Recommendations on mainstreaming climate change adaptation into socio-economic development and rural infrastructure sector development plans for 3 provinces of Northern mountain provinces of Vietnam

102 Views

1) GENERAL BACKGROUND

Introduction to Project
The United Nations Programme (UNDP), in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), is supporting the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in Vietnam in implementation of the project named “Promoting Climate Resilient Infrastructure in Northern Mountain Provinces of Vietnam” (PCRRI). The objective of the project is to increase the resilience and reduce vulnerability of local, critical economic infrastructure in the northern mountains areas of Vietnam to the adverse impacts of climate change and to create a policy framework conducive to promoting resilient northern mountains zone development. In order to achieve this objective, four following outcomes should be delivered:
Outcome 1 – Climate Change Adaptation integrated into policy, strategy and planning that relates to rural infrastructure – specifically irrigation, rural water and rural roads;
Outcome 2 – Enhanced capacity to adapt/climate-proof rural infrastructure investments and provincial/local area planning;
Outcome 3 – Effective climate-resilience measures mainstreamed into the MARD rural infrastructure programs;
Outcome 4 – Lessons learnt and best practices from Outcomes 1, 2 and 3 are disseminated to stakeholders and development partners.
The four selected demonstration sub-projects in Outcome 3 are:
1. Upgrading rural road from 108 Road to Muong E in Thuan Chau District (in Son La Province);
2. Upgrading irrigation system and landslide protection embankment in Tham Mon Commune, Thuan Chau district (in Son La Province);
3. Cau river protection embankment in Thanh Mai and Cao Ky Communes, Cho Moi District (in Bac Kan Province), and;
4. Upgrading rural roads Linh Nham-Deo Nhau in Dong Hy district (in Thai Nguyen Province).

Current situation of mainstreaming climate change adaptation of Northern mountain provinces
At the end of The 7th Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Plenary Session XI, June, 2013, the Central Communist Party of Vietnam has unanimously adopted a resolution on "Actively respond to climate change, strengthen resource management and environmental protection "(No. 24-NQ / TW), one of which is "to mainstream climate change adaptation, natural resource management and environmental protection into sectorial and socio-economic development planning to ensure national defense and local security". Earlier, the National Action Plan on Climate Change in the period 2012 - 2020 (issued in conjunction with Decision No. 1474 / QĐ-TTg dated 05/10/2012 of the Prime Minister) includes plans to develop guidelines and the process of mainstreaming climate change into strategies, programmes, plans of ministries, sectors and localities.
Besides, the written directions of provincial leaders, plans for socio-economic development and for agriculture and rural development have highlighted the importance and necessity of the mainstreaming of climate change adaptation into related jobs. However, how to integrate climate change into development plans remains a difficult problem, which is satisfactorily unsolved at the local level. A clear evidence is that in 5-year socioeconomic development plans and annual plans as well as rural infrastructure projects at the provincial level, the issue of mainstreaming CCA has been raised, but not specified regarding the requirements, coordination mechanisms among stakeholders, the actions to be performed. The biggest obstacle is that there are no detailed guidelines for the integration in each particular sector (especially for rural infrastructure), which make planners find it difficult to decide on practical integrated contents. Moreover, the implementation of programs and plans without implementation tools make the integration ineffective in practice.
Therefore, there is a need for recommendations / specific guidance in a simple, easy way for mainstreaming climate change adaptation into plans for socio-economic development and for agriculture and rural development for Northern mountainous provinces, which includes the indication of steps, measures for mainstreaming into rural infrastructure projects/ programs in specific investment plans. It helps planners and implementation parties in the provinces easily develop and implement the mainstreaming climate change adaptation into their related work.
To support the northern mountainous provinces in the mainstreaming climate change adaptation into socioeconomic development plans, rural infrastructure programs and projects in a practical and effective way, UNDP in collaboration with CPMU under MARD needs to recruit 01 national consultant expert on provincial strategy development to make specific recommendations and suggestions on climate change adaptation in general plans for socio-economic development and for agriculture and rural development, rural infrastructure programs and projects in three above-mentioned provinces based on the application of vulnerability assessment tools, risk maps and project results. The expert shall be eligible and well-qualified to apply his/her experience and expertise in (i) analyse and evaluate the possibility of mainstreaming climate change adaptation into sectoral and socio-economic development plans, and on-going projects and (ii) make recommendations on steps of integration into specific activities, projects and programs related to rural infrastructure in the current and future policies / strategies / projects / programs in local provinces and (iii) provide guidance / build capacity for planning/ technical staff so that they will be able to mainstream climate change adaptation in the future. This product shall be one of the indicators of efficiency and success of the whole project.

2) OBJECTIVES

The duties of the National Expert to support mainstreaming climate change adaptation into Provincial Social Economic Plan and Rural Infrastructure Sector Development Plan are to produce the outputs included in the aforesaid Outcome 2, with the following objectives:
- Work with provincial authorities to help them to apply the project tools to support plans for socioeconomic development and for agriculture and rural development in three representative provinces;
- Make recommendations on measures to mainstream climate change adaptation into rural infrastructure projects on the first investment priority;
- Provide technical assistance for planning staff of DPI, DARD in three representative provinces in the implementation of activities related to the integration of climate change adaptation into annual plans of the departments and document lessons learned for further learning and product improvement with in MARD and UNDP.

3) SCOPE OF WORK

To achieve above objectives of assignment, the scope of work should be based on following commitments (but not limited to):
i. Data collection and document research:
- Review all the documents and proposals under the project PC-RRI on the integration of climate change adaptation into policies and strategies; the result of vulnerability assessment and risk maps for the whole Northern mountainous region and detailed risk maps for the two provinces of Son La and Bac Kan and other relevant project documents in the above-mentioned link;
- Review provincial schedule for SEDP planning for 2017 and where the consultant’s inputs can be most useful and effective;
- Review bioengineering measures that have been applied successfully in 4 demonstration projects;
- Access latest results of vulnerability assessment and downscale risk maps for 13 provinces in northern mountain region under the project during the process of proposal formulation  Collect information on central strategies related to climate change and rural infrastructure in Northern mountain provinces;
- Review all socio-economic development policies, plans and programs in three representative provinces including master socio-economic development planning in the short, medium and long term; socioeconomic development orientation in the period 2016-2020, annual socio-economic development plan; ...
- Review all the agricultural and rural development strategies and at the provincial level in the short, medium and long term, annual plans, future projects, ... in the field of agricultural and rural development;
- Review and analyze the possibility of integration of climate change adaptation into above-mentioned policies, strategies, programs and plans with the focus on programs and projects concerning rural infrastructure that will be implemented;
- Collect information and research on the process of annual socio-economic development planning in the short, medium and long term which has been applied in the three representative provinces;
ii. Field trips:
- Carry out field trips in three above-mentioned provinces to gather information, consult, participate where possible in SEDP planning meetings, report the results to the stakeholders; guide DARD and DPI staff how to mainstream climate change adaptation, in which at least 1 fieldtrip for data collection + 2 fieldtrips for consultations and reports in Bac Kan; at least 1 fieldtrip for data collection + 2 fieldtrips for consultations and reports in the remaining two provinces;
- Join training courses planned by UNDP/ CPMU.
iii. Consultation:
- The expert shall revise and complete the reports/products based on the comments of relevant units and CPMU;
- Work closely with consultants on vulnerability assessment and mapping, peer review expert on maps in the exploitation of these maps to mainstream CCA into plans for socio-economic development and for agriculture and rural development;
- Consult with ADB/ICEM experts about the application of bioengineering in promoting climate resilient rural infrastructure (if necessary)
- Directly work with the staff in charge of strategies/ plans formulation of DARD and DPI in three abovementioned provinces;
- Present and collect comments in consultation meetings in Bac Kan: twice, and two remaining provinces: once/ province. Experts are responsible for preparing all the technical contents. CPMU/UNDP is responsible for providing support in the preparation and collaboration among stakeholders; and paying fees for provincial officials in consultation meetings.
- Present and report in the meetings, conferences related to the expert’s outputs; prepare materials and teach in the related training courses according to the training schedule of CPMU;
- During the implementation of work, the expert shall coordinate closely with CPMU, UNDP, Climate change and Disasters, national and international experts recruited by UNDP/CPMU.
iv. Reporting:
- Make recommendations on the mainstreaming CCA into plans for socio-economic development and for agriculture and rural development in three above-mentioned provinces. These recommendations are made in a specific and easily applicable way to create a foundation for provincial officials to self-assess in similar cases in the future;
- Develop intermediate report including the work plan for the entire contract, Task reports, reports on the acceptance of local opinions in the UNDP / CPMU form.
- Reports, products as required in the list of “Final deliverables” (see item 4).