Consultant on County Spatial Planning at United Nations Environment Programme - UNEP Jobs In Kenya
Expected duration
- 6 months
Duties and Responsibilities
- UNEP is the leading global environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system and serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment.
- UNEP, Ecosystems Division works with international and national partners, providing technical assistance and advisory services for the implementation of environmental policy, and strengthening the environmental management capacity of developing countries and countries with economies in transition.
- Background The Go-Blue Project is a partnership between the European Union (EU) and the Government of Kenya to advance the Blue Economy agenda across six counties in Kenya’s coastal region.
- The implementing partners include four-member states agencies from Germany, Italy, Portugal and France, and two UN Agencies (UN-Habitat and UNEP), with each implementing specific components of the Project in collaboration with the coastal counties and the Jumuiya ya Kaunti za Pwani (JKP) Secretariat and relevant national government Ministries.
- UN-Habitat and UNEP are jointly implementing the main environmental component Result Area
- Connecting People, Cities and the Ocean: Innovative Land-Sea Planning and Management for a Sustainable and Resilient Kenyan Coast. Under this component, UN-Habitat and UNEP are focusing on Innovative Integrated, Ecosystem-based Land-Sea Planning and Management for a Sustainable and Resilient Kenyan Coast.
- The core goal is to enable integrated land-sea planning, including demonstration pilot projects and compilation of relevant data in Kenya’s six coastal Counties.
- This includes addressing key socio-economic and environmental drivers and challenges to secure marine and coastal ecosystem services through planning, capacity building and pilot activities across the six coastal Counties.
The project has four (4) specific outcomes:
- Planning authorities to use information generated from the project in demonstration exercises on integrated, sustainable land-sea spatial planning and management,
- JKP counties and coastal locations apply new frameworks and approaches in integrated land-sea planning and management,
- Pilot interventions resulting in protection of coastal ecosystems, improved waste management, climate change and blue job creation in target areas,
- Good practices and knowledge from integrated land-sea planning are applied by county governments, local communities, and private sectors in JKP region.
- Rational These Terms of Reference (TORs) seek to support the delivery of outcome 2 - JKP counties and coastal locations apply new frameworks and approaches in integrated land-sea planning and management. More specifically, the assignment will contribute to output 2.2 “Application of integrated Land-Sea planning guidelines”.
- Under the County Government Act 2012, each county in Kenya is by law required to develop a GIS-based county spatial plan to achieve national and county development goals.
- Lamu County was the first county to prepare its spatial plan to strategically guide sustainable development for a period of 10 years (2016 – 2026). Since 2016 when the CSP was officially launched, the county has had a change of personnel both at executive and policy level and developed three county integrated development plans.
- Most importantly, despite Lamu county harboring diverse and fragile ecosystems including mangroves, coral reefs and seagrass beds, the CSP did not adequately factor its coastal and marine resources/ecosystems in the planning and development, hence a gap exists in land-sea integration.
- This, coupled with the legal requirement for counties to review their CSPs every five years, forms a strong basis for the review of the county spatial plan.
- Given that the Go Blue project is spearheading the development of the Land-Sea Planning guidelines, there is an opportunity to review and revise the county spatial plan while ensuring integration of terrestrial and marine components in the plan.
- This proposed review and revision of the Lamu CSP would also ensure that there is seamless integration of the CSP with other ongoing national planning processes such as the Marine Spatial planning (MSP) process.
- Responsibilities The County Government of Lamu has expressed its desire to undertake a review and revision of its County Spatial Plan (2016-2026) based on the County Government Act (2012) which requires that a CSP can be reviewed every five years and the revisions approved by the county assembly. Based on this desire, the Go Blue project wishes to support Lamu County with the review and revision of its CSP.
- The scope of work covers the geographical extents, resources and settlements within, sectors of analysis, existing forms, institutional systems (policy and legal coherence) and future anticipations.
- This assignment includes a thorough evaluation of the current CSP, its implementation and recommendations on how to mainstream land-sea planning guidelines in the revised plan.
- The overall supervision of this consultancy will be under the Project Manager of Marine and Freshwater Branch, Ecosystems Division.
- Tasks to be undertaken by the consultant.
- Working in close collaboration with the County Director of Physical Planning, County Planners and a technical team of international and national experts under the Go Blue Project, the Consultant will:
- Prepare a workplan and methodology covering the review process. II. Work with Lamu County leadership on the review and concretizing of the gaps to be addressed in the revision of the 1st generation CSP.
- A database consisting of all the resources in Lamu County including marine resources, and base map that includes the exclusive economic zone to an appropriate scale,
- A base map of the current implemented projects from the CSP, outstanding projects, and any other,
- A report detailing the procedures undertaken and how to update the database,
- well prepared and accurate thematic maps to facilitate understanding of the planning and location of various facilities, services.
- Ensure that the Department for Land Use and Physical Planning as the legally mandated national entity in matters planning is involved from the onset for appropriate policy guidance, oversight and alignment.
Qualifications/Special Skills
- Advanced university degree (Masters or PhD) in subjects related to urban and regional planning, environmental planning, marine resources, land surveying or related fields.
- Required Must have at least 2 years of work experience is required regional/county spatial planning; must be a registered, practicing and a corporate member of Kenya Institute of Planners.
- Required Demonstrate previous experience conducting similar assignments in Kenya and the Jumuiya ya Kaunti za Pwani (JKP) economic block. Required Excellent writing, communication, and presentation skills preferably with proven experience working as an urban/marine planner. Required
Languages
- English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this consultancy, fluency in oral and written English is required. Fluency in other UN languages is an added advantage
No Fee
THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.