Individual Consultant - Environmental Safeguards and Social Risks Specialist

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Introduction

Country:   Lesotho

 

Description of the Assignment:


  • Manage the implementation and management of all environmental safeguard activities under Sebapala IWM project:
  • Develop a detailed Sebapala IWM project environmental safeguards work plan including the activities, roles, and responsibilities of project staff, partners, and stakeholders;
  • Lead in the oversight of the implementation of environmental risk management and compliance with Government and Project Environmental and Social Safeguards guidelines in consultation with the UNDP and Project Management Unit;
  • Support the project to mainstream the Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) in the project life cycle, e.g., monthly/quarterly meetings whichever is the case, M&E, reporting system of the project, and supervision missions by the project leadership;
  • Ensure proper implementation of the ESMF and the Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) by the all project activities and monitor the project work on the site;
  • Provide specific technical advice on risk mitigation measures for environmental safeguards and operational activities related to the project;
  • Monitor the project's environmental safeguard issues, identify implementation bottlenecks, propose feasible solutions, and develop and monitor an agreed action plan; 
  • Develop an action plan for the completion of all commitments in the project Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP) and all other environmental requirements including national requirements of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, UNDP/GEF and other relevant authorities;
  • Ensure that all environmental and health and safety mitigation measures are being fully adhered to during the implementation of all components of the project and that effective environmental supervision and monitoring are in place;
  • Monitor financial resources and accounting on environmental safeguards to ensure the accuracy and reliability of financial reports; 
  • Prepare progress reports (progress against planned activities) on environmental safeguards;
  • Support project team and UNDP in managing and reporting project risks including perform tasks in QUANTUM - the Integrated financial and management system. 

  • Coordinate the Provision of Essential Services Project: 
  • Provide support for strengthening the collaboration and linkages amongst different teams within the Sebapala IWM project, social safeguards, environmental safeguards, and M&E to achieve project results;
  • Work closely with the project Technical Advisor, Gender Specialist, Grievance Redress Mechanism Specialist and other project technical experts to ensure the full integration and harmonization between the environmental requirements and the social aspects; 
  • In coordination with the Technical Advisor, Gender Specialist, Grievance Redress Mechanism Specialist , follow up on environmental-related complaints and ensure resolving relevant ones while properly documenting the process in line with the national requirements and UNDP requirements on the topic; 
  • Coordinate and follow up with Implementing Partner (IP) on the site visit reports. Verify the deviations tracked by (IP) and rectify the deviations; 
  • Coordinate and monitor regular environmental safeguards capacity development of consultants, and/or project team during project implementation, including conduct of project awareness, communication, and sensitization activities. 
  • Manage technical assistance and capacity development for project staff, partners, and contractors: 
  • Provide technical advice and guidance on the implementation and monitoring of all environmental safeguards under the Sebapala IWM project;
  • Build and manage relationships with national partners to support the implementation of environmental safeguards plans and respond to any potential problems; 
  • Identify capacity-building needs of staff, and partners and lead the coordination of technical assistance, mentoring, training, and capacity development initiatives; 
  • Develop training materials and deliver trainings on ESMF requirements and apply its tools to the relevant staff of the project, beneficiaries, and stakeholders; 
  • Develop/update the environmental safeguard and support the Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) training manuals and conduct training sessions for project staff and stakeholders; 
  • Ensure all site partners and relevant project staff are trained in the proper application of the ESMF, ESMP, SEA/GBV risk mitigation plan and its components.
  • Manage the monitoring and reporting of the project’s environmental safeguards: 
  • Manage the monitoring of all environmental safeguards, and related budgets, using results based management tools;
  • Oversee field missions and review reports on environmental safeguards, and monitoring missions; 
  • Write quarterly reports and progress reports, focusing on results, outputs, and outcomes related to environmental safeguards and submit to the Programme management unit (PMU), Ministry of Environment and Forestry;
  • Contribute to project and UNDP/GEF reports;
  • Be responsible for monitoring the environmental safeguard issues of all construction sub projects with the field staff and relevant contractors; 
  • Ensure the environmental safeguard compliance and support the functionality of the grievance redress mechanism (GRM) , and its outcome is included in the regular reporting mechanism;
  • Maintain environmental records and information showing the compliance of the different project activities (including accidents and incident logs) to the national environmental legislations and UNDP-GEF standards; 
  • Ensure that all environmental commitments in the ESCP are being fulfilled in high quality and promptly by contractors while implementing sub-project works and activities on site.
  • Manage advocacy, knowledge-building, and communication efforts: 
  • Develop and review background documents, briefs, and presentations related to environmental safeguards; 
  • Represent Ministry of Environment and Forestry (MEF) and UNDP in meetings and policy dialogues on issues related to environmental safeguards as necessary;
  • Assist in documenting best practices and lessons learned in environment management at construction sites, and share it with senior management in MEF and UNDP for their effective random check of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and ESMP; 
  • Develop knowledge management strategies, products, and methodologies on environmental safeguards under the Sebapala IWM project;
  • Attend environmental safeguard seminars such as those held by the government, UNDP, and organizations; 
  • Maintain close linkage for the flow of information amongst MEF/PMU, and UNDP regarding environmental safeguard issues in project implementation;
  • All the tasks above will be undertaken using a gender responsive approach.

 

Period of assignment/services: 74 days spread over 3 Months

 

Proposal should be submitted directly in the portal no later than indicated deadline.

Any request for clarification must be sent in writing via messaging functionality in the portal. UNDP will respond in writing including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry.


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Amendment

Change of Period of Assignment

Documents :

Negotiation Document(s) (Before Accessing other negotiations Document(s), please click on this link)