Deadline: 15-Jun-2026
The United Nations Development Programme is seeking applications for an assignment focused on supporting climate-affected migrants in Nepal’s cities through urban employment, skills development, and financing strategies. The assignment will produce forward-looking labour demand analysis, identify resilient and automation-resistant job sectors, develop a Skills and Finance Framework, and design a deployment-ready Pilot Urban Jobs Programme Concept for municipalities. The work will support Nepal’s efforts to strengthen urban livelihoods, migrant integration, and climate-resilient employment pathways.
Overview
The United Nations Development Programme is seeking applications for an assignment that responds to the growing number of climate-affected migrants moving into Nepal’s cities.
The assignment focuses on developing targeted strategies for urban employment, skills development, and financing mechanisms that can help migrants access resilient livelihood opportunities.
It will support municipalities and partners in identifying future labour demand, building practical skills pathways, and designing a pilot urban jobs programme that can be deployed and scaled across selected urban centres.
Key Focus Areas
The assignment focuses on climate migration, urban employment, skills development, and resilient livelihoods.
Key focus areas include:
- Climate-affected migration
- Urban employment
- Skills development
- Urban labour demand analysis
- Climate-resilient livelihoods
- Automation-resistant employment
- Migrant integration
- Municipal jobs programming
- Care economy
- Waste management
- Renewable energy
- Circular economy
- Tourism
- Skills pathways
- Training modalities
- Municipal licensing pathways
- Micro-enterprise development
- Working capital access
- Blended finance
- Municipal guarantees
- Intergovernmental transfer mechanisms
- Stakeholder engagement
- Urban resilience
- Migration governance
Purpose of the Assignment
The purpose of the assignment is to help Nepal develop practical strategies for integrating climate-affected migrants into resilient urban employment.
The assignment will assess future labour demand in selected urban centres and identify sectors that can provide long-term employment opportunities.
It will also develop a Skills and Finance Framework and a Pilot Urban Jobs Programme Concept to guide municipalities and partners in moving from analysis to practical implementation.
Country Context
The assignment is focused on Nepal, where climate-related pressures are contributing to rural-to-urban migration.
As more people move to cities, there is a growing need for targeted employment, skills, and livelihood strategies that respond to the realities of urban labour markets.
The assignment will examine Nepal’s institutional architecture for urban livelihoods, skills development, and migration governance, including the roles of line ministries, provincial and local governments, municipalities, and the private sector.
Literature Review and Secondary Data Analysis
The assignment will begin with a literature review and secondary data analysis.
This review will provide context on Nepal’s policies, institutions, and data related to urban livelihoods, migration, skills development, and employment.
The review will examine relevant sources including:
- National Urban Policy 2024
- Sixteenth Plan 2024/25–2028/29
- 2026 Budget
- Most recent official labour statistics
- Census data
- Nepal Living Standards Survey
- Educational outcomes in rural Nepal
- National and international literature on climate-induced migration
- Evidence on urban labour markets and livelihoods programming
- Sectoral employment transition studies in developing-country and South Asian contexts
Urban Workforce Futures Analysis
A central part of the assignment is the Urban Workforce Futures analysis.
This analysis will generate scenario-based projections of labour demand through 2030 for at least two selected urban centres.
The analysis will identify:
- Sectors expected to grow
- Sectors expected to decline
- Labour demand gaps
- Climate-economy transition dynamics
- Employment opportunities suitable for climate-affected migrants
- Sectors offering long-term and automation-resistant jobs
Priority sectors may include the care economy, waste management, renewable energy, circular economy, and tourism.
Labour Market Assessment
The labour market assessment will examine whether climate-affected migrants can realistically meet projected labour demand gaps.
The assessment will consider:
- Sector-specific skill requirements
- Existing education and skill levels
- Labour market access barriers
- Role of social and professional networks
- Potential entry points for migrants
- Opportunities for training and upskilling
- Constraints faced by municipalities and service providers
The assessment will rely on existing secondary data sources rather than primary surveys of migrants.
Skills and Finance Framework
The assignment will develop a Skills and Finance Framework for the top three sectors by labour demand.
The framework will identify practical pathways for climate-affected migrants to access resilient urban employment.
It will remain feasible within the capacity and resource constraints of Nepal’s municipalities.
The framework will include guidance on:
- Priority sectors
- Required skills
- Training pathways
- Training modalities
- City-certified short training formats
- Municipal licensing pathways
- Support for migrant micro-entrepreneurs
- Financing instruments
- Enterprise development support
- Working capital access
Training and Skills Pathways
The assignment will explore practical training options that can help migrants enter urban labour markets.
Possible training approaches include:
- Short city-certified training formats
- Skills bridging programmes
- Sector-specific technical training
- Practical workplace-based learning
- Municipal recognition or licensing systems
- Training aligned with projected labour demand
- Partnerships with vocational training institutions
- Skills pathways for migrant micro-entrepreneurs
The focus will be on training that is practical, accessible, and linked to real employment opportunities.
Financing Instruments
The assignment will explore financing options that can support migrant enterprise development and job access.
Potential financing instruments include:
- Micro-loans
- Blended finance
- Municipal guarantees
- Working capital support
- Intergovernmental transfer mechanisms
- Financing for migrant micro-enterprises
- Partnerships with public and private finance actors
The framework will provide indicative guidance on financing options rather than a fully costed implementation strategy.
Pilot Urban Jobs Programme Concept
Another major output of the assignment is a Pilot Urban Jobs Programme Concept.
The concept will be developed for one agreed municipality and selected priority sector or sectors.
It will provide a practical foundation for municipalities and implementing partners to move from planning to deployment.
The programme concept will outline:
- Operational models
- Partnership arrangements
- Indicative cost estimates
- Implementation sequencing
- Priority target groups
- Sector-specific job pathways
- Training and financing linkages
- Municipal roles and responsibilities
- Partner roles and coordination mechanisms
Scaling and Implementation Options
The assignment will assess how the pilot programme could be scaled across urban centres.
This assessment will consider:
- Governance arrangements
- Municipal capacity
- Financing options
- Institutional partnerships
- Phased implementation approaches
- Replication potential
- Operational risks
- Opportunities for coordination with national and local systems
The aim is to design a model that can be practical for one municipality while also offering lessons for wider application.
Stakeholder Engagement
Stakeholder engagement is integrated throughout the assignment.
The process will involve structured engagement with decision-makers, implementing partners, and technical stakeholders to ensure shared ownership of outputs.
Stakeholders may include:
- Municipal governments
- Private sector actors
- Vocational training institutions
- Development partners
- Line ministries
- Civil society organisations
- United Nations agencies
- Urban resilience actors
- Migration programming stakeholders
Workshops and Consultations
The assignment will include an inception workshop and a validation workshop.
The inception workshop will help:
- Validate the analytical approach
- Confirm the selection of urban centres
- Align stakeholder priorities
- Clarify expectations and outputs
- Build early ownership among partners
The validation workshop will be held after draft outputs are completed.
It will help:
- Present findings
- Gather structured feedback
- Refine the Skills and Finance Framework
- Strengthen the Pilot Urban Jobs Programme Concept
- Ensure outputs are practical and relevant for implementation
Key Informant Interviews and Focus Group Discussions
The assignment will include structured Key Informant Interviews and Focus Group Discussions.
These consultations will involve:
- Municipal governments
- Vocational training institutions
- Private sector actors
- Civil society organisations
- Relevant line ministries
- Development partners
- United Nations agencies
- Stakeholders working on urban resilience and migration
These discussions will help gather practical insights, validate findings, and improve the relevance of recommendations.
Expected Outputs
The assignment is expected to produce several major outputs.
Expected outputs include:
- Literature review and secondary data analysis
- Institutional and policy context review
- Urban Workforce Futures analysis
- Labour demand projections through 2030
- Identification of growth and declining sectors
- Assessment of automation-resistant employment opportunities
- Analysis of migrant access to labour demand gaps
- Skills and Finance Framework for top three sectors
- Training and financing pathway guidance
- Pilot Urban Jobs Programme Concept
- Operational and scaling options
- Stakeholder-informed recommendations
- Validated outputs with shared ownership
Why It Matters
Climate-affected migrants often face barriers to stable employment, skills development, and access to urban livelihood opportunities.
As Nepal’s cities continue to receive migrants affected by climate pressures, municipalities need practical tools to support employment integration and inclusive urban development.
This assignment matters because it connects labour market analysis with real municipal action.
By identifying future employment sectors, developing skill pathways, exploring financing options, and designing a pilot jobs programme, the assignment can help create more resilient urban livelihood systems for climate-affected migrants.
How to Prepare a Strong Application
Applicants should prepare a proposal that demonstrates strong technical expertise in labour market analysis, migration, urban livelihoods, skills development, and stakeholder engagement.
Step 1: Demonstrate Understanding of the Nepal Context
Applicants should show strong knowledge of Nepal’s urban development, migration, livelihoods, and employment landscape.
The proposal should reflect understanding of:
- Climate-induced rural-to-urban migration
- Municipal governance
- Urban labour markets
- Skills development systems
- Migration governance
- Livelihood challenges for climate-affected populations
- Policy frameworks relevant to Nepal
Step 2: Present a Clear Methodology
The application should explain how the assignment will be delivered.
The methodology should cover:
- Literature review
- Secondary data analysis
- Sector selection
- Labour demand projection
- Scenario-based analysis
- Skills assessment
- Financing framework development
- Stakeholder engagement
- Pilot programme design
- Validation and refinement process
Step 3: Explain the Urban Workforce Futures Approach
Applicants should describe how they will produce forward-looking labour demand projections through 2030.
The proposal should explain:
- Data sources to be used
- Criteria for selecting urban centres
- Sector analysis approach
- Scenario-building method
- Treatment of climate-economy transitions
- Identification of automation-resistant sectors
- Assessment of migrant suitability for projected labour demand
Step 4: Develop a Practical Skills and Finance Framework
Applicants should show how they will translate labour market findings into practical pathways.
The framework should be designed to support municipalities in identifying:
- Priority sectors
- Training needs
- Training providers
- Certification or licensing options
- Financing instruments
- Enterprise development opportunities
- Implementation constraints and options
Step 5: Design a Deployment-Ready Pilot Concept
Applicants should explain how they will develop a pilot programme concept that municipalities can use.
The concept should be practical and include:
- Operational design
- Partnership model
- Target beneficiaries
- Priority sectors
- Indicative costs
- Implementation sequence
- Governance arrangements
- Scaling considerations
Step 6: Plan Strong Stakeholder Engagement
A strong proposal should include a structured engagement plan.
This should explain how the applicant will involve:
- Municipal governments
- Training providers
- Private sector actors
- Development partners
- Line ministries
- Civil society organisations
- United Nations agencies
- Other relevant stakeholders
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Applicants should avoid vague or overly academic proposals.
Common mistakes include:
- Not linking analysis to municipal implementation
- Ignoring climate-affected migrants as the central target group
- Relying on general labour market trends without sector-specific projections
- Not explaining how selected sectors will be assessed
- Ignoring automation risks
- Providing weak stakeholder engagement plans
- Proposing primary migrant surveys when the assignment relies on secondary data
- Not addressing municipal capacity constraints
- Developing a framework that is too complex for local implementation
- Failing to connect skills, finance, and employment pathways
- Providing a pilot concept without operational detail
Tips for a Strong Application
A strong application should be analytical, practical, and implementation-focused.
Useful tips include:
- Show a clear understanding of climate migration in Nepal.
- Use secondary data sources effectively.
- Explain how labour demand will be projected through 2030.
- Identify realistic sectors for migrant employment.
- Focus on automation-resistant and climate-resilient jobs.
- Connect skills training with actual labour market demand.
- Include practical financing options for migrant workers and micro-entrepreneurs.
- Make the Skills and Finance Framework feasible for municipalities.
- Design a pilot concept that can move from planning to deployment.
- Include strong stakeholder engagement and validation mechanisms.
- Keep recommendations practical, targeted, and usable by municipal governments.
FAQ
1. What is this UNDP assignment about?
The assignment focuses on supporting climate-affected migrants in Nepal’s cities through urban employment strategies, skills development pathways, labour demand analysis, and municipal jobs programming.
2. What are the main outputs of the assignment?
Main outputs include a literature review, Urban Workforce Futures analysis, labour demand projections, Skills and Finance Framework, and a Pilot Urban Jobs Programme Concept.
3. Which sectors will be considered?
The assignment will assess sectors with long-term and automation-resistant employment potential, including areas such as care economy, waste management, renewable energy, circular economy, and tourism.
4. Will the assignment include primary surveys of migrants?
No. The labour market assessment will rely on existing secondary data sources such as census data, the Nepal Living Standards Survey, and available education-related information.
5. What is the Skills and Finance Framework?
It is a framework that will identify practical training pathways, skill requirements, and financing instruments for helping climate-affected migrants access resilient urban employment.
6. What is the Pilot Urban Jobs Programme Concept?
It is a deployment-ready concept for one agreed municipality and selected priority sector or sectors, including operational models, partnerships, indicative costs, and implementation sequencing.
7. Why is stakeholder engagement important?
Stakeholder engagement ensures that outputs are co-developed, practical, and owned by municipal governments, private sector actors, training institutions, development partners, line ministries, civil society organisations, and other key actors.
Conclusion
This UNDP assignment provides an important opportunity to support climate-affected migrants in Nepal by linking urban labour market analysis with practical skills, finance, and employment pathways.
By developing labour demand projections, identifying resilient job sectors, preparing a Skills and Finance Framework, and designing a Pilot Urban Jobs Programme Concept, the assignment can help municipalities respond more effectively to climate-induced migration and urban livelihood challenges. Strong applications should demonstrate deep technical expertise, practical methodology, strong stakeholder engagement, and a clear ability to translate analysis into municipal action.
For more information, visit UNDP.
