Green Climate Fund (GCF) Specialist

Organizational Setting

The Office of Climate Change, Biodiversity and Environment (OCB) works to ensure that countries and stakeholders respond to the challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental degradation. OCB provides a cross organizational coordination role on these issues and is a focal point to major multilateral environmental agreements including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The Office also assists FAO Members in their responses towards the interlinked challenges of food security, climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental degradation including through facilitating access to climate and environmental financing such as the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and Green Climate Fund (GCF). In addition, OCB hosts the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) Programme, the Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, and the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture as well as FAO’s work on environmental safeguards and leads the Programme Priority Areas on Climate Change (PPA BE1) and Bioeconomy for Sustainable Food and Agriculture (PPA BE2).

Guided by its new Climate Change Strategy, FAO is scaling up support to developing countries to transition toward sustainable and climate-smart patterns of agricultural development. Such a transition is vital to FAO’s efforts to achieve food security and nutrition for all, and can play an important role in broader international efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change. In this context, FAO Member States have emphasized the need to scale up public and private investment in climate action. FAO is responding through a variety of avenues, including by prioritizing the development of a project portfolio with the Green Climate Fund (GCF). FAO has established a GCF Team within OCB (OCB-GCF Team) to coordinate the development and management of the GCF portfolio. The OCB-GCF Team works in close collaboration with FAO Decentralized Offices and technical staff to identify, develop and deliver high-quality climate investment and readiness projects that respond to countries’ priorities as defined in their national climate and sectoral policies and that deliver the type of transformational change sought by the GCF.

The purpose of this call is to provide the FAO-GCF community with qualified candidates who can 1) support and/or lead GCF project formulation and/or 2) support GCF accreditation process for national/regional direct access entities. The assignment may be home based with travel required for field missions.

Reporting Lines

The Specialist will work under the supervision of the Senior Natural Resources Officer, in close collaboration with the respective FAO Representation in the relevant country of assignment, as well as the relevant FAO Regional Office.

Technical Focus

For GCF Project Design Specialists, identification and design of FAO-GCF projects and programmes (Project Ideas, Concept Notes, Funding Proposals, and/or Readiness programme). It includes research, technical analysis, supporting negotiations on implementation arrangements / co-finance, and other project related services to support the formulation of projects and programmes.

For Accreditation Specialists, provision of technical assistance to national/regional entities for GCF accreditation process. It includes capacity assessment, policy/ strategic analysis, and technical and quality assurance support related to fiduciary standards and financial management.

Tasks and responsibilities

For GCF Project Design Specialist:

• Lead the formulation of GCF proposal packages, ensuring technical quality and alignment with GCF investment criteria and other requirements.
• Develop the GCF project’s Theory of Change and logframe with specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound indicators in alignment with the GCF’s Integrated Result Management Framework.
• Outline the content of feasibility study document and lead/ oversee all project feasibility work, ensuring all necessary elements are adequately covered in alignment with GCF requirements.
• Provide technical expertise and project design guidance to project proponents in the identification and development of climate investment project proposals that address country priorities and further FAO and GCF strategic objectives, aligned to programme priorities and operational policies and procedures.
• Support and advise the Decentralized Offices on drafting and finalizing appropriate and clear project execution / implementation arrangements.
• Engage in consultations with stakeholders (national ministries and departments, development partners, private sector) to identify co-financing sources, and propose partnerships (including other IAEs and DAEs).
• Ensure quality control of the GCF Concept Notes and Funding Proposals in line with GCF requirements and FAO’s operational policies and procedures.
• Coordinate the proposal development team including FAO staff, consultants and partners, ensuring robust outputs, smooth communication, and adherence to the agreed timeline.
• Oversee the development of other GCF annexes in close coordination and collaboration with other consultants.
• Oversee the design and finalization of the project budget, in close coordination with the Economist/Operations Officer on the project design team, and ensure its “implementability”.
• Ensure that Environmental and Social Safeguards assessment informs the project design, including the selection and prioritization of mandatory and critical mitigation measures in close coordination with the ESS experts.
• Ensure cohesion, consistency, avoidance of duplication of information, and integration across the Funding Proposal package.
• Ensure proposed interventions are well coordinated with other FAO and non-FAO projects in the region/countries and ensure that the proposed interventions build on FAO comparative advantage, successful practices, and lessons learnt.
• Address comments from FAO internal reviewers, the GCF Secretariat and independent Technical Advisory Panel (iTAP).
• Participate in, and/or lead the design and delivery of capacity development activities to FAO technical staff in headquarters and Decentralized Offices on the strategies, priorities and procedures, trends and issues related to the GCF.
• Perform other related duties as required.

For Accreditation Specialist (the combination of tasks will vary by country context on direct access):

• Support the framing of accreditation objectives/goals and identification of criteria for the selection and nomination of potential DAEs, in discussion with the NDA and in line with country’s climate action priorities as defined in its GCF Country Programme, NDCs, NAPs, LTSs, etc.
• Organize and engage in stakeholder consultation/validation workshops to gather inputs on accreditation objectives and criteria.
• Support the assessment of potential candidate entities, in line with the accreditation criteria, to develop a shortlist of candidate DAEs.
• Elaborate gap assessments against GCF accreditation requirements for national/regional entities.
• Develop a GCF Accreditation Action Plan, providing strategic and sequenced guidance to address identified gaps across fiduciary standards, environmental and social safeguards, gender, and institutional capacity, in line with GCF accreditation requirements.
• Review, compile, and organize all evidence, supporting documents, and related materials required for GCF accreditation process (i.e. pre-screening and accreditation proposal submission by DAE).
• Advise on any policy or legal amendment required to satisfy GCF accreditation requirements.
• Assist the DAE in preparing mandatory documents and policy updates and provide quality assurance of these documents required for GCF accreditation application, including those related to Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS), Gender mainstreaming, Fiduciary Standards, Grievances and Complaint Mechanisms, project management frameworks, and any other compliance requirements in collaboration with relevant consultants or contractors.
• Develop an action plan towards strengthening institutional capacity and provide the necessary training for a successful application for and operationalization of accreditation with recommended improvements specifying required policy/system changes, capacity development needs, digital upgrades, budget estimates and implementation timelines to close gaps and maintain accreditation readiness.
• Assist in drafting appropriate responses and replies to any queries on the DAE application from GCF Secretariat.
• Develop a capacity building programme for DAEs applicants based on gap analysis and action plans.
• Perform other related duties as required.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• For Consultants: Advanced university degree from an institution recognized by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/UNESCO in finance, business administration, political sciences, sustainable development, environment, climate policy, natural resources management, or natural resource economics or any other discipline relevant to the work of the Organization.. Consultants with bachelor's degree need two additional years of relevant professional experience.
• For PSAs: University degree (or technical degree/certificate) from an institution recognized by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/UNESCO in finance, business administration, political sciences, sustainable development, environment, climate policy, natural resources management, or natural resource economics or any other discipline relevant to the work of the Organization...
• A minimum of one year (for category C), five years (for category B), or 10 years (for category A) of relevant experience in one of the technical areas listed above.
• Working knowledge of English (level C).

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions is desirable.
• Extent and relevance of experience with and knowledge of the procedures of GCF and other climate/ environmental funds.
• Demonstrated capacity to write technical reports in English.
• Intermediate knowledge (intermediate proficiency - level B) of another official FAO language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).

For GCF Project Design Specialist:

• Proven experience in preparing GCF proposals (Concept Notes and Funding Proposals) and leading multi-disciplinary teams in the preparation of investment projects.
• Proven knowledge and experience in Theory of Change, Results Based Management and Results Based Budgeting methodologies as they apply to climate change project formulation.
• Extent and relevance of experience in providing technical expertise or advice to project proponents at national, subregional and regional levels regarding project development.
• Demonstrated analytical and conceptual skills with proven ability to write project documents and analyze and integrate diverse information from various sources.
• Ability to meet hard deadlines and to collaborate with various colleagues at FAO HQ and Decentralized Offices as well as the government counterparts.

For Accreditation Specialist:

• Extent and relevance of experience in supporting accreditation process (in particular GCF).
• Demonstrated experience with reviewing and quality-assuring institutional frameworks and policies.
• Proven advisory experience in operational and strategic institutional capacity development and due diligence.
• Demonstrated experience in planning, project management, coordination and working with Governments and national organizations and/or private sector entities.