International Individual Consultancy to Support the Design and Development, and Lead on the Project Preparation for the Climate Facility for Children (CF4C) for Eastern and Southern Africa Region

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                                                                          TERMS OF REFERENCE 

Background and Justification

The East and Southern Africa Region (ESAR) is arguably one of the most vulnerable regions in the world to the impacts of climate change. The region has suffered a 7-fold increase in serious environmental problems exacerbated by climate change since 1980. These are documented in the UNICEF (2021) report The Climate Crisis: Climate Change Impacts, Trends and Vulnerabilities of Children in Sub Saharan Africa. Challenging climatic conditions in the East and Southern Africa Region have compounded environmental degradation and contributed to the increased displacement and migration with 86 million internal climate migrants recorded in the ESAR, further reducing access to basic social services, increasing gender inequality, and deteriorating livelihoods and food security. Climate trends indicate sustained increases in scale and frequency of extreme events, which make early warning difficult and require enhanced adaptability. Climate change directly impacts water resources and water services for all economic, social and environmental functions that water supports. The climate change impacts therefore reach into many sectors of interests such as health, education, food security, protection among others.

Recognizing the financing requirement for climate resilient social infrastructure and services UNICEF ESARO and the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) (N/B DBSA is a Regional Financial Institution, and an Accredited Entity of the Green Climate Fund) are working together to establish a climate resilient financing facility for social infrastructure and services for which a concept note has been submitted to the Green Climate Fund for consideration. The facility has termed, Climate Facility For Children (CF4C), and it seeks to addresses the climate vulnerabilities and the financing need for climate resilient (CR) social infrastructures as well as  sustainable and equitable, low emission (LE) provision of basic social services, especially in climate information services, droughts, education, energy, floods, health, nutrition, urban and water sanitation and hygiene (WASH) to vulnerable groups of the population, including children, girls, youth, women, disabled persons, and their associated communities.

The CF4C will initially focus on ten countries: Angola; Comoros; Madagascar; Malawi; Mozambique; Rwanda; Tanzania; Uganda; Zambia; and Zimbabwe.  The countries selected are within the priority areas of the Green Climate Fund (GCF): (i) African States; (ii) All but one country (Zimbabwe) are Least Developed Countries (LDCs), with Mozambique and Comoros categorized under Fragile and Conflict-affected Situations (FCS); and (iii) One country, Comoros is a Small Island Developing State (SIDS). The CF4C concept note has been submitted to the GCF for consideration and is now public listed on GCF’s website, https://www.greenclimate.fund/document/climate-facility-children-cf4c, as part of the review process prior to consideration of approval.

Explain why a consultancy is required and address this question.  

Technical Support is required for timeous program review and inputs to GCF comments, thus requirement for a candidate who is familiar with, and has extensive experience in GCF process, and has prior experience in development GCF proposals.

Scope of Work

Goal and Objective: DBSA and UNICEF ESARO are intending to procure the services of a consultant to support the design and project preparation for the Climate Facility for Children (hereafter referred to as the “CF4C) to address  climate change challenges vis-à-vis sustainable provision and access to social infrastructure and services including building of market case for private-sector investment in sustainable social services.

The CF4C will use blended finance to unlock public and  private finance for sustainable and climate resilient social infrastructure and  services in ESAR.

The objectives of the assignment are to:

• To finalize CN for the CF4C, with consideration to the feedback from GCF
• Design the Climate Resilient WASH Facility; including the financial and technical structure for the Facility, which will include project preparation (i.e. prefeasibility, and vulnerability/risk assessments).

Provide details/reference to AWP areas covered: Explain briefly how this assignment links to the AWP/IR number.

This proposal will support all facets Goal Area ‘Safe and Clean Environment’ particularly the outputs related to water, climate resilience and environmental sustainability ’UNICEF ESARO aims to strengthen the enabling environment for climate resilient social infrastructure and services, and to access climate funds through development of a pipeline of projects for different countries in the region, and hence reduce the transaction costs and enable engagement with the private sector. This work therefore falls under the region’s flagship area of climate resilience and is implemented under the Climate and Environment Pillar.

Activities and Tasks:  

1. Coordinate inputs from GCF, DBSA, UNICEF, and other relevant stakeholders to inform the review and re-submission of the CN for the CF4C  

• Facilitate a focused dialogue between GCF,  DBSA, and UNICEF and other stakeholders in response to the comments/feedback from GCF.
• Based on the feedback, and discussions, develop a response matrix (in GCF format) to the feedback received, and revise the CN to incorporate the feedback.
• Linked to Facility priorities, identify, and prioritize all relevant stakeholders to engage with and capacity and capability required by DBSA and UNICEF for implementation of the Facility.
• Describe the degree to which the Facility can catalyze impact beyond a one-off project investment including scaling and replication, knowledge sharing and learning, creation of an enabling environment, regulatory framework and policies, contribution towards climate resilient development pathways consistent with relevant National climate change action strategies and plans.
• The revision of the CN will also include inter-alia.

1. Review and develop the description of, and justification for, the proposed CF4C.
2. Review and develop climate rationale for the CF4C, which include strengthening the proposed use of the Children’s Climate Risk Index, as a tool for vulnerability assessments and targeting, including describing the most likely scenario (prevailing conditions or other alternative) that would remain or continue in the absence of the proposed interventions
3. Review and describe barriers (social, gender, fiscal, regulatory, technological, financial, ecological, institutional, etc., as relevant) to climate investment that need to be addressed.
4. Review and describe the proposed set of components, outputs and activities that lead to the expected fund-level impact and outcome results.
5. Review and describe the theory of change and provide information on how it serves to shift the development pathway towards a low-emission and/or climate resilient direction.
6. Use a results chain of inputs, activities, outputs, outcomes, and impact statements, and identify the how and why of causal relations to deliver the Facility’s expected results.
7. Review the implementation arrangements by describing the implementation structure, outlining legal, contractual, institutional, and financial arrangements between the GCF, the DBSA, UNICEF and/or other Executing Entity(ies) (EE) or any third parties (if applicable) and beneficiaries. This should include the design of the governance arrangements (supervisory boards, consultative groups among others) set to oversee and guide the implementation of the Facility. Provide a composition of the decision-making body and oversight function.
8. Review and describe the financial flows and implementation arrangements (legal and contractual) between the DBSA, UNICEF or any third party and beneficiaries. Provide a diagram(s) or organogram(s) that map such arrangements including the governance structure, legal arrangements, and the flow and reflow of funds between entities.
9. Review the Justification for GCF funding request: motivate the reasons for the Facility requiring GCF funding.
10. Review and justify why the level of concessionality of the GCF financial instrument(s) is the minimum required to make the investment viable. Additionally, how does the financial structure and the proposed pricing fit with the concept of minimum concessionality? Who benefits from concessionality? of the AE (DBSA), and how they will be managed by the AE or the implementing agency.
11. Review and develop the results log frame according to the GCF performance measurement framework.

2. CF4C Project Preparation, with the inputs from the DBSA and UNICEF

• Compile a full application for the Project Preparation Facility (PPF) Funding, informed by/making use of all the work/CN developed above, according to GCF requirements and templates.  This will be done in consultation with the DBSA, UNICEF, and relevant stakeholders from participating countries.
• Develop the total budget and financial structure of the Project Preparation Facility Funding (with input from DBSA and UNICEF ESARO) and all main cost categories at the input level corresponding to all outputs and activities.
• Liaise with DBSA and UNICEF to identify potential co-financing from other donors to maximize the impact of the Facility and crowd in other sources of donor finance.
• Work closely with the DBSA and UNICEF provide technical support to operationalize the  implementation arrangements, which will include review/description the financial flows and implementation arrangements (legal and contractual) between the DBSA, UNICEF or any third party and beneficiaries.
• In co-ordination with UNICEF, DBSA, compile background information (secondary data) on climate resilience baseline for each country – climate change problem (climate hazards and associates risks based on impacts, exposure, and vulnerabilities); and the linkages to the adaptation and mitigation needs for the social infrastructure and services sector that the Facility should address.
• In co-ordination with UNICEF and DBSA, describe any recent or ongoing regional or national interventions that are related to the proposal from other domestic or international sources of funding, such as the Global Environment Facility, Adaptation Fund, Climate Investment Funds, etc., and how they will be complemented by the Facility (e.g. scaling up, replication, etc.). Also identify current gaps and barriers regarding recent or ongoing projects and elaborate further how this programme complements or addresses these.
• On the basis of the CN, and submission of PPF, provide technical inputs in the development of the detailed ToRs in alignment with GCF requirements for the following, (a) Prefeasibility CF4C Project Pipeline, (b) CF4C Vulnerability Assessment, (c) CF4C Funding Proposal Development

Work relationships: 

The Consultant will be supervised by the Regional Advisor (WASH & CEE) with the guidance and oversight of the Deputy Regional Director – Programs.

Outputs/ Deliverables

Payment Schedule

As per output and deliverable table above.

All deliverables will have to meet expected quality and standards as assessed by the supervisor of the assignment. Should the consultant fail to deliver as per expected quality and standards, UNICEF reserves the right to amend the payouts accordingly, or to delay them until satisfactory submission has been received.

Desired Competencies, technical background and experience

1. Education: At least a master’s degree in the fields of engineering, water resource management, climate change, economics, finance, or any other relevant field.
2. Demonstrated technical capacity and expertise, supported by at least 10 years of relevant professional experience in an international environment, in at least one of the following technical specialties:

• Risk analysis of projects/programmes, particularly for the management of financial and
• operational risks;
• Experience with fiduciary and procurement processes, particularly as they apply to national and/or international finance institutions; and

1. Experience conducting similar assignments with multilateral supported climate change adaptation and/or mitigation bodies such as GEF/LDCF/other donors, especially with the GCF is an asset.
2. Familiarity with technical issues related to adaptation and mitigation, methods of cost-benefit analysis for adaptation and mitigation options, identification of multiple benefits of adaptation and mitigation, including, environmental, economic, social and gender-related.
3. Excellent written communication skills, with analytic capacity and ability to synthesize relevant collected data and findings for the preparation of high-quality reports.
4. Languages Needed: Full proficiency both oral and written English. Fluency in French and/or Portuguese will be an added advantage.
5. Must exhibit the UNICEF Core Values of:

• Care
• Respect
• Integrity
• Trust
• Accountability
• Sustainability

6. Core Competencies:

• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness
• Works Collaboratively with others
• Builds and Maintains Partnerships
• Innovates and Embraces Change
• Thinks and Acts Strategically
• Drives to achieve impactful results
• Manages ambiguity and complexity

Administrative Issues

The contract will be issued by UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa regional Office (ESARO). The Focal Person for all communications is the Regional Advisor (WASH & CEE). The individual contractor will liaise with UNICEF for any matters regarding the contract management.

The assignment will be remote based, however availability during the working hours of UNICEF East and Southern African Regional Office in Nairobi (0800 – 1700 EAT) is required.

The individual contractor will seek inputs from Regional Advisor (WASH & CEE) and regularly liaises with the for all important matters related to the assignment throughout the period of its implementation, with the guidance and oversight of the Regional Advisor – WASH & CEE.  

Conditions

• All travel (in case of any) will be by most economic class fare and reimbursement will be as per UNICEF policy, Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) for field missions will be paid based on the prevailing UN rates. (N/B The assignment will be remote based, and no travel is anticipated).
• “As per UNICEF DFAM policy, payment is made against approved deliverables. No advance payment is allowed unless in exceptional circumstances against bank guarantee, subject to a maximum of 30 per cent of the total contract value in cases where advance purchases, for example for supplies or travel, may be necessary”.
• Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.

Risks

No risks are foreseen for this assignment as it will be largely desktop analysis and remote working.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should apply online using the button below. As part of their application, candidates should provide:

1. A cover letter that specifies how you meet the desired competencies, technical background and experience (no more than 2 pages)
2. A short CV (no more than 4 pages)
3. A financial proposal that should include the daily rate and total fees in USD for the assignment. Applications without a financial proposal will not be considered.
4. 3 Referees.