Mekong River Commission
The role of MRC is to promote and coordinate sustainable management and development of water and related resources for the countries’ mutual benefit and the people’s well-being
MRC Secretariat is now recruiting highly a qualified individual consultant for the following consultancy
International Consultant
To Support the Development of a Regional Distribution Analysis of Current and Potential Transboundary Benefits and Costs
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Consultant type
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International Consultant (Individual)
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Programme / Division
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Basin Development Plan Programme, Planning Division
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Work location
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Home base and the Office of the MRC Secretariat in Vientiane, Lao PDR with possible travel to the region
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Contract type/ Duration
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90 working days from June 2013 to June 2014
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Objectives
The objective of this consultancy is to support the BDP team and its Senior National Advisors (who are current or former senior government officials appointed by the countries) in the development of a well-structured regional distribution analysis of current and potential transboundary benefits and costs in the Mekong Basin, based on global experience and the context, conditions, plans and opportunities in the Mekong Basin.
Outputs
The Consultant will prepare a summary of global experience with transboundary benefit sharing and successive drafts of the regional distribution analysis, based on inputs and guidance of the BDP team and Senior National Advisors, and the results of national and regional stakeholder consultations. The outputs are as follows:
Reports
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Content
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Deadline
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Summary of global experience with regional benefit sharing
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· A summary of regional benefit sharing mechanisms in all water-related sectors between countries in transboundary river basins and their effectiveness and impacts
· Bibliography on regional benefit sharing
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June 2013
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First draft regional distribution analysis in the Mekong basin
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· Assessment of regional benefit sharing already occurring in the Mekong Basin including with the Lancang-Upper Mekong Basin
· Assessment of potential future regional benefit sharing considering existing national plans of each of the Mekong Basin countries
· Initial assessment of possible and incremental regional benefit sharing opportunities over and above what would occur above (i.e. by default)
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October 2013
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Second draft regional distribution analysis in the Mekong Basin
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· Update of the first draft report based on new (scenario) assessments, other studies and the results of various stakeholder consultations, plus:
· An evaluation of scope and justification of the possible and incremental regional benefit sharing opportunities and the possible ways to capture these opportunities
· Identification of potential financial and other mechanisms to promote and capture possible incremental regional benefit sharing opportunities (including minimizing regional costs)
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February 2014
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Draft final regional distribution analysis report
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· Based on feedback from national and regional workshops and negotiations
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May 2014
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A substantial part of the information needed for the preparation of the regional distribution analysis has already been collected and analyzed. To ensure that all relevant available information will be used, also the international consultant of the ISH expert team on national-to-local benefit sharing will provide inputs to the development of the first draft regional distribution analysis.
In addition to the above outputs, the Consultant will prepare a monthly short assignment report, outlining the purpose and nature of activities undertaken, individuals contacted, main findings and issues arising (if any), the principal accomplishments , and the consultants’ recommendations (if any), and an invoice covering the tasks worked on during the month.
Responsibilities:
- Summarize a global review of regional benefit sharing mechanisms between sovereign countries in transboundary river basins (building on the inputs to the Mekong2Rio Conference) with a primary focus on water resources management and recognition of cross-sectoral, nexus considerations (see the Annex 3 for relevant references). Also summarize the effectiveness and impacts of these regional benefit sharing mechanisms;
- Review sector and sub-area inventories and national plans in the Mekong Basin, as well as BDP’s scenario assessments, the SEA of proposed LMB mainstream dams, the ISH Knowledge Base on benefit sharing (five volumes), as well as other assessments available within the MRC;
- Prepare an appropriate analytical framework for the regional distributional analysis that balances comprehensiveness, practicality and the need for quantification (see the approach in Section 6);
- Lead the initial assessment of the extent of regional benefit sharing already occurring within the water related sectors in the Mekong Basin, including with the Lancang-Upper Mekong Basin. Transboundary benefits and costs will quantified as much as possible. Examples of current and possible future transboundary cost and benefit stream are provided in Annex 1;
- Lead the initial assessment of regional benefit sharing in 2030 assuming that current national plans in the water related sectors would be implemented. Transboundary benefits and costs will be quantified as much as possible;
- Support the initial identification and assessment of possible and incremental regional benefit sharing opportunities over and above what would occur above (i.e. by default as a result of existing, ongoing and planned development). This includes the consideration of enhancing national plans to maximize regional benefits and minimize regional costs;
- Make an initial identification of the nature and scope of potential national or provincial programmes to capture the potential transboundary benefits made possible by developments in other Mekong countries and to address their transboundary impacts and risks;
- Advise on the services required to complete the picture of current and potential future transboundary benefit and cost streams, such as scenario assessments (in addition to the BDP scenarios); the valuation of ecosystem services; the valuation of externalities and risks; the review of power economics; the identification of the measures to minimize adverse transboundary impacts; the use of alternative economic assessment methods for development scenarios; a study of the legal and regulatory frameworks of the basin countries; and the identification of national and/or provincial programmes to mitigate adverse transboundary impacts on the vulnerable poor (the BDP Programme will recruit the necessary short-term international and national experts) ;
- Make a cursory assessment of the effects of climate change in the emerging regional distribution analysis and the potential for climate change adaptation benefit sharing;
- Prepare the first draft report of the regional distribution analysis;
- If requested, participate in national and regional meetings of government and non-government stakeholders and facilitate discussion on the attributes of regional benefit and cost sharing that emerge as appropriate to the Mekong region;
- Further improve the regional distribution analysis report based on the feedback of the national and regional meetings, MRC Programmes, new inputs from recruited short-term international and national experts, and the IPOE. Transboundary benefits, impacts and risks will be quantified to the extent possible;
- Evaluate the scope, merits, justification and enabling conditions of possible and incremental regional benefit sharing opportunities over and above what would occur ‘by default’ (see above);
- Evaluate the scope, merits, justification and enabling conditions of potential national and/or provincial programmes to capture transboundary benefits from development in other Mekong countries and/or address transboundary impacts;
- Support the identification of potential financial and other mechanisms to promote and capture possible incremental regional benefit sharing opportunities (such as the earlier considered ‘Mekong Fund’) and national/provincial programmes to mitigate transboundary impacts and risks (for example through the ‘Associated Project Budget’ related to the National Indicative Plans);
- Prepare the second draft report on the regional distribution analysis;
- Advise on a programme for supporting dialogues and negotiations on regional benefit sharing for senior level government officials responsible for planning and development decisions, building on previous initiatives under BDP and adaptation of proven techniques used in other regions and river basins;
- Prepare the draft final distribution analysis report;
- Based on the feedback from national and regional meetings, support the identification of any immediate concepts that can be incorporated into the updated Basin Development Strategy;
- Contribute to other activities that may arise.
Qualifications/Requirements:
- At least Master degree in water and land related resources planning and management, natural resources economics, or similar;
- More than 20 years of professional experience in the preparation and implementation of land and water related policies, strategies and plans in international river basin in a developed and developmental context;
- Strong expertise and experience in scenario assessment, including the assessment of the transboundary water, energy, food, environment and climate change nexus;
- Good knowledge of the Mekong Basin (its development context and complexity as well as the interests and concerns of the Mekong countries), MRC Programmes, the BDP planning process, and the MRC Procedures;
- Good strategic thinking, communication and excellent writing skills.
Selection of the Consultant
The Consultant will be selected based on the CV and a letter with a self-assessment of how well he/she meets the above qualifications. Shortlisted Consultants may be interviewed.
The Term of Reference and other information can be obtained at MRC websitehttp://www.mrcmekong.org/working-with-mrc/employment. Qualified female candidates are encouraged to apply. Only short-listed candidates will be notified.
Application procedures:
The application should include (i) a cover letter outlining clearly how the candidate meets therequirements of the position, (ii) a detailed CV, (iii) MRC Personal History Formand (iv) Financial Proposal. The position title must be indicated in the cover letter.
The application should be sent to:
Mekong River Commission Office of the Secretariat in Vientiane (OSV)
P.O. Box 6101, 184 Fa NgoumRoad
Vientiane 01000, Lao PDR
Email: mrcs@mrcmekong.org
P.O. Box 6101, 184 Fa NgoumRoad
Vientiane 01000, Lao PDR
Email: mrcs@mrcmekong.org
Closing date for applications: 9 May 2013
