Coral Conservation specialist

Contract

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Background

The Gulf of Aqaba oriented NNE-SSW is the northernmost sea-flooded part of the Syrian-African rift system. The Gulf is a semi-closed basin, separated from the Red Sea by the Straits of Tiran, a narrow passage about 250m deep. The Gulf extends over a length of 180 km and a width of 5 to 26 km, and reaches almost 1800m depth.

The Gulf is a host to more than 1000 species of fish, 110 species of hard coral, 120 species of soft coral in addition to sponges, snails, crabs and sea turtles.

The reefs in the Gulf are all north of the 27° N latitude - they are some of the northernmost reefs in the Indian Ocean. Corals belong under the phylum Cnidaria in the kingdom Animalia. From almost invisible life-forms to huge fish or mammals, all are equally important and contribute to the food chain, thus creating the conditions for the building and the healthy state of the coral reef.

Despite the fact that the Gulf of Aqaba is one marine unit, there are still differences in relation to its currents, temperature, salinity and coral reef communities that make the northern part different from the southern and the western part different from the eastern one. Example of such differences is the presence of five species of seagrasses on the western coast, only three have been recorded in the eastern coast.

In conclusion, all of the above special combinations of conditions makes the Gulf especially vulnerable to the effects of pollution low rates of exchange, combined with high rate of evaporation mean that introduced pollutants can affect the Gulf for long periods of time.

The coral reefs and associated ecosystems (including seagrasses and mangroves) along the Gulf of Aqaba are under severe pressure from anthropogenic and climate change-related impacts. The current state and continued decline of coral reefs, demands significant financial resources in order to support comprehensive adaptation strategies to save the reefs from climate change and multiple local anthropogenic threats.

UNDP country offices in Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia have been working through a number of interventions over many years to support the conservation of coral reef and the associated ecosystems.

In order to support, sustain and advance the work to recover and conserve the unique and globally significant coral reef ecosystems in the Gulf of Aqaba, UNDP Jordan Country Office has made a submission end of 2021 to become Convening Agent for the GFCR Grant Fund Gulf of Aqaba Programme and has been pre-selected end of February, 2022.

The Gulf of Aqaba Program is a regional (Jordan/Egypt program) for the GFCR Grant Fund, but which would also need to be inserted within the wider Gulf of Aqaba context. It will be building a consortium of institutions that includes key regional actors e.g. PERSGA, IUCN, etc. and will highlighting transboundary issue related to coral reefs within the marine conservation context.

The Gulf of Aqaba Program is envisaged to achieve its ultimate objectives through the mobilization of additional financial resources, coordination of multiple stakeholders, systematic research and monitoring, and a new vision that strengthens the economic benefits of coral reefs conservation.

UNDP is therefore seeking the services of a suitably qualified and experienced international expert to support the design of this regional program which will be submitted to the GFCR Executive Council for its consideration.

Duties and Responsibilities

The assignment aims at supporting UNDP to develop and submit a regional concept note for the GFCR that target the Gulf of Aqaba. The concept note must be developed in accordance with the GFCR concept note template and follow the relevant guidelines. This concept note shall focus on:

• A regional scope that reflects a holistic approach to mitigating various drivers of coral reef degradation;
• Outputs-level results that should report on GFCR Fund-level indicators.
• Increasing the resilience of priority coral reef ecosystems and associated communities through the application of blended finance strategy to catalyze sustainable revenue streams for reef-positive interventions.
• Addressing issues of gender and social inclusion .

Under the guidance of the Country Office in UNDP Jordan the consultant will provide the support for the development of the GFCR concept note including but not limited to the following activities:

1. Provide an overview of the Gulf of Aqaba region’s coral reefs and description of specific priority sites (1 site per country) for implementation to demonstrate an integrated ecosystem approach.
2. Provide information on the selected priority sites for implementation and the justification for the selection of these sites (focus on their resilience to climate change, ecological and socio-economic value).
3. Conduct an analysis for local and regional drivers. This will inform threats to coral reefs that need to be addressed by the program through the development of revenue generating reef-positive interventions.
4. Provide a description for the main local drivers of coral reef degradation along the Gulf of Aqaba and describe the magnitude, scale and source of the threat and its impact on coral reefs in the priority areas.
5. Provide a description of the expected results of the proposed program which will be the basis for Results Framework of the Full program document.
6. Develop the theory of change for the program which will lead to achieve a transformative change for coral reef conservation by seizing on blended finance to catalyze sustainable revenue streams to address drivers of coral reef degradation.
7. Provide a proposed operational structure for the program and List and describe the role and interaction between the different operational components of the program.
8. Describe the strategy that the program will adopt for implementation across the transboundary systems of the Gulf of Aqaba.
9. In coordination with the Convening Agent, identify potential partners with different sectoral and thematic expertise (e.g., M&E, coral reef restoration, financial structuring, livelihood development, fisheries, blue carbon, etc.).
10. Suggest a coordination strategy and engagement with government actors in the target region to ensure national buy-in and engagement within the program.
11. Based on the proposed interventions and activities for the regional program, provide an overall estimate for full program implementation and how the funds are intended to be utilized.
12. Indicate initiatives that can be approached to provide co-financing/co-implementation through either grant or investment capital.
13. Indicate any risks factors might affect the implementation of the program and the proposed response strategies

Competencies

• Demonstrating/safeguarding ethics and integrity.
• Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.
• Self-development, initiative-taking.
• Acting as a team player and facilitating teamwork.
• Facilitating and encouraging open communication in the team, communicating effectively
• Creating synergies through self-control.
• Managing conflict.
• Learning and sharing knowledge and encourage the learning of others. Promoting learning and knowledge management/sharing is the responsibility of each staff member.
• Informed and transparent decision making.

Corporate Competencies

• Demonstrates integrity and fairness, by modelling the UN/UNDP's values and ethical standards;
• Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UN/UNDP; and
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualification

• A minimum of a Master’s degree in the field of marine conservation, ICZM, marine biology, Environmental Sciences Finance, Economics or other relevant fields.

Professional Experience

• At least 10 years of experience in the field of marine conservation . Previous experience with a development partner or government is a very strong advantage.
• Field-based experience in the planning and implementation of ecological and natural heritage baseline surveys and assessments.
• Experience with the design, structuring and deployment of conservation focused blended finance instruments.
• Proven previous knowledge and experience of tropical marine ecosystems particularly the Red Sea is a very strong advantage.
• Excellent writing skills required, as demonstrated by previous research/analytical reports/proposals on relevant topics.
• Proven ability to lead consultations and facilitate dialogue among senior government officials and other senior stakeholders required.
• Knowledge and understanding of marine conservation challenges and management tools to address those challenges.
• Excellent experiences in stakeholders mapping, consultation tools, socio economic assessments related to natural resource management.
• Proven previous experience in developing/contributing to the development of funding concepts and proposals.

Language requirement

• Fluency in English (written and spoken), and an ability to summarize and present information effectively.

Technical and financial proposals along with CV & 3 references should be submitted and attached as one file, and without such will not be considered).

(Only Short Listed Candidates will be contacted)

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. All individuals including persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with strictest confidence and equally.

UNDP is an employer committed to gender equity and to providing equal opportunities to both males and females.