Technical Specialist - Environmental (Decarbonization), Retainer

UNOPS South East Asia Multi-Country Office (EAPMCO)

The South East Asia and Pacific Multi Country Office (EAPMCO) supports, develops and oversees the UNOPS portfolio of projects in South East Asia and the Pacific. EAPMCO was established in January 2023 following the merger of the Thailand Multi-Country Office, which covered 20 countries across  North East Asia, South East Asia and the Pacific, and the Cambodia Multi-Country Office, which covered 4 countries South East Asia - 3 countries in the Mekong Sub-region (Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam) and the Philippines.  EAPMCO currently covers 24 countries across North East Asia, South East Asia and the Pacific. With its head office in Bangkok, the Multi-Country Office comprises nine business units: SEMCO Thailand, EAPMCO Indonesia,  EAPMCO Pacific Operations Cluster, EAPMCO Papua New Guinea, EAPMCO China, EAPMCO Vietnam, EAPMCO Lao PDR, EAPMCO Philippines and EAPMCO Cambodia.

In 2023, the UNOPS EAPMCO implemented projects worth more than USD 75 million, in the areas of Energy Transition, Digital Transformations, Sustainable Environmental Management, Climate Change, Waste Management, Rule of Law and Access to Justice, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), Post Conflict Reintegration, Emergency Relief, Post COVID19 Economic Transformations, and Health, through HR, procurement, construction, contract management, fund and program management services.  

The Multi Country Office head office in Bangkok provides strategic direction, operational support, delivery oversight and assurance of the excellence of business processes and quality standards across all of the entire Multi Country Office locations. It is also responsible for developing, delivering and managing the portfolio of engagements in the country of the MCO location itself.

Background Information – Job Specific 

The Southeast Asia Energy Transition Partnership (ETP) brings together governments and philanthropies to work with partner countries in the region. We support the transition towards modern energy systems that can simultaneously ensure economic growth, energy security, and environmental sustainability. Enabling the transition toward greener energy systems will greatly contribute to the achievement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Climate Agreement objectives.

ETP focuses on Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam, which are the countries in the region with the highest energy demand, a substantial pipeline for fossil fuel-based projects, and a significant and cost-effective potential for renewable energy and energy efficiency. ETP provides high-level technical advisory support, holistic support to Governments on financing and technical needs, capacity and skill development, and facilitation of dialogues in all related areas. 

Twinning Arrangements for Decarbonization in Southeast Asia Initiative

ETP is implementing this initiative, in collaboration with the Powering Past Coal Alliance (PPCA). This twinning program will match sub-national organisations of Southeast Asia with PPCA members to activate its wide-ranging membership in promoting low carbon approaches and technologies. The PPCA members will share learnings to their counterpart entities from Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam in preparing and implementing decarbonization strategies.

A decarbonization advisor will support each pair, designing and facilitating interaction between the twinning partners and assisting in the development of outputs. Exchange formats could include dialogues, technology transfer workshops, and other collaborative activities. These exchanges aim to foster open sharing of experiences, challenges, and support in developing strategies for decarbonization. 

A decarbonization strategy document will be the primary output from these exchanges that can be used by the subnational to advance their low carbon journey. This strategy document could take various forms, such as a decarbonization roadmap, clean technology adoption plan, an investment plan, or policy recommendations. A case study will be developed to capture the lessons learned from the twinning activity.  

Summary of Key Functions

The Technical Specialist - Environmental (Decarbonization) will be part of ETP’s retainer pool and will act as a decarbonization advisor for the Twinning initiative, particularly the arrangements for the Philippines’ sub-national and its partner. This is not a full-time position. Retainer contractors will carry out tasks on an intermittent basis, called upon to work when needed or as planned. There are no guaranteed minimum working hours or days.

The incumbent will be responsible for designing and implementing  one twinning arrangement for the Philippines, developing the twinning output, and supporting dissemination and project management. 

Under the supervision of the ETP Senior Programme Manager, the primary deliverables will include, but are not limited to:

• Twinning arrangement action plan for a Philippines sub-national and its international partner

• Delivery of an in-person exchange event between the twinning partners

• A tailored decarbonization strategy document from the twinning arrangement that will contribute in advancing the Philippines’ sub-national’s decarbonization goals

• A case study on the twinning arrangement

1. Design and implement twinning arrangement for the Philippines

2. Develop the decarbonization strategy document

3. Develop sustainability strategies and dissemination materials

4. Support project management

1. Design and implement twinning arrangement for Philippines

• Design an action plan for the twinning arrangement between the Philippines’ subnational entity and its international partner. The twinning action plan must include expected outcomes, clearly defined deliverable, activities, and timeline.  

• Facilitate defining the decarbonization strategy document. This will be done in consultation with the twinning partners and ETP. The output must support the decarbonization journey of the Philippines’ subnational unit.

• Organize and moderate online dialogues between the twinning partners, ensuring that their interactions are productive and directly contribute to the development of the agreed strategy document. 

• Design one in-person exchange event, propose the format and develop the agenda, moderate the discussions to ensure knowledge sharing. The nature and design of the event will depend on the agreed twinning deliverable and expected outcomes. 

• Regularly monitor the partnerships’ progress, providing support and guidance to ensure that the collaboration remains mutually beneficial. 

• Lead the drafting of the strategy document by synthesizing insights and learnings from the exchanges, ensuring that it is a practical, actionable output that can advance the Philippines’ subnational decarbonization journey.
  
  
• Engage with relevant stakeholders, particularly the Philippines’ subnational entity, in drafting and refining the document.
  
  
• Undertake desk research or interviews to gather necessary data and validate the findings that will inform the strategy document. 

3. Develop sustainability strategies and dissemination materials

• Recommend strategies to extend and formalize the partnership beyond the project, identifying opportunities for collaboration that can sustain and scale the outcomes of the twinning arrangement. 

• Develop a case study on the twinning arrangement, capturing the strategies used, best practices, and outcomes.

4. Support project management

• Attend bi-weekly and ad hoc meetings with ETP for progress updates, information sharing, and effective communication throughout the project duration. 

• Keep close coordination with the twinning partners.

• The incumbent may be asked to deliver presentations on the twinning arrangement in fora, government consultations, ETP events, and others. 

• Identify opportunities for social media promotion.

• Complete the assigned Results Based Monitoring Framework (RBMF) table quarterly,  capturing the results achieved under this assignment.

• An advanced University Degree (Master’s or equivalent) or higher degree in Engineering, energy economics, or any related field is required. 

• First level university degree (Bachelor’s or equivalent) in the above-mentioned fields with additional two (2) years of relevant experience may be considered in lieu of an advanced degree.

• A minimum five (5) years of relevant experience working on decarbonization, energy efficiency, or energy transition is required.

• Experience working with local government units in the Philippines is required. 

• Relevant experience in coordinating complex environments, multiple and diverse stakeholders is required. 

The following experiences are desirable, but not essential:

• Experience in project management, administration, strategic planning and management, strategic liaison, donor or partners coordination.

• Experience in organizing and conducting workshops, dialogues, consultations are preferred.

• International experience is desired.

• Experience working in UN organizations and/or UNOPS.

• Fluency in written and oral English required. 
  
  
• Ability to speak Cebuano or Visayan language is an asset.

• This is not a full-time position. Retainers may be requested to carry out tasks on an intermittent and need basis. There are no minimum hours or days guaranteed.
• Open only to the Philippines nationals or with valid residence.

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.

• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.

• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures,  languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 

• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.

• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process.  If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

Terms and Conditions 

• 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 ( they take around 4 hours to complete)  in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here.

• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.

• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.