Provision of services of an Environmental Journalist

In order to ensure a smooth transition for Lebanon towards environmental sustainability, the Government of Lebanon, through the Ministry of Environment (MoE) has requested the support of the World Bank (WB) and the Italian Government to establish the Lebanon Environmental Pollution Abatement Project (LEPAP) as a national initiative to respond to the challenges for promoting the financial and environmental sustainability of the industrial sector in Lebanon.

The LEPAP was initiated by the MoE in 2014 and consists of two main components: (A) Technical Assistance Component funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), and (B) Investment Component funded by the WB. LEPAP is being implemented by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in close partnership with the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and Banque du Liban (BDL). The LEPAP aims at reducing industrial pollution in targeted industrial enterprises and will contribute to strengthening the monitoring and enforcement capabilities of the MoE.

Under the technical assistance component, the AICS has approved the allocation of a financial contribution to UNDP to provide technical assistance to the project’s beneficiaries mainly the MoE and the concerned industries and to support in the overall management of the project’s activities. These ToRs relate to the technical assistance component of the project.

In this context, UNDP is seeking the services of an Environmental Journalist (referred to as “Individual Consultant (IC)”) to support the LEPAP in identifying and disseminating the Project’s lessons learned in a strategic and creative way. The outcomes of this assignment shall be used as a reference by UNDP, MoE and any other funding agency interested in supporting the private sector in reaching environmental compliance, relaunching the lending mechanisms and processing of environmental investments especially compliance related ones.

More specifically, the Consultant will be responsible for determining the main challenges and success stories and developing communication materials in view of influencing the needed changes and providing the practitioners with the tools they need to conduct better financing and development work.

In order to ensure a smooth transition for Lebanon towards environmental sustainability, the Government of Lebanon, through the Ministry of Environment (MoE) has requested the support of the World Bank (WB) and the Italian Government to establish the Lebanon Environmental Pollution Abatement Project (LEPAP) as a national initiative to respond to the challenges for promoting the financial and environmental sustainability of the industrial sector in Lebanon.

The LEPAP was initiated by the MoE in 2014 and consists of two main components: (A) Technical Assistance Component funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), and (B) Investment Component funded by the WB. LEPAP is being implemented by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in close partnership with the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and Banque du Liban (BDL). The LEPAP aims at reducing industrial pollution in targeted industrial enterprises and will contribute to strengthening the monitoring and enforcement capabilities of the MoE.

Under the technical assistance component, the AICS has approved the allocation of a financial contribution to UNDP to provide technical assistance to the project’s beneficiaries mainly the MoE and the concerned industries and to support in the overall management of the project’s activities. These ToRs relate to the technical assistance component of the project.

In this context, UNDP is seeking the services of an Environmental Journalist (referred to as “Individual Consultant (IC)”) to support the LEPAP in identifying and disseminating the Project’s lessons learned in a strategic and creative way. The outcomes of this assignment shall be used as a reference by UNDP, MoE and any other funding agency interested in supporting the private sector in reaching environmental compliance, relaunching the lending mechanisms and processing of environmental investments especially compliance related ones.

More specifically, the Consultant will be responsible for determining the main challenges and success stories and developing communication materials in view of influencing the needed changes and providing the practitioners with the tools they need to conduct better financing and development work.

The Consultant(s) will work under the direct supervision of the UNDP LEPAP/Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Officer. During the fulfilment of the tasks under this agreement, the Consultant will ensure regular communication with UNDP and will ensure a timely delivery of the expected outputs and will regularly inform the Project Management Unit (PMU) of the progress as well as any obstacles that might occur.

Under this consultancy, the Consultant(s) is requested to complete the following tasks:

• Task 1. Understanding of the LEPAP arrangements  
• Task 2. Preparation of a report on LEPAP experience
• Task 3. Development of Communication Materials  

For additional information, please refer to ANNEX I – Terms of Reference

 Proficiency in English and Arabic languages.

 Excellent written and oral communication skills;

 Ability to work under tight deadlines.

I. Academic Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree in journalism, economics, knowledge management, organizational learning, or a closely related degree. Master’s is an asset.

II. Years of experience:

At least 10 years of relevant work experience.

III. Technical experience:

 Previous experience in drafting/developing articles, newsletters and journals for international aid and development programs;

 Previous experience in developing communication materials and publications;

 Previous experience in covering topics related to industrial processes, environmental management and pollution abatement or closely related fields;

 Previous experience in covering topics related to private sector financing mechanisms/programmes funded by national and/or international donors and institutions;

 Previous experience in presenting complex technical information in an easily comprehensible way for non-specialist readers and the general public.