Result of Service

The ultimate result of the consultancy is the provision of a clear legal baseline, priority reform options/recommendations based on analytical findings, and legally usable advisory inputs to support government-led legislative reform processes related to mining, mineral processing, and associated environmental governance frameworks in Mongolia. This includes sharing findings on improved coherence and alignment of the existing legislative framework with environmental governance standards and green transition objectives, ensuring that analytical outputs respond to national reform priorities, meet quality standards, and can be directly used by the Ministry of Mining and Heavy Industry in ongoing drafting processes. In addition, the consultancy will contribute to the development of practical options for green mining eligibility and screening criteria, through the provision of a legal feasibility assessment identifying enabling provisions, legal gaps, and required regulatory adjustments within Mongolia's existing legislative framework.

Work Location

Ulaanbaatar

Expected duration

8 months Part-time

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 overall objective of UNEP's Industry and Economy Division is to encourage decision-makers in government, local authorities and industry to develop and adopt policies, strategies and practices and technologies that promote sustainable patterns of consumption and production, make efficient use of natural resources, ensure safe management of chemicals and contribute to making trade and environment policies mutually supportive. The Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) supports countries in aligning economic and financial policies with sustainability objectives to foster inclusive growth, generate employment, reduce poverty and inequality, and strengthen environmental sustainability. PAGE brings together the expertise of five UN agencies—UNEP, ILO, UNDP, UNIDO, and UNITAR—to deliver integrated policy, analytical, and capacity-building support. UNEP is currently supporting country engagements under PAGE in Mongolia. Mongolia's mining and heavy industry sectors remain central to national growth, fiscal stability, and export performance, while facing increasing international expectations related to carbon intensity, traceability, environmental governance, rehabilitation standards, and financial transparency. The Government is advancing important legislative reforms, including broader legal and regulatory reforms affecting mining, mineral processing, industrial modernisation, and associated environmental governance frameworks, while seeking practical approaches to strengthen competitiveness, improve environmental performance, and enhance long-term industrial resilience. These reform processes involve multiple national counterparts and international partners, and require coordinated legal analysis, systematic follow-up, and quality assurance to ensure that analytical outputs, policy options/recommendations, and advisory inputs are delivered coherently and in alignment with national priorities and UNEP and PAGE objectives. Key legislative processes underway include the development of the primary Law on Heavy Industry and amendments to the Minerals Law. In response, UNEP under PAGE has proposed a phased technical cooperation framework to support the legal and institutional foundations for an environmentally responsible and more competitive mining and heavy industry sector. The cooperation focuses on legislative reform support, environmental governance, and the development of practical options for green mining eligibility and screening standards, while strengthening the technical foundation for financing mechanisms and implementation tools related to green industrial transition. In this context, the consultant will provide high-quality legal analysis and structured inputs to inform ongoing legislative reform processes led by the Ministry of Mining and Heavy Industry (MMHI), with particular attention to environmental governance, regulatory coherence, and green transition dimensions. The assignment is designed to generate a clear legal baseline, identify priority reform areas, and provide legally usable advisory inputs that can directly support government-led drafting processes. Specific tasks and responsibilities per outputs: Output 1

Prepare an inception report containing inception meeting notes; a detailed workplan agreed with UNEP, MMHI and the international consultant; a description of the proposed methodology, key legal questions, consultation plan and document review approach; and a clear division of responsibilities and timelines for the national and international consultants.
Agree and document coordination and draft exchange arrangements with the international consultant (including stages for sharing the legal landscape mapping, gap analysis and legal feasibility input note), and reflect these arrangements in the inception report so they guide delivery of subsequent outputs Output 2
Review existing primary and secondary legislation and policy frameworks affecting mining and mineral processing, with particular attention to environmental and social safeguards, including rehabilitation obligations, water management, biodiversity protection, closure planning, and compliance mechanisms relevant to CETM governance.
Prepare a baseline legal and institutional gap analysis focused on the coherence, sufficiency, and implementation-readiness of the existing legislative framework; identify legal gaps, inconsistencies, and priority reform needs for investment readiness in critical energy transition minerals governance. Output 3
Exchange draft outputs with the international consultant at agreed stages, in particular sharing the legal landscape mapping and gap analysis before the international consultant finalises the comparative benchmarking report. Output 4
Develop recommendations to support MMHI's legislative reform processes, with explicit attention to how findings and recommendations relate to the Law on Heavy Industry and to amendments to the Minerals Law, while remaining grounded in UNEP's mandate of environmental governance, legal coherence, and green transition support.
Support government-led drafting processes through advisory and analytical inputs focused on environmental governance, legal coherence, and green transition readiness, while final drafting authority, technical industrial standards, and legislative decisions remain with the Government of Mongolia. Output 5
Prepare a legal feasibility input note assessing what Mongolia's existing legislative framework can support in relation to future green mining eligibility and screening criteria, identifying enabling provisions, legal gaps, and required regulatory adjustments.
Exchange draft outputs with the international consultant at agreed stages, in particular share the legal feasibility input note before the international consultant finalises the green mining screening design options note. Output 6
Lead the organisation of a consultative workshop to present findings and recommendations to relevant stakeholders and collect structured feedback. The workshop shall:
Be held in Ulaanbaatar in coordination with MMHI
Include representatives from relevant ministries, legislative bodies, academia, civil society, and industry representatives as appropriate
Be facilitated by the national consultant with technical inputs from the international consultant
Produce a summary note documenting key feedback, questions raised, and government responses
Be scheduled to allow incorporation of feedback into final presentations (Output 7)" Output 7
Present key revised findings and recommendations to UNEP, MMHI, and other relevant stakeholders consulted during the consultative workshop described under Output 6, ensuring that stakeholder feedback is reflected in the final presentation package and aligned with government priorities.
Where the analysis identifies dimensions that fall outside UNEP's mandate, such as production economics, market competitiveness, or engineering standards, flag these explicitly and indicate whether other institutions are better placed to address them. The consultant is expected to support government-led drafting processes through advisory and analytical inputs focused on environmental governance, legal coherence, and green transition readiness, while final drafting authority, technical industrial standards, and legislative decisions remain with the Government of Mongolia.

Qualifications/special skills

Advanced university degree in law, environmental law, natural resources law, public law, or a closely related field.

A minimum of five (5) years of relevant professional experience in legal analysis, legislative review, or regulatory reform in Mongolia or comparable jurisdictions is required.
Demonstrated knowledge of Mongolia's legislative and institutional framework, preferably in mining, heavy industry, and environmental governance, is required.
Experience supporting government-facing legal assessments and preparing analytical recommendations for reform processes is required.
Familiarity with issues related to mining governance, industrial policy interfaces, environmental rule of law, or energy transition governance is desirable.
Familiarity with green finance eligibility criteria for the mining sector is desirable.
Proven ability to consult effectively with public institutions and synthesise technical inputs into concise advisory outputs is desirable.

Languages

Excellent written and spoken Mongolian is required. Excellent proficiency of written and spoken of English is required.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.

National Consultant on Legal and Institutional Analysis and Environmental Governance in the Mining Sector