Letter of Invitation Requesting EOIs

Nairobi

21/11/2019

Re: Consulting Services for Baseline assessment in terms of hygienic standards and the capacities of producers, vendors and /or processors in Puntland, Somalia

Dear Madam/Sir:

1. Veterinaires Sans Frontieres-Germany (VSF-G) has received financing from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (“IFAD”) and intends to apply a portion of the proceeds of this grant to eligible payments under this contract, for which this Request for Expression of Interest is issued.
2. VSF-G invites Expressions of Interest (EOIs) from legally constituted consulting firms and no-profit organizations (not individual consultants) to provide the consultant services referenced above. More details on these consultant services are provided in the Terms of Reference (TOR). This REOI is open to all eligible entities (“Consultants”) who wish to respond.
3. The Client intends to hire a consulting firm (not individual) (the “Consultant”) to provide consulting services for Baseline assessment in terms of hygienic standards and the capacities of producers, vendors and /or processors in Puntland, Somalia.

Location: Bari and Nugal regions, Puntland State of Somalia

Anticipated Start Date: January 2020

Duration of Assignment: 30 days, beginning from 23^rd January to 21^st February 2020.

1. Before preparing its EOIs, the Consultant is advised to review the Abridged Terms of Reference attached hereto as Annex 1, which describe the assignment in detail, and Annex 2, which delineates how the technical qualifications of the Consultant shall be evaluated.
2. A firm will be selected under Selection Based on the Consultants’ Qualifications (CQS) method in accordance with the procedures set out in the IFAD Procurement Handbook which are provided on the IFAD website[1].
3. Submission Procedure: Please submit your EOIs using the forms provided for this purpose. Your EOIs should comprise one (1) original copy each of the EOI Forms.
4. Procedure: The Client will evaluate the EOIs using the criteria provided in Annex 2. The Consultants who attain the highest (minimum of 3 and maximum of 6) total points (who also attain the minimum technical score required to pass) shall be shortlisted.
5. Any request for clarification on this REOI including the TOR should be sent via e-mail to the address above no later than 5.00pm EAT of 26/11/2019. CEFA will provide responses to all clarification requests by 5.00pm EAT of 2/12/2019.
6. EOIs shall be submitted to the address below no later than 3.00pm EAT of 9/12/2019.

VSFG Regional Office in Nairobi

Piedmont Plaza, 670 Ngong Road,

P.O Box 25653 – 00603 Nairobi

Attn: Maurice Kiboye, Country Director

Or alternatively to the following email address:

recruitment@vsfg.org

Yours sincerely,

Head of Human Resource Management,

VSF-G

Complete documents can be found on: http://www.vsfg.org/about-us/careers-tenders/tender.html?tx_news_pi1%5Bn…

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Form EOI-1

EOI Submission Form

[Location, Date]

[Authorized Official]

Dear Sir or Madam,

Re: Consulting Services for Baseline assessment in terms of hygienic standards and the capacities of producers, vendors and /or processors in Puntland, Somalia

Ref: FSSFS-VSF-G A04

On behalf of my organization, _ , I, the undersigned, offer to provide the consulting services for the above-mentioned assignment in accordance with your REOI dated ___.

I am hereby submitting my firm’s EOI, which will be open for acceptance for a period of ninety (90) days.

I hereby declare that all the information and statements made in this EOI are true and accept that any misrepresentation contained in it may lead to the firm’s disqualification.

We understand you are not bound to accept any EOIs that you may receive.

Yours sincerely,

Authorized Signatory and Organization’s Stamp:

Name and title of Signatory:

Name and Address of the Organization:

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

Form EOI-2 Organization of the Consultant

Re: Consulting Services for Baseline assessment in terms of hygienic standards and the capacities of producers, vendors and /or processors, Somalia**

Ref: FSSFS-VSF-G02 .

Provide a brief description of the background and organization of your firm and of each Associate for this assignment. Include your CV or of consultants to carry out the task for your firm/entity.

The EOI must demonstrate that the Consultant has the individual or organizational capability to carry out the assignment.

The Qualifications document shall further demonstrate that the Consultant firm has the capacity to carry out work in the field and provide experienced qualified Personnel on short notice.

Maximum 10 pages

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Form EOI-3 Experience of the Consultant

Re: Consulting Services for Baseline assessment in terms of hygienic standards and the capacities of producers, vendors and /or processors in Puntland state, Somalia

Ref: FSSFS-VSFG 02.**

Using the format below, provide information on each relevant assignment for which you or your firm, and each Associate for this assignment, was legally contracted either individually as a corporate entity or as one of the major companies within an association, for carrying out consulting services similar to the ones requested under the Terms of Reference included in this RCQ. The EOI must demonstrate that the Consultant / firm has a proven track record of successful experience in executing tasks similar in substance, complexity, value, duration, and volume of services sought in this procurement.

Maximum 20 pages]**

Assignment name:

Approx. value of the contract (in current US$):

Country:
Location within country:

Duration of assignment (months):

Name of client:

Total No. of staff-months of the assignment:

Address, and contact details (including email address(es):

Approx. value of the services provided by your firm under the contract (in current US$):

Start date (month/year):
Completion date (month/year):

No. of professional staff-months provided by associated consultants:

Name of associated consultants, if any:

Name of proposed senior professional staff of your firm involved and functions performed (indicate most significant profiles such as project director/coordinator, team leader):

Narrative description of project:

Description of actual services provided by your staff within the assignment:

Name of Firm: _

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ANNEX 1

Terms of Reference

Baseline assessment in terms of hygienic standards and the capacities of producers, vendors and /or processors in Puntland, Somalia

IFAD and AICS funded Project:

Food Security and Sustainability in Fragile Situations

Project name:

Food Security and Sustainability in Fragile Situations (FSSFS)

Title of the assignment

Baseline assessment in terms of hygienic standards and the capacities of producers, vendors and /or processors, in Puntland State, Somalia.

Locations of the assignment:

Puntland State of Somalia, Nugal and Bari regions

Duration of the assignment

30 days

Background

The European Committee for Training and Agriculture (CEFA) is an International Non-Governmental Organization established in 1972 and active in 10 Countries in Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe. CEFA’s medium- and long-term interventions in agricultural, environmental and Human Rights sector are focused on the sustainable development of the communities, achieved by involving local counterparts and by promoting the active participation of the beneficiaries.

Vétérinaires Sans Frontières Germany (VSF-G) is an international Non-Governmental Organization, providing humanitarian aid and development assistance to pastoralists and vulnerable communities in areas where livestock is of importance. Its support is in animal health, livestock related agriculture, marketing, food safety, drought responses and mitigation, capacity development of communities and governmental institutions, peace and conflict management with the ultimate aim of food security and strengthened livelihoods of livestock dependent communities.

Overview of the project

The overall goal of the project is to sustainably improve food security, nutrition and livelihoods and to build resilience among vulnerable households and their communities. The development objective is to increase targeted households’ income through improved agricultural production, mainly focusing on the palm dates value chain, and livestock productivity.

The following outcomes are expected:

a. Irrigation Infrastructures are constructed/rehabilitated as well as properly managed and climate-smart technologies are adopted (in both Yemen and Somalia).

b. The production of selected crops is increased and processing and marketing of palm dates in Somalia and vegetables in Yemen is sustainably improved.

c. Rangeland and small ruminant productivity in project areas of Puntland is increased.

The project consists of the following activities grouped under three components. The components summary descriptions are as follows:

Component A: IRRIGATION AND CLIMATE-SMART TECHNOLOGIES DEVELOPMENT

· Support to the sustainable management of the irrigation infrastructures.

· Construction and Rehabilitation of irrigation infrastructures.

· Application of climate smart technologies for irrigation infrastructures.

Component B: SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE AND LIVESTOCK DEVELOPMENT

B1: SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE DEVELOPMENT

· Training farmers on sustainable agriculture practices and techniques, with a specific focus on the palm dates value chain.

· Support in developing a private sector led supply of inputs.

· Value chain capacity building for private sector traders, businessmen and producers.

· Establishment of a date processing unit.

B2: SUSTAINABLE LIVESTOCK DEVELOPMENT

· Value chain capacity building for private sector traders, businessmen and producers

· Introduction and adoption of a ‘Holistic Natural Resources Management’ (HNRM) approach for sustainable management of rangelands

· Increase small ruminant productivity through genetic improvement and feed technology.

· Capacity building for public (Veterinary Officers) and private (CAHWs – Community Animal Health Workers) and public veterinary service providers on disease control.

· Deployment of a methodology for Livestock Body Condition Scoring –aimed at strengthening the capacity of the Ministry of Livestock to be fully able to monitor the general body condition of the Livestock.

Component C: CAPITALIZATION OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT

· Promote and strengthen collaboration with agricultural extension service providers and local authorities through short courses, workshops and provision of critical research inputs

· Capitalization of knowledge and Documentation of Best Practices

Scope of the assignment.

VSF Germany is looking for a consultant Firm to conduct baseline survey and evaluate existing natural resources and utilization of the rangelands to support livelihood and food security in proejct target areas. The aim is to establish sustainable approaches to natural resources and possible harmonization of traditional and conventional management practices including tools to reinforce holistic natural resources management approach. The consultant will work closely with Ministry of Livestock and Animal Husbandry (MoLAH) and other relevant sectors in Puntland to achieve the objectives of this task.

Objectives of the consultancy

The purpose of this consultancy if to assess the current general situation of the project areas, in terms of livelihoods, socio-political and economic conditions, power relations, information on minority groups and any form of social exclusion, social/cultural practices, policies, local governance issues at village levels that impact standard hygiene indicators in milk and meat sectors. Overall, the focus is on understanding the operations of milk and meat value chain actors and what should be done to strengthen and make it more viable for resilience of pastoralists and agro-pastoralists.

The specific objectives of the study are to:

i. assess different stages of milk harvesting and handling as well as meat through to delivery to consumers.

ii. Examine the risks milk and meat handlers and consumers are exposed to. along the value chain based on test results from qualified laboratories in Garowe.

iii. Establish concrete criteria and standards for monitoring system milk and meat quality.

iv. Identify simple equipment for testing milk/meat quality at producer and vendor levels.

v. Identify ways for disseminating test results from laboratories on milk and meat.

vi. Assess income and contributions of milk and meat value chain to resilience.

vii. Map out similar/relevant initiatives implemented by other actors in milk and meat value chain.

viii. Disseminate the findings of the assessment for validation at field level.

ix.

Specific tasks to perform

The consultant is expected to undertake the following tasks:

a) Develop and submit a proposal detailing research methodologies of the baseline assessment;

b) A desk-review of relevant project documents with focus to the logical framework and other relevant documents prior to the implementation of the study;

c) Provide an inception report detailing the understanding of the concept of the assignment.

d) Develop the tools for the assessment in consultation with project staff;

e) Train research assistants/enumerators on data collection tools and undertake a pre-test of the questionnaire

f) Quality control of data collected by enumerators to ensure accuracy and viability before analysis.

g) Prepare and discuss with the Consortium partners a draft report with sufficient details on findings and key recommendations.

h) Make presentation of the study findings to consortium partners and stakeholders at a workshop for validation of the findings.

i) Incorporate the comments from Consortium partners into the final report;

j) Prepare and submit a final report of the study.

Duration and Timeline

The duration of the assignment is 30 calendar days, beginning from 1^st December 2019.The foreseen assignment is part of the inception period, conducted in order to establish the benchmarks in community knowledge, attitude and practices as determinants of sustainable management of locally available natural resources .It will also pave ways for involvement of cal authorities and stakeholders from onset of the project in effort to embrace holistic natural resources management as a tool for sustainable utilization of the rangelands to enhance food and livelihood security.

Description of the Proposed Activities

The proposed activities to be implemented are as follows:

1) Assess stages of milk and meat production up to sale points.

The consultant shall participatory and systematically assess methods used to produce, handle and transport milk and meat up to selling points. The assessment will involve pastoralists, agro-pastoralists, milk and meat vendors, transporters and regulators.

2) Assess and establish capacities of existing meat and milk vendors/processors.

Desk review and analysis of existing groups and individuals involved in milk and meat businesses and their capacities to run their businesses. Map out existing main milk and meat value chain actors in project areas. Assess capacity gaps in management of their products that pose threats to viability and sustainability of milk and meat value chain. Recommend appropriate business management skills, marketing and group governance interventions to address the identified gaps. Validate all findings and recommendations with relevant government departments.

3). Examine the risks milk and meat handlers and consumers are exposed to along the value chain.

The consultant shall assess hygienic conditions and practices along the entire milk and meat value chains and identify health risks to which actors and consumers exposed. Where feasible obtain test results from qualified laboratories testing quality of livestock products in Garowe.

4). Monitoring system of meat and milk quality in local markets.

Develop practical criteria for assessing and quality of milk and meat in the local markets by producers, vendors and regulators based on known standards for milk and meat quality.

5) Equipment for testing and establishing milk and meat quality.

Based on identified quality concerns from production to market, the consultant shall, in consultation with target users recommend simple, appropriate and reliable equipment which should be used and test the quality of milk along the value chain .Such equipment should include those which can be used to produce durable an high value products from milk and/or increase shelf life of fresh milk.

6) Ways of disseminating results of hygiene laboratory tests of milk and meat.

There are reliable laboratories in Puntland under the MoLAH which supported by development partners in conducting various tests on livestock products. In this assignment the consultant shall find out from the MoLAH kind of tests they conduct on milk and meat in local laboratories. The outcome of these dialogues will be used to design approaches to disseminate the test results from such laboratories to local authorities and traders for awareness creation and necessary support including what the project can do to support this activity.

7) Capacity of local authorities to regulate milk and meat value chains.

Through participatory processes, the consultant shall establish realistic capacity gaps in approaches and practices among value chain actors and government authorities that need to be addressed. The consultant shall provide realistic steps and activities that the project should undertake in order to strengthen capacities of government institutions to make milk and meat value chain a more profitable and sustainable sector. Such steps should be supported by evidence of possible success. This is expected to include both theoretical and practical interventions.

8) Assessment and analysis of income from milk and meat value chain at government and vendor levels.

The consultant shall use appropriate methodology and tools to conduct interviews with communities, government sectors’ experts and key informants to assess income derived from milk and meat value chains. Also assess contribution of incomes at these levels towards building resilience of communities and value chain actors. The consultants shall provide clear analysis of the contributions and cite any gaps and possible actions to bridge the gaps to ensure optimal income for resilience of the value chain actors. In addition, the consultant shall share the findings of the assessment with key government personnel and other actors for validation and concurrence on proposed actions for any improvement. As much as possible and with facts feedback from local authorities should be incorporated into the final report to inform the course of action and ownership of any proposed interventions.

9) Establish similar initiates in milk and meat value chain.

The consultant shall visit humanitarian and/or development actors in the project area who are involved in meal and value chain. The aim is to establish what they are doing in the milk and meat value chain and explore ways of building synergy with this project in the dairy and meat value chain

10). Disseminate the findings of the assessment to local stakeholders for awareness.

At the end of field work, the consultant shall present the findings of the study to stakeholder (government ministries, district authorities, traders and NGOs) through a workshop for awareness creation and validation by stakeholders. The presentation should clearly show the status of the milk and meat value chain actors, existing capacity gaps (of producers, vendors and government institution), needs, and proposed action to strengthen the actors in the value chain. Feedback from the dissemination workshops should be incorporated into the final report.

Methodology

The consultant will be required to develop clear methodology and procedure to carry out the task. Such methodologies should clearly show how various activities of the assessment will be carried out for expected output. The Consultant firm is expected to design most suitable data collection tools ensuring inclusion of all the project actors in the fish value chain assessment process. The methodology will be discussed with VSF Germany to agree on most suitable approaches for the assessment in line with the project objectives.

The consultant(s) will examine all content of project proposal focusing on fishing for each result and output areas of the project and where necessary consult with consortium partners’ staff.

Presentation of the study draft report to all consortium partners at a joint workshop for validation. The consultant will make a presentation of the findings to inform any technical adjustments in the planned approach and activities for fisheries to guide the project implementation. The purpose will be to enable the partners have opportunity to validate the contents of the report and any proposed modifications in line with baseline findings and provide any necessary input before finalization. The workshop will be organized by VSF-G and partners on a date to be defined.

Finalization of the baseline report: the consultant will incorporate the input from the partners to finalize the above document and present the final products to VSF Germany for sharing with other consortium partners (CEFA and MoLAH) and submission to IFAD.

The consultant (s)/firm is expected to take all necessary steps to ensure that the security and dignity of the respondents and any persons participating in this assessment is not compromised and that disruption of their on-going activities is minimized. The role of VSF-G and consortium partners is to provide the Consultant (s) with all the necessary logistic support and documentation to facilitate the smooth baseline study process.

Expected Deliverables

The expected deliverables to be provided under the initial contract are as follows:

a) An inception report submitted to VSF-G within 5 days of the assignment detailing, the methodology, sampling frame and data collection tools.

b) Draft report of the baseline assessment submitted to VSF-G within 20 days of the assignment; ONE soft copy only (35 pages excluding annexes) for review and comments.

c) Dissemination of findings at a workshop of the consortium partners in power point.

d) Final baseline assessment report within 1 week after receiving comments from client and not more than 35 days of duration of the assignment; in 3 hard copies and ONE soft copy (max.35 pages excluding annexes).

e) A folder of photos taken during the field work in electronic form (ONE CD).

NOTE: Further works or revisions of the report may be required and if the final report does not meet the requirements of the TOR, it may not be accepted, and the client will be at liberty to reject it with service provider bearing the liability.

All reports should be submitted in Microsoft Word format, in UK English [amend as appropriate]. All text should be unformatted. Graphs or other graphical devices should be editable (i.e. not pictures). All references must be cited according to convention, and detailed in a bibliography, using the Harvard system as set out in the UNESCO Style Manual. All verbatim quotations must appear in quotation marks and must not be of excessive length. All data collected under the consultancy must be submitted with the deliverables, in a widely recognized format such as Microsoft Excel.

Everything submitted to VSF-G and CEFA must be the original work of the consultants. Any plagiarism in any form, or any other breach of intellectual property rights, will automatically disqualify the consultant from receiving any further payments under the contract by VSF-G, and VSF-G will seek to recover any payments already made.

All participants in any study or other interaction will be fully informed about the nature and purpose of the interaction and their requested involvement. Informed consent must be obtained for any photographs, audio or video recordings, etc., in accordance with VSF-G and CEFA’s policy on consent. In addition, the consultant will follow an ethical framework for research in working equids by observing 4 principles: nonmaleficence, beneficence, autonomy and justice for participation of equids owners.

Methods of Payment and Installments

· 1^st installment – 20% of the total amount will be paid upon submission of the inception report.

· 2^nd installment – 40% of the total amount will be paid upon submission and review of draft report by client

· 3^rd installment – 40% of total amount shall be paid upon completion, submission and approval by VSF-G and CEFA of the final report.

The payments will be made in A/C payee cheques/or direct bank transfer in the name of the consultant firm as indicated in the signed contract. VSF-G will deduct with-holding tax at source as per the rules of taxation governing VSF-G operations and it will be deposited directly to the custodian of such tax. No other benefits shall be admissible beyond what is stipulated in the contract nor does it guarantee a regular position in VSF-G.

The Consultant will be responsible for their own Insurance during the period of the contract, and CEFA and VSF-G will not be responsible for any injuries or damages incurred during the assignment. The contractor will also meet their own communication and incidental costs (e.g. hot drinks during the assignment). The cost of consultancy submitted must exclude all anticipated expenses on: cost of visa processing, transport (air and /or land) to locations of assignment, transfer costs, local transport in assignment sites in both Somalia and Kenya, meals and accommodation, and security limited to securing the services of local guards to accompany the consultant and VSF-G and CEFA staff to field as required by the VSF-G and CEFA regulations.

Profile of the consultants to be deployed by the firm must meet requirements below:

• Minimum a Master’s degree in Animal Production, Agriculture, Veterinary Medicine, Public Health, Development Studies, Rural development, Animal Husbandry or other related fields.
• At least five years professional experience in capacity building, monitoring and evaluation field, including relevant field experience, especially in crisis or post-conflict settings.
• Demonstrated experience in working with NGOs and government institutions and other stakeholders in private sector programs.
• Vast experience in the area of livestock value chain, marketing, product development or comparable assignments.
• Autonomous, working with minimal supervision.
• Result-oriented, team player, exhibiting high levels of enthusiasm, diplomacy and integrity.
• Demonstrate excellent interpersonal and professional skills in interacting with communities and development partners;
• Skills in facilitation of stakeholder engagement/workshops;
• Evidence of having undertaken similar assignments.
• A mix of experiences in agro-pastoral and pastoral production and market systems and social research methodologies. Extensive experience in the specific fields related to the ASAL and, particularly in Somalia context will be required.
• Excellent communication skills as well as demonstrated writing and presentation skills
• Familiarity with pastoral setting and livestock value chain analysis.
• Experience of conducting capacity assessment, monitoring and evaluation at field level.
• Experience in both quantitative and qualitative research methods and data analysis.
• Fluency in English (written and verbal) is required.

[1] https://www.ifad.org/documents/38711624/39421018/proc_handbook_e.pdf/2fe…