Procurement Notices

Terms of Reference

Environment Expert for development of Strategy for Combating Pollution in Iraq  

1.Background

Pollution is a major sustainable development challenge with impacts that endanger human health and environment. According to the Lancet Commission[1] on Pollution and Health, the costs of pollution in low- and middle-income countries amount to 2 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) and up to 7 per cent of annual spending in terms of health care costs.

In Iraq, the cost of environmental degradation is estimated between 4.9 to 8 per cent of the GDP[2]. Some of the major reasons for the environmental degradation in Iraq are2: 1. Diseases resulting from poor water quality; 2. Increased respiratory diseases due to air pollution; 3. Neglected and pressured agricultural lands; and 4. Unsustainable management wastes. Considering this, the National Environment Strategy and Action Plan identified improvement of the quality of water, soil and air as urgent priorities.

Improper waste management plays a major role in the pollution of water, soil, and air in Iraq. Since the establishment of the Ministry of Environment (now called the Ministry of Health and Environment), the Government of Iraq exerted considerable efforts to mitigate impacts of waste substances including chemicals and to join international conventions.

Iraq is now Party to Basel, Stockholm, and Rotterdam Conventions. It is also in the process of ratification of the Minamata convention. These conventions aim to protect human life and Environment from the hazardous chemicals and wastes.

While sectoral actions are necessary for controlling pollution from respective sectors, integrated planning will make the pollution control measures efficient and cost effective. It will also prevent unintended negative impacts of certain pollution control measures.

2.Project scope of work

UNDP in partnership with UNEP is implementing a project that aim to promote a holistic approach for combating pollution in Iraq through supporting the development of more integrated policies, plans, laws, and regulations. Ministry of Health and Environment is considered the main counterpart and will coordinate with Key stakeholders to support the two UN agencies in implementing the project through analyzing the current pollution situation and developing a strategy for combating pollution

3.Key Tasks and Responsibilities

Under the overall coordination of UNDP- Iraq Environment Officer and UNEP- West Asia Programme Officer, the International Consultant will assume the lead responsibility for the development of a strategy for combatting pollution in Iraq. The international consultant will be supported by national consultant in achieving the deliverables.

More specifically, the International Consultant will carry out the following tasks:

1.Conduct Situation Analysis

a.Develop annotated outline for a baseline report on pollution in Iraq and including methodological guidance that defines data collection needs. The baseline report will adopt the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) model and consider all three major environmental pollutions: air pollution, water pollution and soil pollution.

b.Develop draft baseline assessment report and present the draft to the national stakeholders for consultations. The baseline assessment will be conducted using available data in the Ministry of Health and Environment and other Government agencies and published literature. The assessment is expected to include an analysis of the impact of key pollutants in Iraq and their major sources using the DPSIR method.

c.Facilitate a consultation workshop joining all stakeholders and finalize the assessment report after addressing stakeholders’ feedback.

2.Develop strategy and action plan for combating pollution

a.Develop a high-level policy statement defining Iraq’a vision to combat pollution and short, medium and long-term strategic targets aligned with 2030 development agenda, and seek stakeholders’ feedback on, ownership of and support to the national policy statement.  

b.Develop an annotated outline for a strategy and action plan for combating pollution based on the situation analysis and priorities identified. 

c.Informed by the assessment and policy statement, draft the strategy and action plan for combating pollution in Iraq. The strategy and action plan will include short-term, mid-term and long-term objectives, programmes, actions and targets to mitigate, minimize and prevent human health and environmental degradation caused by pollution in Iraq.

d.Finalize the strategy and action plan for combating pollution in Iraq based on the outcome of the consultation with stakeholders.

4.Expected Outputs and timeline

Key outputs of the International Consultant will be a baseline study on pollution in Iraq and a strategy and action plan for combating pollution in Iraq. The expected deliverables for this assignment are as follows:

5.Administration and Reporting

• The consultant will work from home with two missions – see below.

• The consultant will report to, and be directly supervised by, UNDP- Iraq Environment Officer and UNEP- West Asia Programme Officer

• The Consultant will be given access to relevant information necessary for execution of the tasks under this assignment.

• The Consultant will be responsible for providing her/his own workstation (i.e. laptop, internet, phone, scanner/printer, etc.) and must have access to reliable internet connection.

• The consultant will undertake consultations during this assignment, the consultant is expected to be reasonably flexible with his/her availability for such consultations taking into consideration different time zones.

• Payments will be made upon submission of a detailed time sheet and certification of payment form, and acceptance and confirmation by the Supervisor on days worked and outputs delivered. If the quality does not meet standards or requirements, the consultant will be asked to rewrite or revise (as necessary) the document before proceeding to payment.

•UNDP will provide administrative support to the international consultant throughout the implementation of this service. However, he/she should be proactive in making appointments, organizing discussions and consultation meetings with key stakeholders, as needed/appropriate

6.Duration and Travel

Duration of the contract will be from 15th April to 30th December 2021

Two missions to Iraq- to facilitate consultation workshops with relevant stakeholders during the implementation of pollution analysis report and strategy for combat pollution. Each mission for 4 days including travel days.

7.Competencies:

Corporate:

• Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards; ;

• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

• Treats all people fairly without favoritism.

Functional:

Communications

• Able to communicate effectively in writing to a varied and broad audience in a simple and concise manner.

Professionalism

• Capable of working in a high- pressure environment with sharp and frequent deadlines, managing many tasks simultaneously.

• Excellent analytical and organizational skills.

• Exercises the highest level of responsibility and be able to handle confidential and politically sensitive issues in a responsible and mature manner.

Teamwork

• Works well in a team.

• Projects a positive image and is ready to take on a wide range of tasks.

• Focuses on results for the client.

 • Welcomes constructive feedback.

8.Selection criteria

• Advanced degree in natural sciences, environmental sciences, engineering, waste management, or economics, preferably related to environmental pollution (20 points)
• Minimum of 7 years’ experience of working on pollution. (20 points)
• Proven experience on environmental data analysis. (15 points)
• Proven experience with drafting environment strategies and action plans. (15 points)
• Proven strong writing skills. (10 points)

9.Language and other skills:

Excellent oral and written communication skills in English (10 points)

10.Application

The application should contain:

-        Technical proposal (showing the candidate’s understanding of the assignment requirements, proposed approach, proposed analytical framework or analysis tools) (10 points).

-        Financial proposal; and,

-        Updated CV to include qualifications/competencies and relevant past experience in similar projects and contact details of 2 professional referees who can certify the candidate’s competencies, professionalism, quality of presentation and overall suitability for this assignment.  

Please group them into one (1) single PDF document as the application system only allows to upload maximum one document.

**Failure to submit the above-mentioned documents or Incomplete proposals shall result in disqualification

The short listed candidates may be contacted and the successful candidate will be notified.

[1] Landrigan, Philip J., and others (2017), The Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health. Available at https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)32345-0.

[2] The National Environmental Strategy and Action Plan for Iraq (2013-2017)