Project Environmental Policy Analyst

Background

UNDP Pakistan works with the Government and communities to develop and implement local solutions to development challenges. In an evolving development context, UNDP supports the Government of Pakistan's efforts to build a more equitable, prosperous, peaceful, and resilient society and achieve its SDGs and COP 25 targets.

RECCU is supporting projects across the country to respond to the growing threat of climate change, to mainstream environmental concerns into national development planning processes, and to expand access to environmental and energy services for the poor. UNDP has sought to ensure the poor have more substantial capacities to manage, adapt, and monitor climate change. Climate Change is a vast development challenge as well as a huge environmental challenge. It is a growing problem and is now hitting the poorest and the most vulnerable first and most challenging.

In recent decades, biodiversity finance tools and solutions have demonstrated their importance for achieving biodiversity goals and broader sustainable development objectives. Improved choice, design and implementation of effective, well-tailored finance solutions will strengthen countries’ chances of achieving national and global biodiversity targets. Biodiversity Finance Plans have become increasingly recognised as a relevant tool to help countries identify and fill the biodiversity finance gap, including through the work of the Biodiversity Finance Initiative www.biofin.org. In December 2022, parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity adopted the Montreal-Kunming Global Biodiversity Framework. This included numerous targets relevant to financing. Target 19 on resource mobilisation includes reference for countries to design and implement national biodiversity finance plans.

The GEF created a global programme to support countries in designing a national Biodiversity Finance Plan, updating NBSAP, and providing early action support (EAS). The NBSAP and EAS support the reporting against the existing NBSAP targets while supporting the National entity in developing updated NBSAP targets beyond 2030. A Biodiversity Finance Plan includes a systems analysis of a country's economy, including mapping existing financing mechanisms, subsidies with potentially harmful impacts on nature, drivers of biodiversity loss and gain, public and private expenditures committed towards biodiversity objectives, and national financial needs for biodiversity. The biodiversity finance plan consists of a series of actions aiming to significantly scale up available funding, green or phase out harmful finance flows and improve the effectiveness of available expenditures. The programme allows for actively sharing experiences across countries and includes a knowledge-sharing platform and continuous technical support to country teams. The Project Environmental Policy Analyst will lead the Policy and Institutional Review production in support of the Project Manager—Biodiversity Conservation—and will provide initial input to support the Project Lead in developing the Biodiversity Finance Plan.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the Project Manager—Biodiversity Conservation (project lead), the Project Environmental Policy Analyst is expected to lead the production of the Policy and Institutional Review (PIR) and provide initial inputs to start the development of the Biodiversity Finance Plan, following the guidance provided by the latest version of the BIOFIN Workbook and with detailed data.

The Environmental Policy Analyst will also, as much as possible, provide input to all other national outputs, including critical stakeholder analysis for the Biodiversity Expenditure Review (BER) and a summary of critical priorities and policies for the latest part of the methodology, the Biodiversity Finance Plan. The Analyst should also provide input to the feedback on the BIOFIN methodological framework.

The Environmental Policy Analyst will assess and describe significant biodiversity-related policies and legal frameworks and identify existing finance solutions relevant to biodiversity finance, as described in the most recent version of the BIOFIN Workbook. The Analyst will focus on the most recent National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), which would ideally be aligned with the new Kunming Montreal GBF Framework. The Environmental Policy Analyst will produce drafts and analyses that will be reviewed and ultimately validated by the Project Lead and the RECCU team under the guidance of the BIOFIN global team.

The project Environmental Policy Analyst will work under the direct supervision of the Project Manager—biodiversity (Project Lead), RECCU.

Programme Management, Implementation and Development

• Support the Project Lead in the conception and preparation of the PIR. 
• Plan and implement the PIR step of the BIOFIN methodology at the CO level in accordance with the Ministry priorities.
• Identify relevant stakeholders to inform and participate in BIOFIN methodology and the support to NBSAP.
• Stock take and analyse relevant biodiversity-related policy instruments and studies (such as harmful subsidies analysis that might be delivered prior to or parallel to this step of the methodology); these include NBSAPs and beyond.
• Develop an inventory of existing Biodiversity Financing Mechanisms for Pakistan in support of MOCC&EC and the provincial government.
• Review existing economic valuation studies relevant to the BIOFIN process.
• Review the legal framework relevant to the BIOFIN process and other sources relevant to BD finance. 
• Review existing documents from the GBF-EAS project and identify existing national positive and negative incentives/subsidies following available guidance.

Monitoring and Evaluation of the project Activities by achieving the targets set.

• Provide relevant findings of financial mechanisms that contribute to biodiversity finance and potential areas in need of finance. 
• Describe relevant stakeholders, sectors, and institutions to inform the BER analysis.
• Support the Project Lead with a summary of findings, finance mechanism baseline and initial preparation guidance of the Biodiversity Financing Plan. 
• Support detailed feasibility analyses on a range of financing mechanisms depending on knowledge and experience.

Project Outreach and Communication

• Preparing workshops, meetings, networking events, and presentations as required to complete the Policy and Institutional Review.
• Provide substantive comments and feedback on how to improve the existing methodologies.
• Support project lead in organizing validation workshops at the federal and provincial levels.

Engagement, Partnerships, Coordination and Administration

• Support project teams/personnel in the identification, documenting and drafting of best practices and lessons learned. 
• Identify and engage key stakeholders, including government officials, community leaders, and partner organizations, to build and maintain strong relationships.
• Participate at meetings, conferences, and other events to promote its mission and objectives.
• Plan and execute community engagement activities, including events, workshops, and public meetings, to foster strong relationships with stakeholders.
• Develop and implement a project engagement strategy to increase community participation and feedback.
• Maintain a repository of key stakeholders and partners on shared spaces like Teams or SharePoint.
• Support in organizing donors, partners, and media visits for thematic campaigns and documentaries.

Knowledge Management and Reporting

• Document decisions and assumptions made while completing the Policy and Institutional Review (PIR) 
• Document lessons from conducting the BFP project, ranging from institutional considerations to technical issues.
• Prepare reports and case studies, as required, for submission to global meetings (e.g. CBD COP).
• Provide insights and recommendations for the BFP. 
• Develop PIR Report including positive and negative incentives (subsidies) and stock take of financing mechanisms at the PIR phase.
• Support and develop the validation workshop reports.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.
 

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:

2030 Agenda: Planet

• Nature: Ecosystems and Biodiversity Programme: Nature-positive economy and Biodiversity Finance

Partnership management

• Private sector resource mobilization: Ability to identify, develop and manage partnerships that leverage private sector technical expertise and resources.

Business Direction & Strategy

• System Thinking: Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system

Business Development

• Knowledge Facilitation: Ability to animate individuals and groups, internally and externally, and to design and facilitate activities, to share and exchange knowledge, information and ideas. Knowledge of tools and approaches to stimulate active participation, contribution, and exchange.

Business Management

• Project Management: Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals
• Communication: 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 & Evaluation: Ability to systematically monitor results of strategies, programmes, and activities with a view to make sure that they are being implemented effectively; Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback and reporting on the consistency or discrepancy between planned activities and programme management and results; Ability to make independent judgment of the management and results of strategies, programmes and activities based on set criteria and benchmark, keeping in mind the needs and concerns of client, current and upcoming. Knowledge and understanding of monitoring and evaluation frameworks, concepts, methodologies, systems, processes, and tools. Ability to make an independent judgement based on set criteria and benchmarks. Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns.
   

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Advanced Degree (master's or equivalent) in Public Policy or Economic Policy with an Environment/Biodiversity/Economic focus or an Environmental/Biodiversity with a Public Policy focus is required or
• A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in above mentioned areas in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

• Applicants with a master’s degree (or equivalent) in a relevant field of study are not required to have professional work experience.
• Applicants with a bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) are required to have a minimum of two (2) years of relevant professional experience in Environmental Policy and biodiversity-related projects.
• Experience in the preparation of publications, reports and presentations.
• Experience in collaborating with international and national experts and institutions.
• Experience and knowledge of working on environmental issues or biodiversity is desirable.
• Previous experience with environmental finance and environmental economics is desirable. 
• Previous experience working and managing large portfolios under biodiversity and climate financing is desirable.
• Familiarity with the environmental policy and legal framework and environmental financial mechanisms is desirable.
• Knowledge of key software packages (MS Office), quantum and PIMS+ is desirable.

Required Languages:

• Fluency in English and Urdu language is required.

Equal opportunity

As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination. 

UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.

Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority

UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles. 

Right to select multiple candidates

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.

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