Title: National Country Programme expert, Colombo/ Sri Lanka

​Requisition ID: 5604
Grade: NOD (SB-5)
Country: Home Based
Duty Station: Home Based
Category: National Consultant
Type of Job Posting: External Private Posting
Employment Type: NonStaff-When Act. Employed
Contract Duration: 30 working days spread over a period of 2 months
Application deadline: 30-Apr-2025

Vacancy Announcement
TEMPORARY APPOINTMENT OF PROJECT PERSONNEL
Only nationals or permanent residents of the country of the duty station are considered eligible.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) is the specialized agency of the United Nations that promotes industrial development for poverty reduction, inclusive globalization and environmental sustainability. The mission of UNIDO, as described in the Lima Declaration adopted at the fifteenth session of the UNIDO General Conference in 2013 as well as the Abu Dhabi Declaration adopted at the eighteenth session of UNIDO General Conference in 2019, is to promote and accelerate inclusive and sustainable industrial development (ISID) in Member States. The relevance of ISID as an integrated approach to all three pillars of sustainable development is recognized by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which will frame United Nations and country efforts towards sustainable development. UNIDO’s mandate is fully recognized in SDG-9, which calls to “Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation”. The relevance of ISID, however, applies in greater or lesser extent to all SDGs. Accordingly, the Organization’s programmatic focus is structured in four strategic priorities: Creating shared prosperity; Advancing economic competitiveness; Safeguarding the environment; and Strengthening knowledge and institutions.

Each of these programmatic fields of activity contains a number of individual programmes, which are implemented in a holistic manner to achieve effective outcomes and impacts through UNIDO’s four enabling functions: (i) technical cooperation; (ii) analytical and research functions and policy advisory services; (iii) normative functions and standards and quality-related activities; and (iv) convening and partnerships for knowledge transfer, networking and industrial cooperation. Such core functions are carried out in Divisions/Offices in its Headquarters, Regional Offices and Hubs and Country Offices.

Under the overall direction of the Director General, and in close collaboration with all relevant organizational entities within UNIDO, the Directorate of Global Partnerships and External Relations (GLO), headed by a Managing Director, is responsible for UNIDO's relations with Member States

and all external partners, including through the policymaking organs. It plays a central role for interaction and collaboration with traditional and non-traditional donors; oversees the regional bureaus as well as the network of established field offices, liaison offices and Investment and Technology Promotion Offices; and supports the implementation of particularly complex projects, programmes and special assignments, thus also fulfilling an important role in safeguarding their quality and the reputation of the Organization.

The Directorate houses the Divisions of Policymaking Organs (GLO/PMO), Regional Bureaus and Field Offices (GLO/RFO), Field and Liaison Strategy (GLO/FLS), Member States and Funding Relations (GLO/MSR), Special Operations (GLO/SOP), and Investment and Technology Promotion Offices and Institutional Partnerships (GLO/ITP). The Directorate also ensures close coordination and collaboration among the Divisions as well as with relevant entities in the Directorate of SDG Innovation and Economic Transformation (IET) and the Directorate of Technical Cooperation and Sustainable Industrial Development (TCS).

Under the supervision of the Managing Director of the Directorate of Global Partnerships and External Relations (GLO), the Division of Regional Bureaus and Field Offices (GLO/RFO) coordinates the field representation and interventions of UNIDO in Member States and regions. Within this context, the Division is responsible for determining programmatic priorities for UNIDO's services and ensuring that UNIDO responds to the specific needs and requirements of Member States and development partners at the country and regional levels. It facilitates, upon guidance of GLO/FLS, the development of regional strategies, country programmes (including Programmes for Country Partnership - PCPs) and monitors their implementation.

This position in located under UNIDO’s Sub Regional Office in India, covering Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri-Lanka (GLO/RFO/FLD/ASP/IND). The Sub-Regional Office is headed by a UNIDO Representative and Director, who is also the Project Manager for the UNIDO Country Programme for Sri Lanka.

PROJECT CONTEXT

190374 - UNIDO - Sri Lanka country programme for inclusive and sustainable industrial development 2021-2025

The UNIDO-Sri Lanka Country Programme (CP) is a joint programming instrument for UNIDO and the Government of Sri Lanka consisting of a mutually agreed framework for the development, implementation, management and monitoring of UNIDO’s technical cooperation projects in the country. The development objective of the CP is to support recovery, growth and diversification of the manufacturing sector in Sri Lanka through the adoption of inclusive and sustainable industrial development policies, practices, methods and techniques. The CP has three Key Results Areas (KRAs): industrial development policy and practice; value creation from produce; and solutions for climate, resources and environment.

The Country Programme comprises individual technical cooperation projects, each of which are guided by separate governing project documents signed with respective line ministries and donors, and reviewed through respective Project Steering Committees (PSCs). The projects together contribute towards one (or more) of these KRAs, thereby supporting the Country Programme’s contributions towards facilitating industrial development in Sri Lanka.

Under the CP for Sri Lanka, two projects are currently under implementation:

1. Support to the implementation of Sri Lanka's nationally determined contributions in the industry sector: The overall objective of the project is to contribute to climate change mitigation by supporting the implementation of Sri Lanka's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) for the industrial sector. The project aims to scale-up the climate change response of Sri Lanka’s industrial sector through the design and implementation of technical, policy, regulatory and financial tools and mechanisms to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy, energy and resource efficiency technologies and best practices.
2. Mainstreaming standards-based best practices for agrifood sector development: The overall objective of this programmatic framework is to contribute to a more productive, sustainable, diversified, climate-resilient, market-oriented and inclusive agri-food sector in Sri Lanka. Its two interrelated specific objectives aimed at: 1) Increasing food safety and quality compliance through adoption of best practices by food producers and processors and an updated risk-based and well-coordinated food control system; 2) Increasing the organic market share through better standards, higher investments and increased consumer demand. The project aims to support target beneficiaries in modernizing the food control system (regulatory and institutional frameworks for food safety and quality compliance) in line with international benchmarks and best practices, upgrading the quality infrastructure system to provide adequate services to the agri-food sector, strengthening food safety and quality-related compliance capacity of the private sector, and raising stakeholder awareness and adherence to best practices end-to-end along the agri-food value chain, including that of producers and consumers.

   Further details of the portfolio can be found at: https://open.unido.org/projects/LK/projects/

   The National Consultant will provide support to UNIDO Project manager in conducting the implementation of the country program and prepare mid-term self-evaluation (MTE) of the UNIDO-Sri Lanka Country Programme (2021-2025). The MTE will be conducted as a self-evaluation, whose scope shall include the activities, projects, and programmes implemented under the CP, as applicable. The evaluation is intended to be a forward-looking exercise, aimed at drawing lessons and offer recommendations for the UNIDO Sub-Regional Office, UNIDO programme management, governments, and stakeholders. The MTE is expected to assess the programme’s overall relevance for the country’s priorities and opportunities for future initiatives to support sustainable industrialization in Sri Lanka. The MTE is expected to answer the following questions:

   • How are interventions under the CP contributing towards sustainable industrialization in Sri Lanka?
   • What is the added-value of the CP to the country’s national development programme(s)? Does the CP’s results framework require any updates as per emerging government priorities?
   • What are some new / additional areas of interventions wherein UNIDO could add value to Sri Lanka’s manufacturing sector?

     The consultant will contribute to the evaluation using a participatory approach whereby key stakeholders are consulted. The work will aim to capture and document insights pertaining to the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency and progress of the CP, based on implementation experience, findings/recommendations of individual project (mid-term or final) evaluations as well as inputs from key stakeholders.