Biodiversity specialist of the Natur'elles project
Vacancy no.: 6641
Unit: Marine and Coastal Program
Organisation: International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
Lieu: , Dakar, Senegal
Supervision: Coordinator of the Natur’ELLES project, Senegal
Activity rate: 100%
Grade: P1
Expected entry date: 01 January 2024
Type of Contract: Determined (12 months with possibility of renewal)
Deadline: 03 December 2023

CONTEXT
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is a membership union made up of governments and civil society organizations. It provides public, private and non-governmental organizations with the knowledge and tools necessary to ensure that human progress, economic development and nature conservation occur in harmony. Founded in 1948, IUCN has grown over the years to become the largest and most diverse environmental network in the world. It counts with the experience, resources and weight of its 1,300 Member organizations and the skills of more than 13,000 experts. Today, it is an international authority on the state of nature and natural resources in the world and on measures to preserve them. Our experts are divided into six Commissions, dedicated to the protection of species, environmental law, protected areas, economic and social policies, ecosystem management, and education and communication.

The project will be part of the Marine and Coastal Program (MACO) of the Central and West Africa Program, based in Dakar and working on issues related to the marine and coastal environment. Currently having a portfolio of 3 projects, the program is expected to develop in the future, particularly on the themes of combating coastal erosion and protecting coastal natural resources. However, in daily implementation, for reasons of consistency and administrative ease, the project will be placed under the supervision of the head of mission of the Senegal office, also based in Dakar. Frequent missions by the mission manager of the Senegal office and the MACO coordinator will be carried out in order to ensure adequate technical and administrative monitoring and good insertion of the project into the two programs.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The Natur'ELLES project, funded by Global Affairs Canada (AMC) and whose lead is attributed to the NGO SOCODEVI, will contribute to the adaptation to climate change (ACC) of vulnerable communities in mangrove ecosystems in marine areas protected areas (MPAs) of the Sine Saloum and Casamance deltas, in Senegal. Based on an analysis of socio-economic and environmental vulnerabilities linked to the impacts of climate change and the erosion of biodiversity, the project will respond to the specific needs and strategic priorities of women in coastal communities, particularly indigenous, both within mangrove villages, as well as on the broader scale of the coastal zone.

JOB DESCRIPTION
Main responsibilities

The Biodiversity specialist will be responsible for the implementation of activities linked to the establishment and strengthening of MPAs and APACs identified in the project, the establishment and monitoring of mangrove restoration activities and development. other natural infrastructures according to an NBS approach, to organize training and awareness sessions on NBS, to organize awareness sessions on sustainable fishing.

The specialist will be responsible for drafting the ToR for the various project activities in collaboration with partners, implementing and monitoring activities in the different sites while respecting deadlines and budgets. It will implement activities with partners with a view to capacity building and sustainability of activities.

The Biodiversity specialist will work under the direct supervision of the IUCN project coordinator, and under the indirect supervision of the Senegal Program Manager and the Marine and Coastal Program Coordinator. The position requires a flexible attitude to work, working outside office hours when necessary, traveling regularly within the project intervention area and occasionally to Dakar.

Specific tasks

• Support partners, MPA/APAC managers and local communities in programming activities to establish MPA/APAC structures.;
• Establish the inclusive institutional strengthening program for ICCA and MPA management committees;
• In collaboration with partners, coordinate the drafting or updating of MPA and ICCA management plans in an inclusive governance approach;
• In collaboration with partners, coordinate marking, zoning and surveillance organization activities;
• Ensure a participatory approach in the execution of activities in targeted communities and support partners in this approach on the ground;
• Implement and monitor mangrove restoration activities using an SfN approach;
• Support the development of natural infrastructure to combat coastal erosion and hydro-sedimentary control of the salty tongue;
• Collaborate with SOCODEVI and partners to transfer knowledge in NBS in collaboration with the communications specialist;
• Train stakeholders in mangrove restoration/conservation NbS and cost-benefit analysis of services approx. of ACC;
• Collaborate with IISD in carrying out the SAVI assessment;
• Participate in project evaluations;
• Participate in the drafting of quarterly activity monitoring reports in collaboration with the IUCN project team;
• Assist the coordinator in setting up an SE framework and collecting information to monitor activities;
• Assist in the dissemination of project results in collaboration with the communications specialist;
• Travel regularly to sites to monitor the implementation of activities;
• Lead workshops and work meetings when necessary;
• Do other tasks that will be requested by the hierarchy.
QUALIFICATIONS AND SKILLS REQUIRED
• Hold at least a master's degree in natural resource management, environment, community activities or any other recognized equivalent diploma;

• Minimum 5 years of experience in technical support for the establishment and monitoring of MPAs and APACs, experience in the establishment of NBS and mangrove restoration programs;

• Minimum 5 years of experience in technical animation of institutional and field projects;

• Have experience in teamwork in a multicultural context, if possible in NGOs and/or development projects;

• Proven writing capacity for technical and administrative documents;

• Have a perfect mastery of participatory development approaches;

• Have a good knowledge of methods and approaches for popularizing innovations;

• Have good ability to work in multicultural teams;

• Have a good knowledge of French, certain local languages and knowledge of English desired;

• Duty station:
The position will be based in Ziguinchor, Senegal.

• Duration of the contract:
The duration of the contract is one year, renewable.
APPLICATIONS
Interested persons are requested to apply through the "Human Resources Management System", by opening the vacancy announcement and clicking on the "Apply" button.

Each candidate must create their own account in the system. No applications will be accepted after the closing date. Applications are accepted until 24:00 in Switzerland (GMT + 1h / GMT + 2h during summer time, DST). Please note that only selected candidates will be personally contacted to participate in interviews.

Other vacancies are advertised on the IUCN website: https://hrms.iucn.org/iresy/index.cfm?event=vac.showOpenList