International Expert for Illegal Wildlife Trade

The Government of Angola has sought UNDP support to implement the Project Preparation Grant (PPG) for the UNDP-GEF full-sized project “Combating Illegal Wildlife Trade and Human Wildlife Conflict in Angola”. The project seeks to strengthen biodiversity conservation in Angola by reduce illegal wildlife trade and human wildlife conflict and has four components: 1) Strengthening the systemic and institutional framework for combatting IWT, 2) Strengthening the management effectiveness of the existing national PA estate, 3) Reducing IWT and poaching, and HWC, at site level, and 4) Gender mainstreaming, knowledge management, and M&E. The GEF resources allocated to the project amount to US$ 4,603,161 (including Project, PPG and UNDP Fee).

The GEF Council approved the Project Identification Form on 30 October 2017. Project development now will include a preparatory phase in the form of a Project Preparatory Grant (PPG). During the PPG, a team of international consultants together with the UNDP Country Office in Angola and the responsible UNDP-GEF Regional Technical Advisor – and working in close collaboration with key government officials, donors, NGOs and CBOs – will undertake literature reviews, studies, stakeholder consultations and field visits, with the view to further develop the approved PIF into a fully formulated project ready for implementation.

The UNDP Country Office in Angola will lead the PPG/IP, in close coordination with the Ministry of the Environment of Angola. The Key Expected Outputs of the PPG/IP will be a technically robust UNDP Project Document (PRODOC) and a Request for CEO Endorsement package ready for submission to the GEF Secretariat. The preparatory phase will moreover fully determine the baseline and GEF incremental benefits, confirm the lead national implementing agency, identify further implementing partners and responsible parties, and negotiate and define implementation arrangements. Consultation with stakeholders relevant for project activities will put emphasis on building the partnerships required for realizing the project’s objectives and the mobilization of co-financing. The national consultation process will also include the local communities that are expected to benefit from the Project, and address gender issues as well as social and environmental safeguards as indicated.

Considering the above PIF approval date and the 18-month milestone established by the GEF, the GEF CEO Endorsement Request package and PRODOC must be submitted to the GEF by 29 May 2019. Failure to meet this deadline will lead to automatic cancellation of the project by the GEF. The PPG team (which includes the PPG consultants, the Government of Angola, UNDP Angola and the UNDP-GEF regional support team) is requested to submit final draft versions for internal clearance to UNDP at the latest two months before this deadline (i.e. by 29 March 2019). Subsequent revisions addressing UNDP-GEF or GEF Secretariat queries may be required and are part of the PPG. The final submissions to the GEF will require prior government validation and clearance. Submission to the GEF will only be effected after all due clearances have been obtained.

The UNDP Country Office (CO) in Angola is seeking the services of an International Expert for Illegal Wildlife Trade to lead the implementation of the Project Preparation Grant (PPG).

 The International Expert for Illegal Wildlife Trade will be part of a team of consultants to work closely with, and under the overall guidance of, the UNDP Country Office, the UNDP-GEF Regional Technical Advisor and the project  counterparts in the Angola Government. In addition to the International Expert for Illegal Wildlife Trade, the team is expected to consist of the following four consultants who will work under the supervision of the Team Leader:

• International Specialist for GEF Biodiversity Project Development – Illegal Wildlife Trade and Human Wildlife Conflict (Team Leader);
• An International Expert for Protected Areas Management and Human Wildlife Conflict; 
• A national Livelihoods and Gender Expert;
• A national Wildlife Crime Legal and Institutional Expert.

The Expert for Illegal Wildlife Trade will work in close cooperation with the project team to deliver the below technical studies.

Deliverables: 

• Review recent experiences and successes with combating IWT in other countries in the region and extract lessons learned that can be applied to Angola to strengthen the national system for combating IWT, including opportunities for international collaboration. Take especially into consideration experiences and approaches of the ongoing GEF funded umbrella program on IWT and develop partnership with this program. Also review experiences in other countries in the region with engaging communities in wildlife conservation through CBNRM, community based tourism, benefit sharing of income generated by protected areas, conservation farming around protected areas, etc. and evaluate the opportunities for implementing such approaches in Angola;
• Review the current Angolan system for training park administrators, rangers, legal professionals and law enforcement agents in IWT, including the curriculum at the 31st of January Wildlife School in Menongue, as well as training programs elsewhere in the southern Africa region and identify opportunities for strengthening existing programs and opportunities for collaboration with other centers;
• Review existing information on poaching and IWT in Angola and put it in perspective with information in the southern African region. Identify hotspots of wildlife crime in the country and identify species most affected. Identify critical information gaps and, to the extent possible, identify drivers and conditioning factors of IWT. Based on review, propose list of geographical areas (especially existing and proposed protected areas) where the project should focus its IWT field components;
• Review available information in Angola and elsewhere on the importance of Angola as a conduit for illegal wildlife and wildlife products originating in neighboring countries, border posts and transport routes used, and weaknesses in the Angolan law and law enforcement system that would need to be addressed to block IWT products from other countries to be brought into and to pass through the country;
• Assess training status and training potential of park rangers and administrators in the field of IWT and propose capacity building program that could be developed through the project;
• Identify opportunities for trans-frontier and regional collaboration in the fields of IWT and propose a plan for strengthening such collaboration through the project, with focus on Namibia and Zambia;
• Completion of the CITES ICCWC Indicator Framework for Forest and Wildlife Crime in the Angola context: https://www.cites.org/eng/prog/iccwc.php/Tools. The template is available in Portuguese on the web site;
• Review entire PRODOC and provide detailed comments and input on all sections.

Key UNDP/GEF references for this Project/PPG: 

• GEF-6 Focal Area Strategy for Biodiversity;
• PIF for “Combating Illegal Wildlife Trade and Human Wildlife Conflict in Angola”;
• GEF Secretariat Review Sheet and GEF STAP Review of the PIF/Project;
• UNDP Project Document and GEF CEO Endorsement Request package guidelines and templates;
• UNDP & GEF M&E Guidance;
• GEF Biodiversity Tracking Tools and UNDP Capacity Development Scorecard;
• UNDP Environmental and Social Screening Procedure - Guidance Note and PIF Environmental and Social Screening; 
• UNDP Guidance on Gender Assessment;
•  Relevant UNDP Programme and Operations Policies and Procedures; 
• Relevant documents from regional IWT projects, especially GEF funded regional program.??

Expected Outputs and Deliverables: 

• The International Expert for Illegal Wildlife Trade will contribute to the timely completion of the GEF CEO Endorsement Request Package and PRODOC in appropriate quality. This will involve writing and contributing to background documents, annexes and sections of these documents. The key deliverables under this contract will be reports on each of the items listed in Section 3 of this ToR;
• UNDP may contact the contractor at any time during working hours and request the contractor’s expert support and guidance, technical inputs, participation in meetings (including by skype or telephone) and elaboration of a document pertaining to the execution of the PPG/Initiation Plan outlined above;
• Payment is based upon output and will be made upon confirmation by UNDP that contract obligations have been met in a satisfactory manner in accordance with milestones, i.e. delivery of the services specified in the ToR to be approved by UNDP and meeting agreed deadlines. The tentative payment schedule is as follows: Upon contract signature: 20% of the total amount. Upon submission of a complete draft CEO Endorsement Request Package and a complete draft PRODOC and clearance for submission by UNDP: 40% of the total. Upon subsequent review and final approval by the GEF Secretariat of the PRODOC and issuance of CEO Endorsement: 40% of the total;
• Approval: Review of the deliverables regarding quality and timeliness will be undertaken by the UNDP Country Office and the Angola Government counterparts, then the UNDP/GEF Regional Technical Advisor and eventually the UNDP/GEF Senior Technical Advisor to ensure alignment and compliance with UNDP and GEF requirements.

Implementation arrangements: 

• The Team Leader will supervise the other national and international consultants who are part of the team; 
• To guide and assist the team of national and international consultants, a joint project development and facilitation team will be established that includes the UNDP-GEF Regional Technical Advisor, the UNDP Country Office, as well as project focal points at the Ministry of Environment of Angola. The main responsibilities will be to provide the required data/information and feedback to the team of consultants; backstopping and providing relevant templates; supporting stakeholder consultations and ensuring their participation; supporting problem analysis; liaising with partners and leading national stakeholder involvement on project strategy and institutional and management arrangements and on co-financing matters; and supporting alignment with national priorities and understanding of the local and national contexts;
• Individual Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director. Consultants are also required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under dss.un.org. Consultants are responsible for obtaining valid visas for travelling to Angola, however the CO will support visa applications.

Duration of work/assignment:

• The duration of the work is estimated at 20 days spread over the period from 01 March 2018 to GEF CEO Endorsement (expected at the latest by June 2019).

Duty Station: 

• Home based with one travel to Angola (Luanda and Menongue) of a total of 10 days. 

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrates commitment to UNDP´s mission, vision and values; 
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability; 
• Highest standards of integrity, discretion and loyalty;  
• Treats all people fairly without favoratism; Fulfills all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero toelrance for sexual harassment

Functional competencies:

• Proven ability in conducting planning processes in developing countries;
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in Portuguese and English;
• Solid knowledge of proven post-2015 agenda and the sustainable Development Goals;
• Proven ability in conducting work related to Millennium Declaration ;
• Proven Ability and work on development matters in the African Region;
• Ability to work with multidisciplinary and multicultural teams;
• Creativity, innovation and initiative;
• Result oriented;
• Analytical ability;
• Logical ability;
• Able to work under pressure in an adverse environment;
• critical ability;
• Capacity to dialogue with different sectors;
• Determination and focus on goals and results;
• Ability of facilitation;
• Good management skills;
• Sensitivity to African and Angolan context.

Education:

• University degree in a relevant natural or social science.

Experience: 

• At least 10 years’ experience in designing and/or implementing Illegal Wildlife Trade projects in Africa;
• Experience working with governments in Africa is a distinct advantage;
• Proven experience in design and/or implementation of GEF projects is an advantage;
• Experience working with international organizations is an advantage.

Language requirements: 

• Fluency in English is required, Portuguese is an asset.

Submission of Application:

• Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references;
• Technical Proposal explaining why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment, and a methodology on how they will approach and complete the assignment.
• Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs, with separately listed travel costs.

Proposals not including all items listed above will not be considered.

Evaluation criteria:

Applicants will be screened against qualifications and competencies specified in this TOR through a desk review or an interview process. Those selected for the next stage of the selection process will be reviewed based on the cumulative analysis through a combination of the Technical (70%) and Financial Scores (30%).  Only candidates obtaining 70 points out of 100 in the technical review/evaluation will be considered for the financial evaluation.