Background
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The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Tajikistan seeks to improve the people’s living standards, particularly the poorest and most vulnerable, and to ensure a future that offers equality, dignity and opportunity for all. UNDP Tajikistan’s Resilience and Environmental Sustainability (RES) Cluster has a multidimensional, diverse, and complex portfolio that requires a holistic approach. Projects on climate change adaptation, mitigation, policy action, and disaster resilience are the strategic part of the cluster. For these purposes, the RES Cluster of UNDP Tajikistan intends to hire a Project Climate Finance Officer to support Outcome 3 of the “Enabling an Effective National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Process for Tajikistan” project, funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and implemented by UNDP Tajikistan.
The UNDP/GCF Project “Enabling an Effective National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Process for Tajikistan” establishes the enabling environment for mainstreaming climate change adaptation planning and implementation. The project is designed to coordinate closely with other ongoing and planned adaptation measures and to provide a structure by which the lessons learned from those initiatives can be institutionalized into ongoing planning for climate change adaptation in Tajikistan. The project is designed to ensure broad stakeholder engagement and involvement, focusing especially on vulnerable groups.
The UNDP/GCF Project addresses identified gaps and barriers to implementation and is consistent with the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan’s vision for the NAP process. The project is also consistent with Tajikistan’s national development policy framework and will contribute to mainstream climate change adaptation into national and sectoral development plans. The Project establishes the institutional arrangements and human/institutional capacities to develop and execute National Adaptation Plans (NAP) to implement Tajikistan’s National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy (NCCAS). The result of the project will be the establishment of the institutional arrangements that will empower the Committee for Environmental Protection under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan (CEP) to lead the process of translating the country’s adaptation priorities as articulated in the NCCAS and other documents into implementation plans. As part of the NAP process, the project will also capacitate responsible agencies for the four priority sectors that have been identified by the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan as being particularly vulnerable (energy, water resources, transportation, and agriculture) and advance mainstreaming of climate change adaptation considerations in these agencies. The agencies will also develop sectoral adaptation plans compiled in the national NAP. Lastly, the proposed project will address barriers and gaps concerning financing priority adaptation measures and implementation capabilities at the subnational level. By addressing these barriers and gaps, the project will establish the conditions that enable the NAP to be effectively implemented.
The project has three outcomes, each consisting of sub-outcomes, which are, in turn, implemented by several activities. The Climate Finance Officer will support the implementation of the Project’s Outcome 3: Implementation capacities for climate change adaptation established/strengthened. Outcome 3 of the project focuses on building a solid foundation for implementing the NAP and sector-based climate change adaptation plans. This includes the development of a financing strategy that links priority adaptation projects to appropriate sources of finance. The outcome also develops subnational implementation capacities since subnational governments will be the locus of many adaptation activities. Lastly, the third outcome includes activities designed to foster robust private sector engagement and participation in advancing climate change adaptation in Tajikistan. Outcome 3 is made up of Sub-Outcome 3.1 Establish and institutionalize a financing mechanism for NAP/NCCAS/NDC implementation; Sub-outcome 3.2: Subnational capacities for climate change adaptation mainstreaming, planning, and project implementation enhanced; and Sub-outcome 3.3: Private sector engaged in climate change adaptation activities at national and sectoral levels.
Duties and Responsibilities
This position will focus on supporting the building of capacities, particularly the sub-national authorities, to implement the sectoral adaptation plans and NAP process, including the development of a financing plan and the engagement of the private sector in climate change adaptation activities, as well as provide support on the assessment of the financial building blocks in Tajikistan for establishing an enabling environmental for national adaptation planning for climate change.
Under the overall guidance and supervision of the Project Manager and in close cooperation with the Project’s team, the Project Climate Finance Officer will be responsible for the overall implementation of Project Outcome 3, performing a variety of standard technical support to project stakeholders and facilitate implementation of capacity building, coordination, and reporting activities within the project framework, ensuring high quality and accuracy of work.
The Officer will work closely with all project’s personnel and UNDP CO team to ensure relevant requirements are fulfilled in a timely manner with the required quality, following the highest standards in line with UNDP guidelines and procedures.
The duties and responsibilities of the Project Climate Finance Officer will include:
Ensure provision of technical support for the implementation of climate change related activities under Outcome 3.
- Facilitate the establishment and functioning of the NAP finance working committee that includes representatives from national institutions, development partners and development banks active in Tajikistan.
- Oversee the establishment of monitoring procedures for climate finance flows that will identify and monitor all sources of internal and external climate finance towards meeting the financing needs described in the NDC and NCCAS.
- Facilitate the development of sectoral financial building blocks assessment for the priority sectors (energy, water resources, agriculture, and transport) to identify costs of adaptation as well as sources of finance and entry points for mainstreaming climate finance into budgeting.
- Facilitate coordination with the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, Ministry of Finance, and other key stakeholders to identify entry points in existing sectoral budgets to incorporate climate change adaptation expenditures and ensure consistency with disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation priorities, as well as existing line-item entry points.
- Oversee the design of the NAP financing plan, roadmap and sustainability strategy that will guide the implementation of national and sectoral adaptation measures and identify domestic public-sector sources of finance, private sector, and modalities (grants, loans, etc). The Sustainability Strategy is part of the financial plan which details how the government will ensure that investments are maintained after the life of the project.
- Oversee the identification and development of at least two concepts notes for the GCF pipeline.
- Oversee and coordinate the development and piloting of subnational guidelines for identifying and assessing climate-related risks and vulnerabilities and incorporating climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction into sub-national planning and budgeting.
- Assist in the coordination with the Ministry of Finance and subnational adaptation actions and scaling up/replicating successes, and lessons learned for scaling up and replication.
- Oversee the development of the private sector baseline analysis and engagement tools to identify the most promising sectors/areas for private sector engagement and understand barriers and incentives to investments, as well as establish a private sector outreach mechanism to increase private sector engagement in consultative processes related to the NAP, NCCAS, and NDC.
- Provide support to foster and strengthen partnerships and cooperation with project stakeholders, relevant international organizations, international and local financial institutions, state institutions, and CBOs/NGOs.
Ensure effective Project implementation of activities under Outcome 3, focusing on:
- Plan, budget, implement and monitor activities and results of Outcome 3, including development of ToRs, oversight of suppliers and review/approvals of reports, in line with approved Annual Work Plan.
- Provide inputs for project´s quarterly, annual, and other reports with sound quantifiable data, segregated by gender.
- Provide inputs for drafting knowledge management products and outreach materials, including fact sheets, infographics and other information related to outcome 3.
- Provide necessary support in organization of seminars, workshops, meetings, including preparing agendas and minutes for outcome 3 and other project related activities.
- Support to project manager and admin/finance assistant in processing payments and missions’ arrangements and any other Climate Change Adaptation action and initiatives.
Competencies
Core Competencies
- Achieve Results: LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
- Think Innovatively: LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements
- Learn Continuously: LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback
- Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible
- Act with Determination: LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
- Engage and Partner: LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships
- Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination
Cross-Functional & Technical Competencies
- Knowledge Generation Strategy
- Ability to research and turn information into useful knowledge, relevant for content, or responsive to a stated need
- Communication
- Ability to communicate in a clear, concise, and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience.
- Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels.
- Monitoring
- Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback on the consistency or discrepancy between planned and actual activities and programme performance and results.
- Nature, Climate and Energy
- Climate Change Adaptation: Embedding adaptation into development policy/planning/decision making.
- Climate Change Policies: Climate Finance
- Climate Change Adaptation: Public and private finance for adaptation solutions
- Climate Change Adaptation: concepts and advancing resilient development.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
- Master’s degree (or equivalent) in business, finance, climate change, environment, disaster management, energy, water resources, development studies, natural resource management, or social sciences related discipline.
- Bachelor’s degree in the areas mentioned above in combination with 2 years of relevant experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the Master’s degree.
Experience:
- Up to 2 years (with Master´s degree) or minimum 2 years (with Bachelor´s degree) of experience in the production of finance analysis.
Required Skills:
- Experience in the use of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and advanced knowledge of web-based management systems such as ERP is required.
Desired Skills:
- Experience in the national and/subnational budget analysis.
- Experience in designing financing plans/strategies, roadmaps, preferably within the climate or environmental sector.
- Experience in private sector and/or NGO engagement, preferably within the climate or environmental sector.
- Experience in engaging with the Ministry of Trade and Economics and/or the Ministry of Finance.
- Experience in planning and facilitating dialogue processes within committees and workshops.
Languages:
- Fluency in Tajik, Russian and English (written and spoken) is required.
Institutional Arrangement
The incumbent will directly report to the Project Manager of UNDP/GCF Project “Enabling an Effective National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Process for Tajikistan”.
Disclaimer
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Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.
Non-discrimination
UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.
UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.
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