Organization:
Civilian Technical Assistance Programme
Country: Afghanistan
Closing date:
30 Nov 2012Average salary up to US$120,000/annum plus allowances based on relevant qualifications and work experiences
- Organizational Context
In 2006, the President of Afghanistan established an Independent Board for the development of a new city in the Dehsabz and Barikab areas of Kabul. The Board consists of Senior Economic Advisor of the President, Minister of Urban Development, Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock, Kabul Mayor, leading private sector representatives, urban planning specialists and an urban economist.
As a national priority, the Board formed the Dehsabz City Development Authority (DCDA) in late 2006 as its financial and implementing body. The DCDA was tasked to pave the way, through mostly private sector-led activities, for the administration, design, documentation, marketing, implementation and maintenance of this exciting new economic hub for Afghanistan and the region.
A number of European companies specializing in urban design, water management, and sustainable environment and landscaping, business strategies and energy resource management were commissioned to develop the conceptual master plan for the new city. Preliminary conceptual designs, initial feasibility, technical and economic impact studies and a 1:20000 model of future city were completed. With the assistance of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the master plan of the New City is now complete and endorsed by the Afghan Cabinet. The project is moving into the final planning and detail design phases and enjoys the growing support from the national and international private sector as well as the government agencies.
DCDA is a young organization, operating with high level of professionalism.DCDA staff members have been recruited in a highly competitive manner. It aims to build its capacity by recruiting professionals in specific areas of management and design as the project nears its implementation phase.
2.Position
2.1 Nature and Scope of Assignment
This assignment involves supporting a government-led capacity development program withinDCDA’s Urban Planning, Infrastructure design and planning, Certification and environment, Project Management, lands and Barikab Agriculture Economic Zone Development divisions under the supervision of CEO. The successful candidate will provide technical advice, management support and technical inputs required to allow DCDA to achieve the designated strategic goals.
The successful applicant will be expected to work with and through his/her Afghan national counterpart, and to progressively transfer skills and responsibilities to them. This position does not involve management or line responsibilities.
The Technical Advisor is expected to assist DCDA in the following area:
I) Support in Technical Matters
a. Urban Planning
b. Infrastructure planning and design
c. Public Facilities planning and design
d. EIAs, standards & Codes and all kind of investigations
e. Leading the technical meetings on behalf of CEO
II) Support in Operational Matters
a. Draft and review of the governance charters and operational manuals (Laws and procedures)
b. Review of the TORs and RFPs as well as participation in the bids evaluation on behalf of CEO
c. Support with the set up of the upcoming governmental corporation (DCDA Bylaw coordination for accelerated set up)
d. Support the present Administration in major Admin issues
III) Support DCDA Leadership in External Coordination Matters
a. Assist in the technical aspects of the coordination with the relevant stakeholders (Government & Donors)
b. Land Issues
2.2 Duties and Responsibilities
Working with the heads of urban Planning, Infrastructure design and planning, Certification and environment, Project Management, lands and Barikab Agriculture Economic Zone Development divisions with assistance from the CTAP Capacity Development team and other relevant staff and advisors, theTechnical Advisorwill:
- Planning & Design
Planning and design of the Kabul New City is one of the key tasks of DCDA. As a senior expert the Technical Advisor will perform the following activities to assist the leadership of DCDA:
• Advise and Assist the technical staff of the planning division of DCDA on preparation of the structure plans, staging plans and land use plans, greenery plan, agriculture development plans etc. for KNC development.
• Assist the engineering staff of DCDA in development of Kabul New City (KNC) specific urban planning tools and engineering systems.
• Assist the preparation of Urban Development Guidelines
• Assist UP engineering staff in understanding of international codes and standards and to make use of the best suitable codes and standards for KNC development or to develop KNC specific codes and standards learning from the international practices.
• Help out the Infrastructure Division staff in preparation of the Infrastructure Design
• Assist the preparation of the infrastructure studies and surveys
• Review the reports and studies results
• Assist the preparation of Environment Impact assessment and review of the reports
• Review and prepare the ToRs and RFPs prepared by the relevant divisions to outsource any work
• Manage the activities of the consultants and contractors
• Assist development of Design standards and procedures
- Land Issues:
DCDA has committed to provide cleared lands to the developers for development. The private lands will either be acquired or the owner will be permitted to develop the land, if they would prove their technical and financial ability to DCDA. The Technical Advisor is expected to support on the following tasks in this area:
• Assist and advise in the preparation of land clearance, acquisition, distribution and lease procedures
• Propose alternative methods of land acquisition to leadership of DCDA
• Advise the land clearance and grievances committees
• Assist in devising the land sale/lease strategies
• Assist in establishing the land titles database
- Project Management:
• Assist and Train the engineering staff on project scheduling as needed.
• Quality Assurance principles
• Methods and procedures for effective development plans and site Quality Control as per the codes and guidelines given by DCDA to developers and contractors
• Assist and advise on devising procedures through which developers, their sub contractors and DCDA’s direct contractors’ Construction Site Safety, environment considerations and Health practices can be reviewed and monitored
• Assist and advise on the guidelines for new city developments by private developers and investors.
• Advise on proper assessment of the development plans, designs and conducting quantity survey before implementation of specific projects starts by the DCDA’s contractors or by the developers
• Guide and assist project directors in making sure factual information and clear direction is provided to DCDA contractor and all other parties who are required to carry out works on behalf of DCDA, to ensure the output received from concerned parties meet the needs
- Coordination with Stakeholders:
In the endeavors to develop a new city, DCDA at present is dealing with three stakeholders (i.e. government, donors and private sector majorly, while in the near future the end user will also be added as a stakeholder to deal with, once the development of housing will be started. Coordination with the stakeholders is an important job of DCDA being the managing authority of the biggest development project. The Technical Advisor is expected to contribute as follows in this area:
• Assist on technical aspects of the coordination work with the stakeholder
• Assist the preparation of project proposals for financing through government or donors
• Assist to coordinate the KNC development activities with relevant ministries and other government organization
• Assist in preparation of presentation and other promotional material used for coordination work
• Present KNC project in seminars, conference and high level meeting at national or international levels
• Participate in the discussions and meetings with donors, government and private sector
• Assist DCDA in the activities with developers and identification of the right developers for investment in KNC
2.3 Deliverables
The deliverables of the Technical Advisorare:
• Engineering Planning and Design procedures and manuals are prepared
• General Urban Development Guideline are prepared to get guidance in preparation of the guidelines for development of each parcel
• Mechanism to control the development activities of the developers and their contractor is established
• Procedures for land sale and lease are developed
• Quality control manuals and a scheduling system is developed
• An effective database for land titling is established
• A coordination chain is established with the relevant stakeholders
• A mechanism to identify technical abilities of the developer is developed
• Site Safety and Health standards and procedures are established.
2.4 Skills, Experience and Qualifications Required
The successful candidate should have the following skills, experience and qualifications:
• Advance degree (preferably Master or PHD) in development and management related disciplines, preferably from the urban/construction/engineering background or related fields
• At least 15 years of experience
• Must have the ability to think strategically and execute plans effectively.
• Must have the ability to turn the DCDA’s vision into a realistic, credible, attractive future that allows all stakeholders to feel pride and satisfaction.
• Must be able to create effective teams, with standards of excellence, including delegating, follow-up, motivating and coaching
• Be fully familiar with the management and promotion of urban design projects.
• Must have high integrity and ethics, analytical intelligence, excellent communication and decision-making skills, willingness to take the lead.
• Must be fluent in written and oral English Familiarity with the official languages of Afghanistan will be an advantage.
• Must be fully familiar with the goals of DCDA;
• Ability to deal diplomatically with donors, public and private sector agencies and senior project personnel;
• Ability to brief and interact with key stakeholders and DCDA Board members and directors credibly.
Afghan expatriates and nationals of countries in Afghanistan’s region are especially preferred for this position.
Afghan expatriates who currently hold MCP Employment Contract are not eligible to apply for CTAP Positions.
How to apply:Application should be completed online via www.ctapafghanistan.org
Only short listed candidates whose background and experiences corresponds to the above criteria will be contacted for further consideration. CTAP is an Equal Opportunity Employer.