Telephone: + 49 (0) 228 815 2800 Fax: + 49 (0) 228 815 2898/99 Email: [email protected] TERMS OF REFERENCE National consultant – Support to GCF project document design for a gender-responsive LDN Transformative Project - in Benin Consultancy reference number: CCD/20/GM/33 Background The Global Mechanism is an institution of the UNCCD, mandated to assist countries in the mobilization of financial resources from the public and private sector for activities that prevent, control or reverse desertification, land degradation and drought. As the operational arm of the convention, the Global Mechanism supports countries to translate the Convention into action. In September 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, including goal 15, which aims to “protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss”. The main expected result is defined under target 15.3 to “combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world” by 2030. In September 2017, the 13th session of the Conference of Parties (COP) of the UNCCD emphasized the critical role of Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) Transformative Projects and Programmes for the implementation of the Convention. This has been reaffirmed at the 14th session of the COP in New Delhi in September 2019. The government of Benin has adopted LDN targets at the highest level in 2017 and is now in the process of designing a gender responsive LDN Transformative Project/Programme to translate its voluntary LDN targets into concrete implementation. Benin, like most developing countries, is already feeling the effects of climate change, the manifestations of which are reflected in the increase in variability and the recurrence of climatic events such as rainfall irregularities, the rise in temperature and sea level rise. The agriculture sector for example, which is mainly dependent on rainfall is very vulnerable. Recent vulnerability studies carried out by the Scientific Support Project for the National Adaptation Plan processes (PAS-PNA), in the fourth Agricultural Development Pole (PDA4) confirmed this vulnerability of Beninese agriculture to climate change. The analysis emphasizes that the municipalities of N’Dali, Pèrèrè and Nikki are the most exposed while the Communes of Savalou and Djidja are the least exposed to climatic hazards. On the other hand, the Municipalities most sensitive to hazards are those of Savalou and Dassa-Zoume and those the least sensitive are those of Ouaké, Bantè and Copargo. When the indices of exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity are aggregated, the Communes of Savalou, Tchaourou, Dassa-Zoumè, Glazoué and Copargo are the most vulnerable to climate change. Compared to the assessment of future vulnerability to climate change in the agriculture sector, the results of the simulations show a significant interannual variability of the simulated precipitation by 2050. The number of years with deficit precipitation will increase in Postal Address: PO Box 260129, 53153 Bonn, Germany UN Campus, Platz der Vereinten Nationen 1, D-53113 Bonn, Germany I www.unccd.int Page 2 the future, with the municipalities of Copargo, Djougou and Ouaké which will be the most affected regardless of the model considered. Simulation results indicate an increase in mean temperature by 2050 over the entire study area regardless of the model considered. As a result of climate change, yields of corn and cotton could decrease significantly, by up to 30% for corn and 20% for cotton. With a view to promoting the implementation of adaptation measures for this sector and in order to achieve both NDCs and LDN targets, the Global Mechanism (supported by KFS through the Changwon initiative) and the PAS-PNA (implemented by GIZ in cooperation with Climate Analytics and the Center for Partnership and Expertise for Sustainable Development (CePED), under the supervision of the Ministry of the Living Environment and Sustainable Development (MCVDD) are supporting partners in the process of developing adaptation projects to be submitted to the Green Climate Fund through its Simplified Approval Process (SAP). Financial support is also provided by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) through its IKI initiative. In this context, the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD provided support to develop a GCF concept note in 2019, in partnership with the National Environment and Climate Fund of Benin (FNEC) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (MAEP - Ministère de l’Agriculture, de l’Elevage et de la Pêche) along with GIZ / PAS-PNA team. The GCF concept note is about: “Strengthening the Resilience of Vulnerable Family Farms to Climate Change in the Fourth Agricultural Development Pole in Benin”. The concept note was submitted in April 2020 by the National Environment and Climate Fund of Benin (FNEC – national direct access accredited entity to GCF) and reviewed by the GCF. The Terms of Reference are therefore drawn up to solicit the services of an experienced national consultant who will ensure that the GCF comments are taken into account in the Concept Note and develop the Financing Proposal with a specific focus on gender studies, which are required as part of the broader feasibility study. Consultant tasks Under the direct supervision of the Programme Officer in charge of the LDN Transformative Projects and Programmes, the overall supervision of the LDN Programme Coordinator and the Managing Director of the Global Mechanism, and under the guidance of the UNCCD National Focal Point institution, the national team (FNEC and MAEP) and the PAS-PNA/ GIZ team, the national consultant will undertake the following tasks: 1. Update the Project Concept Note (PCN) by addressing the comments from the GCF 2. Prepare a gender gap analysis and its related gender action plan 3. Support the participatory development process of the first draft Financing Proposal (PF) for the adaptation project in the agriculture sector, to be submitted to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) according to its Process Simplified Approval (SAP). The national consultant will act as a technical focal point for the Global Mechanism at national level and work closely with the members of the national working group in the updating of the Project Concept Note (PCN) and in the preparation of the Financing Proposal (FP) for the SLM adaptation project. Specifically, the national consultant will be responsible for the following tasks: - Work in collaboration with the working group which will be set up with representatives of the following structures: • The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (MAEP); • The National Environment and Climate Fund (FNEC); • The Designated National Authority of Benin for the GCF (AND); • PAS-PNA; Page 3 • ProSOL. - Propose responses to comments formulated by the GCF and integrate them to the GCF project concept note (PCN) to be resubmitted; - Coordinate with the various actors (ProSOL, MAEP, FNEC, GM) the responses to the comments and observations of the GCF on the PCN and integrate them into the PCN; - Ensure quality assurance of responses to comments from the GCF; - Participate in the preparation of the FP for the SLM project in Benin in collaboration with the working group focusing on gender studies – gender gap analysis and gender action plan; - Analyze the gender related data concerning the proposed project and ensure the consistency of the FP with these data; - Research additional information on gender (political documents, documents for similar projects, reference documents, etc.); - Analyze gender related data and information and prepare a gender gap analysis and its related gender action plan, taking into consideration the manual for gender-responsive LDN transformative projects and programmes (https://www.unccd.int/publications/manual-gender-responsive-land-degradation- neutrality-transformative-projects-and ) and fully complying with the GCF Gender Policy and Action Plan (see https://www.greenclimate.fund/document/gender-policy; https://www.greenclimate.fund/document/gcf-b08-19) and guidance (https://www.greenclimate.fund/document/mainstreaming-gender-green-climate-fund-projects). - Prepare the first draft FP ensuring that the proposed interventions include the proposed actions from the Gender Action Plan and other related technical studies. - Participate in quality assurance of FPs (translated into English by PAS-PNA/GIZ). Deliverables The consultant will provide following deliverables: ✓ Workplan / timeline that covers central tasks at the inception of the consultancy, ✓ Reviewed Project Concept Note addressing all GCF comments, ✓ Draft gender gap analysis in French according to funding source template, ✓ Final gender gap analysis in both French and English according to funding source template, ✓ Draft gender action plan in French according to funding source template, ✓ Final gender action plan in both French and English according to funding source template, ✓ First draft of the Financing Proposal (FP) for the SLM adaptation project. All final documents must be delivered in the languages required to facilitate national consultations and the language required for the submission to the selected funding source (i.e., English and French). Requirements • Advanced