The assignment is SHORT term NPSA (up to 12 months)
Scope of Work 1. Biodiversity Budget Tagging
The Biodiversity Budget Tagging (BBT) initiative aims to improve the visibility, tracking, and integration of biodiversity-related expenditures within Armenia's public financial management system, supporting evidence-based decision-making and alignment with national biodiversity priorities.
Analytical Review and Operational Mapping
- Review and analyses of BIOFIN and other products, such as the PIR, BER, FNA, Biodiversity Finance Solutions, subsidy assessments, NBSAP-3, GBF targets, GLOBE Taxonomy and Armenia Green Taxonomy to establish the basis for structuring the BBT development.
- Consolidate needs on biodiversity budget governance arrangements, institutional responsibilities, expenditure categories, biodiversity-positive and potentially harmful expenditure considerations in relevant sectors for BBT structuring.
- Review public budgeting, programme budgeting, MTEF processes and expenditure reporting structures relevant for future biodiversity expenditure tracking integration within Armenia’s public finance management system relevant to BBT.
- Review climate budget tagging and related expenditure tracking systems to identify synergies and interoperability opportunities where feasible.
- Prepare an analytical baseline note summarizing key findings on technical compounds (expenditure categorization, classification, hierarchy levels, etc.) necessary for logical structuring future BBT system with institutionalization capacity.
Institutional and Governance Assessment
- Conduct consultations with relevant government institutions and stakeholders regarding institutional arrangements and future implementation of the BBT system.
- Identify institutional roles, data availability, operational constraints, and implementation arrangements, as well as operational and institutional entry points and workflow for future integration of biodiversity expenditure tracking within Armenia’s public financial management and programme budgeting systems.
- Facilitate participatory engagement processes and prepare an operational assessment report with relevant findings for future BBT implementation.
Operationalization and Recommendations on Institutional Integration
- Identify and outline the institutional arrangements, coordination mechanisms necessary for the effective integration of biodiversity budget tagging and expenditure tracking into Armenia's budgeting, expenditure classification, reporting frameworks, and broader biodiversity finance governance system.
- Contribute to development of user guidance, application instructions, reporting templates, validation protocols, and quality assurance materials. Organize and participate in technical consultations and validation of the draft methodology.
- Provide analytical recommendations for development of operational and conceptual considerations supporting contextual application of biodiversity expenditure tagging hierarchy, expenditure categorization, biodiversity expenditure taxonomy, classification and attribution approaches.
Review and provide recommendations to support alignment of BBT system structure with Armenia’s public finance management framework, NBSAP, GBF Targets, BIOFIN methodology, GLOBE and Armenia Green Taxonomy;
- Support the development of training and capacity-building recommendations for future application of the methodology
Institutionalization, Sustainability and Scale-Up Framework
Provide analytical inputs and recommendations on administrative and institutional arrangements for BBT implementation and sustainability, including on regulatory, policy, or procedural endorsement required for institutionalization, where relevant.
- Support preparation of phased implementation pathways for BBT application; develop recommendations for future scaling and integration of biodiversity expenditure tracking.
- Support the preparation of an outline on BBT institutionalization, sustainability and scale-up roadmap outline providing feasible governance arrangements, institutional responsibilities, procedural and administrative integration options, sustainability measures, linkage with budgeting and reporting processes, and recommendations for phased adoption, expansion, and long-term government ownership of the BBT system in Armenia.
2. Results-Based Budgeting (RBB)
RBB strengthens the effectiveness, transparency and accountability of biodiversity-related public expenditures and supports implementation of Armenia’s NBSAP and biodiversity finance priorities.
Assessment of Existing Budgeting and Monitoring Framework
- Review relevant legislation, policies, budget regulations and public finance management procedures for logical grouping of biodiversity expenditure to be analysed for matching to policy priority objectives.
- Examine current biodiversity-related budget planning, expenditure management, monitoring and reporting systems with a perspective to be aligned to NBSAP targets.
- Identify opportunities and constraints for integrating biodiversity-related performance indicators into programme budgeting and sector budgets.
Biodiversity Expenditure and Performance Review
- Review biodiversity-related expenditures across relevant sectors framed for BBT; identify expenditure bottlenecks, inefficiencies and implementation barriers.
- Assess existing biodiversity expenditure tracking practices and proposed workflow for BBT and support to design a structure for assigning biodiversity specific indicators aligned with program budgeting framework.
- Support the establishment of a baseline for biodiversity expenditures and biodiversity-related performance indicators.
Development of Biodiversity Results Framework aligned with NBSAP
Contribute to the preparation of options for a Biodiversity Results Framework that includes biodiversity policy objectives aligned with NBSAP targets.
- Support the development of a results chain, propose options for national and sectoral biodiversity performance indicators, identify biodiversity expenditure-performance linkages.
Monitoring and Evaluation Framework
- Provide technical inputs to baseline and target-setting methodology and data collection practices.
- Recommend possible roles and responsibilities of institutions in data collection.
- Adjust biodiversity expenditure tracking methodology based on BER report to RBB.
- Propose public disclosure and transparency mechanisms.
- Provide recommendation to lead institutions responsible for coordinating monitoring and reporting.
Preparation of Implementation Guidelines
- Outline a practical Biodiversity Results-Based Budgeting Manual content; develop a preliminary catalogue of indicators; design monitoring and reporting templates.
3. Valuation of Ecosystem Services
Provide support to policy analysis, legal expertise, and strategic communication to advance the BES-NET Armenia project’s goals, serving as an interface between the project's scientific core and the policy and practitioner dialogue communication.
Local Valuation Models and Best Practices
- Map ES valuation existing approaches, assess their alignment with international frameworks, and identify opportunities for methodological harmonization.
- Contribute to production of a Summary Report on locally used valuation models and best practices.
- Estimate human, financial, and institutional resources required for biophysical assessment and monetization of ecosystem services at pilot implementation level.
- Prepare a resource assessment outlining human, financial and institutional requirements for pilot implementation.
- Develop targeted communication materials to engage multi-sectoral institutions (government agencies, research bodies, civil society) in the project's priority topics and in the process of harmonizing ES assessment methodologies with existing institutional practices.
Legal and Policy Review
Conduct a comprehensive review of Armenia's existing legislative, regulatory, and strategic framework to identify gaps, inconsistencies, and entry points for policy amendment to enable systematic integration of ES valuation into national planning and financing processes.
- Identify specific barriers preventing the integration of ES valuation into national planning, public investment, and environmental impact assessment processes.
- Provide completed legislative inventory and annotated mapping of relevant legal instruments
Propose policy recommendations and identify potential options for regulatory or legislative amendment, including proposed for submission to the Ministry of Environment of Armenia.
- Contribute to development of the report on legal analysis of the existing framework regulating ES management, including gap analysis and policy recommendations.
National BES Platform: Support to Establishment and Opalization
- Prepare a report analyzing synergies between the institutional mandates of stakeholder institutions, as defined in their internal regulations, and the strategic scope of the National BES Platform, with recommendations for strengthening their engagement.
- Organize and facilitate science-policy-practice dialogue workshop(s) under the BES Platform framework, providing structured exchange between scientific experts, policymakers, and practitioners on ES assessment and valuation approaches proposed by the project.
- Support coordination and facilitation of the National BES Platform's structured review and feedback process on biophysical assessment and monetization methodological approaches developed by the project's technical experts. Compile, synthesize, and present stakeholder timely feedback to the project team.
- Contribute to the development of report on BES Platform feedback on project-proposed biophysical assessment and monetization methodological approaches, including synthesis of Platform members' positions and recommendations for methodology adjustment.
4. Institutional Arrangement
The Analyst will work under the overall supervision of the UNDP Climate, Environment and Resilience (CER) Programme Analyst/Portfolio Lead, in close coordination with the BIOFIN and BES-Net project teams, who will provide technical guidance, facilitate access to relevant project materials, and support coordination with national counterparts and stakeholders, as required.
The Analyst will report to the named project coordinators on the implementation of the assignment and will submit deliverables for review, comments and approval in accordance with the agreed workplan.
UNDP CER Portfolio lead will be responsible for the final review and acceptance of deliverables, in consultation with relevant project stakeholders.
All outputs developed under this assignment will be both in Armenian and English versions and will become the property of UNDP and relevant national counterparts.
5. Competencies
Achieve Results: LEVEL 2: Scale up solutions and simplifies processes, balances speed and accuracy in doing work
Think Innovatively: LEVEL 2: Offer new ideas/open to new approaches, demonstrate systemic/integrated thinking
Learn Continuously: LEVEL 2: Go outside comfort zone, learn from others and support their learning
Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 2: Adapt processes/approaches to new situations, involve others in change process
Engage and Partner: LEVEL 2: Is facilitator/integrator, bring people together, build/maintain coalitions/partnerships
Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 2: Facilitate conversations to bridge differences, considers in decision making
Cross functional & technical competencies
Business Management / Communication - Communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels.
Business Development / Knowledge generation - Ability to research information and to turn it into useful knowledge, relevant for context, or responsive to a stated need. Ability to apply existing concepts to new situations, and to develop new concepts to generate workable solutions and new approaches. Knowledge of relevant concepts, conceptual models, and theories that can be useful in addressing new situations.
Business management / Partnership management - Build and maintain partnerships with wide networks of stakeholders, Governments, civil society and private sector partners, experts and others in line with UNDP strategy and policies.
2030 Agenda: Planet / Nature - Ecosystems and Biodiversity Programme: Nature-positive economy and Biodiversity Finance
2030 Agenda: Planet / Nature - National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans- NBSAPs.
Business Direction and Strategy - Monitoring and Evaluation - Ability to systematically monitor results of strategies, programmes, and activities with a view to make sure that they are being implemented effectively; Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback and reporting on the consistency or discrepancy between planned activities and programme management and results. Ability to make independent judgment of the management and results of strategies, programmes and activities based on set criteria and benchmark, keeping in mind the needs and concerns of client, current and upcoming. Knowledge and understanding of monitoring and evaluation frameworks, concepts, methodologies, systems, processes, and tools. Ability to make an independent judgement based on set criteria and benchmarks. Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns.
6. Minimum Qualifications of the Successful NPSA
Min Academic Education: Advanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in Environmental Policy, Economics, Public Finance, Public Administration, Environmental Economics, Biodiversity Finance, Natural resource and ecosystems management, or related field is required, or a first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas mentioned above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.
Min. years of relevant Work experience: A minimum of 2 years (with master’s degree) or 4 years (with Bachelor’s degree) of relevant professional experience in environmental protection or governance, policy analysis, public finance, biodiversity finance, budget analysis, institutional development, or related fields.
Required skills
- Demonstrated experience in developing analytical reports, methodologies, frameworks, guidelines, policy instruments, or institutional recommendations related to environment, biodiversity, public finance, or sustainable development.
- Experience in working with government institutions and facilitating stakeholder consultations, technical discussions, and validation processes.
Strong analytical, drafting, coordination, and communication skills, with proficiency in applicable software for data organization, analysis, and reporting
Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section
- Experience with BIOFIN methodology, biodiversity finance assessments, Biodiversity Expenditure Reviews, Financial Needs Assessments, biodiversity finance solutions, budget tagging, public expenditure tracking, climate budget tagging, or similar public finance instruments is highly desirable.
- Familiarity with the BIOFIN GLOBE Taxonomy and national Green Taxonomy, biodiversity expenditure classification, attribution approaches, NBSAP, GBF, and public financial management systems.
- Experience working with the Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Finance, or other Armenian government institutions.
- Previous experience with UNDP, UN agencies, GEF, EU, or other donor-funded programmes is an asset.
Required Language(s): Fluency in English and Armenian languages is required.