Summary
Date Posted: Tuesday, November 29, 2022 , Base Salary: Not Disclosed

JOB DETAILS:
National Climate Change Technical Specialist
Job Description
The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) makes public and private finance work for the poor in the world’s 46 least developed countries. With its capital mandate and instruments, UNCDF offers “last mile” finance models that unlock public and private resources, especially at the domestic level, to reduce poverty and support local economic development.
UNCDF’s financing models work through three channels: inclusive digital economies, connecting individuals, households, and small businesses with financial eco-systems that catalyze participation in the local economy, and provide tools to climb out of poverty and manage financial lives; local development finance, that capacitates localities through fiscal decentralization, innovative municipal finance, and structured project finance to drive local economic expansion and sustainable development; and investment finance, that provides catalytic financial structuring, de-risking, and capital deployment to drive SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) impact and domestic resource mobilization. By strengthening how finance works for poor people at the household, small enterprise, and local infrastructure levels, UNCDF contributes to Sustainable Development Goal-SDG 1 on eradicating poverty and SDG 17 on the means of implementation. By identifying those market segments where innovative financing models can have transformational impact in helping to reach the last mile and address exclusion and inequalities of access, UNCDF contributes to a broad diversity of SDGs.
The Local Climate Adaptive Living Facility (LoCAL), designed and hosted by UNCDF, is a mechanism to integrate climate change into local authorities’ planning and budgeting through the regular intergovernmental fiscal transfer system using performance-based grants in a participatory and gender sensitive manner, increase awareness and capacities to respond to climate change at the local level including through ecosystem-based solutions, and increase the quality and number of local investments that address climate change. LoCAL combines performance-based climate resilience grants (PBCRGs), which ensure programming and verification of change expenditures at the local level, with technical and capacity-building support. It uses the grants and demonstration effect to trigger further flows for local climate action including global climate finance and national fiscal transfers. LoCAL is currently active in 17 countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific, with another 13 countries preparing to join it.
LoCAL-Uganda
UNCDF has supported the Government of Uganda (GoU) to design the LoCAL-Uganda Mechanism, aligned with the Discretionary Development Equalisation Grant (DDEG), with aims of increasing the resilience of communities and local economies across the country, through regular, predictable, systemic and verifiable climate finance in support of local climate responses, through increased District access to climate finance to implement climate change adaptation investments in Uganda (outcome 1) and institutionalising a standard and internationally recognized country-based mechanism of performance-based climate resilience grants in the country, further attracting climate finance, domestic and international (outcome 2).
To this end, LoCAL-Uganda will raise awareness and strengthen capacities for subnational climate change adaptation at both District and central levels (output1); support the integration of climate change into local planning and budgeting processes and finance local adaptation interventions and investments (output 2) and establish and deploy across the whole country an effective performance-based climate resilience grant system (financing mechanism) that can attract various sources of climate finance (output 3).
Based on a whole-of-society approach, LoCAL-Uganda will be fully aligned with the country’s climate change policy, the Nationally Determined Contribution, with the National Adaptation Plan process, financial systems for local governments, and related institutional and regulatory frameworks.
Within this programme context, UNCDF is seeking a National Climate Change Technical Specialist NOC to contribute, in their technical capacity and area, on the effective delivery of the Programme’s activities in Uganda, reporting to the Programme Management Specialist, P-4, based in Kampala, and working under the overall guidance of the Global Manager, P-5, based in Kampala, Uganda and in close collaboration with the LoCAL global Facility and LTF colleagues across the region.
This position will be based in Kampala, Uganda.
More information about the project: https://www.uncdf.org/local/homepage
The National Climate Change Technical Specialist will contribute to the daily implementation of the project which includes providing technical advice on climate change issues and environmental sustainability to government counterparts at national and sub-national levels; leading the technical dialogue and provision of policy and technical specialist services in relation to climate change information and assessments, climate mainstreaming, and contribute to the technical dialogue on climate finance and (direct) access to international climate finance; ensuring the adequate integration of environment and climate considerations in the LoCAL; supporting piloting and establishment of a national local information system for adaptation (LISA) in addressing hazards, vulnerabilities and exposure of target districts and their communities in relation to climate change; and for the integration of environment and climate change issues in the local government development and investment plans and budgets that foster gender equality and climate resilient local economies, aligned with the LoCAL’s investment menu. The National Climate Change Technical Specialist is also expected to contribute to the management of day-to-day implementation of selected activities related to climate change and environmental sustainability; and report preparation in the section related to Climate.

Duties and Responsibilities
1. Programme Management
• Execute, oversee and monitor the day-to-day implementation of selected activities related to climate change and environmental sustainability;
• Contribute to the management of the risk log of the project;
• Contribute to the preparation and timely submission of comprehensive technical and financial reports in line with contractual agreements including semi-annual reporting;
• Organize consultative meetings, seminars and workshops to drive analytical and policy work of the Programme.
2. Policy, regulatory and technical advice to government counterparts and key stakeholders
• Provide policy, regulatory and technical advice on climate change issues and environmental sustainability to government counterparts at national and sub-national levels;
• Lead the technical dialogue and provision of policy and technical specialist services to national and local government counterparts in relation to climate change information and assessments, climate mainstreaming, and contribute to the technical dialogue on climate finance and (direct) access to international climate finance;
• Ensuring the adequate integration of environment and climate considerations (e.g. specifications) in the investments delivered in the context of the programme, in line with the programme design document;
• Support “Learning by doing” for the piloting and establishment of a national local information system for adaptation (LISA), addressing hazards, vulnerabilities and exposure of target districts and their communities in relation to climate change; and for the integration of environment and climate change issues in the local government development and investment plans and budgets that foster gender equality and climate resilient local economies, aligned with the LoCAL’s investment menu.
3. Knowledge management and communication
• Contribute to the implementation of the Communication and Visibility Plan of the Programme, in collaboration with Project team, partners and technical consultants;
• Identify key knowledge constraints and organize learning, knowledge exchange, training, workshops, etc. to build the awareness and capacities on relevant themes (i.e. climate change, local climate risk assessments, environmental sustainability, mainstreaming, etc.);
• Identify, collect and disseminate best practices and lesson learned from the Programme in areas of specialty
4. Networking and Partnership building
• Maintain close working relationships with the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Local Government, Ministry of Water and Environment, NDA, UNFCCC focal points and other key stakeholders at various levels in order to support the quality of the execution of the PBCRGS and its key results areas, to expand the mechanism in Uganda, in close coordination with senior management and other team members;
• Support the participation of UNCDF in working groups and steering committees on the issue of environment and climate change and related sectors and provide inputs for conducive policy and regulatory environment.

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities:
The Climate Change Technical Specialist, NOC, will contribute to the effective delivery of the Programme’s activities in Uganda, and will report to the Programme Management Specialist, P4, based in Kampala, Uganda, and work under the overall supervision of the Global LRP Programme Manager, P-5, based in Kampala, Uganda and in close collaboration with other LTF colleagues in the country and across the region. The position does not have direct report but will provide technical advisory to the programme in area of Climate Change
Core Competencies
Achieve Results: LEVEL 3: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact
Think Innovatively: LEVEL 3: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems
Learn Continuously LEVEL 3: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences
Adapt with Agility LEVEL 3: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands
Act with Determination LEVEL 3: Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results
Engage and Partner LEVEL 3: Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration
Enable Diversity and Inclusion LEVEL 3: Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity
Cross-Functional & Technical competencies
External Relations & Advocacy
Communication Advocacy strategy Ability to create and implement advocacy strategies which lead to impactful change
Partnership management Multi-stakeholder engagement and funding Knowledge and ability to forge multi-stakeholder partnerships, and remove any obstacles to resource mobilization and multi-stakeholder funding platforms
Partnership management Strategic engagement Ability to capture and sustain attention, interest and agreement of high-level, influential policy and decision makers and secure their buy-in of high-level vision and objective
Programme and Policy
2030 Agenda: Planet Disaster Risk Reduction and Recovery Climate Risk Management Disaster and Climate Risk Governance
2030 Agenda: Planet Nature, Climate and Energy Climate Change Policies: Climate Finance
2030 Agenda: Planet Nature, Climate and Energy Climate Change Policies: Governance / integrated planning for climate change investments in the context of urbanization
2030 Agenda: Planet Nature, Climate and Energy Climate Change Adaptation: strategies

Required Skills and Experience
Education:
• A minimum of Master’s degree in environmental science and management, climate science, geographic studies, international development or a related field;
• A first-level university degree in the above areas with 7 years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree

Experience:
• A minimum of five (5) years’ experience in the field of climate change (preferably on adaptation), environmental management and/or Earth Science discipline, climate science applied to development;
• A minimum of three (3) years’ experience related to environmental assessments, climate risk and vulnerability assessments, climate modelling, geographical information system (GIS) and/or risk mapping, in particular at the local level is required;
• Essential knowledge and skills required for entry into position. (Please do not duplicate what has been covered in the responsibilities & competency section)
o Knowledge of climate change issues and its potential impacts on local economic development particularly for the most vulnerable is required
o Knowledge or experience in context developing solution on climate action on how to tackle climate change adaptation and resilience in Uganda is highly desirable
o Experience of designing, developing, and using knowledge products, mentoring, training, or outreach, in the context of climate change is highly desirable
o Work experience with central government and Ministry of Water and Environment and knowledge of government systems is highly desirable
o Knowledge of the UNFCCC process and the role of climate finance is an advantage
o Strong networking capabilities and ability to associate him/herself with a range of actors (inter alia central and local governments; policy makers; national statistics office and donors, local communities, women and youth) with a view to building relations and facilitating links;
o A minimum of three (3) years’ experience working on policy, regulatory and technical specialist services with national and local counterparts will be considered as an asset;
o Experience with a UN organization/agency is desirable;
• Language requirements (Required / Desired)
o Fluency in written and spoken English and in other major languages spoken in Uganda.
• Knowledge of another UN language is an asset
Please note that continuance of appointment beyond the initial 12 months is contingent upon the successful completion of a probationary period.

Education Requirement: No Requirements

Job Experience: No Requirements

Work Hours: 8

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