Consultant – ACWA Fund

  • Location:
  • Salary:
    negotiable / YEAR
  • Job type:
    CONTRACTOR
  • Posted:
    4 months ago
  • Category:
    Treasury and Investment
  • Deadline:
    13/09/2024

JOB DESCRIPTION

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT TO SUPPORT THE ACWA FUND AND

 

DIVERSE FINANCIAL ANALYSIS FOR THE AFRICAN CLIMATE

 

RESILIENCE CITIES PROJECTS

 

FINAL DRAFT: AUGUST 2024

SUMMARY OF PROCUREMENT

WRI Africa intends to award a cost reimbursement an individual consultant to support

 

the implementation of WRI’ Africa Cities Water Adaptation Fund (ACWA).

 

About WRI Africa

 

Founded in 1982, World Resources Institute (WRI) is an independent, nonprofit global

 

research organization that turns big ideas into action at the nexus of environment,

 

economic opportunity, and human well-being. WRI works to address seven critical

 

challenges that the world must overcome this decade to secure a sustainable future for

 

people and the planet: climate change, energy, food, forests, water, sustainable cities, and

 

the ocean.

 

WRI has been working in Africa for more than 30 years, supporting local partners and

 

Africa governments to advance forest protection, landscape restoration and sustainable

 

cities. Our vision for Africa is inclusive transformation so Africa’s people and landscapes

 

flourish. To realize this vision, WRI works with partners to generate actionable knowledge

 

across three strategic pillars: vital landscapes, thriving and resilient cities, and

 

institutional and economic transformation.

 

About WRI’s ACWA Fund

 

The World Resource Institute (WRI) founded the African Cities Water Adaptation Fund

 

(ACWA Fund). The ACWA Fund uses an integrated approach to finance innovative urban

 

water resilience solutions at scale. The Fund has the ambitious goal of deploying over

 

$500 million in funding by 2032 to support scalable urban water resilience solutions

 

across 100 African cities. The ACWA Fund offers full project lifecycle support to help local

 

leaders understand their climate and water risks and socioeconomic impacts; identify,

 

prioritise, and prepare projects; structure deals and mobilise capital; and scale delivery

 

by standardising project development manuals, deals, and contracts. It achieves this

 

through three core services: developing city-scale resilience investment plans, offering

 

project preparation support, and providing finance for catalytic projects. The focus is on

 

a low-cost, innovative approach to assessing needs at a city level and responding rapidly.

 

The ACWA Funds complements other ongoing programmes including SUNCASA1 ,Green-

 

Grey Infrastructure (GGI) Accelerator2 and the Arican Climate Resilient Cities (ACRC)

rogram3. To date, the ACWA Fund has made significant strides, securing $7 million in

 

commitments, engaging with cities to develop action plans and identify projects, and

 

developing pilot project portfolios. The Fund is now seeking an additional $8 million to

 

begin its pilot phase, which includes delivery of projects in the two pilot cities and further

 

fund design.

 

SCOPE OF WORK AND OUTPUTS/DELIVERABLES

 

WRI is seeking an individual consultant based in Nairobi/Kigali/Addis

 

Ababa/Johannesburg to support the implementation of the ACWA Fund pilot phase as

 

well as other related programs and projects within WRI Africa Climate Resilience Cities

 

Program for a period of 9 months. The bidders should be able to:

– Provide engagement, technical analysis, and advisory support to develop financing

strategies, policy solutions, and institutional arrangements necessary to advance

the ambitions of the ACWA Fund and its related mechanisms.

– Collaborate with investors, donors, government agencies, NGOs, and communities

across multiple countries in Africa to advance the ACWA Fund’s ambitions

including its financial resourcing. In the same vein, the person shall also support

other programs within WRI.

– Work under the Arican Climate Resilient Cities (ACRC) Program, directly

reporting to the Environmental Finance Lead, WRI Africa.

 

The tasks that the individual contractor will undertake shall include:

Work with partners to (1) refine the identified pilot projects of the ACWA Fund and

(2) oversee their initial implementation/roll-out.

 

Work with partners to co-create financing strategies and investment frameworks

 

for the ACWA Fund and other programs.

 

Support pilot projects preparation by conducting or overseeing feasibility studies,

 

financial analysis, policy analysis, or institutional analysis.

 

Work with partners to build policy actions, outline legal and regulatory

 

frameworks, and standards to support development of bankable water and climate

 

resilience projects.

Establish and grow existing partnerships with investors, donors, development and

private sector banks, and funders.

 

Design and implement training and knowledge exchanges with key stakeholders

 

with the support of local partners to advance ACWA Fund’s ambitions.

 

Conduct outreach and communications including developing relevant knowledge

 

products reports and articles, presenting at meetings and conferences, etc.

 

Collaborate across WRI programs and ensure linkages with WRI Africa’s New

 

Climate Economy (NCE), AFR100, and Cities4Forests Initiatives.

 

Work with senior staff on the strategic development and management of urban

 

resilience and financing work in Africa.

 

Liaise with internal staff and project stakeholders to problem solve and generate

 

solutions to project implementation issues.

 

WRI will provide guidance on:

The background information on the ACWA Fund among other programs and

projects which includes the architecture, focus areas and priorities.

 

DELIVERABLES

 

The consultant is expected to deliver the following:

 

An inception report outlining the proposed methodology and work plan within 2

 

weeks of signing the contract.

 

Regular monthly reports on work undertaken (based on the agreed workplan)

 

including on the refinement of the pilot projects and their implementation.

 

PowerPoint slides for presentation to potential investors, donors and city

 

stakeholders

 

Participation on weekly team meetings

 

QUALIFICATIONS:

 

Education

A master’s degree in finance, public policy, economics, environmental

management, or similar

 

Experience:

Minimum of 7 years of relevant, full-time work experience in the field of urban

resilience, development finance, or sustainable infrastructure in Africa.
Strong track record of engaging global funds and financial institutions such as the

 

Global Climate Fund, Global Environmental Facility, World Bank, African

 

Development Bank, or similar.

Strong stakeholder engagement and partnership management skills, particularly

with cities, sub-national governments and water utility companies.

 

Proven ability to drive sustainability outcomes across multiple countries across

 

Sub-Saharan Africa

 

Strong written and oral communication skills, particularly when it comes to

 

communicating technical concepts to non-technical audiences

 

Experience consulting with public sector institutions, financial institutions, and/or

 

private sector

 

Please note that WRI is an IRS-registered 501(c)3, tax-exempt organization. WRI is not

 

VAT exempt. All prices or quotes should include VAT and tax, as applicable.

 

GUIDELINES FOR PROPOSAL SUBMISSION

 

Requirements

 

The selected vendor should be able to demonstrate the required expertise to

 

execute the task.

 

The selected vendor should possess relevant work authorization where this

 

position shall be based. WRI is unable to authorize visa work authorization

 

The selected vendor should be available for multiple in-person engagements with

 

the WRI, and partner teams based in Nairobi/Kigali/Addis Ababa/Johannesburg

 

during the period of this consultancy.

 

Proposal content

 

Prospective candidates should submit

A short statement of interest that demonstrates how they are suited for this project

based on the requirement

 

Samples of and references for similar previous work.

 

An up-to-date CV

 

A well explaining strategy & approach of executing the highlighted tasks

 

Expression of Interest, Deadline for Questions, and Proposal

 

All expressions of interest and questions about this RFP must be received via email to the

 

contact below by 5pm, September 13th, 2024 (EAT). Answers to the questions will be

 

shared will all parties who have asked questions or otherwise expressed interest.

 

[email protected] Lilian Nyangweso, Grants & Finance Specialist

 

cc [email protected] Obadiah Mungai, Environmental Finance Lead, WRI

 

Africa

 

EVALUATION AND SELECTION

 

Evaluation Criteria

 

The following elements will be the primary considerations in evaluating all proposals

 

submitted in response to this RFP

 

The extent to which the vendor’s proposal fulfills WRI’s stated requirements as set

 

out in the RFP;

 

Debarment and sanctions – WRI will not consider proposals from vendors that are

 

presently debarred by the U.S. government or named on any restricted parties lists;

 

Sustainability – WRI values sustainability and all other factors being equal, will

 

favor a proposal to more sustainably perform the work.

 

The bidder offering the best overall value will be selected. For this

 

procurement, non-price aspects are to be considered.

 

Selection Process

 

No proposal development costs shall be charged to WRI / all expenses are to be borne by

 

the bidders. WRI will award the bidder offering the best value without discussion.

 

WRI may, at its discretion and without explanation to the prospective vendors, choose to

 

discontinue this RFP without obligation to such prospective vendors or make multiple

 

awards under this RFP. Contracts will not be awarded to vendors debarred by the US

 

government or named on restricted parties lists.
This job has expired.