications, consumables, etc.) that could be incurred by the IC in completing the assignment are already factored into the daily fee submitted in the proposal. If applicable, travel or daily allowance cost (if any work is to be done outside the IC’s duty station) should be identified separately. Payments shall be done on a monthly basis based on actual days worked, upon verification of completion of deliverables and approval by the IC’s supervisor of a Time Sheet indicating the days worked in the period. [Remove this paragraph if Lump sum is selected]

In general, UNDP shall not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources

In the event of unforeseeable travel not anticipated in this TOR, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and the Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed.

Travel costs shall be reimbursed at actual but not exceeding the quotation from UNDP approved travel agent. 

Evaluation Method and Criteria

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology;

Cumulative analysis

The award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as a) responsive/compliant/acceptable; and b) having received the highest score out of set of weighted technical criteria (70%) *and financial criteria (30%). Financial score shall be computed as a ratio of the proposal being evaluated and the lowest priced qualified proposal received by UNDP for the assignment.

• Only those applications which are responsive, compliant and accept in general Terms& Conditions will be evaluated;
• The technical evaluation will be conducted by a desk review to select the shortlisted candidates (those that score at least 70 out of total 100 obtainable scores). Only applicants obtaining a minimum of 70 points on technical evaluation will be short-listed.

Technical Criteria for Evaluation (Maximum 100 points)

• Criteria 1: Relevance education background - Max 15 points;
• Criteria 2 Working experience in similar assignment in the waste management sector - Max 25 points;
• Criteria 3: Knowledge and working experiences related to Basel Convention on transboundary movement of wastes policies and procedures - Max 20 points;
• Criteria 4: Working experience developing countries in the area of waste management - Max 15 points;
• Criteria 5: Experience in recycling activities and disposal technologies/waste treatment, particularly of Solid Waste – Max 10 points;
• Criteria 6: Experience in Plastics issue (recovery and recycling strategies, circularity, disposal and treatment) – Max 10 points;
• Criteria 7: Communication skills – Max 5 points;

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70 points (70% of technical evaluation) would be considered for Financial Evaluation.

Document required

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications. Please group them into one (1) single PDF document as the application only allows to upload maximum one document:

• Duly accomplished Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided in Annex II in Procurement Notice website.
• Personal CV or Personal History Form (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.
• Financial proposal, as per template provided in Annex II in Procurement Notice website. Note: National consultant must quote price in U.S. Dollar that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs, as per template provided. 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 UNDP 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 UNDP.

Incomplete proposals may not be considered. The shortlisted candidates may be contacted and the successful candidate will be notified.

To download form and related documents, please follow the link below:

https://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=69195