Title: Infrastructure Development Expert

​Requisition ID: 5717
Grade: NOA (SB-4)
Country: Pakistan
Duty Station: Karachi
Category: National Consultant
Type of Job Posting: Internal and External
Employment Type: NonStaff-When Act. Employed
Application deadline: 6-Jun-2025, 11:59 PM (Vienna, Austria time)

Vacancy Announcement
TEMPORARY APPOINTMENT OF PROJECT PERSONNEL
Only nationals or permanent residents of the country of the duty station are considered eligible.
Female candidates are encouraged to apply.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) is the specialized agency of the United Nations that promotes industrial development for poverty reduction, inclusive globalization and environmental sustainability. The mission of UNIDO, as described in the Lima Declaration adopted at the fifteenth session of the UNIDO General Conference in 2013 as well as the Abu Dhabi Declaration adopted at the eighteenth session of UNIDO General Conference in 2019, is to promote and accelerate inclusive and sustainable industrial development (ISID) in Member States. The relevance of ISID as an integrated approach to all three pillars of sustainable development is recognized by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which will frame United Nations and country efforts towards sustainable development. UNIDO’s mandate is fully recognized in SDG-9, which calls to “Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation”. The relevance of ISID, however, applies in greater or lesser extent to all SDGs. Accordingly, the Organization’s programmatic focus is structured in four strategic priorities: Creating shared prosperity; Advancing economic competitiveness; Safeguarding the environment; and Strengthening knowledge and institutions.

Each of these programmatic fields of activity contains a number of individual programmes, which are implemented in a holistic manner to achieve effective outcomes and impacts through UNIDO’s four enabling functions: (i) technical cooperation; (ii) analytical and research functions and policy advisory services; (iii) normative functions and standards and quality-related activities; and (iv) convening and partnerships for knowledge transfer, networking and industrial cooperation. Such core functions are carried out in Divisions/Offices in its Headquarters, Regional Offices and Hubs and Country Offices.

Under the overall direction of the Director General, and in close collaboration with all relevant organizational entities within UNIDO, the Directorate of Technical Cooperation and Sustainable Industrial Development (TCS), headed by a Managing Director, ensures the Organization's application of strategies and interventions for sustainable industrial development related to environment, energy, Micro, Small and Medium-Enterprises (MSMEs), and digitalization. The Directorate also oversees the Organization's normative contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals through industrial policy advice and capacity development. Through coordination in-house and with Member States and industry stakeholders, it ensures that the services provided in these areas contribute to effective and appropriate technical, business and policy solutions and are focused on results, scaling up and positioning UNIDO as a leading platform for industrial development in developing countries and global fora.

The Directorate is responsible for the Division of Industrial Policy Advice and Capacity Development (TCS/IPC), and technical Divisions of Circular Economy and Green Industry (TCS/CEG), Energy and Climate Action (TCS/ECA), Climate Innovation and Montreal Protocol (TCS/CMP); MSME Competitiveness, Quality and Job Creation (TCS/SME); and Digital Transformation and Artificial Intelligence (TCS/DAI). Leveraging the diverse skill sets of UNIDO personnel and the services provided by the two TC directorates, TCS collaborates closely with IET to develop and implement programmes and projects, aiming at enhancing synergy and complementarity and maximizing UNIDO corporate performance and impacts on the ground. The Directorate also ensures close coordination and collaboration among the Divisions as well as with relevant entities in all Directorates across the Organization.

The Division of MSME Competitiveness, Quality and Job Creation (TCS/SME) works towards increasing the competitiveness of industries in developing countries and countries in transition, especially emphasizing business development of MSMEs engaged in manufacturing and creating jobs therein. It aims at increasing competitiveness among MSMEs in two interconnected ways: first, by modernizing businesses through the transfer of advanced technologies adapted to local conditions, product innovation, productivity improvement and upgrading, developing market and value chain readiness as well as improved access to finance; and second, by improving the quality of MSME manufactured products and their compliance with market requirements through capacity building for the development of industrial production and trade-related quality infrastructure including for standardization, metrology, accreditation and of conformity assessment service institutions (testing, certification, inspection and calibration) and the strengthening of their capacities.

The Competitiveness, Quality and Compliance Unit (TCS/SME/CQC) builds national and regional production and quality infrastructure systems, with an emphasis on providing internationally recognized services, facilitating MSME participation in regional and global value chains; strengthening institutional quality infrastructure capacities; building conformity assessment capacities; and supporting market access and quality awareness with the public sector, economic operators and consumers, placing a special emphasis on capacitating MSMEs.

PROJECT CONTEXT

Poverty Alleviation and Inclusive Development Across Rural Sindh (PAIDAR) is a five-year programme funded by the European Union to support the Government of Sindh (GoS), Pakistan in implementation of its Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS). The long-term objective of PAIDAR is to contribute to sustainable poverty reduction and improvement of livelihoods of poor women, men and young people across Sindh province.

The PRS has three pillars: 1) Community Driven Local Development 2) Addressing Urban Poverty including Urban Economic Clusters and 3) Rural Growth Centres.

Purpose of PAIDAR programme is to support the GoS to implement its poverty reduction strategy as a whole and in particular sub-strategies that aim at:

• Fostering economic development, enterprise development and job creation with the objective of increasing income of the poor women, men and young people
• Optimizing public service delivery to enhance access to livelihood improving services such as water, electricity, health services and education with the ultimate objectives of both improving living conditions and quality of life and reducing poor household’ expenditure that arises as a cost resulting from lack of access to such services and poor living conditions.

  To this end, the programme will:

  • Provide necessary technical assistance, capacity building and financial support to a significant number of micro and small enterprises in target RGCs with the objective to overcome COVID-19 impacts on enterprises, support enterprise development and business development.
  • Contribute technically and financially to building and upgrading public infrastructure for improvement in delivery of basic service with direct impact on poor people’s livelihood as well as services to support business development.
    • Strengthen capacity of the GoS at provincial and local level for implementation of the PRS and assist the GoS to strengthen internal coordination and monitoring capacity, and to optimize provincial public resources allocation towards meeting PRS objectives.

      PAIDAR will deliver on the above objectives through utilization of three key mechanisms:

      1. Co-financing public investment projects of the GoS aiming to build and/or upgrade public infrastructure for delivery of basic services with high impact on livelihood improvement and poverty reduction, as well as for delivery of services with high potential to contribute to economic development of the target RGCs and foster enterprise development.
      2. Provision of grants to support MSMEs investment projects which demonstrate strong potential for enterprise development, income generation, job retention and creation.

         Technical assistance to the GoS and the MSMEs to ensure investment projects (both co-financed public infrastructure development projects and financially supported MSME investment projects) are designed, planned and implemented to deliver results in line with the objectives of the PRS; and to strengthen GoS capacity to plan, implement and monitor results PRS

         FUNCTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

         Under the overall guidance of PAIDAR Programme Manager and direct supervision of National Programme Coordinator and National Technical Advisor and in close collaboration with PAIDAR team, the Infrastructure Development Expert will be responsible for the performance of the following main duties:

         1. Review of programme documents, Poverty reduction strategy, Concept notes of development schemes, primary and secondary data related to social services. Relevant documents and databases reviewed.
         2. Assist in conducting detailed technical assessments to evaluate the feasibility, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness of proposed development schemes
         3. Provide technical inputs and support to the PMIU team on all infrastructure and civil engineering aspects of projects within the selected RGCs.
         4. Review and validate the Design Consultant’s deliverables, including: technical sections of the PC-1s for prioritized development schemes; cost estimates, budgets, and resource allocation for technical components; design specifications and compliance with regulatory standards.
         5. Support and assist in developing a robust quality control and assurance framework, ensuring adherence to engineering best practices and project timelines across all phases planning, execution, and monitoring.
         6. Assist the PMIU team to prepare and finalize bidding and procurement documents, including tender documents, BOQs, technical drawings, and contract specifications.
         7. Assist in the contractor prequalification process, evaluating bids, and ensuring the selection of competent contractors with the capacity to meet project requirements.
         8. Oversee and monitor ongoing and upcoming development projects, ensuring compliance with approved designs, quality standards, safety regulations, and environmental guidelines.
         9. Identify potential risks and challenges in project execution and propose mitigation strategies to ensure seamless project delivery.
         10. Facilitate coordination between stakeholders, including government agencies, consultants, and contractors, to ensure effective communication and timely project execution.
         11. Ensure compliance with national and international construction standards, environmental policies, and safety regulations in all project activities.
         12. Prepare guideline on environmental and social impact assessments, ensuring that development projects align with sustainability goals and community needs.
         13. Coordinate with relevant organization to conduct needs assessments and feasibility studies for WASH infrastructure projects, including water supply, sanitation, and drainage systems.