Back SDP - Partnership Specialist, Climate Investment Platform

Specialist Development Programme (SDP):

The Specialist Development Programme (SDP) seeks to strengthen UNDP’s capacity to support countries to make the 2030 sustainable development agenda a reality with a particular focus on crisis countries and the humanitarian development nexus. The Programme is implemented within the framework of UNDP’s Junior Professional Officer Programme.

The candidate will receive a UNDP Letter of Appointment under the UN Staff Rules and Regulations and will be entitled to a compensation package including among others salary based on the UN salary scale for the professional category, post-adjustment, travel to/from the duty station, installation costs comprising relocation shipment/settling-in grant, and an annual learning allowance. Furthermore, the candidate will be enrolled in medical insurance scheme and in the UN Joint Staff Pension Fund. As an international staff member, the candidate will be eligible to apply for rental subsidy, spouse and child allowance, child education grant as applicable.

Job purpose and organizational context:

UNDP seeks to appoint a dynamic and ambitious Partnership Specialist at its Headquarters in New York to champion the Climate Investment Platform (CIP; see description below), and to coordinate closely with current and future CIP partners. In order to support the development of the CIP, the government of Denmark has made seed funding available for an initial two year ‘start-up phase’ of the CIP (the ‘CIP Start-Up Phase Project’). The Partnership Specialist will be part of the Project Management Unit (PMU) housed within UNDP to execute on the CIP Start-up phase and support the establishment and scaling of the CIP’s global activities. The Partnership Specialist will work with other UNDP staff in the Nature, Climate and Energy Team, UNDP Regional Bureaux, Regional Service Centres, and Country Offices, and report to the CIP Start-Up Phase Project Coordinator.

Nature, Climate and Energy at UNDP

UNDP is the knowledge frontier organization for sustainable development in the UN Development System and serves as the integrator for collective action to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP’s policy work carried out at HQ, Regional and Country Office levels, forms a contiguous spectrum of deep local knowledge to cutting-edge global perspectives and advocacy. In this context, UNDP invests in the Global Policy Network (GPN), a network of field-based and global technical expertise across a wide range of knowledge domains and in support of the signature solutions and organizational capabilities envisioned in the Strategic Plan.

Within the GPN, the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) has the responsibility for developing all relevant policy and guidance to support the results of UNDP’s Strategic Plan.  BPPS’s staff provides technical advice to Country Offices, advocates for UNDP corporate messages, represents UNDP at multi-stakeholder fora including public-private dialogues, government and civil society dialogues, and engages in UN inter-agency coordination in specific thematic areas. BPPS works closely with UNDP’s Crisis Bureau (CB) to support emergency and crisis response.  BPPS ensures that issues of risk are fully integrated into UNDP’s development programmes. BPPS assists UNDP and partners to achieve higher quality development results through an integrated approach that links results-based management and performance monitoring with more effective and new ways of working.  BPPS supports UNDP and partners to be more innovative, knowledge and data driven including in its programme support efforts.

UNDP’s 2018-2021 Strategic Plan emphasizes the critical links between environmental sustainability, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and broader efforts to achieve the goals of the 2030 Agenda and Paris Agreement. As part of the Global Policy Network in the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support, UNDP’s Nature, Climate Change, and Energy (NCE) Team promotes and scales up integrated whole-of-governance approaches and nature-based solutions that reduce poverty and inequalities, strengthen livelihoods and inclusive growth, mitigate conflict, forced migration and displacement, and promote more resilient governance systems that advance linked peace and security agendas.

The NCE Team works with governments, civil society, and private sector partners to integrate natural capital, environment and climate concerns into national and sector planning and inclusive growth policies; support country obligations under Multilateral Environmental Agreements; and implement the UN’s largest portfolio of in-country programming on environment, climate change, and energy. This multi-billion dollar portfolio encompasses: Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services including forests; Sustainable Land Management and Desertification including food and commodity systems; Water and Ocean Governance including SIDS; Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation; Renewable and Modern Energy; Extractive Industries; Chemicals and Waste Management; Environmental Governance and Green/Circular Economy and SCP approaches. This work advances crosscutting themes on innovative finance, digital transformation, capacity development, human rights, gender equality, health, technology, and South-South learning.

In addition to UNDP’s bilateral partnerships on natural capital, environment and climate, UNDP is an accredited multilateral implementing agency of the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the Multilateral Fund (MLF), the Adaptation Fund (AF) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) which  includes the Global Environment Facility Trust Fund (GEF Trust Fund); the Nagoya Protocol Implementation Fund (NPIF); the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF); and the Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF)). As part of UNDP’s partnership with these vertical funds, UNDP provides countries specialized integrated technical services for eligibility assessment, programme formulation, capacity development, policy advice, technical assistance, training and technology transfer, mobilization of co-financing, implementation oversight, results management and evaluation, performance-based payments and knowledge management services.

UNDP’s approach to energy aligns with the SDG 7 targets (renewable energy, energy efficiency and energy access), and is formulated around a Signature Solution on energy as set out in UNDP’s 2018-2021 Strategic Plan. Clean, reliable, and affordable energy is a key driver of sustainable development. UNDP’s signature solution on energy has three main areas of focus: in low-income countries, on energy access (electrification, clean cooking), with a UNDP commitment to electrify 100 million individuals by 2030; in middle-income countries, helping achieve transformational change and accelerate a just energy transition, including a focus on smart cities (energy efficiency, e-mobility, rooftop PV, battery storage); and in crisis settings, providing sustainable energy solutions in situations of displacement, around energy as a means to build resilience.

The Climate Investment Platform (CIP)

Reinforced by the urgency of the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated economic recovery, the importance of delivering financial resources to assist developing countries in tackling climate change is paramount. As UN Secretary-General Guterres noted on April 28, 2020, there is “a profound opportunity” to steer the world on “a path that tackles climate change, protects the environment, reverses biodiversity loss and ensures the long-term health and security of humankind”.

Given the global call to raise ambition on climate action, the UN SG’s Climate Action Summit in September 2019 resulted in the announcement of a new initiative, the Climate Investment Platform (CIP), spearheaded by UNDP, SEforAll and IRENA, in coordination with the GCF. The four announcing partners have now advanced the CIP, with many additional institutions, initiatives and countries having since expressed interest in partnering.

The CIP’s problem statement recognizes that the climate finance ecosystem today is cluttered and fragmented. The ‘supply side’ in climate finance– development banks, funds, UN system actors and others – have put in place significant resources to help developing countries scale-up climate investment. However, developing countries’ governments and private sector – the ‘demand side’ – often struggle to navigate these options and access support. There can many similar ‘supply side’ initiatives addressing a particular issue, creating clutter and fragmentation. Each has its own criteria, requirements and process. The result is an inefficient, and often ineffective, climate finance ecosystem.

The CIP’s objective is to act as an inclusive partnership and a global public good that will provide integrated and streamlined support to developing countries and the private sector to accelerate climate investments, with the ultimate goal to contribute to the realization of ambitious NDCs.

The CIP is framed around four tracks, with each track bringing together a coalition of key partner institutions and initiatives to streamline the development of bankable projects by project proponents in developing countries and align the supply of climate finance to declutter the climate finance space: 

• Track 1: Targets (helping countries to raise and specify their climate targets in NDCs)
• Track 2: Policies and Regulations (providing support for well-designed, implemented and enforced policies and regulations to scale-up private investment)
• Track 3: Financial De-risking (increasing access to risk-transfer instruments that ensure bankability of climate investment opportunities and crowd-in private capital)
• Track 4: Market Place climate investment deal-making (connecting investors and project sponsors to achieve financial closure)

Each track acts as a building block, addressing a key step in the climate investment value-chain, and together the four tracks propose a comprehensive framework to deliver system-wide transformation across major economic sectors, including energy, infrastructure, cities, among others, with the start-up phase focusing on the energy transition.

The CIP Start-up Phase Project

In order to support the development of the CIP, the government of Denmark has made seed funding available for an initial two year ‘start-up phase’ of the CIP (the ‘CIP Start-Up Phase Project’). The start-up phase of the CIP will launch country-level activities; the establishment of the CIP network and brand; and the advancement of the CIP’s design in relation to its full-scale operation as an inclusive partnership. It is envisaged that this start-up phase will be oriented around learning-by-doing, real-time adjustments to the CIP model, and making informed recommendations on rapidly and effectively taking CIP to scale. The start-up phase will then be followed by the full scale-up of the CIP. 

The CIP Start-up phase project, which has three primary activities, organized into corresponding workstreams:

• Activity 1: Identify and launch country-level activities to offer and deliver services along the four Tracks. 
• Activity 2: Establish CIP’s messaging and perform outreach activities with a view on broadening its support base and awareness.  
• Activity 3: Advance the CIP’s design as an inclusive partnership, taking a light, nimble and adaptative management approach.

UNDP is creating a Project Management Unit (PMU) to execute on the CIP Start-up Phase Project during this two-year period.  Among the team members of the PMU, UNDP seeks to hire a Partnership Specialist to facilitate coordination amongst the CIP partners, to attract and onboard new partners to the CIP, and to develop and implement strategic, thematic offers under the CIP leveraging the assets and strengths of various partners to enhance the added value of the CIP to declutter the climate finance space.

• Conduct outreach to key potential strategic partners, comprising of donor country governments, key development finance institutions, and existing climate finance initiatives.

UNDP is seeking to appoint a dynamic Partnership Specialist as part of the CIP Start-up Project team. The Partnership Specialist will work closely with the Communications Specialist, and will support the CIP Coordinator to engage with and consult with CIP announcing partners, as well as potential future CIP partners, stakeholders and interest groups. The engagement and consultations may take place at strategic meetings and high-level events, at the international, regional and country level, and will include development banks, the UN system, bilateral donors, inter-government bodies, research organisations and think tanks, and civil society. The Partnership Specialist will support dialogue with governments, including Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island States (SIDS). These partnership engagements and consultations will be country-driven, delivering concrete results in relation to the objectives and targets laid out in the CIP Start-up Phase Project Document. The Partnership Specialist is also expected to engage internally within UNDP, with the purpose of galvanizing synergies with initiatives, projects and programmes that relate to the CIP.

Content and methodology of supervision:

As part of the UNDP SDP programme overall framework, the incumbent will benefit from the following supervision modalities:

• Structured guidance provided by the supervisor, especially in the beginning of the assignment
• Establishment of a work plan, with clear key results within the first two months of the assignment
• Performance management as per UNDP standard practice and approach and completion of the yearly UNDP Performance Management Document (PMD)
• Effective supervision through knowledge sharing and performance/development feedback
• Participation in Unit/Team/Office meetings to ensure integration and operational effectiveness
• Guidance and advice in relation to learning and training opportunities within the field of expertise

Training and Learning:

As part of the UNDP SDP Programme overall framework, the incumbent will benefit from the following training and learning opportunities:

• Virtual pre-departure briefing before taking up the assignment
• 10-day orientation course in New York, subject to the alleviation of COVID-19-related travel restrictions and prevailing work modalities.
• Individual mentors to help maximize induction to UNDP and the job role.
• During the second year of assignment, possibility to participate in the 12 months UNDP Leadership Development training programme.
• During the last year of assignment, SDP participants are expected to prepare a career plan and will receive individual mentoring, guidance and support from UNDP.

In addition, specific training and learning modalities/opportunities will be offered in the receiving office

The Partnership Specialist will have the following responsibilities: 

1. Advances high-impact energy transition partnership activities with transformative potential in the climate finance arena

• Expansion of the CIP partnership network to serve the CIP’s goals of decluttering the climate finance space, accelerating the preparation of project pipeline, aligning climate finance supply, and facilitating matchmaking in the CIP ‘marketplace’.
• Supports CIP efforts to develop partnerships, secure resources, and establish relationships to advance the CIP’s goals. Develops a partnership outreach plan. Key potential strategic partners will comprise donor country governments, key develop finance institutions, and existing climate finance initiatives.
• Oversees the Partnerships Task Force of the CIP Start-up Phase Project activities delivering client-oriented CIP services such as technical and project preparation support to governments and project proponents at the country level.
• Spearheads coordination of the various partners’ efforts in support of the CIP, including coordination internally within UNDP and interaction with other CIP partners externally in close collaboration with IRENA, SE4ALL and GCF to mobilize resources and design high-impact thematic initiatives on energy transition and climate finance mobilization.
• Collaborates closely with the UNDP Global Energy team, including Regional Technical Advisors and Country Offices, to develop bottom-up partnership opportunities from the CIP’s country-level activities. identify, select, refine, and position for financing high-impact CIP interventions building on identified needs and based upon political will and UNDP capacity and project implementation experience at the country level

2. Positioning of the CIP for scale-up through support of various Start-up Phase activities.

• In addition to leading the CIP’s partnership function, supports other CIP Start-up Phase activities, including:
• Communications and Outreach. Supports the Communications Associate to establish CIP’s messaging and perform outreach activities with a view on broadening its support base and awareness, particularly with regard to the engagement of partners and development of new partnerships. Capitalizing on the high-level support and visibility of the CIP deriving from its launch at the 2019 UNSG’s Climate Summit, engages in outreach to and solicit inputs and feedback from stakeholders.
• Country-level support. Liaises with CIP partners and forms collaborations surrounding UNDP’s and other CIP partners’ country-level activities to offer and deliver services along the four Tracks. The CIP’s start-up phase will prioritize on-the-ground activities, albeit in a virtual manner in the first months (i.e. COVID19 contingency), aiming to achieve early results and impact. The CIP’s target clients are developing country governments, project proponents, and financial institutions. Country-level support will be country-driven, and will be provided for along the service offerings of the CIP’s four tracks. It is anticipated that the project will support 5 countries in year 1 and 10 countries in year 2.
• CIP design and scaling. Working with the CIP partners and PMU team, advances the CIP’s design as an inclusive partnership, taking a light, nimble and adaptative management approach with a view towards building a viable and scalable initiative. The start-up phase will advance the CIP’s design as an inclusive partnership, adopting an adaptive management approach to developing the CIP, informed by learning-by-doing. The start-up phase will focus on building relationships, operational modalities, and management and implementation capacity that deliver on the CIP’s potential and create a pathway to scale. The accumulated field experience and stakeholder engagement will inform the scale-up plan and readiness for full-scale rollout in 2022 and beyond.

3. Project management

• Supports the implementation of project activities in accordance with the project document and grant from the Government of Denmark, annual and quarterly work plans and budgets, and UNDP policies;
• Manages and monitors risks and issues related to CIP partnership development;
• Ensures an adequate system is in place to monitor and evaluate partnership-related activities.
• Contributes to knowledge management, innovation and community of practice networking to build the value proposition of the CIP and its transmission to the CIP network and broader climate finance community.

Core Competencies (level 5)

• Innovation - Ability to make new and useful ideas work
• Leadership - Ability to persuade others to follow
• People Management - Ability to improve performance and satisfaction
• Communication - Ability to listen, adapt, persuade and transform
• Delivery - Ability to get things done while exercising good judgement

• Strategic advocacy and partnership development 
• Effective Partnership and Donor Relations
• Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing:
• Support to Monitoring and Evaluation, and Reporting

• Master's degree in social policy, public policy, politics, economics, development studies, business administration or a related area.

• A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in international development, with at least 3 years in sustainable energy. A focus on sustainable energy finance is an advantage.
• Experience in high-profile multi-stakeholder initiatives at the international level
• Experience with the design and implementation of sustainable energy development projects is an advantage is an advantage
• Experience with developing countries
• Experience in the UN/multilateral system is an advantage

• Proficiency in English. Knowledge of another UN language is an asset  

Nationality:

Under the UNDP JPO programme framework, the following position is open only to Danish nationals. For more information, please go to: https://www.jposc.undp.org/content/jposc/en/home/how-to-apply.html

Important information for US Permanent Residents ('Green Card' holders)

Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents. UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment. 

UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.

Applicant information about UNDP rosters

Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Workforce diversity

UNDP is committed to achieving diversity within its workforce, and encourages all qualified applicants, irrespective of gender, nationality, disabilities, sexual orientation, culture, religious and ethnic backgrounds to apply. All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.

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Contract Duration: Annually renewable at least once, subject to satisfactory performance