UNDP Jobs - 74570- National Consultant for the mid-term review of the

National Consultant for the mid-term review of the ‘Strengthening sustainability of Protected Area Management in Myanmar’ Project (Myanmar National Only)

Location :

Home-based with travel to Nay Pyi Taw, Yangon, Kachin State, Sagaing Region, MYANMAR

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

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

Post Level :

National Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

25 days

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 midterm review of the Strengthening Sustainability of Protected Area Management in Myanmar Project (PIMS #5162) is implemented through the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and is scheduled to be undertaken in October 2017. The project, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) started on 1 July 2015 and is in its second year of implementation. In line with the UNDP-GEF Guidance on MTRs, this MTR process was initiated before the submission of the second Project Implementation Report (PIR). This ToR sets out the expectations for this MTR. The MTR process must follow the guidance outlined in the document Guidance For Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects found via this link: http://web.undp.org/evaluation/documents/guidance/GEF/mid-term/Guidance_Midterm%20Review%20_EN_2014.pdf.

The Strengthening Sustainability of Protected Area Management in Myanmar Project was designed with the overall goal of contributing to the conservation and sustainable use of globally significant biodiversity in Myanmar with the objective to strengthen the terrestrial system of national protected areas for biodiversity conservation through enhanced representation, management effectiveness, monitoring, enforcement and financing. To achieve the project objective, and based on a barrier analysis which identified: (i) the problem being addressed by the project; (ii) its root causes; and (iii) the barriers that need to be overcome to address the problem and its root causes, the project’s intervention has been organized into two components.

Component 1 addresses the first barrier: the weak systematic and institutional capacity to plan and manage the expanded national protected area (PA) system. This is being addressed through a range of inputs aiming to: strengthen the national and regional policy and planning frameworks in relation to PAs; build central capacity for PA system management; expand the PA system coverage to 10% of the national land area; develop a systematic approach for sustainable financing of the expanded PA system; and integrate PA values into regional and local development for sub national government units associated with the demonstration PAs.

Component 2 addresses the second barrier: insufficient management capacity and motivation at the PA level to manage local threats and achieve conservation outcomes. This component focuses on strengthening management effectiveness, financial sustainability, community engagement, monitoring and planning to address external threats at the four selected demonstration PAs. The two components will result in the following project outcomes which are in line with the UNDP’s country program output of ‘enhanced capacities to sustainably manage natural resources at local, regional and national levels’. The project document can be found via this link:https://www.thegef.org/project/strengthening-sustainability-protected-area-management.

The project has two overall outcomes:

Outcome 1: Enhanced Systemic, Institutional and Financial Frameworks for Protected Area Expansion and Management:
Outcome 2: Strengthened Management and Threat Reduction in the Target Protected Areas and Buffer Zone:

The project is being implemented in four demonstration PA sites in Kachin State and Sagaing Region: Hukaung Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Hkakaborazi National Park, Hponkanrazi Wildlife Sanctuary, and Htamanthi Wildlife Sanctuary. National level project coordination takes place in Nay Pyi Taw. The Myanmar Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation (MONREC), formerly the Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry, is the lead government agency and is responsible for the coordination of the project activities on behalf of the Government of Myanmar.

In line with the project cooperation agreement signed between UNDP and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS0, the project is being implemented by the WCS under the civil society organization (CSO) modality. As implementing partner of the project, WCS is responsible for the project implementation, and the timely and verifiable attainment of project objectives and outcomes. The project is scheduled to run for 60 months and is expected to end on 30 June 2020. It is fully funded by the GEF in the amount of USD 6,027,397 and with planned government co-financing estimated at USD 4,646,300.

Duties and Responsibilities

This MTR will assess progress towards the achievement of the project objectives and outcomes as specified in the project document, and assess early signs of project success or failure with the goal of identifying the necessary changes to be made to set the project on-track to achieve its intended results. The MTR will also review the project’s strategy and any risks to its sustainability.

The MTR Team will assess the following four categories of project progress. See the Guidance for Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects for extended descriptions.

Project Strategy
Progress Towards Results
Project Implementation and Adaptive Management
Sustainability

Summary of Conclusions & Recommendations

The MTR Team will include a section in the report which outlines the MTR’s evidence-based conclusions, considering the findings.Recommendations should be succinct suggestions for critical intervention that are specific, measurable, achievable, and relevant. A recommendation table should be put in the report’s executive summary. See the Guidance for Conducting Midterm Reviews of UNDP-Supported, GEF-Financed Projects for guidance on a recommendation table. The MTR Team should make no more than 15 recommendations in total.

Summary of Ratings

The MTR Team will include its ratings of the project’s results and brief descriptions of the associated achievements in a MTR Ratings & Achievement Summary Table in the Executive Summary of the MTR report. See Annex E for the achievement summary and ratings scales. No rating on Project Strategy and no overall project rating is required.

For more information and documens to be download following link:http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=40827

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards and acts in accordance with the Standards of Conduct for international civil servants;
Advocates and 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.

Functional Competencies:

Good knowledge of the natural resource management particularly lake and watershed management, the concept of sustainability and sustainable development in the region and developing countries;
Ability to quickly grasp and synthesize inputs from a range of disciplines related to environmental conservation and lake management;
Ability to advocate and provide technical advice on the relevant sector/theme;
Self-motivated, ability to work with minimum supervision;
Promotes a knowledge sharing and learning culture in the office;
Sensitivity to and responsiveness to all partners, respectful and helpful relations with all UN/UNDP staff;
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure;
Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage.

Required Skills and Experience

Educational background:

A Master’s degree or higher in biodiversity conservation, environmental finance, economics, environmental or natural resource economics, environmental planning/management, public finance, or other closely related field.

Relevant Experience:

At least 10 years’ experience in environment and/or conservation finance or 8 At least 7 years’ experience in sustainable development management, natural resource management, ecology, or conservation-related areas
Knowledge and demonstrable experience in the field of environmental sciences and natural resource management in Myanmar is strongly preferred

Proven skills and experience in conducting evaluations and project/program assessments is highly desirable
Experience working with environmental conservation projects is strongly preferred
Track record of previous research, evaluations and assessments
Experience working with and delivering support to governments;

English language skills:

Fluency in written and spoken English