Consultancy Opportunities at UNDP in Uganda

Job Title: CONSULTANCY: DEVELOPING EIA GUIDELINES FOR THE ENERGY SECTOR (UGANDAN NATIONALS)
Location :     Kampala, UGANDA
Application Deadline :    19-Sep-12
Additional Category    Environment and Energy
Type of Contract :    Individual Contract
Post Level :    National Consultant
Languages Required :
    English 
Starting Date :
(date when the selected candidate is expected to start)    01-Oct-2012
Duration of Initial Contract :    60 working days (Spread over a period of 3 months)
Expected Duration of Assignment :    60 working days
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Background

Introduction:

The overall policy goal of the National Environment Management Policy for Uganda is sustainable socio-economic development which maintains and enhances environmental quality and resource productivity. The policy seeks to integrate environmental concerns in all development policies, planning and activities at national, district and local levels, with wide participation of the people.

Following the enactment of the National Environment Act Cap 153, it is now the policy of Government that environmental impact assessment (EIA) has to be conducted for development projects and activities that are likely to cause significant impact on the environment; so that appropriate measures are identified to mitigate the anticipated environmental impacts, while positive impacts could be maximized.

The EIA process is still relatively new in Uganda, and there is still need to enhance public awareness and participation in the EIA process.

Therefore, since each sector has different technical requirements, sector specific EIA guidelines on issues related to each sector are necessary.

Background and Problem Statement:

Since the operationalisation of the EIA process in Uganda, most EIAs carried out have been mainly guided by the framework EIA guidelines that were put in place in 1997. Of late, however, there is evidence of increasing demand for EIA guidelines that specifically focus on sectoral development programmes, and projects. It is also envisaged that sector specific EIA guidelines will enhance the integration of environmental concerns into sectoral development planning. In addition, there are so many sector-based natural resources (such as Energy resources) that are experiencing degradation of varying intensity; and for which EIA would be a useful tool to control degradation through use and application of specific Sectoral EIA Guidelines relevant to the Ugandan situation.

In view of the above, there is an urgent need to prepare Sectoral EIA Guidelines, which should be based on the general principles and procedures that have already been elaborated in the framework EIA Guidelines. This initiative is thus, intended to provide the basis for meeting the demand for development of these sectoral EIA Guidelines and will further improve the capacity of sectoral agencies in assessing environmental issues of the sector.

Justification:

The Government of Uganda has in recent years undertaken several socio-economic reforms in order to improve the performance of the country’s economy. For instance, the Government has put in place programmes for the development of the Energy sector through consultation and consensus-building with a wide range of stakeholders.

Since the energy sector was identified as an engine of economic growth and poverty eradication, it is prudent that EIA guidelines be developed in the sector as a basis for ensuring environmentally sustainable development.

In order to facilitate the conduct and review of EIAs, developers, sectoral institutions, and the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development in particular, need to be equipped with guidelines that will enable identification of environmental problems specific to projects and activities of a sectoral nature and, therefore, be able to recommend appropriate mitigation measures based on the technical capacity available in the sector departments.

As an aspect of capacity-building, and in view of the fact that EIA review and the conduct of EIAs demands a considerable amount of time to enable effective consultation between the sectoral lead agencies, NEMA and other stakeholders, development of Sectoral EIA guidelines will, among others, provide the lead agencies and EIA Practitioners with easy and quick reference material; and thus, enhance the EIA review capacity of sectoral agencies, and reduce on time spent on the review process or actual conduct of EIAs.

Since responsibility for the conduct of EIA lies with the developer, it is also hoped that the EIA sectoral guidelines will provide reference material that will enable developers to carry out screening of their projects, as well as enable the conduct of EIAs for proposed projects. Many developers currently rely solely on hired services for EIA.

Objectives of the Consultancy:

The objectives of the consultancy are to:

    Develop EIA guidelines for the energy sector (that focus on projects and activities relating to different components of energy such as hydropower (electricity generation and transmission, distribution), thermo electric projects, geothermal, nuclear energy, biomass, biogas and biofuels, solar energy, wind energy, electricity transmission, petroleum (exploration, production, refining, transportation (pipeline), storage and trading;
    Incorporate cross-cutting issues (HIV and Gender, payment for ecosystem services/cost benefit analysis, land acquisition and settlement, heath and safety issues, and climate change and mitigations issues;
    Define sectoral procedures for conduct of EIAs for the energy development projects and activities in the energy sector;
    Provide simple checklists for use and application at all levels when conducting EIAs for energy programmes, projects and activities that relate to existing policies;
    Define the institutional framework for implementation of EIAs for the energy sector;
    Review of existing guidelines on the energy sector.

Beneficiaries:

These will, among others, include the following:

    NEMA whose EIA review, co-ordination and approval functions will be facilitated by the development of the sectoral EIA guidelines;
    Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) and staff of the Authority who will also be involved in the review process;
    The Lead Agency staff and the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development in particular, whose EIA review functions will be facilitated through availability of reference material in form of the sector specific guidelines. It is also hoped that this will enhance the capacity of sectoral departments to manage and protect the sectoral natural resources under their jurisdiction, through the use and application of the sectoral EIA guidelines;
    The developers, among others whose statutory responsibility to carry out EIA will be facilitated by the sectoral EIA guidelines;
    EIA practitioners who will have ready reference material for EIAs of various sectors;
    District and Local Authorities who are responsible for local development planning will be guided by the sectoral EIA Guidelines;
    The general public who will be able to understand sector specific environmental concerns and, hence, be able to fulfill their mandate as key stakeholders in the participatory EIA process;
    Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) (both local and International), community-based organisations (CBOs) and the private sector, will also be able to fulfill their mandate as key stakeholders in the participatory EIA process;
    Development partners, trade and manufacturing associations;
    Researchers, research institutions, extension agents/personnel that will be able to apply sectoral guidelines in specific research components dedicated to improving energy productivity;
    Improved state of the environment in general, that would be achieved through application of the sector specific guidelines.
    Tours and travel companies.

The implementation of the Sectoral EIA guidelines will, however, be the responsibility of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development other relevant sectoral lead Agencies, with NEMA implementing its mandated functions of supervision, co-ordination and approval of EIA activities and programmes/projects carried out in line with Sectoral EIA guidelines.

The assignment will be carried out by a team of 3 consultants (Ugandan Nationals) with qualifications and experience in environmental impact assessment, natural resources management, and extractive industry.

Duties and Responsibilities
Institutional Partners:

During the development of Sectoral EIA Guidelines, it is expected that NEMA will collaborate closely with all the stakeholders responsible for the different sector components and areas for which sectoral guidelines for the energy sector are to be developed.

Scope of the Consultancy:

Activities:

The activities to be accomplished during the drafting/development of the sectoral EIA guidelines shall be as outlined below.

    Liaise with the relevant sectors, and including key players, regulatory bodies, lead agencies and other development partners, to obtain the required and relevant information and input on pertinent issues relating to the energy sector;
    Consult with relevant stakeholders, including developers, EIA Practitioners, researchers and research institutions, NGOs, CBOs, communities, among others, to obtain their input during the formulation of the sectoral guidelines;
    Develop sectoral EIA energy guidelines which will cater for and enable improvement in energy output/productivity and protection of the environment, in accordance with the framework provided in the EIA guidelines already developed by NEMA. The sectoral guidelines should relate to and/or be in harmony with other related sectoral development procedures and practices impacting directly or indirectly on the energy sector and resources;
    Review the laws and regulations in place relating to the sector and cross-cutting concerns;
    Define a framework and procedures for conduct of EIA for energy projects and related activities - such as such as hydropower (electricity generation and transmission, distribution), thermo electric projects, geothermal, nuclear energy, biomass, biogas and biofuels, solar energy, wind energy, electricity transmission, petroleum (exploration, production, refining, transportation (pipeline), storage and trading;
    Prepare and define a set of check-lists tailored for each of the components of the energy sector as reflected above.
    Define the institutional framework for implementation of sectoral EIA Guidelines;
    Prepare a Draft Report and submit to a select Committee to undertake the initial review;
    Facilitate a review workshop involving all relevant stakeholders, to discuss the first draft report;
    Incorporate comments of the Review Workshop into the first draft Sectoral EIA guidelines;
    Where deemed necessary, after the review workshop and incorporation of the workshop comments into the draft guidelines, a select Technical Committee can be constituted to study within one week the revised draft Sectoral EIA guidelines submitted by the consultant, in order to contribute to preparation of the final report;
    List of recommendations for relevant training and awareness programmes on the Sectoral Guidelines - targeting other sector agencies, district officials, the private sector, industrialists, other stakeholders, and the general public;
    Consultant submits the Final Sectoral EIA Guidelines to NEMA;
    The Consultant will provide copies of the Final Draft (8 bound copies) in print and electronic media (two sets of Compact Disk _Read-Write) containing documents prepared in MS Word 97 and MS Excel).

Expected Outputs/Deliverables:

The outputs from the consultancy are expected to include:

    Inception report
    Sectoral EIA guidelines for the energy sector suited to its components/sub-sectors and harmonised with the general EIA guidelines;
    a set of check-lists to cater for the different components/sub-sectors within the sector;
    a framework for operationalisation of the Sectoral EIA guidelines for the sector;
    recommendations for training pertaining to application of Sectoral EIA Guidelines of the sector, targeting lead agencies, district authorities, research institutions, private sector, agro-industrialists, and the public/civil society.

Reporting:

The Consultant will report to the Resident Representative of UNDP Uganda Country Office for all contractual obligations and to the Executive Director NEMA on all technical aspects of the assignment. All reports shall be addressed to the Executive Director NEMA with copy to UNDP Resident Representative. NEMA shall certify quality and completeness of the outputs before payment to the consultant are made.

Duration and Timeframe of the Consultancy:

Due to the broad nature of the energy sector, the consultancy will utilise 60 person days spread over a period of 3 months as follows:

    The first one month dedicated to consultations and preparation of the first draft report (sectoral guidelines);
    The second month – for compilation of the draft sectoral guidelines;
    The third month – for preparation and conduct of the review workshop involving all the relevant stakeholders.

Support by the Client:

The National Environment Management Authority shall:

    Assign to the consultant two members of staff as full-time counterpart staff for the assignment to learn how the process is done and to retain institutional capacity after the assignment;
    Provide all relevant documents and reports required for the execution of the assignment;
    Convene all stakeholder consultation workshops;
    Arrange for travel to the field when required;
    Provide timely review and feedback on reports;
    Provide any other assistance considered crucial for the delivery of the assignment.

Competencies

Composition and Competency of the consulting team:

The consulting team shall consist of Ugandan Nationals with qualifications and experience in environmental impact assessment, natural resources management, and extractive industry.

    Team Leader: Should have experience in environmental management of more than 10 years.
    Sociologist: Should have at least 5 years experience in the fields of EIA, related to oil and gas, energy and mineral development projects. Experience in mainstreaming HIV/AIDS, Gender is an added advantage.
    Oil and Gas Specialist: Should have Experience in undertaking EIA within the energy sector especially oil and gas.

Required Skills and Experience

    Team Leader: Should have a first degree with a bias in energy and an advanced degree in Environment and Natural Resources is a must.
    Sociologist: Should have a minimum of a bachelors degree in social science related subjects
    Oil and Gas Specialist: Should have a minimum of a bachelors degree in geology, geophysics, natural resources

Application Process:

Preparation of Proposals:

Language:

Proposals prepared by the Bidder and all correspondence and documents relating to the proposal exchanged by the bidder and the procuring UNDP entity shall be in English.

Documents comprising as proposals:

Proposal shall comprise of the following documents:

    Proposal submission – online application at the following address: http://jobs.undp.org
    Technical Proposal – suggested outline for technical proposal:
    a. The offerors interpretation of the assignment;
    b. Clarifications and or suggestions on scope of assignment;
    c. Approach and Methodology for undertaking the assignment along with timelines;
    Any additional information that demonstrates individual capacity to undertake the proposed assignment.

Proposal Price:

The financial proposal will indicate the price which will be in Uganda Shillings.

Payment Schedule:

The payment will be made in three installments:

    20% upon submission and approval of an inception report for the study to be reviewed by a selected technical team;
    50% upon submission and approval of a Draft Document  to be reviewed by a selected technical team;
    30% upon submission and approval of a Final EIA Guidelines for the Energy Sector Document.

How to Apply:
Eligible consultants(Ugandan Nationals only) are required to submit application and a detailed CV/Resume online at http://jobs.undp.org.

Applicants should clearly indicate the position being applied for; either(i) )Team Leader: or (ii) Sociologist; or (iii)Oil and Gas Specialist.  Applications/proposals without clear indication of the above will not be accepted.

Deadline: