Team Leader – Nepal Renewable Energy Programme (NREP)

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Team Leader – Nepal Renewable Energy Programme (NREP)

Location: Asia
Location: Nepal
City/Cities Location Details: Kathmandu
Job Code: 6977

Description
Team Leader – Nepal Renewable Energy Programme

(Note – over the lifetime of the programme, the below job description may be changed by mutual consent to reflect changing programme needs and priorities)

About DAI

DAI is an employee-owned global development company. For 40 years, we have worked on the frontlines of international development, tackling fundamental social and economic development problems caused by inefficient markets, ineffective governments, and instability. Currently, DAI is delivering results that matter in some 60 countries. Our integrated development solutions turn ideas into impact by bringing together fresh combinations of expertise and innovation across multiple disciplines—crisis mitigation and stability operations, democratic governance and public-sector management, agriculture and agribusiness, private sector development and financial services, economics and trade, HIV/AIDS and disease control, water and natural resources management, and energy and climate change. Our clients include international development agencies, international lending institutions, private corporations and philanthropies, and national governments.

Objective of the Programme:

• Build the capacity of Government of Nepal to lead and manage the National Small-scale Renewable Energy Framework. The Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC) will be the main entry point but other relevant institutions may also be considered (such as AEPC regional offices, Ministry of Energy and the Nepal Energy Authority).
• Strengthen the capacity of the Central Renewable Energy Fund (CREF) to enable it to manage and spend climate finance. Manage £1m of funding to be transferred to CREF in order to pilot spending mechanisms.
• Directly deliver programme activities related to: i) demand for renewable energy; ii) supply of renewable energy technologies; and iii) finance for renewable energy.
• Generate and share knowledge and research in relation to Nepal’s renewable energy sector and facilitate knowledge sharing and learning.

The Programme aims to promote planning and investment towards a low carbon development path through renewable energy resulting in growth, poverty reduction and climate smart development in Nepal. The Programme operates in three Provinces—Madhesh (2), Lumbini (5), and Karnali (6). NREP is implemented by the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC), with financial support from UKaid British Embassy-Kathmandu, and Technical Assistance from the DAI Global UK Consortium.

Scope of Work:

The Team Leader will be DAI’s principal programme representative and will be responsible for overall programme management, including but not limited to: development and implementation of work plans, operational budgets, and performance monitoring plans. The team leader will also oversee coordination with FCDO Nepal, and other critical stakeholders, and will be accountable for achievement of programme results and objectives. S/he will have direct supervisory responsibility over senior technical and management staff and ensure compliance with DAI policies and FCDO rules and regulations.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Team Management

• Lead and oversee management of all long and short-term staff. Ensure quality of programme delivery through mentoring the NREP team;
• Directly manage those leading the 4 key objective areas (As detailed above):
• Act as a mentor to key local staff and local economic reformers in developing their ability to engage with technical issues and develop competencies in areas relevant to NREP TOR;
• Ensure all deliverables produced through Short Term Experts’ missions are in line with DAI and client quality standards;
• Nurture and maintain team spirit and a collegial working environment.

Technical Oversight

Carry out the team and programme management roles in line with the delivery of the programme objectives.

Programme Management

• Hold overall responsibility for the programme and provide strategic, technical and operation insight and oversight;
• Establish programme’s strategic vision and core principles with the field management team and head office;
• Be responsible for the delivery of contractual deliverables as detailed in NREP ToR. Ensure that all technical and financial reporting and deliverables are complete, high quality, and submitted to FCDO in a timely and professional manner;
• Work with technical and administrative managers to design and implement a programme management and monitoring system based on the contract scope of work;
• Initiate changes to the programme logical framework and ensure that set targets are achieved;
• Develop and implement inception (then annual) programme work plan and programme strategy;
• Manage expenditure in line with the agreed budget (agreeing changes with DAI London);
• Ensure focus on gender mainstreaming and women’s economic empowerment.

Client and other stakeholder relationship management

• Develop productive working relationships with relevant MDAs and DFID to identify appropriate areas of strategic coherence between activities to offer VfM;
• Serve as the primary point of contact with FCDO Nepal, AEPC, CREF and other key Government of Nepal stakeholders, forging and maintaining strong, positive relationships to ensure that project design and implementation encourages inclusive participation of diverse stakeholders;
• Manage client and beneficiary expectations from the outset, including defining and agreeing key success criteria for all project deliverables;
• Liaise closely with donor counterparts to ensure client satisfaction;
• Act as DAI‟s representative as well as on behalf of the FCDO technical assistance project/programme in all meetings.

Business Needs

• Manage expenditures within contract parameters and defined budget lines;
• Achieve project profitability goals as established by Home Office Project Manager;
• Ensure value for money and that resources are allocated conservatively and productively;
• Work directly with DAI Head Office on programme implementation, personnel, and budget issues;
• Ensure project finances and management practices are in compliance with DAI and FCDO contractual rules and regulations.

Business Development

• Represent DAI externally to the client and with all potential future clients;
• Provide support to business development activities including through intelligence gathering, pre-positioning, technical proposal writing/reviewing, client relationship management etc. as agreed.

Ethics and Security

• Work to ensure that NREP Team complies with DAI Ethics and Security policies, including completing DAI ethics training annually;
• Act as an example for team members to follow and discuss ethics issues openly;
• As necessary, put in place a system of checks and balances to minimise any potential for abuse.

The Programme is comprised of three components:

• Market Development . AEPC and NREP will implement and provide Technical Assistance for activities designed to assess, develop and finance DRE projects in high-priority markets such as Commercial & Industrial missing middle markets, small businesses, health centres, schools and households. Ideally many of these projects will be formed as Public-Private Partnerships which leverage the assets and investments of Provincial and Local Governments to de-risk and mobilize private sector investment especially in the C&I sectors. A critical mechanism to achieve these DRE projects goals is the Sustainable Energy Challenge Fund (SECF), being implemented under AEPC’s Central Renewable Energy Fund (CREF), to provide Viability Gap Funding (VGF) to make marginally feasible projects bankable. Once the SECF is approved by MoEWRI, it should signal the intent for AEPC to transition toward a competitive, market-based approach to incentivizing DRE using VGF-based financial assistance as well as the intent for the entire Nepali energy sector to embrace competitive awards and private sector investment needed for larger-scale DRE projects.
• Universal Energy Access. AEPC and NREP will implement and provide Technical Assistance for activities designed to develop and implement electric cooking (e-cooking) as a basis to greatly increase universal energy access for households. The Programme will be initially focusing on e-cooking for households in the near term but will expand to other technologies—e.g., solar lighting, biogas cookstoves, mini-hydro, Solar Home Systems, and solar microgrids—in subsequent years. Other activities will develop an enabling environment to support and institutionalize not only e-cooking, but other technologies that will expand universal energy access options at the household level.
• Cross-cutting. AEPC and NREP will implement and provide Technical Assistance for cross-cutting activities designed to plan, track, and craft an enabling environment that will sustain the impact of the Programme after NREP’s period of performance is complete, as well as add support specific to the Market Development and Universal Energy Access Components. An important contextualization activity is to assess Nepal’s current DRE policies, regulations, acts, etc. to find possible gaps that could be addressed to create a more enabling environment, one conducive to increased and sustained levels of private sector investment of DRE. NREP has traditionally developed capacity for public sector entities such as the Ministries of Physical Infrastructure Development at the Provincial Government level, but the Programme will now also act on developing capacity in the private sector. These private sector players want to better understand how they can develop solar and other DRE projects for the C&I missing middle markets.

Required Qualifications

• Master’s degree in business administration, finance, public policy, energy-related disciplines including economics, engineering, or other relevant qualifications.
• Previous experience managing complex donor-funded programmes of a similar size, preferably for FCDO
• Experience leading multi-disciplinary teams
• Previous experience of working on renewable energy programmes in an international development context – preferably in Nepal or the region [or in Sub-Saharan Africa]
• Fluency in spoken and written English required; working knowledge of Nepali desired

Supervision: The Team Leader will report on a regular basis to FCDO and NREP Project Director.
Main office location : Kathmandu, Nepal. Occasional travel to other districts may also be required.
Project Start date: 1st August 2022 (tentative)
Project End date: 03rd August 2023 (subject to FCDO funding)
Level of effort: full time (or 75-80%) – to be discussed with candidates

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