Local Economic Development Expert - National Consultant

Result of Service The main result of this consultancy is to develop a Local Economic Development Strategy for Qena City through ensuring the engagement of the local government, local communities and other stakeholders such as the private sector in local economic development and planning.

Work Location Cairo, Egypt

Expected duration The consultancy will be eight months

Duties and Responsibilities Organizational Setting UN-Habitat, the United Nations Human Settlements Programme, is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities. It is the focal point for all urbanization and human settlement matters within the UN system.

Background UN-Habitat and the New Urban Agenda (NUA) Mandated by the UN General Assembly in 1978 to address the issues of urban growth, it is a knowledgeable institution on urban development processes, and understands the aspirations of cities and their residents. For forty years, UN-Habitat has been working in human settlements throughout the world, focusing on building a brighter future for villages, towns, and cities of all sizes. Because of these four decades of extensive experience, from the highest levels of policy to a range of specific technical issues, UN-Habitat has gained a unique and a universally acknowledged expertise in all things urban. This has placed UN-Habitat in the best position to provide answers and achievable solutions to the current challenges faced by our cities. UN-Habitat is capitalizing on its experience and position to work with partners to formulate the urban vision of tomorrow. It works to ensure that cities become inclusive and affordable drivers of economic growth and social development.

In October 2016, at the UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development – Habitat III – member states signed the New Urban Agenda. This is an action-oriented document which sets global standards of achievement in sustainable urban development, rethinking the way we build, manage, and live-in cities. Through drawing together cooperation with committed partners, relevant stakeholders, and urban actors, including at all levels of government as well as the private sector, UN-Habitat is applying its technical expertise, normative work and capacity development to implement the New Urban Agenda and Sustainable Development Goal 11 – to make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

Urbanization is a key driver of development. Hence, sustainable planning and governance of urbanization is crucial to accommodate the rapid population growth, empower cities to optimize the value of urbanization and ensure even development, inclusion and equality. Rapid urbanization presents a unique opportunity to lift millions out of poverty when managed sustainably. However, inadequate urbanization management, doubled with rapid population growth has adversely affected quality of life leading to lack of adequate housing, and increasing inequality. These conditions contribute to diseconomies (e.g. congestion, pollution, displacement) that overtime negatively affects the overall city prosperity, efficiency, productivity and competitiveness.

UN Habitat in Egypt. Established in 2005, UN-Habitat Egypt Programme has been providing technical support to national counterparts on a wide range of urban issues. Adopting an integrated approach, UN-Habitat Egypt has supported reforming and improving urban planning and management through three main sub-programmes, namely, urban planning and design; urban policies, legislation and governance; and urban basic services and mobility.

Urban Policy, Legislation and Governance Programme The Urban Governance, Policies and Legislation Programme in Egypt works towards to tackling the multi-dimensional urbanization context with a special attention to urban management, urban planning, urban economy where all stakeholders are empowered and enabled to engage and play their expected role(s).The programme is working with all stakeholders and on different levels to find new appropriate, realistic and context driven ways of making sure that the urbanization processes are providing acceptable spatial standards and services. The programme is also working towards enhancing the capacity of relevant actors in reforming the legal and institutional framework governing urban development; promoting the empowerment of local government; enhancing land tenure security; establishing processes for participating and inclusive planning process; enhancing local economic development and social entrepreneurs. The programme provides legislation enhancement and policies development support on the national level in order to replicate and scale up all of its successful interventions.

Hayenna – Integrated Urban Development Project In 2018, the Ministry of Housing, Utilities, Urban Communities (MoHUUC), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), the General Organization for Physical Planning (GOPP), the UN-Habitat and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Cooperation (SECO) signed three different agreements (the project agreement, the separate agreement, and the contract) governing the Hayenna- Integrated Urban Development Project. The project aims at developing a more transparent land management, as well as implementing better-planned and financially sustainable basic infrastructure services that offer an attractive and inclusive alternative to informal settlements and promoting local economic facilities in two pilot Governorates. Qena was selected as the first pilot Governorate. The second pilot governorate will follow benefiting from the lessons learned from the first pilot. The project thereby intervenes in three dimensions: urban planning and design, public finance management and land-based financing, and support to urban legislation and regulation. Project’ interventions take place in two sites in Qena City, Al-Humydat and Al-Ma’ana.

Hayenna’s sites in Qena: Al-Humydat and Al-Ma’ana Hayenna project pilots its intervention in two sites in Qena city. Al-Humydat is an inner-city area which lies on 329.4 feddans and Al-Ma’ana expands over 147.4 feddans in the west of the city. Currently, Al-Humydat accommodates almost 13 thousand inhabitants, while Al-Ma’ana accommodates over 1,500 inhabitants. Urban growth is expected to tremendously increase, as a result of announcing the two sites as urban expansion areas. Through piloting in Al-Humydat and Al-Ma’ana, the UN-Habitat supports the Egyptian government’s efforts in sustainably accommodating and planning for the expected increase in population and urbanization rates through offering a context driven process for managing the urban expansion processes in existing cities and supporting the densification of inner-city areas. As part of Hayenna, urban detailed plans will be produced for the two sites, while a local economic strategy and infrastructure plan will take place on Qena City level, to ensure the project’s integrated approach.

Reporting Line The consultant will work closely with the Urban Governance, Policies and Legislation Programme and under the direct supervision of the Programme Manager.

Duties and responsibilities The main output of the consultancy mission is to prepare the Local Economic Development Strategy Report for Qena City through fulfilling the following duties and responsibilities:

A. Strategy Framework Phase: 1. Conduct legal, institutional, and procedural framework assessment of LED in Egypt. 2. Review local, national and international LED strategies and formulation experiences. This aims at grasping lessons learned from these experiences and highlighting how to benefit from them while developing the assigned city’s LED Strategy. 3. LED stakeholders mapping report, covering national and local authorities, local community, private sector, NGOs, universities, research and economic institutions, etc. 4. Coordinate between project’s consultants to ensure the alignment of the project components (urban planning and Public Finance Management) and the establishment of the mixed-use principle in the project’s plans. 5. Prepare Socio-economic Situation Analysis Report for the LED strategy, including qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis and covering all the components stated by the UN-Habitat LED strategic planning manual and toolkits. The analysis should cover the economic sectors and activities, labor force and the challenges and potentials, etc.

B. Strategy Formulation Process Phase: 6. Formulate recommendations for the LED strategy implementation and propose projects for implementation, based on the strategy and the participatory process. 7. Prepare and implement the action plan of the participatory LED strategy development formulation process based on and adapting the UN Habitat Module for LED. The plan should cover the inclusion of all stakeholders. The plan should also include a detailed and elaborate section on community engagement, which provides a differentiated approach towards the inclusion of all population groups to ensure leaving no one behind, especially vulnerable groups. 8. Organize and conduct all the civic and public engagement activities and ensure the full participation of the relevant stakeholders throughout the LED strategy formulation process and their documentation report. 9. Ensure knowledge transfer to local administration and relevant stakeholders this may include but not limited to: stakeholders’ needs assessment, capacity building training materials and manuals, best fit to purpose trainings means and tools, implementation of the required trainings and on job trainings accordingly…etc. 10. Comprehensive report on LED strategy formulation phases which have taken place, indicating the vision, issues and objectives, identification and evaluation of strategy options and strategy development.

C. Strategy Developing Phase: 11. Develop the document of the Qena city LED strategy, based on the UN Habitat Module for LED including all its phases 12. Report on recommendations for strategy implementation, including a list of proposed LED pilot projects (the list should consider the unimplemented governorate project with earmarked funds), assessment criteria and the final/selected two LED pilot projects, based on the strategy. The selected projects should be directly benefiting and located in one of the project’s sites. 13. Draft LED framework enhancement policy paper based on the lessons learned of the process nationally and locally. 14. Submit the Local Economic Development Strategy for Qena City 15. Documentation report of the phases, progress, potentials, and challenges of the different processes taking place during the assignment. The documentation report should include a section on lessons-learned, recommendations and best practices of the project. The report should also refer to the regular coordination between project’ consultants to ensure the alignment of the project components and the establishment of the mixed-use principle in the project’s plans.

Qualifications/special skills Academic Qualifications: Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in development, local or urban development, economics, social sciences or related field is required. A first-level university degree in combination with two (2) additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience: - A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in the field of local development, economic development or urban governance and management or related field is required. - Practical experience in developing and implementing economic strategies is an asset. - Familiarity in working with local administration units is an added value. - Publications and research record is an asset. - Ideally, previous experience with international organizations, NGOs and local communities is an asset.

Language: Fluency in oral and written Arabic and English is required.

No Fee THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.