Senior Environmental Specialist at the OPEC Fund for International Development

The OPEC Fund for International Development is a multilateral development finance institution established in 1976. Our 12 Member Countries are:  Algeria, Ecuador, Gabon, Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Senior Environmental Specialist

Location: Austria

Job Profile

• The OPEC Fund applies its Environmental and Social Policy to all its financing, both public and private, including syndication.
• The Fund aims to ensure that all financing activities are sustainable, inclusive and equitable in adherence to the principles of the Environmental and Social Policy as well as the larger goal of SDGs and Paris Agreement.
• In this pursuit, it is of paramount interest to conduct effective due diligence of the financing activities, identify appropriate environmental and social risks and impacts and address management measures in collaboration with the development partners.
• The Fund intends to align its Environmental and Social Policy application with global standards and in consonance with the policies formulated by other MDBs and DFIs.
• Thus, the job requires an overall understanding of the Environmental and Social Policy work being followed by different Lending agencies, many of which are potential co-financing partners of the Fund. Subsequently, the Fund aspires to undertake intensive project preparation initiatives and prepare the assessment and management tools in an efficient manner.  

Duties and Responsibilities
Policy Assurance and Review:

• Conduct periodic review of the ESP with reference to its application in different financing activities
• Review the ESP and identify thematic areas in the environmental domain that requires special guidance for assessment and mitigation management; prepare Guidance notes on such thematic areas
• Work closely with Treasury on ES aspects related to issuance of Bonds and similar such instruments in the market
• Work in close coordination with the Climate Change Specialist to prepare a guideline for Climate risk screening of projects.

Review and Assessment:

• Work closely with Investment Team Leaders in project financing for environmental and social due diligence; identify risks and potential impacts and provide guidance to Clients / Consultants to prepare Environmental and Social Impact Assessments
• Conduct Field Missions, when necessary, both at the preparatory stage and implementation stage, to identify environmental risks, support ES assessments and investigations, prepare TORs for assessments, review the assessment reports and facilitate preparation of mitigation plans 
• Work closely with Investment Team Leaders to prepare documentation for project preparation with particular reference to Environmental and Social aspects; interact with Client and co-lenders to develop comprehensive understanding of ES risks associated with financing activities
• Assess ESMS of FI (Financial Intermediaries) and support such Clients to prepare an ESMS when warranted. Review governance structure of FI Clients and assess their ability to conduct assessment, implement management plans and collate monitoring reports of sub projects.
• Review FI portfolio to assess risk levels and identify opportunities for the Fund to attain benefits accruing to SDGs and Paris Agreement.
• Support projects to conduct climate risk screening & interact with Clients to explore opportunities for climate adaptation

Reporting:

• Prepare Case studies on ES Due diligence as Lessons Learnt for projects
• Work in close coordination with the Climate Change Specialist to review and update Climate Action Plan for the OPEC Fund on an annual basis

Information and Business Advice:

• Assist Senior Advisor. Environment and Social for capacity building of internal and external stakeholders

Knowledge Management:

• Undertakes training on ES related thematic issues and participates in international DFI platforms on ES issues

Stakeholder Management and Engagement:

• Represents OPEC Fund at select external industry events and builds relationships with external experts and energy clients;
• Perform other related duties as assigned by Senior Advisor, Environment and Social 

Qualifications and Experience

• A Master's Degree in Environmental Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Economics or similar discipline.
• 10 – 12 years of cognate experience acquired in an internationally reputable DFI, MDB or consultancy firms with direct exposure on:
• Environmental assessment and preparation/ implementation of management plan, particularly in transport and/or energy sector
• Environmental safeguard issues pertaining to air, water, soil, noise, etc. and construction related impacts
• Climate Change issues & accounting for adaptation and mitigation

Good to have experience in:

• Experience in working on ES assessments for Financial Intermediaries, preparation of ESMS and portfolio review
• Experience of working in developing countries
• Experience of working in Francophone Africa would be advantageous
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English.
• A good working knowledge of Arabic, French, and/or Spanish is an asset.

Competencies:

• Ability to work across teams in a collaborative and respectful manner.
• Strong sense of responsibility and problem solving abilities.
• Cross culturally sensitive and ability to communicate in a manner consistent with the international nature of the organization.
• Technical competency in environmental safeguard, assessment and management of impact is mandatory
• Technical competency in Climate Change risk assessment and accounting climate adaptation and mitigation essential
• Technical competency in working on Financial Intermediaries and Capital Market advantageous
• The candidate will need to have experience on either Climate Change or Capital Market other than being an expert on Environmental safeguard.

Application Closing Date
Not Specified.