The purpose of this consultancy is to perform the project coordination of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) Readiness project “Aligning financial flows of the financial sector in Panama with the Paris agreement climate change goals” whose main objective is to provide the guiding structure for the financial sector to: (1) mobilize private capital flows towards a low-emission and climate-resilient economy and; (2) strengthen the resilience of the financial system to climate-related financial risks. Also, contributing to the efficient implementation of the project “Aligning financial flows of the financial sector in Panama with the Paris agreement climate change goals” by executing the tasks outlined in the Terms of Reference. It is expected that the Project Coordinator for the GCF Readiness Project “Aligning financial flows of the financial sector in Panama with the Paris agreement climate change goals” will contribute to the efficient implementation of the project “Aligning financial flows of the financial sector in Panama with the Paris agreement climate change goals” by executing the tasks outlined in Terms of Reference. The Project Coordinator for the GCF Readiness Project “Aligning financial flows of the financial sector in Panama with the Paris agreement climate change goals” will contribute to the effective implementation of the project by performing the following tasks, but not limited to: A. Project Management - Financial, Administrative and Human Resources o Coordinate the development of terms of references (TORs) and works/products requirements/specifications and the identification, selection and recruitment/procurement of consultants or other service providers. o Work closely with the Administrative and Finance Officer to ensure that financial, procurement and human resource processes are managed in line with the terms of the GCF Readiness agreement and verify that records of project documents and assets/equipment lists, including financial and procurement documents, are maintained in accordance with audit requirements. o Ensure the timely preparation of annual and semi-annual work plans, procurement plans and budgets for approval by the UNEP Programme Management Officer on Sustainable Finance for the LAC region and the NDA, with prior endorsement of the GCF Focal Point and the UNEP Task Manager. o Prepare bi-annual project Interim Progress Report (IPR) (progress against planned activities, update on risks issues, expenditures, etc.) and ensuring timely submission of the IPRs to the relevant instances; o Ensure timely preparation and submission of budget revisions, financial reports, request for changes (if needed), and cash advance requests; o Identify and resolve logistical and organizational issues under the guidance of the UNEP Programme Management Officer on Sustainable Finance for the LAC region, the GCF Focal Point and the UNEP Task Manager. o Coordinate an exit strategy at least 6 months ahead of the project’s determined closure date; ensure closure of the project is done according to the UNEP established procedures. o Ensure that UNEP rules and regulations concerning finance, procurement and human resources are adhered to. o Undertake other tasks assigned by the UNEP Programme Management Officer on Sustainable Finance for the LAC region and/or the GCF Focal Point as part of the approved GCF Readiness. B. Project Planning and Implementation o Coordinate the day-to-day implementation of the project, including the delivery of the outputs/activities/deliverables, based on the relevant project documents, with a view to achieving project results in a timely manner. o Ensure effective management of the project by maintaining delivery of proper technical, operational, financial, and administrative outputs, while tracking the project progress through monitoring, evaluation and reporting. o Coordinate and collaborate with the development of comprehensive/detailed project workplans and constitutive arrangements, including all project activities, key event schedules, and roles and responsibilities of the stakeholders and setting-out corresponding milestones (according to outputs 2.4.1, 2.4.2, and 2.4.3); o Contribute to building, motivating, and participating in a high-performing project team; provide technical input and support on deliverables to the Project Coordinator Support Consultant, other individual technical consultants hired under the Technical Team, internal partners (technical areas of UNEP FI directly involved in the execution), and external service providers; and offer expertise to the project team on both substantive and operational issues. o Provide background information and technical input on all completed deliverables to be submitted and approved by the Programme Management Committee on Sustainable Finance for the LAC region and the Project Steering Committee (PSC), ensuring high quality, and satisfactory management and use of GCF/UNEP resources. o Ensure that project activities and results are delivered in accordance with the required quality standards and specified time and cost constraints. o Regularly monitor and report on project performance and delivery to the UNEP Programme Management Officer on Sustainable Finance for the LAC region, GCF Focal Point and the UNEP Task Manager, including progress, achievements, challenges encountered and proposed corrective actions. o Organize meetings with the PSC, the GTFS, and other relevant stakeholders and prepare all meeting documentations, including progress reports and meeting minutes. o Coordinate logistics for organizational wide meetings and/or special events. o Draft necessary strategic documents concerning project design and implementation, such as policy and technical papers, results frameworks, work-plans, etc. o Collaborate with the transfer of project deliverables to national beneficiaries and other project stakeholders. o Ensure the development of cross-project linkages with other relevant projects and programmes for mutually reinforcing impact. o Promote identification and synthesis of best practices and lessons learned for organizational sharing and learning. o Participate in national, regional, and global conferences. o Ensure the project has the required communication package and preparation, upon request of the UNEP LACO & UNEP FI, of information materials for dissemination within UNEP LACO & UNEP FI globally and regionally, and to external stakeholders. C. Building Strategic Partnerships o Facilitate collaborative and consultative processes with all key stakeholders to ensure the involvement of government and other stakeholders (including national and local authorities, non-government organizations, academia, and private sector actors) in the development of project deliverables and results. o Establish and maintain strong partnerships with leaders and members of the GTFS’s Committees to conglomerate the relevant financial stakeholders needed for the proposal’s implementation; act as a coordination focal point for the GTFS’s Committees, working groups, and technical roundtables. o Prepare the work and facilitate the meetings and communications to and from the different bodies created under the Project; act as a secretary for the PSC; develop the agenda for the PSC meetings and prepares all technical background documentation in consultation with the other partners (such as the GTFS’s Secretariat), following the general direction of the Programme Management Officer on Sustainable Finance for the LAC region; o Establishing effective linkages with other relevant projects and initiatives in the sector with a view to developing substantive partnerships and generating synergies, with a special focus in UNEP LACO & UNEP FI adaptation team portfolio. o Identifying opportunities for deepening the cooperation and recommending adequate approaches to dealing with different stakeholders based on information on all relevant stakeholders gathered during project implementation. o Support the partnerships and advocacy activities agreed by the UNEP LACO & UNEP FI in the area/sector covered by the project. D. Project Activities/Deliverables Execution It is expected that the PCU, the Project Coordinator, with the support of the Project Coordinator Support Consultant and individual technical consultants, will be responsible for the development of specific project activities/deliverables. - Output 1.2.1: Pre-accreditation technical assistance support for one DAE candidate: o Identify a Direct Access Entity (DAE) candidate for nomination by the NDA through screening of interested private financial sector entities based on the required GCF fiduciary standards, gender policy, alignment of entities’ experience and portfolios with the finalized Country Programme and updated NDC priorities. - Output 2.4.1: Workplans and constitutive arrangements for the Taxonomy Committee and the Environmental and Social Risks Analysis Committee within the Panama’s Sustainable Finance Working Group (GTFS) established to develop and implement (1) Panama’s sustainable finance taxonomy; and (2) methodologies and tools for identifying, assessing, and managing climate-related financial risks: o Conduct a workshop with key national and international financial actors with the objective of defining workplans and a constitutive agreement for the development and implementation of Panama´s sustainable finance taxonomy, and methodologies and tools for identifying, assessing, and managing climate-related financial risks. o Develop and agree the committee’s’ workplan and constitutive arrangements for the developing and implementation of: 1) sustainable finance taxonomy; and 2) methodologies and tools for identifying, assessing, and managing climate-related financial risks. - Output 2.4.2: The sustainable finance taxonomy is developed, piloted, and endorsed by the GTFS’s Taxonomy Committee: o Create the technical roundtables for discussing and developing the eligibility criteria and requirements per economic sectors/subsectors for Panama’s sustainable finance taxonomy. o Coordinate and collaborate in the preparation of workshops per technical roundtable for discussing and developing the eligibility criteria and requirements for Panama’s sustainable finance taxonomy. o Coordinate and collaborate in the preparation of an open consultation of the sustainable finance taxonomy and tool to receive comments/feedback from relevant stakeholders, incorporate the comments/feedback and develop the final taxonomy and tool ready to be published by the local authorities. - Output 2.4.3: Framework for identification, assessment and disclosure of climate-related financial risks and opportunities for banking and insurance sectors are developed, piloted and endorsed by the GTFS’s Environmental and Social Risks Analysis Committee: o Identify the (national) climate data sources to develop the methodologies and tools for identifying, assessing, and managing climate-related financial risks (climate-data gap analysis). o Assess how current banks and insurance companies in Panama currently incorporate climate change in their governance, strategic framework, risk management and reporting processes via structured surveys and interviews. o Create two working groups (one for banks, and the other for insurance companies) for testing the methodologies and the tools for identifying, assessing, and managing climate related financial risks in pilot participants’ portfolios. o Develop the concept and budget of an online reporting system of the climate-related financial risk exposure (both physical and transition) under the framework of the National Climate Transparency Platform.