Environmental Law Expert at United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

Result of Service

This project will produce: 

• A comparative analysis of the three reports including legal mapping, gap analysis and needs assessment of the waste management frameworks in Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Guinea Bissau; 
• A comparative analysis of the three reports on specific measures relating to the labor workforce in the waste management sector in Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Guinea Bissau 
• General recommendations for  legislative and institutional reforms in the waste management sector based on the  analyses conducted in Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Guinea Bissau, taking due account of integrated solid waste management principles, the WaCT findings in the three countries and international labor and health standards and best practices, that may be replicated in other countries in the region; 
• Input and comments on the reports of the stakeholders’ consultations and validation workshops conducted in the three countries.

Expected duration

• 12 Months

Duties and Responsibilities

• The United Nations Environment Programme (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’s mission is to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations. Headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, UNEP works through its divisions as well as regional, liaison and outposted offices and a growing network of collaborating centres of excellence. UNEP Law Division is the lead Division charged with carrying out the functions of UNEP in the field of environmental law, governance and related policy issues. The Law Division also leads UNEP’s role as Secretariat to the Fifth Montevideo Programme on the Development and Periodic Review of Environmental Law (Montevideo Programme V). Montevideo Programme V is ten-year intergovernmental programme adopted by the UN Environment Assembly at its fourth meeting in March 2019. Montevideo V Programme will promote environmental rule of law, strengthen the related capacities in countries, and contribute to the environmental dimension of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Programme commenced in January 2020 and is a flagship initiative of the Law Division.    This consultancy will support the implementation of the project “Environmentally sounder and safer waste management frameworks in Africa”, funded by the United Nations Development Account (UNDA), which is implemented by UNEP in partnership with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), and in close cooperation with the UN Country Teams (UNCT) in three countries in the African continent. Specifically, the project aims to strengthen waste management frameworks of selected countries in Africa (Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone) with the aim of promoting the environmentally sound and safe management of waste and the better inclusion of informal structures and workers, thus ensuring protection of the health and rights of informal waste pickers. The project falls under the umbrella Law Division project “Progressive Development and Implementation of Environmental Law: Delivering Montevideo Programme V”.   The international consultant shall work under the supervision of the Head, Montevideo Coordination and Delivery Unit (MCDU) of the Law Division or his/her designated mandated representative(s).   

Responsibilities:   

• The consultant will undertake the following activities to support the improvement and development of solid waste management legal frameworks and the advancement of environmental rule of law in Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Guinea Bissau:    

Review and provide substantive inputs and comments to the two reports which will be delivered by national legal experts in Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Guinea Bissau: 

• a report including a legal mapping, gap analysis and needs assessment of the waste management framework (one report for each country); 
• a report on specific measures relating to the labor workforce in waste management for consideration in legislative reforms (one report for each  www.unep.org  2 country). The consultant will be required to guide the national legal experts and ensure that the analysis and research on the existing regulatory and institutional frameworks governing waste management in the three selected countries are harmonized and in line with principles of integrated waste management and those for the protection of the health and rights of the waste labor force, especially the informal workers.    
• Based on the careful review conducted in paragraph 1, the consultant will draft a comparative analysis of the three reports including a legal mapping, gap analysis and needs assessment of the waste management framework in the three selected countries, and a comparative analysis of the three reports on specific measures relating to the labor workforce in waste management for consideration in legislative reforms in the three selected countries.   
• Support the national legal experts in the development of recommendations for reform of the legislative and institutional frameworks for waste management in the three selected countries, with due consideration to the informal labor sector, and based on the reports delivered under paragraph 1. The recommendations will integrate the findings/evidence collected by the use of UN-Habitat’s Waste Wise Cities Tool (WaCT), which will monitor the performance of municipal solid waste management systems at city level in Abuja, Freetown and Bissau, and will include draft clauses/provisions of legislation.   
• Based on the analysis conducted in the three selected countries and on the recommendations provided, the consultant will draft general recommendations for legislative and institutional reform in the waste management sector that may be replicated in other countries in the region.   
•  Support the preparation and organization of two series of stakeholder and expert consultations for each country (including feedback sessions with UNEP and other project implementing partners), one provisionally scheduled in 2024 Q3 and the second in 2024 Q4 or 2025 Q1, to discuss the impact of the existing regulatory waste management frameworks in the informal structures and the need to adapt the frameworks to integrated waste management principles. During the consultations, the deliverables mentioned in paragraphs 1 to 4 above will be presented and reviewed. The consultant will support the integration of the outcomes of the consultations/validation workshops in the final versions of the reports including recommendations on specific measures and draft provisions for enhanced legislative frameworks, and will provide comments and input to the stakeholder consultations’ reports.   
• 6. Work in close collaboration with UNEP, UN-Habitat and stakeholders involved, provide regular updates on the progress of the activities to UNEP, as required, and carry out any other tasks which may be assigned under the project.

Qualifications/special skills

• Advanced university degree (Masters degree or equivalent) in law, specializing in environmental law or waste management law (required).
• A minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in the field of environmental law is required.
• Experience in leading collective research projects in law is required.
• Experience in research and analytical report writing on legal and policy issues related to waste management is desirable and would be considered as an advantage.
• Working experience in Africa and especially in Western Africa is desirable.

Languages

• English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position advertised, fluency in oral and written English is required. Knowledge of Portuguese is an advantage.