Consultant for Strengthening Environmental and Social Safeguards in the Enterprise Development Fund (EDF)

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As a part of economic recovery and basic service improvement of conflict affected, climate and other
economic affected areas in Iraq, IOM Iraq implements the Enterprise Development Fund (EDF) to support economic development and sustainable job creation within small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).

A key component of the EDF grant which requires further strengthening is the implementation and management of Environmental & Social Action Plans (ESAP), which aim to mitigate environmental and social risks in the SMEs funded by the EDF, as well as improving staff safety and wellbeing.

Under the direct supervision of the Project Officer (Livelihoods), and in close collaboration with the  Senior Livelihoods Technical Assistant, the Consultant (Environmental and Social Risk Management) will support the operationalisation and strengthening of the ESAP within EDF through a combination of:

a)    Impact assessment of existing ESAP implementation under the EDF
b)    Desk review and refinement of ESAP technical processes
c)    Development of sector-specific and item specific minimum standards and tools
d)    Capacity building of both EDF Technical and Operational Teams

The consultant will ensure that ESAP is implemented within the EDF in a feasible, practical, and effective manner, aligned with ESMF guidelines and Iraqi legislation in both the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) and Federal Iraq (FI). This includes conducting an impact assessment of ESAP implementation, developing sector-specific standards, designing monitoring tools, and delivering capacity building for EDF Technical and Operational Teams.
 

The consultant will be responsible for the following phases:

Phase 1: Desk Review and ESAP Impact Assessment: 

• Desk review of the existing end-to-end process for the provision of ESAP funding as part of the EDF grant, including drafting of plans, approvals, field implementation, disbursement of ESAP budget, monitoring and reporting. Identify gaps, bottlenecks and areas for improvement in these current processes.  Develop a report evaluating the quality and consistency of ESAP plans previously implemented under EDF.
•  Conduct field visits to EDF-supported businesses across diverse sectors and governorates to assess the implementation and effectiveness of ESAP measures in mitigating social risks and compliance with ESMF requirements. 
• Collect qualitative and quantitative data during these visits through interviews with business owners, staff, and site observations on the state of its infrastructure. 
• Produce an ESAP Impact Assessment Report identifying key findings from the above, lessons learned and actionable recommendations. 

•    Quality, clarity and practicality of recommendations identified in the ESAP Impact Assessment Report
•    Relevance and feasibility of recommendations and sector-specific, item-specific and geographically specific standards. 
•    Successful integration of the desk review and impact assessment findings into EDF SOPs and tools 
•    Effective capacity building of staff, with demonstrated staff understanding of ESAP implementation
•    Timely delivery of all outputs. 
 

Education, Experience and/or skills required

For this consultancy, Fluency in English is essential, and working proficiency in Arabic and/or  Kurdish is highly desirable. 

Proficiency of language(s) required will be specifically evaluated during the selection process, which may include written and/or oral assessments.

IOM’s competency framework can be found at this link. Competencies will be assessed during the selection process.

IOM covers Consultants against occupational accidents and illnesses under the Compensation Plan (CP), free of charge, for the duration of the consultancy. IOM does not provide evacuation or medical insurance for reasons related to non-occupational accidents and illnesses. Consultants are responsible for their own medical insurance for non-occupational accident or illness and will be required to provide written proof of such coverage before commencing work. 

Any offer made to the candidate in relation to this vacancy notice is subject to funding confirmation.

Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, security clearances.

IOM has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and IOM, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities.

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IOM only accepts duly completed applications submitted through the IOM e-Recruitment system (for internal candidates link here). The online tool also allows candidates to track the status of their application.

No late applications will be accepted. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

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