Regional Technical Specialist – Climate Change Adaptation

Background

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP:  we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.

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.

Office/Unit/Project Description 

UNDP is the knowledge frontier organization for sustainable development in the UN Development System and serves as the integrator for collective action to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP’s policy work carried out at HQ, Regional and Country Office levels, forms a contiguous spectrum of deep local knowledge to cutting-edge global perspectives and advocacy. In this context, UNDP invests in the Global Policy Network (GPN), a network of field-based and global technical expertise across a wide range of knowledge domains and in support of the signature solutions and organizational capabilities envisioned in the Strategic Plan.

Within the GPN, the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) has the responsibility for developing all relevant policy and guidance to support the results of UNDP’s Strategic Plan. BPPS’s staff provides technical advice to Country Offices, advocates for UNDP corporate messages, represents UNDP at multi-stakeholder fora including public-private dialogues, government, and civil society dialogues, and engages in UN inter-agency coordination in specific thematic areas. BPPS works closely with UNDP’s Crisis Bureau (CB) to support emergency and crisis response. BPPS ensures that issues of risk are fully integrated into UNDP’s development programmes. BPPS assists UNDP and partners to achieve higher quality development results through an integrated approach that links results-based management and performance monitoring with more effective and new ways of working. BPPS supports UNDP and partners to be more innovative, knowledge and data driven including in its programme support efforts.

BPPS’s Hubs on Nature, Climate, Energy and Waste, with the support of the Vertical Fund Programme Support, Oversight and Compliance Unit, works with governments, civil society, and private sector partners to integrate nature, climate, energy and waste related concerns into national and sector planning and inclusive growth policies, support country obligations under Multilateral Environmental Agreements, and oversee the implementation of the UN’s largest portfolio of in-country programming nature, climate change, energy and waste.

The newly established UNDP Climate Hub is the arrowhead of UNDP’s commitment to the “Climate Promise” that aims to support programming countries designing and implementing pledges under the Paris Agreement, including ambitious National Determined Contributions, with climate change mitigation and adaptation interventions fully embedded in the national development planning and budgetary processes. The Climate Hub will build on UNDP’s existing over USD 4 billion country-level climate portfolio on Climate Change Policies and Strategies, Climate Change Adaptation, Climate Change Mitigation, Climate and Forests, covering over 142 countries, as well as on UNDP’s Nature portfolio, UNDP’s Sustainable Finance Hub, UNDP’s Digital offer and other relevant portfolios on youth, gender, health, climate security among others. 

The UNDP Climate Hub is responsible for: 

• Thought leadership on Climate and to be the custodian of UNDP policy positions on Climate; 
• Strategy and vision formulation; 
• Pipeline development in coordination with the other hubs and the Vertical Fund Programme Support, Oversight and Compliance Unit; 
• Provision of integrated policy and programme support to Country Offices; 
• Global engagement, advocacy in collaboration with BERA; 
• Integration across thematic areas; 
• Strategic Partnerships development and resource mobilization; 
• Lead and Support global flagship initiatives and partnerships on Climate; 
• Serve as focal point with relevant UN coordination mechanisms and Conventions (UN Framework Convention on Climate Change); 
• Cross-organization knowledge and learning; and 
• Innovation.

Climate Change Adaptation Programme

Climate change could drive an additional 100 million people into poverty by 2030. Countries have increasingly included adaptation priorities in their NDCs pointing to issues of water and food security, safeguarding economic assets from extreme climate events and disasters, and protection and regeneration of natural capital. Building on the experiences and lessons from a portfolio of initiatives in over 137 countries, UNDP advances a ‘whole-of-society’ approach to accelerate adaptation and continues to support countries to mobilize public and private finance to implement their adaption priorities. UNDP assists government partners to scale up the integration of climate change adaptation into policy, planning, and investments at both national and local levels through the support to the National Adaptation Planning (NAP) process and the NDCs. UNDP supports climate change adaptation action in the context of agriculture and food security, water resources, coastal zone management, ecosystems protection, public health, resilient infrastructure, urban resilience, livelihoods, and climate information/early warnings.

UNDP works with governments, private sector, academia, and civil society to build capacities to implement transformative approaches to securing resilient lives, livelihoods, ecosystems, and markets, particularly focusing on the most vulnerable and marginalized. With a portfolio of adaptation projects and programmes across 100+ countries, UNDP is a key actor within the UN System in supporting countries to access and catalyze public and private finance to implement their adaptation priorities in the context of the SDG agenda.

The strategic objective of the Climate Change Adaptation Team is to develop the capacity of national and sub-national Governments for adaptation planning and support countries in accessing, mobilizing, and implementing adaptation finance for resilient development. To achieve this, the team focuses its efforts on the following signature programmes: 

• Supporting integration of climate risks into national/sub-national planning and budgeting:  Supports national and sub-national governments (with focus on Ministries of Finance and planning bodies) to develop and strengthen policies, institutions, capacities and knowledge for climate-risk informed medium- to long-term planning, and to make use of the full range of public and private financing mechanisms to support adaptation investments;
• Advancing resilient Livelihoods, Food and Agricultural systems, Water Security, Coastal Zone management, and Ecosystems:  Advances climate resilient livelihoods across vulnerable sectors and populations promoting socio-economic development, especially for the poor, women, and indigenous peoples. Also, provides assistance to country-led efforts on gender-responsive, climate change risk management in the context of food security and resilient agriculture, water resources, coastal zone development, ecosystem restoration and management, public health, and climate change-related disaster risks;
• Strengthening Climate Information and Early Warning Systems for Climate Resilient Development: Supports the development of climate information and Early Warning Systems (EWS) across a range of countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific in order to help them respond to both short-term/rapid onset climatic hazards (e.g. cyclones, floods and storms), as well as long-term/slow onset hazards (e.g. drought and long-term climate change).
• Promoting private sector engagement in adaptation: Supports the engagement of private sector in the adaptation portfolio through understanding of barriers, risks, and opportunities to the private sector in adaptation. Works with the private sector experts and other RTS/RTAs to help design and deliver projects that advance unlocking of private sector investments to support adaptation on the ground.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Regional Technical Specialist will provide second-level oversight, quality assurance and compliance with fund/donor requirements for Climate Hub programming initiatives during the design phase and implementation phase and ensure portfolio-wide risk-based oversight of the Climate Change Adaptation portfolio, for the related technical area, primarily within the Asia-Pacific region. The Regional Technical Specialist is responsible for providing technical, policy, and programming implementation support and oversight, and knowledge and capacity development services pertaining to the work of the Climate Hub signature programmes to UNDP country offices, working with other UN agencies, governments and inter-governmental organizations, NGO’s, donors, the private sector and many others.  Specific results are expected in the areas of:

Innovation, Strategic Leadership, Policy Dialogue and Advocacy

• Provide support to establishing and maintaining a strategic understanding of, and engagement with, the substantive technical issues, institutions, and processes within the region, including establishing contact with and developing strategic partnerships with other agencies, donors, NGO’s, the private sector, scientific institutions and the like; 
• Contributing to identification, development and implementation of new strategic programming opportunities and partnerships in the area of climate change adaptation, green, low-emission and climate resilient development, and resilient economic development and sustainable livelihood;
• Participating in global retreats, focal area retreats, regional strategic planning, pipeline management exercises, etc.; 
• Participating in cross-substantive area technical dialogue, common strategic visioning, mainstreaming, programming, and other collaboration within the regional team; 
• Keeping the Regional Team informed of trends and issues with respect to the substantive technical area.

Programming and Management

• Supporting the development of strategic policy and guidance for strengthening UNDP Country Offices with climate change adaptation project design and implementation including alignment with national priorities; 
• Assisting the development of and advocacy for specific policy analysis and development tools and guidance in support of programming and finance for climate change adaptation;
• Supporting the establishment of a trusted leadership role for UNDP Climate Hub and Vertical Fund Unit within the region; 
• Sourcing of technical expertise and support, including assisting with the preparation of TORs, identification and evaluation of experts and reviewing reports;
• Contributing to regional retreats, focal area retreats, regional strategic planning, pipeline management exercises, etc.;
• Promoting gender equity/empowerment in programming opportunities;
• Helping to ensure that strategies and projects are aligned to country outcomes and UNDP corporate environment results in internal UNDP project tracking systems;
• Providing inputs necessary to maintain quality and accurate data in and for project management in the internal systems such as PIMS+ and portfolio delivery rates; monitoring project risks, risk management action plan and ensuring timely escalation as appropriate 

Resource Mobilization 

• Assist in the provision of timely quality information and technical advice on source of funds policies, priorities and activities;
• Provide technical advice and inputs, review, quality assure concepts and project documents for submission to donors;
• Participate in the coordination of design, preparation, submission and approval of project proposals and requests for project development financing;
• Support the liaison with potential (co)financing agencies and institutions.

Quality Assurance and Development Impact 

• Assisting with inception, contracting, and startup of projects, including the establishment of indicators, benchmarks and work plans;
• Supporting UNDP Country Offices in the supervision, implementation oversight and monitoring, evaluation, troubleshooting, and adaptive management of approved projects, including preparing and reviewing and quality assurance of annual reports and work plans;
• Maintaining project and portfolio information and corporate information systems;
• Developing guidance and tools for country offices to utilize in operationalizing projects inception, contracting and startup of projects, including the establishment of indicators, benchmarks and work plans; 
• Supporting COs and RBAP on country and regional priorities, liaising with other regional hub practices.

Learning, Knowledge Management and Self Development 

• Evaluating, capturing, codifying, synthesizing lessons and stimulating the uptake of best practices and knowledge, including the development of resource kits and other knowledge materials;
• Peer reviewing, commenting on, and seeking to improve the technical quality of projects, policies, practices, guidelines, advisory notes, publications and the like; 
• Assisting with the preparation of regional Community of Practice meetings; 
• Preparing and delivering training courses, as needed;
• Developing knowledge products of relevance to UNDP Climate Hub’s support to countries on low emission climate resilient development in the area of climate change adaptation;
• Developing and carrying out a personal learning plan.

4. Institutional Arrangement

• The Regional Technical Specialist will work from the UNDP Regional Hub in Bangkok, Thailand; 
• The Regional Technical Specialist – Climate Change Adaptation will report to the CCA Regional Technical Advisor based in Bangkok, Thailand;
• The Regional Technical Specialist – Climate Change Adaptation will be given access to relevant information necessary for the execution of the tasks under this assignment;
• The Regional Technical Specialist – Climate Change Adaptation will be responsible for providing her/his own work station (i.e. laptop, internet, phone, scanner/printer, etc.) and must have access to reliable internet connection; 
• Given the regional and country consultations to be undertaken during this assignment, the Regional Technical Specialist – Climate Change Adaptation is expected to be reasonably flexible with his/her availability for such consultations, taking into consideration different time zones.

Competencies

Core

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies 

Required Skills and Experience

Travel:

•  International mission travel may be required (destinations to be identified).  Expected mission travel would be discussed upon commencement of assignment and updated quarterly;

•   Any necessary mission travel must be approved in writing and in advance by the supervising PTA for CCM;

•  The BSAFE course must be successfully completed prior to commencement of travel;

•  The incumbent is responsible for obtaining any visas needed in connection with travel with the necessary support from UNDP and for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director;

• S/he is required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under https://dss.un.org/dssweb;

Disclaimer

Important information for US Permanent Residents (‘Green Card’ holders)

Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents. UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment. 

UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.

Applicant information about UNDP rosters

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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