CCA/DRR/Social protection Consultant

Organizational Settings

In Kyrgyzstan, FAO is embarking on a review of the policy links between social protection and climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction and sustainable natural resource management with the aim of formulating concrete proposals which FAO can take up in future programming work in the country. As well as policy recommendations on how to better embed social protection in the processes related to Kyrgyzstan`s national efforts to enhance the overall resilience of rural communities to impacts of shocks, crises and natural hazards, including through adaptive, climate- and shock-responsive social protection modalities.

The work will contribute to the evidence base for the national policy dialogue on social protection’s role in climate and disaster and crisis risk management in the Kyrgyz Republic, and provide clear advocacy messages on the need to invest in linking social protection to climate change adaptation, as part of multi-sectoral strategies to reduce the risk of associated vulnerabilities, including poverty and promote sustainable and climate-resilient livelihoods in rural areas

Since the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic has requested assistance to respond to the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis and at the same time expressed interest in increasing its comprehensive response capacity, this analytical work becomes particularly relevant as it can help to identify gaps as well as possible solutions on how to strengthen their coherence, especially in times of shocks, to improve social protection system’s response and performance before, during and in the aftermath of a new crises and/or disasters.

The work also contributes to the ongoing activities supported by the UN disaster response coordination mechanism in Kyrgyzstan (DRCU) on elaboration of government policies and regulations, including by-laws, to apply practically regulations of the Law “On International Emergency Assistance” # 104 adopted on 17 June 2017.

Applications are invited for the position of a CCA/DRR/Social Protection Consultant to provide the technical support to FAO CO in Bishkek in the following:

1.Section on food security and social protection policies and programme reviewed as part of the comprehensive review of the national law “On international emergency relief” is conducted under Disaster Response Coordination Unit (DRCU) mechanism;

2. Recommendations on streamlining emergency and disaster reporting mechanisms of the national government, local administrations and self-government bodies, including through better horizontal and vertical coordination as cross-sectoral interractions;

3. Needs assessment with specific focus on agriculture, forestry and water management sectors and their reflection in the above-mentioned review of law “On international emergency relief” ;

4. Analysis and recommendations on strengthening coordination and interactions between national, sub-national and other stakeholders engaged in CCA, DRR and social protection activities for enhanced linkage and coherence between CCA, DRR and SP policies and programmes;

5. Recommendations on enhancing capacities of the ministries of agriculture, environment, social protection and other institutes and decentralized administrations to identify, strengthen and promote programme and policy level linkages between CCA/DRR and SP;

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Reporting Lines

Under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative in the Kyrgyz Republic, the direct supervision of the Assistant FAO Representative in the Kyrgyz Republic, the technical guidance of the Office of Climate Change, Biodiversity and Environment (OCB) and the Inclusive Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division (ESP), and in collaboration with concerned international and national technical specialists, national authorities and local administrations.

Technical Focus:

Food security, Disaster Risk Reduction, Climate Change Adaptation, Social Protection and Humanitarian Relief

Tasks and responsibilities:

1. Support the revision of the national law “On international emergency relief” with a specific focus on food security and social protection, and the linkages/interactions with other food security, social protection and livelihood support policies and programmes in the country as a part of comprehensive review of the national law “On international emergency relief” to be conducted under Disaster Response Coordination Unit (DRCU) mechanism with the aim of supporting elaboration of relevant policy documents related to the application of the law;

2. Compile, review and analyse the relevance of reporting obligations of national government, local administrations and self-government bodies policies on emergencies and disasters to the law “On international emergency relief”

3. Conduct a needs assessment of the agriculture, forestry and water management sectors with regard to DRR/CCA planning, and make recommendations on how these should be reflected in a revised version of/ amendments/policies to the law “On international emergency relief”;

4. Review the policy/legal/regulatory frameworks for DRR/CCA planning in Kyrgyz Republic and formulate recommendations on further improvements on coherence of DRR and CCA policies and their linkages to social protection;

5. Carry out a mapping of the administrations, institutes, advisory services and entities involved in CCA/DRR/Social protection at the national and sub-national levels and analyze interactions of thereof. Map existing coordination mechanisms, capacities and information-sharing platforms and channels among the relevant entities. Highlight strengths and weaknesses, identify challenges and opportunities, and make recommendations for improving horizontal and vertical coordination and interactions between the respective stakeholders for enhanced policy and programme linkages between CCA, DRR and social protection;

6. Support the Social Protection (SP) International Consultant in an assessment of the existing capacities of the ministries of emergencies, agriculture, environment, social protection and other relevant institutes and decentralized administrations in identifying and promoting linkages between CCA/DRR and SP (and identifying concrete ways in which the SP system can be made more risk-informed; and how SP system can be better integrated into DRR/CCA planning and emergency response);

7. On the basis of the above reviews and technical consultations, assess which relevant inter-sectoral coordination mechanisms could be strengthened or developed and make recommendations on capacity development needs on CCA/DRR/SP;

8. Provide on demand technical support and inputs into deliverables of ongoing FAOKG CCA/DRR/SP initiatives to ensure compatibility and integrity;

9. Support coordination with other development partners working in the area of shock-responsive and/or risk-informed social protection and CCA/DRR/emergency relief actions (UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNECE) to exchange knowledge, best practices and lessons learned;

10. Perform any other tasks relevant to the ToR.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• Academic qualifications in social sciences, environmental science, or a related discipline that are relevant for the assignment
• Experience in analyzing institutional and policy frameworks related to climate change and agriculture;
• Basic command of spoken and written English; fluency in Russian and local languages is required;
• National of the Kyrgyz Republic

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions is desirable
• Working experience in the area of DRR/CCA is highly desirable.
• Computer literacy of Microsoft package including Word, Excel and PowerPoint;
• Excellent communication skills in English and strong computer, report writing, and presentation skills
• Experience in development of recommendations on legal and regulatory frameworks within Humanitarian Relief;
• Experience in policy analysis and/or programme development in social protection and CCA/DRR;
• Experience in international agriculture development projects is highly desirable.