Private Sector and Market Access Consultant

Contract

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Result of Service

• Technical analysis on business analytics and private sector engagement under the ASEAN Social Forestry Initiative provided, consistent with the programme’s strategy and expectations in terms of quality, also ensuring timely delivery. - A regional strategy (including national strategies) to scale up up-front finance into the forestry sector is developed. - The Restoration Marketplace has been established in Asia Pacific, including strategizing how to populate a market platform for connecting emerging enterprises in the agricultural production space with consumer facing environmentally focused sourcing companies in the consumer goods sector and capital providers. - UN-REDD TA related to REDD+ RBF has been supported in at least 3 countries in Asia Pacific

Work Location

Bangkok

Expected duration

6 months

Duties and Responsibilities

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the leading global environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system and serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment. UN-REDD Asia Pacific under the Climate Mitigation Unit (CMU) and Climate Finance Unit (CFU) are looking to engage the consultant to provide technical inputs on business market connections, private sector engagement and climate finance related to forests and land use sector in Asia Pacific. The consultant will also provide support on resource mobilization efforts and explore opportunities to support scaling up options of pilot initiatives in the region. The consultant will: - Provide business analytics and private sector engagement advice to government counterparts, relevant UN-REDD advisors and partners in Cambodia, Lao PDR and Indonesia under the ASEAN Social Forestry Initiative, including: o Lead the technical assessment of the economic and business potential of selected social forestry enterprises and engagement with off-Takers. o Guide the enterprises with the development of enterprise development/investment plans. o Technical scoping of private investment sources and supporting transaction to implement enterprise development plans. - Lead the implementation of the SMEs development work (incl. forest carbon business model) in Asia Pacific, including the restoration’s explorer, factory, marketplace, E4NF, including: o Provide technical backstopping for the implementation of the Factory incubation programs for entrepreneurs as part of the ASEAN Social Forestry project. Coordinate with CFU to ensure consistency in the deployment of these programs and to capture impact information to inform the design of future versions of the Factory. o Explore possibilities to populate a market platform for connecting emerging enterprises in the agricultural production space with consumer facing environmentally focused sourcing companies in the consumer goods sector and capital providers. Evaluate the opportunity and relevance of using CFU‘s restoration Marketplace to achieve these goals. o Coordinate and liaise with relevant staff to ensure that UNEP’s expertise on sustainable land use private sector and finance in the region are effectively disseminated through the technical assistance and project work in UN-REDD countries and to CFU projects in general. - Develop regional concept notes and proposal led by CMU and CFU for work in Asia Pacific focusing on access to market and access to finance for businesses aligned with UN-REDD objectives, including: o Building on existing UN-REDD and CFU Initiatives, lead the development of a regional strategy to scale up the development of economic activities into the forestry and land use economic sectors through (1) generating capital (incl. through innovative financial transactions and increasing capital availability) and (2) supporting capital deployment (incl. increasing project pipeline, increasing banking capacity, raising awareness/capacity and de-risking investments). The regional strategy will include national strategies to scale up up-front finance. o Contribute to CMU and CFU reporting and communications materials, and participate in meetings and conference calls, as needed. o Contribute to technical inputs, the formulation of concept notes, proposals and expressions of interest relevant to CMU and UN-REDD - Contribute to UN-REDD Technical Assistance in the Asia Pacific, ensuring timely and specific technical advice for governments on engaging with REDD+ financial mechanisms and facilitating access to REDD+ Results Based Finance, including: o Compile and organize country-specific data required for analysis and assessment of REDD+ initiatives and assist in reviewing and validating gathered data to ensure accuracy and relevance. o Maintain close communication with UNEP regional coordinator/technical advisors/ experts and facilitate information exchange with country teams. o Create detailed technical briefs aligned with the country context and regulations, outlining recommendations for engaging with REDD+ financial mechanisms. o Offer specialised technical support for the development of policy and plans related to accessing REDD+ results based finance.

Qualifications/special skills

Education: • A Masters degree in finance, economics, environmental science, development studies, or related subjects is required. • A first-level university degree in the above-mentioned fields, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree. Experience: • A minimum of 5-years’ experience in roles related to sustainability consulting, project management, or financial and economic analysis, ideally with a focus on agriculture, forestry, and other land-based activities is required. • Experience working on Paris Agreement Article 6 and forest carbon markets is desirable. • Work experience in the Asia Pacific region is desirable. Skills : • Ability to advise on business engagement and provide economic analysis of forestry and sustainable land use models is required. • Strong communication skills and the ability to convey key messages is required. • Ability to identify priority activities is required.

Languages

• Fluency in written and spoken English is required.

Additional Information

Not available.

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.