VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT Issued on: 15 Nov 2011 ORGANIZATIONAL LOCATION: UN-HABITAT DUTY STATION: (Home based) FUNCTIONAL TITLE: Consultant DURATION: Dec 2011 – Feb 2012 CLOSING DATE: 25 November 2011
BACKGROUND A defining feature of urban growth in developing countries has been emergence of sprawling informal squatter and unauthorised settlements. Classified as “slums”, these settlements are characterised by unhealthy housing-related living conditions and a lack of basic services. These inadequate conditions impose significant human and financial costs on slum residents, cities, and national economies. The extent of informality in housing production as manifested in slum growth is immense and, in absolute terms, growing. According the UN-HABITAT revised statistics, the number of people living in slum conditions reached approximately 827 million people in 2010, representing a 12.5 per cent increase from just a decade before. If such processes remain unchecked, this number is expected to grow to 899 million by 2020. Today, the situation is critical and, in terms of scale, unprecedented.
It is, however, important to note that while these figures highlight the urgency for making slums a concrete priority in city and national development strategies, the figures may hide the fact that over the past 40 years much progress has been made in devising and implementing effective and sustainable approaches to improve the living conditions of slums. Slum upgrading is one such approach. Slum upgrading seeks to improve the living conditions of slums for the benefit of existing slum dwellers by directly intervening, in situ, in the physical, social, economic, and/or juridical structure of the settlement. At the neighbourhood level it has often led to dramatic improvements in the lives of slum dwellers. Furthermore, in select cities in Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, Thailand, India and South Africa, it has been brought to greater scale in slum upgrading programmes that have been implemented at a citywide scale. As a result of these positive experiences slum upgrading has become a best practice housing intervention for developing countries. Given the vast scale of the challenge of slums, the need to bring slum upgrading to a large scale is both evident and imperative.
It is widely acknowledged by housing experts and practitioners that there exists an urgent need for knowledge sharing and capacity building of city-level public sector agents in the design and implementation of slum upgrading programmes at a citywide scale. With nearly 40 years of progress and innovations in slum upgrading and recent successes in scaling up slum upgrading to the citywide programme level, it is an opportune moment for bridging that gap in knowledge and organisational capacity. This consultancy will contribute to this end by developing and disseminating Practical Guide for Citywide Slum Upgrading Programmes, based on best practices and lessons learned of key city experiences.
The objective of the Practical guide is to introduce practical tools for designing and implementing city wide slum upgrading programs. The guide is to be easy-to-understand and evidence-based, with a wealth of reference and experiences, addressed to policy makers, practitioners and experts from municipal governments, NGO’s and central government agencies. The guide draws on the many experiences carried out by different cities that managed to establish a programmatic and sustained approach to slum upgrading, some of which have been institutionalised and become routine tasks of slum improvement within the domain of public administration of these cities. The Guide aims to enhance knowledge and develop skills amongst key stakeholders responsible for designing, coordinating, managing and implementing city wide slum upgrading programmes and to serve as promotion for slum upgrading as viable alternative to improve the living conditions and quality of life of poor households living in slums and informal settlements.
RESPONSIBILITIES Task One: Background work 1.1 Induction and orientation meeting: The consultant will meet with the supervisor and the Chief, Housing Policy Section, either via Skype, teleconference, or in person if possible, at the beginning of the consultancy. This meeting aims to outline the consultancy in more depth and provide the background to the project, and highlight the expected outcomes. It provides an opportunity to reach a common understanding on the tasks.
1.2 Inception report: Through the initial desk research the consultant should produce a concise inception report that will include preliminary findings and describe how the consultant intends to carry out the consultancy. The report should be clear and concise and not be more than 10 pages. The report must outline any changes to the initial timeline as agreed at the commencement of the consultancy.
Task 2: Information gathering, data analysis and draft guide writing 2.1 Draft Guide research, analysis and writing: The consultant will develop the first draft of the Guide based on an in-depth literature review of key concepts/methodologies; documentation of good/bad practices; case examples; key findings; recommendations; potential tools, priorities areas and analysis of gaps; comprehensive inventory of existing guidelines and practices; detailed bibliography; and any other items agreed following submission of the inception report.
2.2 Progress report: Mid-way through Task 2 the consultant should submit a two-page progress report. It should contain an outline of the progress achieved so far, and, more importantly, it should outline major obstacles or areas where further support from the Supervisor is required.
Task 3: Peer review, Guide finalisation and submission 3.1 Presentation of Draft Guide for peer review: The consultant should present the key structure, substantive areas, and recommendations contained in the draft Guide to a peer review panel at an Expert Group Meeting hosted by UN-HABITAT in Nairobi in early February 2012.
3.2 Final guide production and web statement: Taking on board the comments and suggestions raised at the peer review presentation, and those provided by UN-HABITAT staff as part of Task 2.1, the consultant is to refine the draft and prepare the final version of the Guide. Illustrations and annexes should be included in the document and also provided in their original format as separate files. The consultant should also produce a 200 word Web statement (press release), which should and be accompanied by a photo.
Deliverables: The consultant shall produce the following deliverables: 1. Induction meeting summary (Max 2 pages) 2. Inception Report (max 10 pages) 3. Draft Guide, which will be circulated for comments 4. Presentation at EGM in February 2012, including powerpoint presentation 5. Final report, which will incorporate all the back-and-forth comments from the draft report. 6. Web statement (200 words, and one image).
The evaluation will be conducted in line with the Code of Conduct for Evaluation in the UN system and the United Nations Evaluation Group Norms and Standards.
COMPETENCIES Professionalism: Knowledge and understanding of practice and approaches relevant to slum upgrading, particularly in the institutional and management dimensions of citywide slum upgrading programmes.
Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others; tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; facilitation skills to encourage participation.
Planning & Organizing: Develops clear targets that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently.
EDUCATION Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in Architecture, Urban Planning, Housing Studies, Development Studies, or other related field is required. A first level university degree in combination with qualifying experience can be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
WORK EXPERIENCE The following experience is desirable: Experience in the design, implementation and management of citywide slum upgrading programmes in developing countries; Experience in designing, researching, analysing and writing practical guides for housing sector stakeholders in developing countries; Demonstrated ability and understanding of international best practice standards for housing and slum upgrading projects and programmes and experience in conducting programme evaluations.
LANGUAGE SKILLS: Fluency in English is required. Fluency in other UN languages may be an advantage.
OTHER SKILLS: Excellent facilitation and communication skills are desirable.
REMUNERATION Payments will be based on deliverables over the consultancy period. There are set remuneration rates for consultancies. The rate is determined by functions performed and experience of the consultant. The fees will be paid as per agreement.
APPLICATION GUIDANCE Please consider the following questions when formulating your expression of interest/proposal: • How would you approach the task of sourcing data, analysing it and condensing it into a practical guide? • What do you consider to be the key substantive topics/policy areas regarding city-wide slum upgrading? • If case studies of best practice are to be included, how would you go about selecting, analysing and documenting these?
Interested applicants should send (email preferred): - A concise ‘expression of interest’ letter - Technical proposal, specifying how the project would be approached and with a financial proposal - Full CV as well as UN P11 form (the United Nations standard personal history form available upon request or via: http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?typeid=24&catid=435&id=3867) - Copies of, or references to relevant publications previously prepared by the applicant; - All applicants are required to first register and upload the necessary information onto UN-Habitat e-roster: http://e-roster.unhabitat.org
All applications should be submitted to: Matthew French Associate Human Settlements Officer, Housing Policy Section, United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) UN Avenue Gigiri, UN Complex, Block 3 South - 3rd Level P.O. Box 30030, Nairobi 00100, Kenya Work: +254 (0) 207 62 4597; Skype: matthew.un-habitat Email: Matthew.French@unhabitat.org
Please also copy Katja.Dietrich@unhabitat.org and Helen.Musoke@unhabitat.org
Please be advised that since April 15th 2010, applicants for consultancies must be part of the UN-HABITAT e-Roster in order for their application to be considered. You can reach the e-Roster through the following link: http://e-roster.unhabitat.org
Deadline for applications: 25 Nov 2011
UN-HABITAT does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process. If you have any questions concerning persons or companies claiming to be recruiting on behalf of these offices and requesting the payment of a fee, please contact: recruitment@unon.org
APPLICATION GUIDANCE Please consider the following questions when formulating your expression of interest/proposal: • How would you approach the task of sourcing data, analysing it and condensing it into a practical guide? • What do you consider to be the key substantive topics/policy areas regarding city-wide slum upgrading? • If case studies of best practice are to be included, how would you go about selecting, analysing and documenting these?
Interested applicants should send (email preferred): - A concise ‘expression of interest’ letter - Technical proposal, specifying how the project would be approached and with a financial proposal - Full CV as well as UN P11 form (the United Nations standard personal history form available upon request or via: http://www.unhabitat.org/content.asp?typeid=24&catid=435&id=3867) - Copies of, or references to relevant publications previously prepared by the applicant; - All applicants are required to first register and upload the necessary information onto UN-Habitat e-roster: http://e-roster.unhabitat.org
All applications should be submitted to: Matthew French Associate Human Settlements Officer, Housing Policy Section, United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) UN Avenue Gigiri, UN Complex, Block 3 South - 3rd Level P.O. Box 30030, Nairobi 00100, Kenya Work: +254 (0) 207 62 4597; Skype: matthew.un-habitat Email: Matthew.French@unhabitat.org
Please also copy Katja.Dietrich@unhabitat.org and Helen.Musoke@unhabitat.org
Please be advised that since April 15th 2010, applicants for consultancies must be part of the UN-HABITAT e-Roster in order for their application to be considered. You can reach the e-Roster through the following link: http://e-roster.unhabitat.org
Deadline for applications: 25 Nov 2011
UN-HABITAT does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process. If you have any questions concerning persons or companies claiming to be recruiting on behalf of these offices and requesting the payment of a fee, please contact: recruitment@unon.org
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