Consultant to Prepare the Guideline for Municipal Green Bond Issuance

Consultant to prepare the Guideline for Municipal Green bond issuance

Please send your application directly to GGGI by following the link:

https://careers.gggi.org/vacancy/consultant-to-prepare-the-guideline-for-municipal-green-bond-issuance-vietnam-445508.html [1]

GENERAL INFORMATION

• Project: Vietnam Green Bond Readiness Program
• Duty Station: HanoiProject background

PROJECT BACKGROUND

Based in Seoul, The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) is an intergovernmental organization founded to support and promote a model of economic growth known as "green growth", which targets key aspects of economic performance such a poverty reduction, job creation, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability. GGGI works with countries around the world, building their capacity and working collaboratively on green growth policies that can impact the lives of millions. The organization partners with countries, multilateral institutions, government bodies, and private sector to help build economies that grow strongly and are more efficient and sustainable in the use of natural resources, less carbon intensive, and more resilient to climate change.

The Ministry of Finance (MOF) of Vietnam, through its Green Growth Action Plan, has outlined the task of “green capital market development and green financial products to mobilize investment resources for green projects and environmental protection”. In 2018, MOF has developed the overarching regulatory framework providing for government, municipal and corporate green bonds, as part of the regular bond policy framework. However, there are still significant gaps to be addressed for the green bond market to develop in Viet Nam, including gaps in the policy/regulatory framework, capacity and awareness of key players in the market.

In this regard, GGGI, in partnership with the Government of Vietnam and the Government of Luxembourg, is implementing the Vietnam Green Bond Readiness Program (the “Program”) to support the development of a green bond market in Vietnam. Specifically, this Program aims to (i) enhance regulatory framework for green bond development, (ii) improve capacity and knowledge of Viet Nam government officials and market participants in green bond issuance, and (iv) increase green investment through pilot issuance.

Accordingly, GGGI is now looking for green bond consultants to develop necessary policy guidelines and instructions in order to enhance the regulatory framework for green corporate and government/municipal bonds in Vietnam.

OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT

The individual consultants (the “Consultants”) is expected to develop the Guidelines for Municipal Green Bond Issuance (the “Guidelines for Green Bond Issuance”) throughout the following activities:

1. Develop the first draft of the Guidelines for Green Bond Issuance, including:

• Assessing the Vietnam’s existing laws and regulations, including regulations on municipal debts and state budget management, from a general and overall perspective of bond issuance, for municipal bonds. This activity aims to develop bond issuance scheme, design the management of proceeds, project selection considering the characteristics of municipality budget. This included, but not limited to, the mapping among existing regulations (Laws, Decree, Circulars, and guidance notes…) relating to green project definition, bond issuance and subsequent management and reporting:
  
  • Definition of green projects;
  • Use of proceeds;
  • Project evaluation/selection;
  • Management of proceeds;
  • Reporting and disclosures;
  • External review

• Integrate works/findings of the Gender/social inclusive consultants from the review of relevant policies/regulations for the purpose of inclusion of gender/social indicators to the Guidelines and the corresponding Process.

• Drafting the Guidelines and the corresponding Process for Green Bond Issuance, considering the current Vietnam regulation frameworks and the most appropriate options from international standards, best practices from other countries relating to green bond issuance and gender/social inclusion.

• Liaise with GGGI’s Consultants for Corporate Green Bond Issuance to ensure the consistency and completeness (where relevant) among Guidelines for Corporate and Municipal Green Bond Issuance, respectively.

2. Support MOF and GGGI to consult with relevant stakeholders (i.e. line ministries, provincial governments, commercial banks and other market players) on the first draft of the Guideline for Green Bond Issuance at a consultation workshop:

• Prepare necessary materials for the workshop. The workshop materials must be approved by GGGI and MOF before being presented for consultation. The presentation at the consultation workshop will be led by the MOF;
• Consolidate comments from stakeholders on the first draft of the Guidelines for Green Bond Issuance for further revision;
• Prepare the workshop report and summary of comments;

3. Prepare the 2^nd draft of the Guideline for Green Bond Issuance:

• Provide analysis on the comments received from the workshop;
• Revise the draft based on the comments received from workshop;

4. Support MOF and GGGI to consult with relevant stakeholders on the second draft of the Guideline for Green Bond Issuance through written comments

• The second draft will be sent out by MOF for official consultation with relevant ministries and stakeholders. Consolidate written comments received;
• Provide analysis on the written comments received;

5. Finalize the draft of Guideline for Green Bond Issuance

• Finalize the draft based on written comments and any other comments from MOF and GGGI;

6. Support MOF and GGGI in the submission of the final Guideline for Green Bond Issuance.

• The consultant will provide revision to the final draft and support as needed so that the Guideline for Green Bond Issuance can be submitted to MOF for approval and adoption.

DELIVERABLES AND PAYMENT SCHEDULE

The expected outputs of the consultants are as follows:

The written report (including executive summary) shall be provided to GGGI to address all items requested in the Scope of Work, including list of references and possible databases. The consultant is expected to incorporate comments from GGGI and MOF into the reports before the deliverables are approved. The official (final) report shall be issued after the comments on the draft report has been fully addressed.

To maintain a prompt communication between the consultant and GGGI as well as achieve the high quality of services, it is expected that the consultant shall regularly hold update calls/meetings or email exchange to update on key findings and keep track on the engagement progress on the bi-weekly basis.

All reports and outputs must be in Vietnamese (unless being indicated otherwise), in accordance with GGGI’s formatting requirements, and submitted in hard copy and electronic formats along with complete sets of raw data, research materials, and interview notes.

Payment timeline: 

EXPERTISE REQUIRED

GGGI is looking for a highly qualified individual consultant that may provide technical support and advice as specified in this TOR, as guided below:

• Master’s in Finance, Banking, Economics, Public Policy, or other related fields (PhD is an advantage).
• At least 10 years of professional experience in which 5-7 years of experience engaging financial sector, public policy development relating to capital market, sustainable finance;
• Demonstrated extensive knowledge in financial regulations, financial products (i.e. bonds, securities, other structured debts…) with sound understanding of market trends of Vietnam.
• Proven knowledge/experience in engaging on green capital market of other countries and regions (i.e. ASEAN, EU, China…) is highly recommended;
• Good understanding of green growths, green assets/technologies (i.e. in the areas of energy efficiency, waste treatment facility, green business etc.)
• Strong background in research;
• Ability to work independently under time pressures with minimal instruction or supervision;
• Fluency in Vietnamese and English is required, with excellent writing and presentation skills.
• Skill, and knowledge (e.g., Good command of spoken and written English or Good knowledge of result-based budgeting, etc)

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

In addition to the Cover letter and CV and examples/links of previous work, the consultant needs to submit the draft financial proposal in the below format

All incidental project expenses including travel will be reimbursed by GGGI on actuals

Date to close is Korean Standard Time (KST). Applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered Application. Cover Letter, and CV must be sent in English. A consortium, or a firm may not be engaged for the individual consultant assignment.

Child protection – GGGI is committed to child protection, irrespective of whether any specific area of work involves direct contact with children. GGGI’s Child Protection Policy is written in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child.