United Nations Environment Programme is looking for a Specialist on Management and Disposal of Seized Live Specimens

Organization: United Nations Environment Programme

Location: GENEVA

Level: CON - CON

Job Family: ENV

Application Deadline: 29 March 2026 at 03:59 UTC

Job Opening Number: 26-United Nations Environment Programme-270499-Consultant

Apply via: UN Inspira Portal

Result of Service

The ultimate result of the service will be a final report providing a set of best practices and procedures for the management and disposal of seized live specimens of CITES-listed animal species and materials assisting the effective implementation of Annex 3 to Resolution Conf. 17.8 (Rev. CoP19).

Work Location

Remote

Expected duration

Five (5) months

Duties and Responsibilities

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the leading global environmental authority that sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system and serves as an authoritative advocate for the global environment. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) is an international agreement between states. Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival (www.cites.org). The CITES Secretariat is administered by UNEP and is located at the Geneva duty station. This assignment is part of the CITES Secretariat’s work under the Legal Unit. In fulfillment of Decision 19.169 on Disposal of confiscated specimens, which was renewed by CoP20, the Secretariat is commissioning a review of existing practices and processes related to management and disposal of seized live specimens and the development of materials to assist Parties in enhancing implementation of Annex 3 to the Resolution Conf. 17.8 (Rev. CoP19) on Disposal of illegally traded and confiscated specimens of CITES-listed species, which encourages Parties to develop action plans to be able to make decisions on management and disposal of live animals without delay. In 2017, the CITES Secretariat developed a questionnaire to review the use and usefulness of the CITES guidelines for the disposal of confiscated live specimens contained in the three annexes to Resolution Conf. 17.8 and to evaluate practice of disposal of such specimens. The questionnaire was made available to Parties as an online survey through Notification to Parties No. 2017/045 of 15 June 2017. 4. A total of 75 completed responses were received to the questionnaire regarding a total of 58 countries. At that time, the majority of the respondents (54 per cent) indicated that their country does not have an established procedure/plan of action to be followed to make a decision on disposal of a confiscated live specimen (animals and/or plants), while 41 per cent indicated that such a procedure was in place. Based on feedback provided by CITES Parties on this matter, it appears that they are facing difficulties in developing and implementing these action plans. In this respect, the twentieth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP20; Samarkand, 2025) agreed to retain Decision 19.169. Under the overall supervision of the Legal Unit’s Programme Management Officer, in coordination with the Enforcement Unit’s Enforcement Support Officer, the Consultant will deliver the following outputs and carry out the following activities:

• Output 1: Analysis of existing practices and procedures in place among Parties for management and disposal of seized live specimens of CITES-listed animal species
• Activity 1.1: Carry out a desk review of Parties’ responses to the past online survey to serve as a baseline, and prepare a new survey if needed to collect additional and/or updated inputs regarding the application of CITES provisions on management and disposal of seized live specimens, taking into consideration Resolution Conf. 17.8 (Rev. CoP19) on Disposal of illegally traded and confiscated specimens of CITES-listed species, in particular its Annex 3;
• Activity 1.2: Reach out to a number of Parties, to be selected in close consultation with the Secretariat, from across all six CITES, regions, to undertake interviews with relevant authorities and collect detailed information on their practices and processes related to management and disposal of seized live specimens of CITES-listed animal species in selected CITES Parties and prepare an analysis of existing practices on the basis of information collected;
• Output 2: Technical support provided to CITES Parties in enhancing implementation of Annex 3 to the Resolution Conf. 17.8 (Rev. CoP19)
• Activity 2.1: Develop best practices for the management and disposal of seized live specimens of CITES-listed animal species, taking into consideration different levels of technical and financial capacities and regulatory frameworks in place in CITES Parties;
• Activity 2.2: Develop materials (SOP model, stepwise approaches and guiding elements) that could be used by CITES Parties in implementing Annex 3 to Resolution Conf. 17.8 (Rev. CoP19).
• Output 3: Final report prepared integrating feedback provided by CITES Parties
• Activity 3.1: Consult with authorities of interested Parties for feedback on the outputs (1) and (2) above;
• Activity 3.2: Prepare a final report on outputs (1) and (2) to be presented by the Secretariat at the 81st meeting of the CITES Standing Committee (SC81; Geneva, 2026), as appropriate.

Qualifications/special skills

• Completion of a recognized high school diploma is required.
• A minimum of seven years of relevant professional experience is required.
• Demonstrated experience and knowledge of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), including the CITES Appendices, or a similar Convention, is required.
• Experience and knowledge of rules and procedures for the management and disposal of seized and confiscated live specimens of CITES-listed animal species, and knowledge of international customs rules and procedures relating to trade, seizure and confiscation is required.
• Experience demonstrating accuracy in preparing technical reports within agreed timelines is required.
• Experience in providing training and capacity-building on the disposal of seized live animals, particularly in developing countries, is desirable.
• Experience in working with national enforcement or customs authorities is desirable.
• Experience with the UN system or similar organization is desirable.

Languages

English, French and Spanish are the working languages of the CITES Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in spoken and written English is required. Knowledge of French or Spanish is desirable.

Additional Information

Not available.

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