Consultant for Technical Support

Result of ServiceIncreased capacities for the implementation of effective tools, promotion of strategic partnerships related to funding opportunities on projects managed by the office. Work LocationHomebase Expected duration1.5 months Duties and ResponsibilitiesThe United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-Habitat, is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all. The main documents outlining the mandate of the organization are the Vancouver Declaration on Human Settlements, the Habitat Agenda, the Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements, the Declaration on Cities and Other Human Settlements in the New Millennium, and UN General Assembly Resolution A/56/206. UN-Habitat, under the Programme RISE-UP – Resilience for the Urban Poor, with the support of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), is currently implementing the project “Accelerating the implementation of the Paris Agreement by building climate resilience in vulnerable urban areas in Bolivia, Colombia, Jordan, Tunisia and Ethiopia”. The objective of this project is to strengthen the climate resilience of vulnerable urban communities in six cities in five different countries: Bolivia (Charagua and Cobija), Colombia (Pasto), Jordan (Sahab), Tunisia (Kerkennah) and Ethiopia (Debre Birhan). Activities of the project included the implementation of training workshops and participatory processes with relevant actors in cities and communities, leading to the generation of multi-vulnerability assessments and localized climate action plans. In the second phase, currently underway, the project has placed particular emphasis on transforming proposed actions included in local action plans into bankable projects, with a sufficient level of detail to be directly presented to financial entities, cooperation agencies, or the private sector; in order to advance in the search for financing opportunities for the implementation of identified projects, which will positively impact the increase in resilience of vulnerable communities in the participating cities. In this context, UN-Habitat has proposed the development of a \"White Paper\" on Spanish funding entities and European financial cooperation institutions to support the implementation of projects in third countries, particularly focused on sustainable urban development. This activity will support the mapping the opportunities of funding for current and future projects proposed by the RISE-UP programme (or other future actions) at the global level, as a complementary way to address the urban divide on relation to adaptation policies. UN-Habitat intends to contract a Consultant for Technical Assistance to conceptualize and develop the White Paper on Funding Opportunities (donor funding and financial cooperation) from Spanish Entities and Financial Cooperation from European Institutions. Under the supervision of the Programme Management Officer, UN-Habitat Country Office Spain who will supervise that the outputs will be delivered accordingly, the duties and responsibilities will include: • Prepare a Conceptual Proposal and a detailed Table of Contents for the White Paper, with a specific focus on sustainable urban development. • Define the design and content of the Fact Sheets that will map and summarize each potential funding source, as well as a classification framework for the following two groups of entities: o Spanish entities that count both with donation funding and financial cooperation funding instruments. This includes not only cooperation agencies but also potential ODA contributions that can be channeled to third countries (through UN-Habitat or not) by grants from governments at national, regional, provincial and local levels, as well as associations, private sector and any other entities. o European entities that count on ODA financial cooperation instruments, including blending modalities. This would exclude European Commission cooperation tools. The framework of the fact sheets should include, at a minimum: sector (public/ private/ hybrid/ other); funding modality (donation/ financial cooperation/ blended finance/ etc.); mechanism of application (call for proposals/ institutional approach/ etc.); financial instruments applicable; scope of work; areas of intervention; geographic focus, among other relevant elements. • Following the defined scheme, the candidate will conduct a Deep Research on the listed funding sources and opportunities, specifying particularities of each opportunity mapped, such as targeted areas, worked supported, amounts usually granted, description of types of funding (and/or description of the financial cooperation tools, if applicable), mechanisms of functioning, dates of calls for proposals and application process, assessment criteria and/or recommended period for institutional approach. • If necessary, consult and conduct interviews with institutional representatives and other experts in cooperation and funding to incorporate as many funding opportunities as possible into the White Paper. • Draft the preliminary version of the White Paper and share it with UN-Habitat for review. • Draft the final draft of the White Paper, incorporating comments suggested by UN-Habitat. • Draft a report with recommendations on financing projects associated with the UN-Habitat RISE-UP program, based on the opportunities identified in the White Paper. Within this assignment, UN-Habitat will be responsible for: • Provide the consultant with all UN-Habitat normative work related to funding sustainable urban development projects at global level. • Provide the consultants with all the information related to the RISE-UP programme, as well as updated outputs of the project in all cities. • If required, facilitate institutional communication with Spanish entities in case that meetings are required during the process of researching about funding opportunities. • Provide feedback at a reasonable time to the consultant on the different drafts elaborated during the consultancy. • Participate, if required, in meetings between the consultant and institutions and entities required for the development of the white book. • Review and approve the final draft. Qualifications/special skillsAdvanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in international relations, administration, economy, political sciences, social sciences, or law. A first level degree with an additional two years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced degree. A minimum of 2 years of progressive experience in matters related to finance, fundings and international cooperation is required. Proven experience in activities related to finance for cooperation and fundraising in Spain and in Europe is desirable. Understanding the paradigms of sustainable urban development topics is desirable. LanguagesEnglish and French are the working languages of the United Nations. For this position, fluency in spoken and written English is required. In addition, this position is in Spain and therefore fluency in spoken and written Spanish is also required. Additional InformationProfessionalism: Demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter. Planning and organizing: Ability to work under pressure, establish priorities and plan, coordinate their own work plan, use time efficiently, and apply judgment in the context of competing deadlines. Teamwork: Ability to work collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals. No FeeTHE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.