Organizational Setting
The Zambezi Watercourse, spanning eight Southern African nations and covering 1.4 million kmยฒ, is a critical natural asset supporting over 51 million people projected in 2025. Despite its vast water and ecological resources, the basin is under severe pressure from climate change, poverty, environmental degradation, and weak governance systems. Over 60% of the population lives in rural areas, relying heavily on rain-fed agriculture and natural ecosystems, leaving them acutely vulnerable to droughts, floods, and declining land productivity. Key challenges include: Climate variability resulting in extreme and unpredictable weather patterns, widespread poverty, with 44% of the population living below the poverty line, environmental degradation, with 65% of land in the basin moderately or highly degraded, fragmented governance and inadequate infrastructure for water and land management.
To address these systemic issues, ZAMCOM is implementing the Strategic Plan for the Zambezi Watercourse (ZSP: 2018 โ 2040), anchored on four pillars: infrastructure development, livelihood support, environmental protection, and water resources management. Inadequate policy frameworks and institutional capacities in the Zambezi Watercourse Riparian States are hampering efforts to address climate change, water management, and food security in an integrated manner. Fragmented governance and lack of coordination between sectors often lead to ineffective interventions.
In view of the above, FAO and ZAMCOM have initiated a project to titled โSupport to the Development of the Strategic Basin Investment Programme to Build Resilience and Sustainable Development in the Zambezi Watercourseโsupport the development of the investment plan/programme which shall ensure that (i) available resources are sufficient to match the challenges, (ii) there is convergence of activities in same geographic zone, (iii) there shall be increased ownership and access to land for sustainability, and (iv) community-level sub-projects are demand-driven. The objectives of the investment programme are;
โข ย ย ย ย Mitigate the impacts of climate change by improving resilience in the watercourse area, promoting sustainable use and management of water and related resources, and enhancing climate-adaptation measures;
โข ย ย ย ย Enhance enabling environment for sustainable agriculture, water resources management and climate change adaptation in the Zambezi watercourse. The plan will strengthen institutional capacities, improve policy coherence, and foster regional cooperation for transboundary water management. This includes development of supportive policies, regulations, and institutions to promote investment in sustainable agriculture infrastructure, facilitate public-private partnerships;
โข ย ย ย ย Mainstream best gender practices into agricultural systems to ensure advancement of equality of voice, agency and access to resources and services by all gender groups inclusive of the youths, women and other disadvantaged groups with unique challenges;
โข ย ย ย ย Reduce socio-economic vulnerabilities by improving access to resources, diversifying livelihoods, capacity building on climate resilience, and empowering local communities to actively participate in water and land management decisions;
โข ย ย ย ย Restore ecosystems through sustainable land management, rehabilitation of degraded areas, and conservation of biodiversity. This will support ecosystem services crucial for maintaining water availability and quality in the long run;
โข ย ย ย ย Enhance food security by promoting climate-smart agriculture, improving irrigation practices, enhancing water storage for agricultural production, supporting infrastructure investment to enhance farmers' incomes and food security, promoting sustainable small-scale farming and supporting sustainable land use that conserves water and boosts agricultural resilience; and
โข ย ย ย ย Promote implementation of the integrated water resource management (IWRM) approach. This includes capacity-building for stakeholders, promoting efficient water use and enhancing integrated data and information services for enhanced management of water and related resources
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Reporting Lines
The expert will work under the overall supervision of the Subregional Coordinator for Southern Africa and under the direct supervision of the Land and Water Resources Management Specialist at SFS and the SFS Programme Officer Partnership.
Technical Focus
The Consultancy aims to develop in a consultative and technical method the development of a comprehensive integrated a Strategic Basin Investment Programme for the transboundary Zambezi Watercourse. The investment plan/programme shall ensure that (i) available resources are sufficient to match the challenges, (ii) there is convergence of activities in same geographic zone, (iii) there shall be increased ownership and access to land for sustainability, and (iv) community-level sub-projects are demand-driven
Tasks and responsibilities
โข ย ย ย ย Develop a comprehensive Draft Inception Report to be presented at a regional Project Inception Meeting outlining the proposed methodology and project execution programme/timeline for undertaking the activities and delivery of the outputs;
โข ย ย ย ย Undertake a thorough mapping of the regional, national and local stakeholders and prepare a stakeholder engagement plan which will include stakeholderโs consultation schedule and outputs;
โข ย ย ย ย Undertake a desk review of initiatives and activities which impact the basin. This will include livelihood activities such as agriculture, infrastructure developments and associated economic activities by the many players at multi-national, national and local levels. The review will include assessment of previous and current plans and projects implemented by ZAMCOM and other players, undertake the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis and provide a diagnosis of the issues in the basin;
โข ย ย ย ย Conduct field/scoping visits for consultation with ZAMCOM member countries, peer organizations, SADC, key regional and national stakeholders, multi-national and Non-Governmental organizations, Civil Society, private sector, CBOs and development partners which are engaged in various initiatives in the basin and collects views and opinions on the status of the basin and to ground-truth on the findings of the desk reviews;
โข ย ย ย ย Assess the extent to which past and ongoing approaches have been effective in the management of the Zambezi watercourse basin and report on various obstacles, gaps and challenges that have impeded the socio-economic development and sustainable management of the basin and how they can be addressed;
โข ย ย ย ย Conduct technical feasibility analysis of proposed interventions based on the components that will be proposed by stakeholders during the inception report and national consultations;
โข ย ย ย ย Undertake financial feasibility analysis including financing options, affordability, and sustainability of the programme;ย
โข ย ย ย ย Conduct institutional analysis: assess institutional capacities, mandates, overlaps, and coordination gaps;ย
โข ย ย ย ย Develop the institutional arrangements (institutional set-up, governance, procurement, and financial management) for programme governance and implementation;
โข ย ย ย ย Estimate economic costs and benefits of the programme (NPV, IRR, BCR);
โข ย ย ย ย Assess financial viability of proposed activities (cost recovery, revenue streams, co-financing, cost-benefit analysis, value-for-money, and regional spillover benefits);
โข ย ย ย ย Provide indicative total programme cost, with breakdown by component, sub-component, and country;
โข ย ย ย ย Quantify socio-economic co-benefits (jobs, food security, ecosystem services);
โข ย ย ย ย Identify risks and mitigation measures (financial, technical, institutional);
โข ย ย ย ย Define disbursement, financing plan, and resource mobilization strategy;
โข ย ย ย ย Integrate gender and social inclusion strategies and prepare the Gender Mainstreaming Action Plan which outlines proposed strategic actions, responsible parties, implementation time frame, expected outcomes and indicators to ensure gender equality and womenโs empowerment are effectively mainstreamed throughout the programme lifecycle;
โข ย ย ย ย Develop programme objectives, components, sub-components, activities, and cost tables;
โข ย ย ย ย Map available and possible sources of funding and financing mechanisms towards water resources management in the basin;
โข ย ย ย ย Prepare and submit a comprehensive basin Situational Analysis Report, which shall be presented to a regional consultative workshop involving all the relevant stakeholders, including representatives of member states, to validate the findings, identify and correct any gaps and to chart the way forward for the next phase of the project;
โข ย ย ย ย Prepare and submit the Draft Basin Investment Programme which shall contain among other things, an annex of the Final Situational Analysis Report, the proposed solutions/interventions to the identified obstacles to the effective management and utilization of the basinโs resources, the opportunities, implementation and financing strategies of the proposed interventions and Draft Project Proposals along the thematic areas of Infrastructure Development, Livelihood Support, Environmental Protection and Water Resources Management;
โข ย ย ย ย Present the draft Basin Investment Programme and the draft Thematic Project Proposals to the second regional consultative workshop involving all the relevant stakeholders, including representatives of member states, to validate the report; and
โข ย ย ย ย Prepare the final project documents which shall include Basin Investment Programme and Project Proposal Documents including any relevant annexes.
CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING
Minimum Requirements
โข ย ย ย ย Advanced degree (Masterโs degree and above) from an institution recognized by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/UNESCO in a combination of the following fields: water resource management, natural resources management, environmental management, natural sciences or any equivalent educational background other discipline relevant to the work of the Organization. Consultants with bachelor's degree need two additional years of relevant professional experience
โข ย ย ย ย 10 years of relevant experience in assessing investment needs and developing action/investment plans in water, natural resources or related fields including experience in having prepared at least 2 investment plans/ programmes;
โข ย ย ย ย Working knowledge of English (Level C)
FAO Core Competencies
โข ย ย ย ย Results Focus
โข ย ย ย ย Teamwork
โข ย ย ย ย Communication
โข ย ย ย ย Building Effective Relationships
โข ย ย ย ย Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement
Technical/Functional Skills
โข ย ย ย ย Excellent understanding of national and regional water, environmental, and climate sectors and related policies;
โข ย ย ย ย Good knowledge of financing mechanisms, instruments, and associated institutional arrangements relating to development aid, domestic financing, and climate financing, particularly the GCF, the Adaptation Fund, the GEF, Multi-lateral Finance Institutions, Philanthropic Foundations, etc.
โข ย ย ย ย Demonstrated experience in project preparation
โข ย ย ย ย Familiarity with multi-stakeholder approaches and information gathering as well as private sector engagement
โข ย ย ย ย Knowledge of the workings of various regional and national cooperating partners
โข ย ย ย ย An understanding of indigenous knowledge and its integration into climate-resilient projects
โข ย ย ย ย Proven ability to operate in a multi-cultural environment and interact with stakeholders within a regional and national context
โข ย ย ย ย Excellent report writing and presentation skills
โข ย ย ย ย Excellent facilitation and communication skills