Legal Specialist (Waste Management) - retainer position

Nordic Support for Progress of North Macedonia project background

A)

The Government of Norway has decided to fund a sub-regional programme “Nordic Support for Progress in North Macedonia” to be implemented by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS). The project consists of a socio-economic development support to the more undeveloped parts of the country and also envisages support to the Macedonian authorities responsible for leading the renewed efforts on the EU accession process. 

The Government of Norway has allocated funding for the implementation of the Project in Macedonia during 24 months.

The Overall Objective is to contribute to a more balanced socio-economic development and contribute to the implementation of the Stabilization and Association Agreement and EU accession negotiations priorities. 

Specifically, the programme has objectives at the local and national levels i.e. locally, to increase employment opportunities, support social cohesion as well as to enhance local infrastructure in the less developed areas with a focus given to the inclusion of youth, women and vulnerable groups in the labour market. Nationally, the programme aims at supporting the government to improve its capacity for EU integration and government reform agenda in the accession process

All Project activities will be undertaken in partnership and cooperation with national and local institutions, with the aim of allowing them to adopt/adapt the legal requirements and, where relevant, EU accession criteria. This will ensure national ownership and support the development of national capacities.

B)

The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency has decided to fund a project “Support to progress in North Macedonia - Government reform agenda in the EU-accession process” to be implemented by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS). The objective of the project supported by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) is to support the enhancement of the EU integration capacity of the Republic of North Macedonia by providing technical assistance to government institutions during the accession period. 

SIDA has allocated funding for the implementation of the project in Macedonia during 24 months.

The Overall Objective of the SIDA support is to contribute to, and effectively communicate to the public, the implementation of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, accession negotiations and government reform priorities in the Republic of North Macedonia. 

Project interventions are aimed towards communicating the benefits of the EU accession process to the general population, as well as to involve the civil society and media throughout the accession phases. All project activities will be undertaken in partnership with the Government of Macedonia, in cooperation with the national institutions, with the aim of allowing them to adopt/adapt the legal requirements and, where relevant, EU accession criteria. 

This will ensure national ownership and support the development of national capacities.

Background Information – relevant for the assignment

The purpose of Result 1 “Supporting the government reform agenda in the accession process” is to provide support to relevant national institutions in charge of alignment of national legal acts with the EU acquis and to contribute to further building of capacities of the central coordination structures and relevant national structures for successful carrying out of the screening process (explanatory and bilateral screening). The overall process is coordinated by the Secretariat for European Affairs (SEA), as main coordination body in the accession negotiation process.

The National Programme for Adoption of the Acquis (NPAA), as key strategic and planning document in the accession negotiation process is planned, monitored and updated on regular basis. The NPAA is prepared and monitored by established 33 working groups, for each chapter of the acquis.

The NPAA comprises a comprehensive analysis of the EU Acquis, listing the short- and medium-term priorities in the planning reforms, policies and strategies, plan and schedule for harmonization of national legislation with the Acquis, administrative structures for implementation of legislation in terms of capacity building, establishment new/or restructuring the existing, human resource development and training needs, as well as financial resources. The NPAA is revised every year, taking into account the European Commission’s Country Reports and possible updates of the EU acquis. The NPAA is good base for the preparation of the administration for the screening process and preparation of negotiation positions in the negotiation process.

The Ministry on Environment and Physical Planning (MoEPP) is responsible for the national environmental and climate policy and leading the approximation process for the Chapter 27 Environment and climate change. The NPAA, (revision 2019 - 2021), reflected in the Legal Agenda of the Government for 2020, envisages finalization and adoption of several laws in the areas of: waste management; and industrial pollution control and risk management. 

Waste Management Regulation: 

The basic law regulating waste management in the Republic of North Macedonia is the Law on Waste Management (LWM) (Official Gazette of the Republic of Macedonia No. 68/04, 71/04, 107/07, 102/08, 134/08 , 09/11, 123/12, 147/13, 163/13, 51/15, 146/15, 156 / 15,192 / 15, 29/16, 63/16 and Official Gazette of the Republic of North Macedonia No 31/20). The management of special waste streams is regulated by the Law on Packaging and Packaging Waste, the Law on Management of Electrical and Electronic Equipment and Waste on Electrical and Electronic Equipment, the Law on Management of Batteries and Accumulators and Waste Batteries and Accumulators. Additionally, two new laws regarding establishing an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme and Law on Additional Waste Streams under EPR responsibility were prepared. All six (6) laws are in the Government procedure for adoption.

In the area of waste management, the current Law on Waste Management established the framework for establishing a waste management infrastructure, which was mainly based on undertaking activities by the local self-government units. Implementation results have shown weaknesses and uncertainties in cases where local self-government capacities are insufficient to allocate funds to build new waste infrastructure and, in the inability, to ensure coordination between all stakeholders. In addition, the experience so far has shown that the development of waste infrastructure requires a large amount of funding to find a clear and precise definition of responsibilities and responsibilities between central and local government. This is also noted in the EC 2020 Country Report “The process of establishing an integrated regional system for waste management continues to face delays due to insufficient administrative and financial resources, and it suffers from lack of ownership”.

The adoption of a new law on waste management will provide legal grounds for establishment of a functional regional waste management system and the construction of regional landfills, while closing all non-standard landfills. At the same time, it will enable regional collection, transport, selection, recycling, as well as treatment and utilization of waste, which will increase the level of human health and environmental protection, as a step towards enabling circular economy for this sector.

The establishment of regional waste management will enable better environmental control of waste management activities through:

• reduction of landfill, i.e. reduced quantities of disposed waste, and increased processing and recycling of waste;

• reduction of illegal dumping, which in addition to environmental protection will lead to increase in revenues;

• increased employment in the waste industry and associated revenue growth that will contribute to an increase in GDP;

• development of a circular economy that will enable greater utilization of resources, and thus economic development;

• approximation of national and European legislation in the field of waste management.

In order to establish the recommended option, MoEPP has developed a new Law on Waste Management ( LWM) that is expected to be adopted by the end of 2020.

Under the direct supervision of the Project Manager, the Legal Specialist (Waste Management) will provide legal and technical expertise to MoEPP, and prepare 13 bylaws, draft formats, in line with the newly prepared Law on Waste Management (LWM) harmonized with Directive 2008/98/EC on waste.

All relevant documents for this assignment will be provided by the Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning (MoEPP). MoEPP will serve as a focal point and designate contact person/coordinator to facilitate the work of selected specialist.

More specifically, the Legal Specialist will undertake the following activities/responsibilities

• Analyse documents relevant for this assignment;

• Prepare draft by-laws as follows: 

  • Rulebook on the standards to be implemented in order to obtain accreditation for performance assessment of waste (article 17 from the new draft LWM). 

  • Rulebook on the Form and Content of the Application for Entry of the Secondary Raw Material into the Register as well as the Form and Content of the Report on the Quantity, Production Process in which is Used and the End User of the Secondary Raw Material (article 18 from the new draft LWM).

  • Rulebook on the composition, manner and financing of the activities of a waste advisory board (article 20 from the new draft LWM). 

  • Rulebook on the way of treatment of medical waste, as well as the type of packaging and labelling of medical waste (article 61 from the new draft LWM) with Table of Concordance.

  • Rulebook on general rules for the treatment of municipal and other non-hazardous waste, with Table of Concordance.

  • Rulebook on the requirements that need to be fulfilled for obtaining a waste treatment permit for each activity separately (article 69 from the new draft LWM) with Table of Concordance.

  • Rulebook on the form and contents of the application form, as well as the way of submitting the application for a permit for waste treatment (article 69 from the new draft LWM) with Table of Concordance.

  • Rulebook on the form and content of the template of the Waste Management Activity Register (article 101 from the new draft LWM).

  • Rulebook on the form and content of the permit application as well as the form and content of the landfill permit (article 85 from the new draft LWM) with Table of Concordance.

  • Rulebook on the amount of biodegradable constituents in waste that may be disposed of (article 85 from the new draft LWM) with Table of Concordance.

  • Rulebook on the conditions which need to be fulfilled by the legal entity, as well as the manner of electing the legal entity to perform coercive administration (article 92 from the new draft LWM.

  • Rulebook on the form and contents of the application form and the permit for export and import of waste (article 97 from the new draft LWM) with Table of Concordance.

  • Rulebook on the form and content of the misdemeanour payment order. (article 127 from the new draft LWM)

• Assess the institutional capacity of the Ministry of Environment of Physical Planning for implementation of the bylaws developed and provide recommendations accordingly;

• Assess the institutional capacity of the State Environmental Inspectorate for implementation of the bylaws developed and provide recommendations accordingly;

• Identify issues and areas that may be subject to further project assistance or other donor assistance;

• Prepare the final report for the assignment.

Education 

• Advanced University Degree in Law is required;

• University Degree (Bachelor’s degree / first level) with a combination of two additional years of relevant professional experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree

• Five years with master’s degree or seven years with bachelor’s degree of direct experience in drafting legislation related to environment issues is required;

• Experience in applying knowledge of relevant EU Acquis on waste management is required;

• Working with /for operational structures for European integration issue would be an asset;

Language Requirements

• Fluency in English and Macedonian (speaking, reading and writing) is required

This is a local position, it is therefore open to Nationals of Republic of North Macedonia and to individuals who have a valid residence/work permit.

Contract type: Individual Contractor Agreement (ICA) - retainer
Contract level: Local ICA 10
Contract duration: Up to 110  working days, in period of seven months

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link:

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (around 4 hours) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS.
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns.
Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 4,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,000 personnel recruited on behalf of UNOPS partners spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a wide range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced, diverse workforce — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs, and continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that encourage recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) has been active in Serbia since 2000, and the operations of UNOPS Serbia Project Office (RSPO) have since 2017 expanded to North Macedonia and Montenegro.

UNOPS has been a reliable partner primarily of the Government of Serbia, and later of the Governments of North Macedonia and Montenegro, in providing support for demanding socio-economic reforms and facilitating accession to the European Union.

Currently, the RSPO is implementing 12 projects focussed on sustainable socio-economic development, social cohesion, creating environment for employability, business and infrastructure growth, increased security, improved education, enhanced social inclusion either via enabling durable housing solutions or providing access to health, education and jobs for the most vulnerable population. All projects have good governance and gender equality as transversal themes. UNOPS projects are contextualised within the broader Sustainable Development Goals framework and objectives.