Extended deadline - National Consultants in Climate Change Mitigation and MRV Systems Thematic

PUBLIC INSTITUTION “ENVIRONMENTAL PROJECTS NATIONAL IMPLEMENTATION OFFICE”, PROJECT MANAGEMENT UNIT OF THE FIRST BIENNIAL TRANSPARENCY REPORT

 VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

I. Position Information

Job Title (part-time positions):

Project Title:

Duration of employment:

Indicative workload:

(I) National Consultants, with responsibilities in tracking progress made in implementing and achieving the nationally determined contribution under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement; assessing policies and measures to mitigate climate change; developing GHG emission projections and assessing the total effect of mitigation policies and measures at sector and category source levels, including:

(1) Energy Sector, with following source categories:

1A1 Energy Industries

1A2 Manufacturing Industries and Construction

1A3 Transport

1A4 Other Sectors (institutional and public; residential; agriculture, fisheries and forestry)

1B2 Fugitive Emissions from Oil and Natural Gas

Memo Items: Aviation

CO₂ emissions from biomass  

Renewable Energy Sources

(2) Industrial Processes and Product Use Sector, with following source categories:

2A Mineral Industry

2B Chemical Industry

3C Metal Industry

2D Non-Energy Products from Fuels and Solvent Use

2F Product Uses as Substitutes for Ozone Depleting Substances

2G Other Product Manufacture and Use

 (3) Agriculture Sector, with following source categories:

3A Enteric Fermentation

3B Manure Management

3D Agricultural Soils

3H Urea Application

(4) LULUCF Sector, with following source and sink categories:

4A Forest Land

4B Cropland

4C Grassland

4D Wetlands

4E Settlements

4F Other Land

4G Harvested Wood Products

4H Other  

(5) Waste Sector, with following source categories:

5A Solid Waste Disposal

5B Biological Treatment of Solid Waste

5C Incineration and Open Burning of Waste

5D Wastewater Treatment and Discharge

(II) National Consultant, with responsibility for updating the mid-term (until 2030) and long-term (until 2040) socio-economic development scenarios of the Republic of Moldova;

(III) National Consultants, with responsibility for collecting and providing information on financial, technology development and transfer and capacity-building support needed and received under Articles 9-11 of the Paris Agreement.

Republic of Moldova: Preparation of First Biennial Transparency Report to the United National Framework Convention on Climate Change.

12 months (April 2023 – March 2024)

Up to 8 working/days per month

II. Background 

The project aims to prepare and submit the First Biennial Transparency Report (BTR1) of the Republic of Moldova to the UNFCCC. The project will also contribute to strengthening capacities and improving the institutional arrangements and framework to allow for continuous and sustainable reporting. The BTR1 project is prepared in line with the GEF-7 climate change mitigation objective CCM-3: Foster Enabling Conditions to Mainstream Mitigation Concerns into Sustainable Development Strategies. 

The project will have one outcome which is the Republic of Moldova updates tools and approaches to meet its BTR1 reporting requirements under the Paris Agreement. The two expected outputs under this outcome are as following:

Output 1: BTR1 for the Republic of Moldova prepared and submitted to UNFCCC, by 31 December 2024.

Output 2: A self-assessment and stocktaking exercise for preparation of subsequent BTR completed.

Under the first output, the project will support the Republic of Moldova to prepare and submit its BTR1 to the UNFCCC. The preparation of BTR1 will be in line with the modalities, procedures and guidelines for the transparency framework for action and support contained in the annex to Decision 18/CMA.1 and Annexes I to V of Decision -/CMA3. 

The BTR1 project will build on findings and recommendations from previous NCs and BURs as well as recommendations resulting from the International Consultation and Analysis (ICA) process. 

Activities to be undertaken under the first output will result in the preparation of the following chapters of the BTR1:

I.        National inventory report of anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of greenhouse gases;

II.      Information necessary to track progress made in implementing and achieving nationally determined contributions under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement;            

III.    Information related to climate change impacts and adaptation under Article 7 of the Paris Agreement;  

IV.    Information on financial, technology development and transfer and capacity-building support needed and received under Articles 9–11 of the Paris Agreement;

V.      Other relevant information (e.g., gender and climate change).

III. Organizational Context

The project is executed by the BTR1 Project Management Unit (PMU) established by the Public Institution “Environmental Projects National Implementation Office” (P.I. “EPNIO”) of the Ministry of Environment (MoEN), on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Moldova, and in consultation with the UNEP.

As national executing agency, the PMU established by the P.I. “EPNIO” is primarily responsible for the planning and management of the project activities, accounting, reporting, monitoring and evaluation of the project. 

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the National Project Manager (NPM) and that of the Climate Change Mitigation and MRV Systems Thematic Working Group Coordinator, the incumbents will provide technical knowhow for capacity assessment and for developing:

·         Chapter 2: ‘Information necessary to track progress made in implementing and achieving nationally determined contributions under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement’ of the BTR1 of the RM to the UNFCCC;

·         Chapter 4: ‘Information on financial, technology development and transfer and capacity-building support needed and received under Articles 9-11 of the Paris Agreement’ of BTR1 of the RM to the UNFCCC.

Relevant project activities that will involve the services of the national consultants are as following:

Information necessary to track progress made in implementing and achieving the nationally determined contribution under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement

i.       Describe and document information on institutional arrangement in place to track progress made in implementing and achieving the Republic of Moldova’s NDC under Article 4.

ii.      Provide information on population and demographic situation profile, administrative-territorial organization, geographic and natural resources profiles, climate and economic profiles, as well as on current state of the national economy (focus should be on energy, transport, industry, agriculture, buildings, forestry, waste, sewerage and water supply sectors) relevant to progress made in implementing and achieving RoM’s NDC under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement.

iii.     Compile and draft Section 2.1: ‘National circumstances relevant to the GHGs emissions and removals and institutional arrangement relevant to track progress made in implementing and achieving NDC’ of the BTR1 of the RoM to the UNFCCC.

iv.     Describe the updated nationally determined contribution of the RoM under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement, including: target and description; target year; base year or starting point and its respective value; period for implementation; scope and coverage, including, as relevant, sectors, categories, activities, sources and sinks, pools and gases; intention to use cooperative approaches that involve the use of internationally transferred mitigation outcomes under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement; any updates or clarifications of previously reported information (e.g., recalculation of previously reported inventory data, or greater detail on methodologies or use of cooperative approaches).

v.      Describe the qualitative or quantitative indicators selected to track progress towards the implementation and achievement of the updated NDC under the Paris Agreement, including, as relevant: net GHG emissions and removals, percentage reduction of GHG intensity, relevant qualitative indicators for a specific policy or measure, mitigation co-benefits of adaptation actions (e.g., hectares of reforestation, percentage of renewable energy use or production, share of non-fossil fuel in primary energy consumption and non-GHG related indicators).

vi.     Describe methodologies and/or accounting approach used, as applicable, for economy-wide absolute emission reduction target and each indicator identified, including: key parameters, assumptions, definitions, data sources and models used; IPCC guidelines used; metrics used; where applicable to the updated NDC, any sector-, category- or activity-specific assumptions, methodologies and approaches consistent with IPCC guidance, taking into account any relevant decision under the Convention (including: the approach used to address emissions and subsequent removals from natural disturbances on managed lands; the approach used to account for emissions and removals from harvested wood products; the approach used to address the effects of age-class structure in forests; methodologies used to estimate mitigation co-benefits of adaptation actions); methodologies associated with any cooperative approaches that involve the use of internationally transferred mitigation outcomes towards its NDC under Article 4, consistent with CMA guidance on cooperative approaches under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement; methodologies used to track progress arising from the implementation of policies and measures; any other methodologies related to the RoM’s NDC under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement; any conditions and assumptions relevant to the achievement of the updated NDC of the RoM under Article 4.

vii.    Compile and draft Section 2.2: ‘Description of the nationally determined contribution under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement’ of the BTR1 of the RoM to the UNFCCC.

viii.   Document and describe in tabular format, information on climate change mitigation policies and measures by selected sectors, indicating which GHGs are affected by which policies and measures, including: the name of policy or measure; brief description of the policy or measure (including estimated changes in activity levels and/or emissions and removals due to adopted and implemented policies and measures reported and a brief description of estimation methods); objectives and/or activity affected (in quantitative terms, to the extent possible); type of instrument (i.e., economic, fiscal, voluntary agreement, regulatory, information, education, research or other); status of implementation and time frame for implementation (i.e., no longer in place, in the planning stage, has been adopted or is under implementation); sectors affected (i.e., energy, industry, transport, buildings, industrial processes and product use, agriculture, LULUCF, waste management, other sectors); the GHGs affected (CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, HFCs, PFCs, SF₆ and NF₃); start year of implementation; implementing entity or entities; estimate of mitigation impact for a particular year (in kt CO₂ eq.); information on costs of policy or measure (for adopted and implemented measures include funds already provided and/or future budget allocated); in extent possible, the non-GHG mitigation benefits, including mitigation co-benefits resulting from implemented adaptation actions; and how the mitigation actions interact with each other, as appropriate.

ix.     Describe the way in which progress with policies and measures to mitigate GHG emissions is monitored and evaluated over time. Provide status report on institutional arrangements for the monitoring of GHG mitigation policies in selected sectors.

x.      Compile and draft Section 2.3: ‘Mitigation policies and measures, actions and plans, including those with mitigation co-benefits resulting from adaptation actions, related to implementing and achieving a nationally determined contribution under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement’ of the BTR1 of the RoM to the UNFCCC.

xi.     Update for selected sectors (i.e., energy, industry, transport, buildings, industrial processes and product use, agriculture, LULUCF, waste management, other sectors) the mitigation options leading to achieving the updated nationally determined contribution under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement.

xii.    By using available models and software (i.e., ENPEP, LEAP, IPCC software, etc.), update to the 2040 horizon, for selected sectors and on a gas-by-gas basis (CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, HFCs, PFCs, SF₆ and NF₃), the following mitigation scenarios: (1) WEM – with existing measures scenario (projections shall encompass currently implemented and adopted policies and measures) and (2) WAM – with additional measures (projections shall encompass planned policies and measures), when emissions projections shall be presented relative to actual inventory data for the preceding years (the starting point should be the most recent inventory year).

xiii.   For each model or approach used, in the extent possible, (1) explain for which gases and/or sectors it was used; (2) describe its type and characteristics (i.e., top-down model, bottom-up model, accounting model or expert judgment); (3) describe the original purpose that it was designed for and, if applicable, how it has been modified for climate change purpose; (4) summarize its strengths and weaknesses; (5) explain how it accounts for any overlap or synergies that may exist between policies and measures; (6) provide references to more detailed information related to each model or approach used; (7) report the main differences in assumptions, methods employed and results between the projections reported in the current submission and those reported in the previous submission; (8) discuss qualitatively and, where possible, quantitatively, the sensitivity of the projections to underlying assumptions; (9) report information on key underlying assumptions and values of variables, such as GDP growth, population growth, tax levels, international fuel prices and any relevant information on factors and activities for  each sector.

xiv.  Analyze and present on a quantitative basis in a tabular format the projections and information on historical emissions and removals; projections shall be provided in an aggregated format for each sector as well as for a national total, using GWP values agreed upon by the COP (to ensure consistency with inventory reporting, emission projections related to fuel sold to ships and aircraft engaged in international transport shall be reported separately and not included in the national total); information should be presented for 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005 and subsequent years that end in either a zero or a five up to the most recent inventory year; projections should be presented, starting from the most recent inventory year and for subsequent years that end in either a zero or a five, extending at least 15 years from the most recent inventory year.

xv.   Compile and draft Section 2.4: ‘Projections of greenhouse gas emissions and removals’ of the BTR1 of the RoM to the UNFCCC.

xvi.  Compile and draft Chapter 2: ‘Information necessary to track progress made in implementing and achieving nationally determined contributions under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement’ of the BTR1 of the RoM to the UNFCCC.

Information on financial, technology development and transfer and capacity-building support needed and received under Articles 9-11 of the Paris Agreement

i.    Compile information on national circumstances and institutional arrangements relevant to reporting on support needed and received.

ii.   Describe the underlying assumptions, definitions and methodologies used to provide information on support needed and received.

iii.  Provide information on financial support needed and received.

iv.  Provide information on technology development and transfer support needed and received under Article 10 of the Paris Agreement.

v.   Provide information on capacity-building support needed and received under Article 11 of the Paris Agreement.

vi.  Provide information on support needed and received for implementing Article 13 of the Paris Agreement and transparency-related activities.

vii. Compile and draft Chapter 4: ‘Information on financial, technology development and transfer and capacity-building support needed and received under Articles 9-11 of the Paris Agreement’ of BTR1 of the RoM to the UNFCCC.

IV. Key Tasks / Results Expected 

Key Tasks: 

• To perform activities under supervising and report to the National Project Manager (NPM) as well as to the Climate Change Mitigation and MRV Systems Thematic Working Group Coordinator in all aspects of program implementation;
• To carry out the necessary studies and implement the activities as outlined in the project document and personal TOR;
• To provide required materials and information to Climate Change Mitigation and MRV Systems Thematic Working Group Coordinator, according to TOR, including in electronic format;
• To contribute to training activities organized during project development;
• To assist Climate Change Mitigation and MRV Systems Thematic Working Group Coordinator in preparation of the reports on the completion of assessments and analysis of issues.

Key Deliverables: 

·         Chapter 2: ‘Information necessary to track progress made in implementing and achieving nationally determined contributions under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement’ of the BTR1 of the RoM to the UNFCCC;

·         Chapter 4: ‘Information on financial, technology development and transfer and capacity-building support needed and received under Articles 9-11 of the Paris Agreement’ of the BTR1 of the RoM to the UNFCCC;

·         Contribution to the developing pf the List of Acronyms, Abbreviations and Units, Executive Summary and Bibliography of the BTR1 of the RoM to the UNFCCC;

·         Common Tabular Formats (CTF) for the electronic reporting of the information necessary to track progress made in implementing and achieving nationally determined contributions under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement;

·         Reporting format for the description of a Party’s NDC under Article 4 of the Paris Agreement, including updates;

• Common tabular formats (CTF) for the electronic reporting of the information on financial, technology development and transfer and capacity-building support provided and mobilized, as well as support needed and received, under Articles 9–11 of the Paris Agreement

V. Recruitment Qualifications 

Education: 

Advanced degree (Master or Ph.D.) in Environmental Sciences, Biology, Agriculture, Forestry, Energy, Industry, Economics or another relevant field. Additional trainings and certifications in project related activities would be an advantage.

Experience: 

• At least 3 years of professional experience in technical activities related to climate change, GHGs emission accounting and analysis (energy, industrial processes and products use, agriculture, LULUCF and/or waste sectors), mitigation actions and their effects on sectors of the national economy (energy, industry, buildings, transport, agriculture, forestry and waste);

• At least 2 years of demonstrated experience in projects with similar tasks (elaboration of national communications, biennial update reports and national inventory reports; establishing domestic monitoring, reporting and verification systems; implementation of low emissions development programmes and elaboration of nationally appropriate mitigation actions);

• Experience in analysis and use of data sets using various tools and instruments (e.g., MS Excel, IPCC reporting guidance and software) demonstrated by previous assignments;

• Excellent knowledge of GHG inventory, GHG projections, MRV systems, carbon budgets, etc. demonstrated by previous assignments;

• Knowledge of principles, legal and normative framework regulating the MRV systems under the UNFCCC, other relevant international conventions and protocols demonstrated by previous assignments will be a strong advantage;

• Strong analytical and report writing skills demonstrated by previous assignments;

• Strong communication and teamwork/coordination skills demonstrated by previous assignments.

Language Requirements:

Good oral and written communication skills in Romanian and Russian languages are required. English language is an advantage.

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

1.       Technical proposal (please indicate the position, respectively sector / category for which the incumbent is applying) explaining why the candidate is most suitable for the work, including information on previous similar assignments;

2.       Financial proposal (in USD), specifying a fee per day;

3.       CV, including past experience in similar projects.

Financial proposal

The Financial Proposal shall specify a daily lump-sum fee (indicating if it is negotiable). Payments will be made quarterly, based on the actual number of days worked, subject to the submission and approval by the Climate Change Mitigation and MRV Systems Thematic Working Group Coordinator, as well as by the National Project Manager (NPM), of activity reports around specific and measurable (qualitative and quantitative) deliverables specified in the TORs. 

While submitting the Financial Proposal it is to be noted that the project ”Republic of Moldova: Preparation of First Biennial Transparency Report to the United National Framework Convention on Climate Change” is included into the List of ongoing technical assistance projects covered by international treaties for the application of income tax exemptions, excise duties, customs duties, duties for customs procedures, taxes for goods which, in the process of use, cause environmental pollution, and the application exemption from VAT with the right of deduction for the goods and services intended for them, in accordance with the stipulations of the Government Decision No. 246 of 08.04.2010 on the application of the zero VAT rate to deliveries of goods, services performed on the territory of the country and the granting of fiscal and customs facilities for ongoing technical and investment assistance projects, which fall under the scope of international treaties to which the Republic of Moldova is a party (<https://www.legis.md/cautare/getResults?doc_id=125572&lang=ro>).

Documents should be submitted by email on cancelaria@onipm.gov.md, no later than Friday, 10 March 2023, by 5:00 PM.

Extended deadline - Friday, 24 March 2023, by 5:00 PM.

Only those shortlisted will be contacted.