Education & Work Experience Master's Degree - 5 year(s) experience OR Bachelor's Degree - 7 year(s) experience
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Office/Unit/Project Description Organizational context

The UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) makes public and private finance work for the poor in the world’s 47 least developed countries. With its capital mandate and instruments, UNCDF offers “last mile” finance models that unlock public and private resources, especially at the domestic level, to reduce poverty and support local economic development. UNCDF’sfinancing models work through two channels: financialinclusion that expandsthe opportunities for individuals, households, and small businesses to participate in the local economy, providing them with the tools they need to climb out of poverty and manage their financial lives; and by showing how localized investments—through fiscal decentralization, innovative municipal finance, and structured project finance—can drive public and privatefunding that underpinslocal economic expansionand sustainable development. By strengthening how finance works for poor people at the household, small enterprise, and local infrastructure levels, UNCDF contributes to SDG 1 on eradicating poverty and SDG 17 on the means of implementation. By identifying those marketsegments where innovative financing models can have transformational impact in helpingto reach the last mile and addressexclusion and inequalities of access, UNCDF contributes to several different SDGs.
Achieving the SDGs requires localized approaches and transforming towns and cities into inclusive, resilient, and sustainable growth centres. UNCDF combines investment with sector expertise across all aspects of subnational public and private finance to design and support financing mechanisms and funds that advance urban, green, and productive transitions.
In this context, UNCDF is supporting the Municipality of Chefchaouen regarding its public lighting modernisation project throughtechnical assistance and financing. UNCDF has been engaging with the Municipality of Chefchaouen for the project appraisal and to date, the project has gone through UNCDF investment committees and secured approvalsfor a grant and a reimbursable financingcovering part of the initialproject’s required funding.The launch of public bids, promotor selection and works monitoring in progress, under the leadership of the Municipality of Chefchaouen and the Moroccan Ministryof Interior.
This mechanismis quite innovative as the municipality of Chefchaouen will be able to reimbursethe grant thanksto the energy savings realized by the new equipment, less energy consuming.
The next steps are to use this pilot project in Chefchaouen to create a regional financial mechanism, able to pool a higher amount of funding and prioritize additional investments for public lighting renovation and other energy efficiency measuresin Moroccan and other West African cities.Last, such scalingup should be used to trigger south-south cooperation and peer-effects in other African countries.

2- Project context

UNCDF worked on Financing of public lighting in Chefchaouen in Morocco. The aim of this project is to accelerate and complete the modernization of Chefchaouen’s public lighting system by the investments to bring electrical cabinets, lampposts, cables, etc. up to standard. By switching from sodium to low-energy LED, the investment is expected to approximately divide by two public lighting energy consumption in Chefchaouen. Such municipal investment could be replicated but requires donors to lower their minimal ticket size and allow municipal lending, which is not often the case.
Meanwhile, in Morocco, the regions play an important role in drawing up and monitoring sustainable development programs. This is why the Tangier-Tétouan-Al Hoceima region and UNCDF decided to team up to scale up the Chefchaouen experience at the regional level and help other towns in the region to benefit from similar energy efficiency investments. This model illustrates the possibility for local authorities to access repayable financing thanks to future energy savings. Such a model thus generates new opportunities for financing their development actions, while contributing to theachievement of energy efficiency objectives.
UNCDF and The Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceima Region therefore signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in which they identified the following activities to cooperate on, each institution acting in accordance with their own mandates, regulations, political rules and procedures:(i) Identifying new potential for energy optimization in street lighting in the region's towns and cities, (ii)Defining the energy efficiency targets to be achieved in this sector throughout the region, (iii) Evaluating the investments and maintenance improvements required to reach these targets, (iv) Defining standardsfor social and economic impacts,and (v) Designing a financial vehiclefor regional use to financethese investments matchingdonors’ requirements.
Following the same dynamic,other Moroccan regionsmight join the initiative.
UNCDF is looking for a MunicipalFinance Specialist to monitorand support the rigorous implementation of Chefchaouen’s public lighting renovation, to support in the implementation of the partnership with the municipality of The Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceima Region, in the implementation of the regionalfinancial mechanism dedicatedto the public lighting project,to liaise with additional interested regions and countries, and to secure donors contributions to the regional financing mechanism.

3- Work

Under the direct responsibility of the UNCDF Senior Technical Advisor for West Africa and guidance from regional investment officers, the Municipal FinanceSpecialist will be responsible for the following results and major tasks:
Facilitating negotiations and exchanges with relevant Moroccan stakeholders at Government level (Ministry of Interior, Ministryof Finance, ONEE, etc.), local government network,FEC (Fonds d’Equipement Communal), etc. Assisting the Municipality of Chefchaouen to complete the publication of the public tender for the civil works, to selectthe best offers,to monitor the works and reach the targeted energy savings. Following up on the necessary authorizations and approvals at the level of the Municipality of Chefchaouen and the Government for the implementation of the project.
Leading UNCDF’s ground efforts in the replication of the initiative to Moroccan regions and cities, along with supporting similar opportunities in other and African regions and cities, with a priority focus on Northern Africa, Western Africa and Central Africa. Implementing the MoU between the Region of Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceima and UNCDF, to concretize a scaling up of a regionalpublic lighting financial mechanism. As such, this will include supporting the Region of Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceima in realizing a project roadmap, classifying potential other cities that could benefitfrom the initiative, gathering or producingthe necessary technical diagnosis and feasibility studies, Supporting the creation of the regional financial mechanism. Facilitating with stakeholders, including but not limited to Municipality of Chefchaouen, the Ministry and the local governments associations are properly conducted and successful. Implementing by including the finalization of a regional financial mechanism agreed by Moroccan authorities (central, regional and local) and supporting donors to validate the MoU between UNCDF and the Region of Tangier-Tétouan-Al Hoceima. Implementing the tenders and works on schedule and doing an evaluation on the energy gains indeedallowed by the investment.* Mobilizing resources on behalf of UNCDF for the scaling up and replication of the initiative. Contributing to access additional resources to implement new activities in Morocco and more globally in West Africa, with a primary focus on energy efficiency