Senior Climate Change Specialist

About the Role

The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) is seeking a Senior Climate Change Specialist to join its team in Jeddah, Makkah. This contract position requires 5-10 years of experience and focuses on providing senior-level technical and professional expertise in delivering IsDB’s climate action, green growth, and sustainability agenda. The specialist will support the Bank in enhancing the development impact of its operations across mitigation, adaptation, resilience, and nature-based solutions.

Key Responsibilities

• Contribute to the development of strategic plans, analytics, and guidance notes related to climate mitigation, adaptation, and environmental sustainability.
• Participate in project identification, appraisal, design, processing, and approval, leading input on climate change aspects such as climate risk screening, GHG accounting, and climate co-benefit qualification.
• Support the Bank’s alignment with the Paris Agreement and the consistent application of agreed assessment methods by project teams.
• Support the interface between the climate agenda and the Bank’s Environmental and Social Standards, including climate-related aspects of risk screening and nature-based solutions.
• Co-lead Communities of Practice in selected sectors on climate mitigation and adaptation, providing technical leadership.
• Contribute to the delivery of global engagement products on climate mitigation and adaptation, and participate in country dialogues and capacity building workshops in Member Countries.
• Support the achievement of the Bank’s corporate climate finance target, including adaptation finance ambition, and apply joint MDB methodologies for tracking climate finance.
• Support the operationalization and management of the Physical Climate Risk Management System (PCRMS) and ensure the implementation of best practices in climate adaptation and resilience measures.
• Contribute to articulating the Bank’s Islamic finance offer for climate action, including blended and Shari’ah-compliant instruments.

Capacity Development and Resource Mobilization

• Identify, assess, and monitor capacity development needs of internal and external stakeholders, designing and administering relevant interventions.
• Support the development and administration of technical assistance grants, training programs, and learning content for climate capacity development.
• Contribute to engagement with international bilateral and multilateral climate finance institutions and coordinate fundraising for relevant IsDB climate-tagged projects.
• Prepare and quality-assure concept notes, funding proposals, and terms of reference for submission to climate funds.
• Work in coordination with various partners on relevant research, analysis, events, and outreach, including support for flagship partnerships and engagement with UNFCCC, UNCBD, and UNCCD processes.

Knowledge Sharing and Reporting

• Track external issues and processes relevant to best practices in climate mitigation and adaptation, providing technical support to Management on engagement in key external processes.
• Contribute to knowledge products, guidance notes, policy briefs, and case studies that capture lessons from the Bank’s climate portfolio.
• Contribute to the preparation of progress reports on project cycle activities, ensuring compliance with Bank rules and procedures.
• Ensure climate-relevant core results indicators are included at the design stage and support the quality and completeness of climate, green, and social tagging in operational systems.
• Contribute to divisional and departmental results and KPI reporting, including quarterly reporting into the corporate results architecture.
• Contribute to the Bank’s external climate reporting commitments, including joint MDB climate finance reporting.

Experience and Qualifications

Candidates should possess 5-10 years of relevant experience in climate change, environmental sustainability, or a related field. The role requires participation as a core team member in various project stages, including identification, preparation, appraisal, and implementation support. Experience with climate risk screening, GHG accounting, climate finance qualification, and Paris alignment assessment is essential.

Work Environment

This is a contract position based in Jeddah, Makkah. The role involves working within the Climate Change and Environment Division, collaborating with other Global Practices and Regional Hubs in the Operations Complex. The specialist will coordinate the work of consultants and less experienced team members, reviewing their deliverables.