Result of Service

Report on capacity needs gaps and challenges both human and technological.

Work Location

Home based

Expected duration

1 month

Duties and Responsibilities

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. This consultancy position is located in the UNEP Africa Office in Nairobi, Kenya under the Healthy and Productive Ecosystems Sub-Programme. The scope of work covers assessment of needs, development of a capacity building programme, and facilitation of training sessions through workshops, seminars, etc. including preparation of power point presentations. Under the overall guidance of the Deputy Regional Director of the UNEP Africa Office, and the direct supervision of the Regional Sub-programme Coordinator for Ecosystems, 1. Assessment of capacity needs: The consultant shall undertake a participatory assessment of the capacity of the County Government to manage water resources. This will be done to identify areas of strength, opportunities for improvement and challenges that hinder performance, etc. The assessment will cover human, organizational, technological, and financial capacities. It will also cover gender and human rights aspects of water resources management, etc. It will also include capacity mapping to identify where certain capacities may be located/ drawn from to support the County Government of Turkana. The results of the capacity assessment will be presented to stakeholders in a validation workshop where participants will review and critique the results. The results of the assessment will inform the design of the capacity development programme. Expected output: Report on capacity needs gaps and challenges both human and technological. 2. Design of a capacity development programme Based on the capacity assessment the lead consultant will design the capacity development programme. The expert will also develop the training/ learning materials, etc. the overall capacity development plan will be presented to stakeholders for validation before being finalised and rolled out. The programme will be hands-on with a focus on skills development and may include benchmarking events, site visits, and exchange visits, etc. The programme will also address the data needs for various uses – including portable water, agriculture etc., and the requisite data and information infrastructure to support water monitoring. It will also address risk factors and solutions aligned to the triple planetary crises. Among aspects include risk factors resulting from pollution, degradation of catchment areas, high temperatures that result in excess evapotranspiration of surface water resources, wastage, etc., alongside potential environmental solutions to address these risks, such catchment restoration, conservation approaches such as application of efficient water use technologies like – efficient solar irrigation etc. Efforts will be made to identify a priority issue to be addressed in a pilot field project that demonstrates the application of water resources management approaches suitable to solve the problem. Data and information management will be at the core of the programme while building on existing efforts such as the JICA/Turkana County Government database to develop and introduce monitoring protocols, equity-based mapping, investment case development, models of sustainable rural water supply, sustainability audits/checks of water quality. The programme will establish links to other regulatory requirements such as those by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), the Ministry of Health surveillance programme, etc. Where appropriate the One-Health approach will be introduced, including aspects such as antimicrobial monitoring. Considering that policy is the biggest driver of change and the cross-cutting nature of water, the programme will also establish policy coherence approaches that will integrate sustainable water management throgih the environment lens in the different water use sectors. Expected Output: A capacity development/building programme. 3. Implementation of capacity development programme The consultant will facilitate the implementation of the capacity development programme. The programme may involve different tracks depending on the identified needs e.g. sessions to address governance issues, management issues, or water resources development and investment as well as a specific capacity development track for water managers and water laboratory experts etc. Knowledge exchange activities will be built into the training by bringing water managers/experts from other counties as well as facilitate County Government of Turkana experts to visit other counties. Expected output: Report detailing the sessions undertaken, presentations used, feedback from the participants, etc. and recommendations for follow up after the project.

Qualifications/special skills

At least a Bachelor’s university degree in water resources management, geography, hydrology, or closely related area of study. At least 10 years of work experience in water resources management with a bias towards IWRM and capacity building in Africa, and preferably in East Africa.

Languages

Language: Fluency in English is required for this consultancy role.

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.