Project Management Specialist

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UN’s global development network, advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience, and resources to help people build a better life. UNDP is present in 185 countries. The Cambodia Country Office works in partnership with the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC), non-government organizations, community-based organizations, development partners, and the private sector to support the Kingdom’s progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The UNDP Cambodia Country Programme (CPD) 2024-2028 is aligned with key national priorities including Cambodia’s vision 2050 and the Pentagonal Strategy-Phase 1 2024-2028. The CPD 2024-28 identified three transformational shifts for support. The first shift is toward a more sustainable and green economic development model for accelerating inclusive growth, economic diversification, and human development. The second shift involves championing just energy transition, climate action and nature-based solutions as the foundation for national wealth, well-being, and resilience to shocks. The third shift is towards strengthening institutions, civic space, and participation as enablers for inclusive growth, access to rights and equal opportunities for all, whilst ensuring that the society at large is using the full potential of digital transformation.

Guided by the UNDP Signature Solution on Environment, UNDP will continue working with the Ministry of Environment (MoE) for inclusive environmental governance reforms and policy coherence that focus on better quality of, and access to, data, as well as improving coordination and institutional capacities for sustainable natural resources management. UNDP will work with the government and private sector in pursuing new avenues for sustainable financing and non-tax revenue management, greening value chains, promoting impact standards, and raising public awareness on the value of ecosystem goods and services. Community-based management will be advocated for, and nature-based solutions and sustainable livelihoods promoted for sustainability and fostering a sense of ownership. UNDP will promote an enabling environment that encompasses inclusive and gender-responsive policies, regulations, knowledge and capabilities, sectoral mainstreaming, and networking. UNDP will collaborate with the private sector on promoting innovative solutions, green businesses, new markets, and access to sustainable financing. On the demand side, UNDP will promote consumer and citizen awareness on circularity and build capacities and skills for green and circular economy jobs.

Cambodia’s economy and population have grown rapidly in tandem. From 2014 to 2022, GDP per capita increased from $1,448 to $2,345 (NIS  2023). Meanwhile, the population grew from 14.8 million in 2014 to 16.8 million in 2022 (NIS 2023).  The growing economy and population have vastly increased the use of energy and materials, and the amount of waste generated. This has added significant pressure on Cambodia’s resources, and environment.  

The total final energy consumption grew by 6.6 % per year in 2000 – 2010 and by 7.9 % per in 2010 – 2019 (Theangseng, H. “2023”) . There was also a sharp increase in material use and waste from manufacturing, construction, and consumption. Total municipal solid waste is estimated to be 4 million metric tons (MoE 2019). In Phnom Penh, the volume of total municipal waste increased more than three times over a 12-year period, from 343,657 metric tons in 2007 to 1,058,500 metric tons in 2019 (MoE 2020). About 20% of this waste is plastic. Increased economic activities and consumption has led to alarming levels of air pollution, which threatens public health in the major cities.

To tackle the environmental challenges, the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) developed the national Circular Economy Strategy and Action Plan (2021-2035). This plan includes a foundational vision and mission for the Circular Economy in Cambodia.

Thus far, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Cambodia has assisted the RGC in advancing priority circular economy initiatives, primarily focusing on plastic management. These initiatives include: 1) combatting marine plastic litter project (the second phase will start in January 2025), 2) developing and implementing a National Plastic Action Partnership (NPAP), and 3) Ending Plastic Pollution Innovation Challenge (EPPIC). Building on these initiatives, UNDP developed and being implemented a circular economy portfolio aiming to address the issue in a holistic manner. Hence, UNDP seeks to hire a project management specialist to support management and coordination of these different streams of works in collaboration with different teams of UNDP, with government agencies, CSOs, and development partners.   

Duties and Responsibilities

This position supervises a project assistant and reports to an Environmental Programme Specialist for daily operations and a Programme Analyst for quality assurance for the project implementation.  For the project implementation, the position works closely with the Project Management Unit, and the National Project Manager (NPM) of the Ministry of Environment (MoE) and other relevant ministries and partners for the planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of project activities. 

• The Project Management Specialist will be managing different initiative(s) related to a circular economy and other relevant projects. In this role, the Project Management Specialist will be responsible for project management ensuring quality and results by:
• Overseeing and managing projects and the project team on a day-to-day basis;
• Managing relationships, strategic partnerships, policy, advocacy, and resource mobilization efforts;
• Overseeing result-based monitoring and reporting activities of the project;
• Facilitating knowledge management and sharing; and
• Providing contributions to the process of programming and pipeline formulation of projects related to circular economy.
• Ensure day-to-day oversight and management of projects and projects teams.
• Lead strategic planning, performance monitoring, and major project decisions.
• Manage project staff, consultants and/or contractors.
• Lead and coordinate the development and implementation of annual project work plans, delivery targets and guide the teams to achieve the targets.
• Provide guidance to and lead the coordination with different partners, especially the implementing partners, responsible parties, and other grantees, to ensure that their work plans are implemented and that results are achieved.
• Set direction for the teams including roles and responsibilities, accountability, and reporting ensuring that the work of the teams is conducted in accordance with UNDP’s relevant business processes and that high–quality outputs are delivered on time.
• Manage and monitor the progress of the projects in accordance with the agreed results framework and performance indicators and take corrective action as appropriate.
• Ensure accountability for, and efficient use of project funds.
• Ensure the integrity of the financial system and oversee the administrative, financial, and budgetary aspects of the projects.
• Undertake performance management of project and supervisees including establishment of annual results, on-going feedback, and mid-term and final evaluations in line with UNDP Rules and Regulations;
• Prepare Project Board meetings and ensure that recommendations made by the Project Board are addressed.

Managing relationships, strategic partnerships, policy, advocacy, and resource mobilization efforts: 

• Provide policy and strategic advice to UNDP to strengthen and scale up the partnership with the key RGC counterparts and foster/enhance collaboration with other relevant Government bodies by building synergies and complementarities with Government counterparts and national partners.
• Contribute to seeking and identifying additional partnership and funding opportunities, and prepare concept notes, funding proposals, donor briefings and presentations in support of resource mobilization to advance UNDP’s and the project goals;
• Mobilize, foster, and strengthen strategic partnerships with private sectors, private foundations, and other relevant multilateral and bilateral organizations to advance and support the projects’ objectives.
• Establish strong ties to and with national programmes, and relevant sectoral strategies, priorities, and plans.
• Maintain relationships between the project and the donors and present a clear analysis of how their financial support has contributed to the results they requested and promote the institutional development efforts to new donors.

Overseeing Result-based Project Monitoring and Reporting activities: 

• Ensure proper execution of financial and procurement actions of all project activities;
• Set direction for results-based project monitoring and evaluation priorities in accordance with UNDP rules and regulations;
• Guide development of overall monitoring and evaluation systems for the project and put mechanisms in place for proper and timely reporting;
• Lead quarterly review meetings and annual project reviews by monitoring the progress of project implementation, assessing results and identifying areas of weaknesses to ensure the project achieves the planned results in accordance with relevant plans;
• Monitor and manage any strategic risks/issues facing the project; submit new risks/issues to the Board for consideration and decision on possible actions if required; update the status of these risks/issues by maintaining the Project Risks/Issues Log;
• Evaluate all key project deliverables, as well as final product to ensure traceability of requirements, high quality and client acceptance.

Facilitating knowledge management and sharing: 

• Ensure regular assessment of strategic, implementation, action plans identifying areas of emphasis to guide project improvements and future plans;
• Use sound judgment in all project communication and ensure that project communication meets needs of different audiences (government, private sector and so forth)
• Manage stakeholder expectations and participate in communication activities to inform stakeholders of progress and issues;
• Establish and maintain a friendly internal communication system to ensure smooth communication among and between the project partners;
• Lead the process of knowledge creation and dissemination related to national, regional and global know-how in the areas of project focus including sustainable urban development;
• Help build the knowledge base, data, and support analytics to deliver a socioeconomic and operational case to Government;
• Contribute to the development and maintenance of the programme knowledge networks and practices and development of knowledge products; and
• Represent the project with donors, governments and national and international forums.

Providing contributions to the process of programming and pipeline formulation of the projects related to circular economy: 

• Identify areas of UNDP comparative advantages in the field of waste management and circular economy;
• Support the formulation of project concept notes and full project documents including information materials in consultation with relevant stakeholders and partners;
• Organize the stakeholder meetings/events/workshops with key stakeholders to identify priorities for waste management and circular economy;
• Contribute to the resource mobilization with donors, the private sector, government, and other global and regional resources;
• Manage the project preparation grant (PPG) for the project related to waste management and circular economy;
• Facilitate consultations required for Internal Project Appraisal Committee meetings, Local Project Appraisal Committee Meetings.
• The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Advanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in Environmental Management, Business Administration, Economics/ Economic Development, Political Science, Sociology, Development Studies, or related fields is required. Or
• A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas mentioned above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

• Minimum of 5 years (with a master’s degree) or 7 years (with a bachelor’s degree) of relevant experience in managing, implementing, and monitoring development projects.
• Experience in project design, implementation, coordination, monitoring and/or reporting of development projects preferably on just circular economy and plastic waste management.
• Experience working and networking with multi-stakeholders (national and subnational government, development partners, private sector, and civil society) in Cambodia related to circular economy and waste management.
• Exposure to the country’s political and administrative system, in particular at national and sub-national levels in areas of climate change, circular economy, and waste management.
• Experience in implementing programmes across the UN agencies and the Royal Government of Cambodia.
• Expertise and proven track record in managing projects, results-based monitoring and evaluation and building partnerships with government and stakeholders is an asset.
• Prior experience with resource mobilization and familiarity with procedures of the UN and donor agencies is a strong asset.
• Experience in sound liaison, negotiation, and representational skills at local, regional and international levels is an asset.

Required languages:

• Fluency in Khmer and English (both spoken and written) is required.

Source: https://estm.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_1/requisitions/job/21432