Job Opportunity at IUCN Asia Regional Office
The Science and Strategy Group (SSG) sits within ARO and brings together under one umbrella all component thematic programmes in IUCN, including the Coastal and Marine Programme.
The Coastal and Marine Programme has a unique position to support regional governance initiatives in relation to coastal and marine conservation. It works closely with state governments, civil society and the private sector to influence both the development and delivery of policy through practical actions and interventions on the ground, as well as through its global, regional, national and local networks. The unique structure of IUCN enables it to promote transformational change from policy to practice, and to facilitate a process of continuous learning by feeding lessons and ground truth realities back into practical policy dialogues.
The Coastal and Marine Programme has been appointed by FAO to serve as lead Executing Agency for the Bay of Bengal Large Marine Ecosystem (BOBLME) Project, “Sustainable management of fisheries, marine living resources and their habitats in the Bay of Bengal region for the benefit of coastal states and communities”. The project supports the implementation of the BOBLME Strategic Action Programme (SAP), which seeks to safeguard and maintain the regulating and provisioning ecosystem services in the BOBLME worth around USD 240 billion over the next 25 years.
The Implementing Phase Project will address some of the following barriers identified in the SAP and confirmed during PPG discussions with participating countries and regional partners: i) Institutional, legal and administrative barriers, including incomplete regional policy cycles and weak national-regional as well as science-policy interfaces, leading to poor governance; ii) socio-economic barriers, including the need to improve stakeholder awareness, capacity, gender equity and participation, to reduce vulnerability and insecure livelihood status, and to introduce valuation of ecosystem services; iii) the lack of integration of climate change in planning and management. This will be required to enhance the resilience of BOBLME’s fisheries, critical habitats and people’s livelihoods, as current management practices will determine the possible impacts of future climate change.
The project objective is to contribute to sustainable management of fisheries, marine living resources and their habitats in the Bay of Bengal region, to reduce environmental stress and improve environmental status for the benefit of coastal states and communities. This will be achieved through five interlinked project components based on the SAP themes, and with an added component to strengthen the institutional arrangements for regional partnership coordination and collaboration, ecosystem-based monitoring and assessment.
The GEF support to the implementation of the SAP is expected to leverage significant amounts of investments from the BOBLME countries, from both national and sub-national levels, multilateral and bilateral development partners.
The project will support the BOBLME member countries in delivering the project outcomes through a coordinated partnership including IUCN, Bay of Bengal Program-Intergovernmental Organisation (BOBP-IGO), and Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Centre (SEAFDEC), with each partner bringing their unique areas of competence, mandates and convening power to support delivery. The project is country-led and adopts a participatory, bottom-up, integrated Focus Area approach to planning and implementation at community, sub- national, national, and regional levels to ensure greatest impact using the limited resources available.
The project will be implemented through the following five components, noting that substantial funding for Component 3 has yet to be confirmed:
• Component 1: Sustainable Management of Fisheries
• Component 2: Restoration and conservation of critical marine habitats and conservation of biodiversity
• Component 3: Management of coastal and marine pollution to improve ecosystem health.
• Component 4: Improved livelihoods and enhanced resilience of the BOBLME
• Component 5: Regional mechanism for planning, coordination, and monitoring of the BOBLME
Under the FAO-IUCN Partnership Agreement, the IUCN Regional Office (SSG Coastal and Marine Programme) will provide overall coordination of the project, including the work of the two partner agencies (SEAFDEC and BOBP-IGO). The IUCN Regional Office will host the project’s Regional Coordination Unit (RCU) and be responsible for facilitating the regional and national steering committee meetings. The IUCN Regional Office will also be responsible for implementation of key parts of the work plan, including ensuring the coordination and delivery of the work on Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM) and Illegal Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) (Component 1). The IUCN Regional Office will support countries in the establishment and/or strengthening of and implementation of project Marine Protected Areas (MPA), Endangered, Threatened, Protected ETP plans (Component 2), and work to address marine-based pollution (Component 3) and community resilience plans (Component 4). The IUCN Regional Office will have a key role in strengthening BOBLME wide governance mechanisms, including the establishment of the “Consortium for the Conservation and Restoration of the BOBLME” (CCR-BOBLME) (Component 5).
This position is open for both local and international candidates.
The Coordinator of the Regional Coordination Unit (RCU) will provide oversight and coordination for the effective management and technical execution of the BOBLME Project at regional level and country level providing, practical support, guidance and advice to all executing agencies and national counterparts.
SPECIFIC DUTIES:
Project Coordination Tasks
- Ensure the Regional Coordination Unit functions effectively to support delivery of the project; Coordinating with Sub-regional Coordinators (Executing Agencies), government line agencies and other partners to implement the BOBLME project in accordance with approved work plan;
- Support implementation of the project in accordance with the approved Project Document and the results-based Annual Work Plan and Budget (AWP/B), and in compliance with agency procedures and GEF requirements.
- Establish M&E system to monitor project-wide progress and impact.
- Monitor the expenditures, commitments, and balance of funds under the project budget lines, and draft project budget revisions.
- Supervise the Administrative/ Finance Assistant(s);
- Liaise closely with the National Coordinators and coordinate technical support to them as needed.
- Review and approve draft requests for proposals and bidding documents, terms of reference and performance contracts for consultants hired under the responsibility of the RCU.
- Supervise and evaluate the performance of consultants hired by the RCU to undertake specific activities.
- Organize Regional Project Steering Committee (PSC) meetings, act as Secretary to the PSC, and prepare and circulate reports of PSC meetings to all PSC members.
- Represent the project in meetings and conferences relevant to the achievement of the project’s objectives.
- Establish working relations with appropriate national and regional agencies and groups in participating countries to ensure effective implementation of BOBLME supported activities, and ensure adequate information flow, discussions and feedback among the various stakeholders of the project.
- Liaise with FAO in communication with project partners to ensure their co-financing contributions are provided within the agreed terms.
- Disseminate project information and best practices.
- Be responsible for collation of the project’s periodic reporting (financial and technical), including to FAO.
- Ensure overall coordination and integration between the project components and their respective executing agencies.
- Coordinate and collate component reporting into harmonized submission for FAO and GEF.
Technical Tasks
- Provide technical coordination and inputs for.
- Review relevant technical outputs and provide technical advice in relation to Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM) Planning Processes and Management Plans (Component 1).
- Lead work planning and coordinate overall technical work programme for Component 2 on Marine Managed Areas and conservation of biodiversity – e.g. leveraging technical advice on the application of the IUCN Green List Standard to improving MPA and MMA management effectiveness. Coordinate regional marine species Action Plan development.
- Provide technical advice on the environmental dimensions of Component 3 on management of coastal and marine pollution (fisheries and ports-related) and ensure linkages.
- Work with SEAFDEC and BOBP-IGO to integrate livelihoods development and resilience building into EAFM and MPA management approaches in the BOBLME target sites.
- Provide technical advisory input to SEAFDEC and BOBP-IGO on the integration of their respective components into the overall project strategy and theory of change.
- Provide technical advice on monitoring indicators and linkages to project M&E activities, ensuring harmonization across the executing agencies.
- Technically organize and act as secretary of the Project Steering Committee and any other regional level project-related management meetings.
- Provide the technical lead for the organization of regional knowledge sharing events.
- Ensure technical liaison and networking with other projects under the Bay of Bengal Large Marge Marine Ecosystem SAP, facilitating coordination and linkages with relevant components and their activities.
- Explore the inter-country regional governance mechanism most appropriate for the sustainable delivery of the BOBLME SAP.
- Develop new projects and funding opportunities to support the delivery of the BOBLME SAP.
In an ever evolving organisation such as IUCN staff members are expected to show flexibility in their approach to work and be willing to undertake other tasks that are reasonably allocated to them but which are not part of their regular TOR. Where any task becomes a regular part of staff member’s responsibilities, the TOR should be changed in consultation between the manager, the staff member and the HR Unit. Any one of the three may initiate the consultation.
Formal/Academic Education:
- Academic studies of three to five years, ending in a university degree or equivalent qualification in science, economics, or other recognized discipline.
- Equivalent business, accountancy, or other qualifications by recognized professional institutions
Training & Experience: Specialist – Requires qualification in a technical skill through an apprenticeship and at least 5 years of relevant work experience.
Language skills (Necessary to perform the job): Post requires fluency in English and a local language is an advantage.
International experience: Pertinent experience within a truly multinational environment.