Formulation of UNDP Sustainable Energy Management Support Programme to Malawi, 2012-2016
Malawi’s environment and natural resources are the main sources of peoples’ livelihoods and the backbone of the country’s main productive sectors. Unsustainable use of these resources makes it harder to achieve food security, poverty reduction and other national development priorities, and will undermine development interventions and achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Malawi. This is further exacerbated by the current and future effects of Climate Change, which are expected to have a significant negative effect in Malawi. Realizing these threats and challenges, the Government of Malawi (GoM) has included ‘Conservation of the Natural Resource Base’ under Theme 1: Sustainable Economic Growth, in the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS, the overarching national planning document for the period 2006-2011) and incorporated “Energy, Mining and Industrial development” and “Climate Change, Natural Resources and Environmental Management” as two of the nine Key Priority Areas (KPA) in the revised MGDS for 2006 – 2011. These Themes and KPAs are reiterated in its successor document, the MGDS-II (covering the period 2011-2016). The relationship between economic development and energy, environmental and natural resources management is also emphasized under the following policies and programmes in Malawi (inter alia): National Environmental Policy; National Environment Action Plan (NEAP); National Environmental Management Plan (NEMP); Environmental Management Act (1996); Forestry Policy (1996) and National Forestry Programme (2001); Energy Policy; National Action Programme (NAP, 2000) under the United Nations Convention for Combating Desertification (UN-CCD); National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) under the UN Convention for Biological Diversity (CBD); and the National Capacity Self Assessment (2010) focusing on the Multi-lateral Environment Agreements (MEAs). Environment, Energy and Sustainable development is one of the focus areas in UNDP’s global Strategic Plan for 2008-2011 (extended to 2013). The UNDP Malawi Country Office has for a number of years supported national Environment and Energy programmes, recently also focusing on Climate Change. Aligning its key priorities with government’s MGDS, the present United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF 2006-2011, the overarching planning document for all UN Agencies in Malawi), features as its first Outcome: “By 2011 Government policies and local and national institutions effectively support equitable economic growth and the achievement of food and nutrition security while minimizing or reversing environmental degradation”. Fitting within the UNDAF Country Programme Outcomes, the current UNDP’s Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP), the strategic programmatic plan for UNDP’s country support in Malawi for 2008-11, has as the first Outcome: “Enhanced Conservation of the natural resource base by 2010”. A number of projects were developed and implemented under this CPAP Outcome, of which the following are still under implementation: UNDP-UNEP Poverty Environmental Initiative (PEI), Environment & Energy for Pro-poor Growth and National Climate change Programme, including the African Adaptation Programme (AAP). These programmes has been evaluated under the CPAP mid-term evaluation in 2010, under the Assessment of Development Results (ADR, 2011), as well as an end of term Outcome Evaluation in 2011. Under the newly drafted UNDAF 2012–2016 it is proposed that climate change, environment, natural resources, and disaster risk management coordination mechanisms and implementation arrangements will be built at national level, and in all disaster-prone districts. This should be achieved through mainstreaming of climate change, environment, natural resources and disaster risk management concerns into national and district policy and decision-making processes, as well as budgeting. It is also foreseen that National and District institutions will also receive UN support in producing, collecting and disseminating data, information and knowledge on climate change, environmental degradation and natural disaster. Furthermore, aiming at the development of a national programme on sustainable energy, the UN plans to pilot and upscale alternative innovative renewable energy technologies in rural and peri-urban areas. These programmes will be further detailed under the accompanying UNDAF Action Plan for 2012 – 2016 (currently under development). Following the UNDAF, UNDP Malawi has developed its Draft Country Programme Document (CPD) for 2012–2016. The new CPD aims to continue to support Malawi in its efforts in strengthening environment, natural resources and climate change and disaster risk management in a strategic manner, in line with the MGDS-II. More specifically, UNDP's support will focus on improved coordination, investment planning, mainstreaming and knowledge management at the national and district levels, and upscaling of renewable and energy saving measures to ensure a low emission and climate-resilient development. In order to operationalize the CPD and UNDAF, UNDP plans to formulate a Programme Support Document (PSD) for its support to GoM on Climate Change, Environment and Natural Resources Management. This will be undertaken by 3 separate teams of combined National and International Consultants on: Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation; Environment and Natural Resources Management; and Sustainable Energy Management
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Duties and Responsibilities | |
Consultancy services are sought to develop a five year programme for UNDP’s support to the Government of Malawi on Sustainable Energy Management, in particular Renewable Energy and Energy Saving Services. This Support Programme for the period 2012-2016 should follow the outline of the MGDS-II, the frameworks of the new UNDAF (including the Action Plan) and UNDP CPD for 2012-2016, as well as UNDP’s global mandate and strategies, e.g. the Low Emission Climate Resilient Development Strategies (LECRDS), Sustainable Development Plans, Green Economy, etc. The proposed UNDP supported programme should coordinate Renewable and Energy Saving initiatives with existing National Platforms (e.g. the National Climate Change and ENR Programme structure, the Joint Resilience Unit, bringing together the main Development Partners on Climate Change), the Sector Working Group (SWG) on Climate Change, ENRM and Energy, and other Development Partners’ (DPs) initiatives. Under the umbrella of the UNDAF and the UN Delivery as One (DaO) initiative, UNDP will embrace support from other UN agencies, especially UNEP, FAO and WFP, and will look across the planned UNDP programs and clusters to achieve a coherent Sustainable Energy Management programme. The consultant should develop a Programme Support Document (PSD) for UNDP’s assistance to the Government for a Sustainable Energy management support programme for 2012-2016, following the MGDS-II, UNDAF and CPD priorities, by operationalizing the relevant plans and strategies, and focusing on upscaling renewable energy and energy saving initiatives at national and district levels. The formulation would also need to take into account the Lessons Learned from the different evaluations and other assessments. This will be achieved by undertaking the following (non-exhaustive) tasks:
In undertaking the above tasks, the consultant is expected to refer to and consult international and national literature pertaining to the objectives of this consultancy, including international best practices, reviews, etc. Consultation with key stakeholders including the UN (UNDP, UNEP, FAO, WFP), the GOM institutions (Office of President and Cabinet, Ministry of Finance and development Planning, Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment & Energy, Department of Disaster Management Affairs, Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, and related offices at national and district level), CSOs/NGOs, Development Partners, private sector representatives, and other potential beneficiaries is required. Field visits to selected project sites, briefing and debriefing sessions with UN and the Government officials, as well as with donors and partners are envisaged.
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Required Skills and Experience | |
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UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. |
Formulation of UNDP Sustainable Energy Management Support Programme to Malawi, 2012-2016
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