Drought resilience guidelines for Businesses Senior Consultant

Result of ServiceThe product of this consultancy will be the publication of the Drought resilience guidelines for private sector. Work LocationHome based Expected durationJune to September 2025 Duties and ResponsibilitiesBackground: The objective of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is to combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought in countries experiencing significant impacts, through effective action at all levels, supported by international cooperation and partnership arrangements with a view to contributing to the achievement of sustainable development in affected areas. The Global Mechanism (GM) assists countries in the mobilization of resources from the public and private sector for activities that prevent, control or reverse desertification, land degradation and drought. Business4Land (B4L) is one of the flagship initiatives of the GM and the UNCCD’s main initiative to engage the private sector in sustainable land and water management. B4L helps businesses gain insights into the dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities related to land degradation, desertification and drought. The initiative also provides support for reporting, target-setting, financing and the transformation of value chains. As part of the UNCCD, B4L also advocates for a stronger policies environment to promote sustainable land management. Drought resilience is key to UNCCD’s mandate while also emerging as a pressing business concern. Mutually reinforcing, land degradation and water scarcity threaten global supply chains, food security, and economic stability. At the same time, there is much businesses can do to turn these risks into drivers of innovation, resilience, and sustainable growth. The purpose of the consultancy is to develop a guidance manual that can support companies in building resilience to drought and water scarcity. Tasks span the conducting of stakeholder consultations to gather inputs and validate findings, development of the guideline document, and contribution to the guideline’s presentation and testing. Duties and Responsibilities: The consultant will ensure the timely delivery of a user-focused guiding manual that supports private companies in building water security in their operations and value-chains, in the context of increasing drought episodes. Under the direct supervision of the Donor relations officer and in collaboration with the B4L consultant, the consultant will undertake the following tasks: Plan and conduct consultation sessions with relevant stakeholders to scope the precise contents and target-audience of the guidance manual, gather content, and validate findings. Conduct research, in collaboration with expert networks, to collect data on, inter alia, case studies, best practices, existing tools, and scientific insights. Develop and write the guidance manual, including a preliminary design of tables, graphs, and figures. Present the guidance manual at outreach activities. Qualifications/special skillsAdvanced university degree (Master’s or equivalent) from a recognized university in a relevant field of work (e.g. finance/economics, sustainability, politics, international relations and/or any relevant field directly related to UNCCD – climate, disaster risk, environment or international development) is required. At least five (5) year of relevant professional working experience related to sustainable development or private sector engagement in sustainability, knowledge of water issues is required. Previous experience in a relevant area such as private sector, relationship management, partnerships or drought and water scarcity management is required. Advanced Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages is required. Previous experience working with in an international environment (UN, International Organization, Private Sector or NGO) is an advantage. Knowledge of Innovative Finance Mechanisms is an added value. LanguagesFluency in English language (both oral and written) is required. Working knowledge of any other languages is an asset. Additional InformationOnly individuals who can act as independent, individual economical operators are qualified to apply. Individuals who can provide their services only on account of an institution or enterprise are not eligible under this procedure. Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations Secretariat and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultant and individual contractor is responsible for determining tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws. For remote consultancies, the selected candidate will be required to have a laptop or desktop PC (with Windows 10 or newer) or Mac (with the latest MacOS update), as well as a reliable, high-speed internet connection. An Office 365 license will be provided by the UNCCD to enable the candidate to access official emails, SharePoint, OneDrive and other office applications, such as Word and Excel. Further computer requirements: An antivirus application which receives regular updates; Browsers must be a newer version with regular updates enabled; Regular Windows 10 updates should be enabled with Windows laptop or PC. In addition, a mobile phone will be required to enable Multifactor Authentication (MFA) through SMS or the Authenticator App. No FeeTHE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.