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CFAN Advisor Position to the CCCCC

CFAN Advisor Position to the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC)

CFAN Advisor Position Overview

CFAN advisors work in-country for one (1) year with a targeted mandate to access international and domestic sources of public and private finance, to structure finance for investment in their host country’s priority mitigation and adaptation projects and advise on the country’s overall project pipeline strategy. CFAN advisors join a global cohort of climate finance advisors. Once hired, CFAN advisors attend a part-time, multi-month, cohort-based training program. The training program is delivered virtually through Moodle and includes regular live sessions which advisors are required to attend. Additionally, advisors are required to participate in annual regional workshops in person, where they receive further training and networking opportunities.  CFAN advisors receive technical support from the Network throughout their tenure, and also benefit from the Network’s peer-to-peer advisory support. Finally, advisors work with CFAN to conduct climate finance workshops for civil servants, ensuring lasting capacity in-country through knowledge transfer to government officials.

To this end, the CFAN programme will embed one CFAN advisor in the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre. The Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (referred hereafter as “the CCCCC”) was established by an Agreement signed in February 2002 but it was officially opened in August 2005. Membership is open to all Member States and Associated Member States of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) on an optional basis. In 2013, the CCCCC was registered with the United Nations under Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations and designated as a Centre of Excellence by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR). Its staff comprises a cadre of highly qualified professionals.

The CCCCC has the mandate to coordinate the Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM) response to climate change as well as provide climate change-related policy advice and guidance to CARICOM Member States. As part of its effort to continuously execute its mandate, the CCCCC has developed a Regional Readiness Project with the support of CARICOM Member States and the Green Climate Fund (GCF), aimed at building greater capacity within the CCCCC, especially within its Programme Development and Management Unit (PDMU). This capacity is essential for identifying and shaping impactful, transformative, sustainable, innovative and replicable projects for submission to various climate financing windows.

The CFAN Advisor will be hired by RMI with a direct reporting line to the Project Development and Management Unit (PDMU) of the CCCCC and CFAN’s Caribbean Regional Manager. The CFAN advisor will be deployed in CCCCC through 2024 with a targeted mandate to support project development and resource mobilization for climate action.

Responsibilities

The objective of this position is to provide capacity support to the Project Development and Management Unit (PDMU) of the CCCCC in developing project/programme proposals and resource mobilization for Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Member States and the Caribbean Region in general. The CFAN Advisor will provide technical expertise for the development of project/programme and structure financing models for accessing public and private finance for building resilience and/or mitigating climate change. Further to this objective, the CFAN Advisor is expected to carry out the following specific duties:

  • Participate and successfully complete CFAN’s Advisor Training Program
  • Develop and submit climate finance funding proposals, with a particular focus on renewable energy, energy storage and energy efficiency projects, including by navigating the range of financing sources, engaging stakeholders to fulfil funding proposal requirements, and assessing financial instruments to structure investments
  • With CFAN support, lead the design and facilitation of at least one in-country capacity building effort to support transfer of skills and knowledge to local staff in relevant ministries and government offices and other stakeholders where appropriate.
  • Contribute to the development of an overarching project pipeline strategy at the national / regional level with an emphasis on the energy sector or cross-sectoral approaches;
  • Serve as an active member of the CFAN community, including by representing CFAN at events and external meetings, as well as by advancing CFAN’s value-add through peer-to-peer learning, knowledge exchange, and cohort activities;
  • Work within the Project Development Team at the CCCCC to structure project proposals in its Entity Work Programme to access climate finance, including establishing synergies with the Commonwealth Climate Finance Advisor, the SIDAR Programme and other similar projects. Some indicative projects include:
    • Building Climate Resilience into the Water and Wastewater Systems of Ambergris Caye, Belize, Central America (AC-CReWS) Project
    • Belize Renewal Energy Project- Driving Economic Growth and Development through transformation of the Energy Sector (Be-REP)
    • Climate Elucidation for Adaptive Resilience in the Water Sector (D-CℓEAR-Water) – Dominica
    • Adaptation Fund Regional Water Programme
    • Enhanced Direct Access (EDA) Funding Proposal for ‘Climate Actions for Building Resilience in Coastal Communities in the Caribbean
    • Projects for the Implementation of NDCs in the Caribbean – transforming the transport and energy sectors towards a low-carbon and climate-resilient future (NDC-TEC)
  • Work within the Project Development Team at the CCCCC to examine factors affecting climate finance uptake, inclusive of capacity issues.
  • Assist the PDMU in the expansion of its project/programme portfolio through the development of project ideas, concept notes and proposals. This include, inter-alia:
    • Reviewing relevant documentation and literature related to the projects/programmes being developed.
    • Defining the project/programme preparation arrangements including the technical coordination of each component/activity as appropriate.
    • Defining the project activities under each Component incorporating all technical comments as they arise from the PDMU, the GCF and related donors, and countries.
    • Outlining detailed budgets and possible cost sharing/co-financing arrangements.
    • Defining the baseline and annual targets, and monitoring mechanisms for indicators which are defined in the proposal.
    • Developing and defining a Risk Management Plan.
    • Outlining the processes utilized for the conduct of stakeholders’ consultation, gender analysis, feasibility analyses and environmental and social analyses/assessments, and project/programme exit strategy.
    • Ensuring that the studies outlined above are executed and that their findings inform the proposals.
  • Collaborate with other members of the PDMU, Finance and Procurement in the development and management of project ideas, concept and proposals that are included in the Country Programmes of CARICOM Member States as well as the CCCCC Entity Work Programme (EWP).
  • Use the CFAN network for knowledge acquisition and sharing. The CFAN Advisor is expected to use the CFAN network to gather said information and use them to inform the work of the Advisor.
  • Develop business models, feasibility studies and perform sound financial and economic analysis
  • Analyze financial data and use financial projections to design and recommend suitable financial structures
  • Coordinate between national ministries to accelerate projects through the investment pipeline
  • Where possible, pursue opportunities to finance projects through domestic resources as a means of enhancing country ownership
  • Mobilize resources for project development and management, including drafting Terms of References, evaluating potential vendors and service providers, and preparing payment memos.
  • Liaise with national, regional, and international stakeholders and donor institutions.
  • Organizing and executing stakeholder consultations, national and regional dialogues.
Qualifications
  • A master’s in project planning/development, Development Studies, Finance, Climate Change, Environment Science/Management, Economics, or related discipline.
  • Minimum of 5+ years of experience in climate finance, infrastructure/related finance, accounting, public finance management or related subject areas
  • Demonstrated ability to design financial instruments and develop climate finance projects in compliance with requirements of various climate finance funds
  • Experience accessing and structuring finance for climate investments, including from international climate finance institutions, strongly preferred
  • Experience in stakeholder relationship building and collaboration with government agencies, donors and/international development partners, and non- government organizations
  • Experience working in developing countries on climate and development issues related to the energy, water and agricultural sectors strong preferred
  • Fluency in written and spoken English
  • Willingness and ability to commit to in-country work for one (1) year and travel as required
  • Candidates from the Caribbean and CARICOM region are encouraged to apply
Characteristics of the Position

Estimated Timeline of Position: The initial contract duration is for one (1) year and subject to extension contingent on performance and further contract renewal contingent on performance and availability of funding.

Location: The successful candidate will be contracted full-time to the CCCCC’s Headquarters in Belmopan, Belize, with travel to Member States as necessary.

Start date: The successful applicant will be expected to commence work immediately on appointment, where applicable.

Reporting and Coordination:
  • The CFAN Advisor will work within the PDMU and closely with staff within the various sub-units and will report directly to the Sr. Project Development Specialist and CFAN’s Caribbean Regional manager.
  • The CFAN Advisor will have day-to-day interactions with Senior Management, other Project Development Specialists, Project Managers, Procurement Officers, LIDAR Technical Personnel, Finance and Human Resources within CCCCC.
Applicants should submit:
  • A cover letter and resume
  • Tenderer’s official name, address, and contact information
  • Indicate the expected monthly rate in USD
  • Examples of and references for written work
  • Submission Deadline: EXTENDED! 10 November 2023, 9:00 AM EST

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