Terms of Reference

Request for: Consultant X Individual contractor

Organizational Unit UNEP DTIE Sustainable Consumption and Production

1 Purpose

1.1 Explain the requirement for a consultant A consultant for a period of 6 months (with possible contract renewal) is requested to support the Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) team at UNEP DTIE in Paris by ensuring a good and timely implementation of the activities related to three of the projects that UNEP manages related to SPP: 1) the SPPEL project; 2) the ASEAN+3 project; and 3) the 10YFP SPP Programme. The consultant will be especially responsible for communication tasks related to UNEP’s SPP Projects, as well as the maintenance of the SPP Community of the Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) Clearinghouse. The consultant will assist the Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) Programme officer in the following:

i. Project implementation and preparation of administrative documents (60%)ii. Overall communication for SPP projects in coordination with the SCP Clearinghouse

(40%)

Please find brief descriptions of the 3 projects that this consultant will be working on, as well as a description of the SCP Clearinghouse, here:

10YFP SPP ProgrammeThe goal of the 10YFP SPP Programme is to promote the worldwide implementation of SPP through increased cooperation between key stakeholders and a better understanding of the potential benefits and impacts of SPP. The objectives of the 10YFP SPP Programme are to: (i) Build the case for SPP: improve the knowledge on SPP and its effectiveness as a tool to promote greener economies and sustainable development, and; (ii) Support the implementation of SPP on the ground through increased collaboration and improved coordination between SPP stakeholders. UNEP serves as the lead of the Coordination Desk of the SPP Programme, and therefore manages the day-to-day business along with the two co-leads KEITI and ICLEI, as well as the tasks approved in the biennial work plan.

Sustainable Public Procurement and Ecolabelling project – SPPELBuilding on the valuable experience that UNEP has on ecolabelling (EL) and SPP, UNEP is implementing a joint project that seeks to combine these two instruments to better deliver the common goal of stimulating the demand and supply of sustainable products. The objectives of the project are to:

1) Provide capacity development and technical assistance to public and private sectors on the development of SPP policies and use of eco-labelling;

2) Assist countries in the coordinated implementation of sustainable public procurement policies and eco-labelling

The project has a regional component in the Asia-Pacific region and Latin American and the Caribbean that aims to encourage South-South cooperation, regional collaboration on voluntary standards, and the sharing of experiences related to SPP/GPP implementation. The national component of the project provides direct technical assistance on SPP and EL to 15 countries worldwide.

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ASEAN+3 projectThis project has a regional scope within the Asia-Pacific region and is implemented in conjunction with the broader UNEP work on SPP and ecolabelling (SPPEL project) and the 10YFP Sustainable Public Procurement Programme. The proposed project aims at:

1) Strengthening the combined use of SPP and ecolabelling in the ASEAN region, based on the expertise of China, Japan and South Korea

2) Enhancing South-South collaboration on those topics3) Ensuring a broad and effective participation of ASEAN+3 countries in the 10YFP SPP

Programme

Sustainable Consumption and Production ClearinghouseThe Global SCP Clearinghouse (www.scpclearinghouse.org) is an online platform for communication and cooperation among different actors involved in the promotion of SCP. The platform features key thematic communities centered on topics related to Sustainable Consumption and Production, with SPP being one of them. The SPP online community has access to key services such as:

- Evolving database of initiatives or policies related to SPP and Ecolabelling;- Public and private e-Groups;- E-Library with a broad variety of publications, toolkits, guidelines, legal documents,

articles, etc. - Directory of experts and organizations- News and information on workshops, side-events, seminars and trainings.

1.2 Qualifications / special skills or knowledge required of the consultant

Competencies

Planning and organization: Ability to identify priority activities and assignments, allocation of appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work.

Communication: Excellent written and spoken communication skills in English and Spanish. The ability to translate short communication materials, including for example brochures and websites, into other languages such as French is considered a plus. Experience in using communication tools and designing communication campaigns.Experience in website management, managing social networks, and using graphic editing programs.Curiosity and open-mindedness: ability to ask questions to clarify, and exhibit interest in having two-way communication; demonstrate openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Teamwork: ability to work collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; ability to solicit inputs by genuinely valuing others' ideas and expertise; willingness to learn from others, and ability to work in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment. Capacity to work with transparency; capacity to build trust in colleagues.

Qualifications

Education: University degree and/or professional training in communication. Expertise in public procurement, social science, international affairs, and/or environmental science is a strong asset. Experience in developing countries is important.

Professional Experience: At least 1 year of work experience in the area of communications or managing communities/networks is required for this assignment. The candidate should also have international experience in project management, with a focus on sustainable development

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(preferably in sustainable public procurement). Experience with the United Nations is an advantage.

Languages: For this position fluency in written and spoken English and Spanish is essential; ability to work in other UN languages, especially French, is an asset.

Other Skills: - The candidate must be able to foster cooperation among a diversity of public officials and

relevant stakeholders. - Excellent command of communications programs and software (website, graphic design, etc)

is required- Excellent computer skills are required in the complete Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel,

PowerPoint, Project, Publisher, Access). Knowledge of Adobe software (Dreamweaver, Indesign, Photoshop) will be an advantage, as well as familiarity with Citrix’s GoToWebinar online meeting tool.

1.3 Ultimate result of services

Improved performance and timely delivery of UNEP’s SPP Projects in particular in the fields of communication and administrative management.

1.4 Legislative authority reference

UNEP Programme of Work 2012-2013 – Output 643

1.5 Title and identification number of programme / project

63P1: delivering sustainable development and enabling the transition to greener economies through sustainable public procurement

1.6 Duration of contract

6 months, during the following period: 16th February 2015 – 31st August 2015 (vacation included)

2 Funding

2.1 Source of Funds Regular Budget Extra-budgetary X

2.2 Allotment Account / Budget Line2014 EUL-5068-2J93-1161-1210

2.3 Indicative level of remuneration: In line with UNEP’s grid for consultancy rates and project outputs (exact renumeration depends on the academic degrees and professional experience attained by the consultant).

3 Travel involved

Travel may occur over the recruitment period.

4 Workplan

4.1 Objectives, output expectations and performance indicators

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The consultant will provide assistance in the development, coordination and delivery of UNEP’s Sustainable public procurement projects.More specifically, the consultant will deliver the following outputs:

A. Implementation of the SPPEL and ASEAN+3 projects

Objectives:1. Assisting the Programme Officer on operational management

- Updating and follow up of the project implementation plan (project monitoring)- Following up with national counterparts on project implementation. - Providing feedback, comments and advice on outputs

Outputs expected:1. Completed implementation plans, legal and market readiness studies, SPP action plans,

procurement guidelines, green tenders2. SSFAs completed and signed, consultants located and hired, project reports submitted

Indicators:1. Number of impact indicators met or ensured (target: 5)2. Level and degree of implementation of national projects (Target: percentage of

completion of activities in line with the implementation plan). Activities: funding agreements, reports, workshops, studies, guidelines, sustainable tenders, etc.

B. 10YFP SPP Programme

Objectives:1. Assisting in the coordination and implementation of 10YFP SPP Programme working

groups: - Assisting in the implementation of 10YFP SPP Programme activities: Following up

on work plan progress, liaising with groups leads, actively helping to keep activities on schedule and outputs delivered on time, providing feedback, comments and advice on the SPP Programme outputs.

2. Assisting the SPP Programme Officer in relation to the Coordination Desk function led by UNEP. In particular, support the SPP Programme Officer in the management of the SPP Programme Multistakeholder Advisory Committee (meeting preparation and organization, drafting of minutes, etc.).

3. Assisting in the management of all communication activities related to the 10YFP SPP Programme, specifically: - Assisting in deploying the 10YFP SPP communication strategy- Maintaining website and social networks’ pages and accounts: LinkedIn, Facebook

and Twitter- Organize and run all webinars done by the 10YFP SPP Programme- Optimizing connections and linkages with the SCP Clearinghouse as well as other

online resources and platforms

Outputs expected1. Updated implementation plans, working groups’ studies, fact sheets, training modules,

webinars2. An efficiently-functioning 10YFP SPP Programme Coordination Desk and

Multistakeholder Advisory Committee; Quarterly MAC meetings and monthly Coordination Desk meetings well-organized and well-coordinated

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3. Better communication between 10YFP SPP Programme participants, increased participation of members in 10YFP SPP Programme activities, increased visibility and online presence of the 10YFP SPP Programme

Indicators1. Number of 10YFP SPP Programme working groups progressing on schedule or close-to-

on schedule (target: in line with the time table of each working group’s implementation plan)

2. Number of well-organized meetings of the 10YFP SPP Programme MAC (Target: 3) and number of well-organized meetings of the 10YFP SPP Programme Coordination Desk (Target: 6)

3. Number of subscribed stakeholders to the social networks pages (target: increase by 100 over the course of 6 months); Number of SPP-related news feeding the social networks pages (2/week); Number of 10YFP SPP Programme website visits per month (Target: 200)

C. SPPEL Communication

Objectives:1. Maintained SPPEL webpage on the UNEP website2. Biannual newsletters3. Optimized connections and linkages with the SCP Clearinghouse

Outputs expected:1. Better communication between UNEP and project stakeholders on project activities

increased participation in project activities, more people informed about SPPEL2. Newsletters produced3. Strong coordination ensured between the SPPEL project and the 10YFP SPP Programme,

good use of SCP Clearinghouse for project implementation

Indicators1. Updated SPPEL webpage (target: monthly updates)2. Number of newsletters (target 2 newsletters/year)3. Number of downloads of SPPEL outputs on the webpage and SCP Clearinghouse (target:

200 downloads/year)

D. SPP Community of the 10YFP Global SCP Clearinghouse

Objectives:1. Increase the content and number of registered members of the SPP Community of the

10YFP Global SCP Clearinghouse: capacity building and information tools, SPP initiatives, experts, etc.

2. Provide and maintain collaborative tools for the 10YFP SPP Programme participants: creation of Clearinghouse working groups with document sharing capabilities, mailing lists, etc. as needed

Outputs expected:1. Better communication among 10YFP SPP Programme participants and SPP stakeholders,

better performance of 10YFP SPP Programme workgroups and projects2. Increased number collaborative tools available on the SCP Clearinghouse

Indicators1. Total number of SPP entries with breakdown between capacity building and information

tools, SPP initiatives, experts, etc. (Target: 80 new SPP entries added to the Global SCP 5/7

Clearing House including 10 capacity building tools, 10 initiatives and 50 contacts of stakeholders)

2. Number of active collaborative tools for the 10YFP SPP Programme groups (Target: maintenance of 10 working groups on the SCP CH with access to collaborative tools: document sharing capabilities, mailing lists, etc.); Number of visits to the SPP Community of the SCP Clearinghouse (Target: 50); Number of downloads of SPP documents from the SCP Clearinghouse (Target: 20)

Main outputs Indicative delivery date

Progress made based on the indicators proposed in the UNEP SPP team’s communication strategy

Well-run 9th MAC Meeting of the 10YFP SPP Programme Distribution of both a 10YFP SPP Programme and SPPEL Project

newsletter Bimonthly informational webinar organized through 10YFP SPP

Programme Well-run Monthly Meeting of the 10YFP SPP Programme

Coordination Desk (CD) and minutes drafted

March 2015

Websites and social networks pages revamped and well-maintained – shown through proven increase in user traffic to SPP pages

Third and final meeting of the ASEAN+3 Regional project well planned through collaboration with ROAP

Funding agreement signed for Biennial Global Report on SPP Well-run Monthly CD Meeting of the 10YFP SPP Programme

and minutes drafted

April 2015

Timely progress made on all of the active 10YFP SPP Programme work areas – shown via deliverables specified in working group concept notes

Continuous maintenance and organization of all SPP mailing lists Bimonthly informational webinar organized through 10YFP SPP

Programme Well-run Monthly CD Meeting of the 10YFP SPP Programme

and minutes drafted

May 2015

Final report from 10YFP SPP Programme working group 2B delivered on time

Feedback on SPP Training Toolkit evaluated, updated slides from trainings analyzed, suggestions on improvements submitted to programme officer

Well-run 10th MAC Meeting of the 10YFP SPP Programme and minutes drafted

Well-run Monthly CD Meeting of the 10YFP SPP Programme and minutes drafted

June 2015

10YFP SPP Programme Coordination Desk tasks well managed Bimonthly informational webinar organized through 10YFP SPP

Programme Well-run Monthly CD Meeting of the 10YFP SPP Programme

and minutes drafted

July 2015

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At least 3 new funding agreements (PCAs or SSFAs as necessary) signed with SPPEL project countries

At least 3 prioritization workshops planned in LAC SPPEL countries

Well-run Monthly CD Meeting of the 10YFP SPP Programme and minutes drafted

Development of regional online platform in LAC underway

August 2015

4.2 Reporting lines

The consultant shall report directly to Farid Yaker, Programme Officer, UNEP-DTIE, SCP Branch

Interested candidates are invited to send their CV and a cover letter to Farid Yaker at Farid.Yaker@unep.org by 9 January 2015. The consultancy assignment is meant to start on 16th

February 2015.

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