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REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST CONSULTING SERVICES: SELECTION BASED ON CONSULTANT QUARLIFICATIONS (CQS)

Reference No. (as per Procurement Plan): BW-CCARDESA-2024-04-01-CS-CQS

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) is a subsidiary organisation of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). It was established in 2011 and started its full operations in 2013. CCARDESA has a mandate of coordinating agricultural research and development and contributing to better food security and livelihoods in the region. Among the Research and Development (R&D) programmes being coordinated by CCARDESA is the World Bank funded Agricultural Productivity Programme for Southern Africa (APPSA).

APPSA focuses on agricultural technology generation and dissemination within the context of a regional approach – a focus which is well aligned with the objectives of the World Bank’s Africa Strategy, which emphasizes the need for investments to improve the competitiveness and resilience of African agriculture. The Strategy identifies regional integration as an important mechanism to achieve higher rates of growth and poverty reduction. In the SADC region, the SADC Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) identifies Regional Integration as the key to economic growth and poverty reduction. APPSA is therefore addressing the RISDP concerns, as well as the concerns of the third pillar of the World Bank’s Regional Integration Assistance Strategy (RIAS), which supports interventions to boost agricultural productivity; improving preparedness to analyze and respond to trans-boundary pandemics, other infectious diseases, and pests; and rationalizing regional research and tertiary education efforts. APPSA is a commitment by the International Development Association (IDA) to help countries enhance long-term availability of safe and nutritious food by providing a mix of short-term interventions designed to stimulate rapid supply responses and sustainable medium- and long-term investments in agricultural productivity, taking into account opportunities for food safety and nutrition enhancement.

APPSA started with three countries (Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia) in 2013 (First Phase) and expanded to Angola and Lesotho in 2019 (Second Phase). The main thrust of the programme is to improve agricultural technology generation and dissemination within and among participating countries, building capacity within national Research and Development (R&D) systems, and enhancing regional collaboration in agricultural research and development. The implementation of APPSA is based on partnerships and collaboration among SADC countries. Each country under APPSA establishes a Regional Centre of Leadership (RCoL) in a commodity area that distinguishes it as a leader in the region and beyond. So far, Zambia has established an RCoL in food legumes and legume-based farming systems, Malawi in maize and maize-based farming systems and Mozambique in rice and rice-based farming systems. In the current phase, Angola and Lesotho are establishing RCoLs in Cassava and Cassava-based farming systems and Horticulture and Horticulture-based farming systems, respectively.

The project comes to the end of its implementation at the end of January 2025. The proposed evaluation aims at assessing the achievement of the project development objective (PDO) and the changes that have occurred as a result of the project’s intervention, important lessons that have been learnt and recommendations for future design and implementation.

The assignment will apply the six OECD/DAC evaluation criteria (relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and impact) and include checking for scientific credibility of research and development activities. The evaluation should demonstrate how APPSA has been: (i) Relevant to the Angola, Lesotho and regional context; (ii) coherent internally among participating countries and externally with other interventions; (iii) achieving its objectives and delivering results in an efficient way; and (iv) making sustainable positive impacts. The evaluation will also look at cross-cutting issues such as gender and nutrition.

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) now invites eligible consulting firms to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Firms should provide information demonstrating that they have the required experts with required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services.

The shortlisting criteria are:

QUALIFICATIONS AND WORK EXPERIENCE OF THE CONSULTANT FIRM

a. The Firm is expected to have at least 15 years of experience and expertise in conducting monitoring and evaluation of agricultural development projects/programmes.

b. The consulting team should have experience and/or be qualified in the following areas: agricultural research, extension, agribusiness and agricultural investment appraisal.

Key Experts

a) Agricultural Scientist/Team Leader

(i) The Team Leader should be an Agricultural Research Expert.

(ii) A PhD in Agricultural Sciences, preferably in agronomy or plant breeding.

(iii) He/she should have at least 12 years of post-PhD experience in agricultural research, preferably in Sub-Saharan Africa.

(iv) At least 10 years’ experience in evaluating donor supported agricultural research and development projects.

(v) Proven ability and experience in project management and leading consultancy teams.

(vi) Proven ability in producing technical evaluation reports for donor funded agricultural development projects.

(vii) Have a traceable publication record in reputable peer-reviewed and accredited publications.

(viii) Experience in working with Regional Organisations is highly desirable.

(ix) Knowledge of and involvement in programmes supported by regional and international organizations such as the World Bank Group, EU, and AfDB is also desirable.

b) Agricultural Extensionist

(i) At least a Master’s degree in Agricultural Extension or related field.

(ii) At least 12 years of post-MSc experience in agricultural extension with at least 10 years on technology generation and dissemination projects, preferably in Sub-Saharan Africa.

(iii) At least 7 years of experience working with farmer field schools and agricultural innovation systems.

(iv) At least 10 years of experience in evaluating donor supported agricultural research and development projects. (v) Proven ability in producing technical evaluation reports for donor funded agricultural development projects.

(vi) Have a traceable publication record in reputable peer-reviewed and accredited publications. (vii) Experience in working with Regional Organisations is highly desirable.

(viii) Knowledge of and involvement in programmes supported by regional and international organizations such as the World Bank Group, EU, and AfDB is also desirable.

c) Monitoring and Evaluation Expert

(i) At least a Master’s degree in development studies, agriculture, social sciences, or related field. A Post graduate qualification in Monitoring and Evaluation is desirable.

(ii) At least 10 years of post-Master’s degree experience in monitoring and evaluation of international donor supported agricultural development projects, preferably research and development projects.

(iii) Understanding of theory of change and logic models and ability to facilitate development of SMART indicators, an indicator reference manual and results frameworks is required.

(iv) At least 10 years of experience in quantitative, qualitative, and/or mixed methods research and use of Management Information Systems (MIS).

(v) Proven ability in producing technical evaluation reports for donor funded agricultural development projects.

(vi) Have a traceable publication record in reputable peer-reviewed and accredited publications.

(vii) Experience in working with Regional Organisations is highly desirable.

(viii) Knowledge of and involvement in programmes supported by regional and international organizations such as the World Bank Group, EU, and AfDB is also desirable.

d) Statistician

(i) At least a Master’s degree in statistics, population studies or related field.

(ii) At least 10 years of post-Master’s degree experience in planning and managing all processes involved in the design and execution of agricultural surveys (including farm household surveys) for agricultural project impact evaluation.

(iii) Demonstrated experience in the drafting of methodological guidelines on agricultural surveys.

(iv) Demonstrated experience in working with researchers and other users of statistics on agriculture related activities.

(v) Have strong quantitative or analytical and data management skills.

(vi) Proven knowledge and experience with the use of different statistical softwares for processing survey data.

(vii) Proven ability to manipulate and present data by using standard tabulation and statistical software packages.

(viii) Proven ability in producing technical evaluation reports for donor funded agricultural development projects.

(ix) Have a traceable publication record in reputable peer-reviewed and accredited publications.

(x) Experience in working with Regional Organisations is highly desirable.

(xi) Knowledge of and involvement in programmes supported by regional and international organizations such as the World Bank Group, EU, and AfDB is also desirable.

e) Agricultural Economist

(i) At least a Master’s degree in Agricultural Economics or related field

(ii) At least 10 years of post-Master’s degree experience in conducting programme/project impact evaluation and cost-benefit analysis (financial and economic) of agricultural development projects.

(iii) Proven evidence of past assessment of financial and economic returns to investment in agricultural research and development in Sub-Saharan Africa.

(iv) Proven ability in conducting studies on the uptake and scaling of improved agricultural technologies/ innovations.

(v) Proven ability in designing and conducting impact assessments of donor funded agricultural development programmes using options including randomised assignment, instrumental variables, regression discontinuity design, difference-in-differences or matching.

(vi) Proven ability in producing technical evaluation reports for donor funded agricultural development projects.

(vii) Have a traceable publication record in reputable peer-reviewed and accredited publications.

(viii) Experience in working with Regional Organisations is highly desirable.

(ix) Knowledge of and involvement in programmes supported by regional and international organizations such as the World Bank Group, EU, and AfDB is also desirable.

The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to paragraph 1.9 of the World Bank’s Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits & Grants by World Bank Borrowers (“Consultant Guidelines”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

Further information (terms of reference) can be obtained at the address below during office hours 0900 to 1630 hours.

Interested Consulting Firms should submit their expressions of interest with comprehensive information that include experience of the firm, similar assignments conducted, comprehensive CVs of the proposed team members to the address below on or before 26th July 2024.

The Procurement Officer

Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research in Southern Africa (CCARDESA)

Ground Floor, Red Brick Building

Plot 4701 Station Exit Road

Private Bag 00357

Gaborone, Botswana

E-mail: procurement@ccardesa.org

Tel: +267 3914997

Download detailed Terms of Reference here

Request for Expression of Interest

INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT SELECTION

Assignment Title: Training Services In Regional Stakeholders (NARES) Sensitization of the relevance of Foresight For Food Systems Training & Establishment of a Regional Hub in Zambia– Gaborone  x 2

CCARDESA Secretariat under the CAADP-XP4 Project, Botswana.

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) has received financing from the European Union channeled through the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) equivalent to €5,370 Million towards the cost of Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme’s Ex-Pillar 4 (CAADP-XP4) Project, and intends to apply a portion of the proceeds of this grant towards eligible payments under this contract. Payment by IFAD will be made only at the request of CCARDESA and upon approval by IFAD and will be subject, in all respects, to the terms and conditions of the financing agreement. The financing agreement prohibits a withdrawal from the grant account for any payment to persons or entities, or for any import of goods, if such payment or import, to the knowledge of IFAD, is prohibited by a decision of the United Nations Security Council taken under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations. No parties other than CCARDESA shall derive any rights from the financing agreement or have any claim to financing proceeds.

CCARDESA is a subsidiary organization of SADC and has the mandate of coordinating all matters of agricultural research and development in the SADC region. It facilitates the implementation of various projects, including the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme Ex Pillar 4 (CAADP-XP4). The CAADP-XP4 project supports a science-led and climate-relevant agricultural transformation in Africa. It aims to strengthen the capacities of the five African institutions to deliver on their Agricultural Research for Development (AR4D) mandates and to collectively support African countries in implementing relevant programs of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).

The overall objective of this training is to build foresight capacity within agricultural research and development institutions and relevant regional organizations to enable the application of methods and approaches for robust, future-proofed planning and implementation for climate-resilient sustainable food systems.

The specific objectives of this assignment are to:

• Sensitize stakeholders within NARES from 9 SADC member states on the Foresight for food systems Models
• Strengthen capacities of national-level stakeholders on Foresight for Food Systems from Zambia, Malawi, Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Lesotho, Eswatini, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.
• Support countries to develop action plans that will enable them to implement foresight activities,
• Support the development of a strategy for the establishment of a Regional Foresight Hub (RFH) in partnership with the Africa Foresight Academy (AFA)

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa now invites eligible individual consultants to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested consultants should provide information (Comprehensive CVs that show descriptions of similar assignments and experience in similar conditions) demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services.

The shortlisting criteria are:

1. A minimum of a master’s degree in Agricultural Economics/Policy Analysis or a closely related field,
2. At least Five years experience in aligning SADC strategies, policies, and AU to country-level implementation.
3. Proven experience in working in Foresight for Food systems/Climate Change
4. Proven engagement with the Africa Foresight Academy (AFA)
5. Familiar with the CAADPXP4 activities on foresight and related food systems processes 
6. Proven ability to work both independently and as part of a team
7. Experience in similar assignments
8. Experience in working with regional organizations and in Southern African countries Or CCARDESA SROs. ,
9. At least five years of relevant experience in facilitating collaborative workshops for large regional organisatioNn
10. Excellent analytical, writing, and communication skills. 
11. Experience with multicultural environments in a variety of settings
12. Knowledge and experience of innovative workshop facilitation principles and method
13. Fluency (spoken and written) in English is essential;
14. working knowledge of other SADC languages will be an advantage;

For Detailed TORs please follow the link below:https://www.ccardesa.org/knowledge-products/terms-reference-training-services-regional-stakeholders-nares-sensitization

The Consultant will be selected in accordance with the individual Consultancy method set out in the CCARDESA Procurement Manual.

Application letters complete with detailed curriculum vitae must be delivered in a written form to the address below (in person, or by mail, or by e-mail) on or before 29th February 2024. Applications should bear the name of the assignment in the subject field.

   The Executive Director

  Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) Secretariat

  Ground Floor, Red Brick Building

  Plot 4701

  Station Exit Road

  Private Bag 00357

  Gaborone, Botswana

 E-mail: procurement@ccardesa.org ,Tel: 00267 391 4991/7

Request for Expression of Interest

INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT SELECTION

Assignment Title: Undertake a Scoping Study for the Ukama Ustawi Learning Alliance and validation for CCARDESA – Gaborone

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) has received financing from the International Management Water Institute equivalent to $20, 000 towards the cost of Diversification for Resilient Agrifood Systems in East and Southern Africa Project and intends to apply a portion of the proceeds of this grant towards eligible payments under this contract.

The Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (www.asareca.org) and Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research for Development in Eastern and Southern Africa (www.ccardesa.org) are participating in the implementation of the One CGIAR-led Ukama Ustawi (UU) initiative which aims to support climate-resilient agriculture and livelihoods in 12 Eastern and Southern African (ESA) countries comprising: Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Madagascar, Rwanda, Uganda South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

CCARDESA is a subsidiary organization of SADC and has the mandate of coordinating all matters of agricultural research and development in the SADC region. It facilitates the implementation of various projects, including the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme Ex Pillar 4 (CAADP-XP4).

The overall objective of this consultancy is to undertake a scoping study and develop concrete recommendations to guide Knowledge Management and Learning (KML) around diversified maize farming systems in ESA.

The specific objectives of the assignment include:

1. Understand the existing gaps, especially capacity and knowledge gaps among the NAROs and other like-minded stakeholders, with regard to the implementation of the UULA and develop a policy Brief.
2. Establish mechanisms for effective sharing and exchange of knowledge between One CGIAR and National Agricultural Research Organizations (NAROs) and other partners.
3. Establish the status of Learning Alliances in the ESA region, their roles and services and propose a framework for collaboration with UULA that leverages on complementarity and harnessing synergies.
4. Evaluate the current state of innovation in agribusiness, policy, and scaling among the LA partners related to diversified maize-based farming systems
5. Propose an M&E framework for monitoring and tracking the success and impacts of the UULA

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa now invites eligible individual consultants to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested consultants should provide information (Comprehensive CVs that show description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions) demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services.

The shortlisting criteria are:

1. At least 5-10 years’ experience in knowledge management for agricultural development sector as well as capacity development, needs and capacity assessments, and monitoring and evaluation.
2. Ability to organize meetings, calls, and documents that may require the input of multiple sources.
3. Proven ability to work both independently and as part of a team.
4. Experience in similar assignments (knowledge management assessments, capacity strengthening for organizations, partnerships strengthening).
5. Experience on survey design and data collection methodologies including online data collection techniques as well as development of survey tools.
6. Experience in working in Eastern and South African countries.
7. Knowledge of French would be an added advantage.
8. Experience in gender and youth mainstreaming would be an added advantage.

For Full details and TORs follow the link below: https://www.ccardesa.org/knowledge-products/terms-referencetors-undertake-scoping-study-ukama-ustawi-learning-alliance

The Consultant will be selected in accordance with the individual Consultancy method set out in the CCARDESA Procurement Manual.

Application letters complete with detailed curriculum vitae must be delivered in a written form to the address below (in person, or by mail, or by e-mail) on or before 01st March 2024 at 16:30hrs CAT. Applications should bear the name of the assignment in the subject field.

   The Executive Director

  Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) Secretariat

  Ground Floor, Red Brick Building

  Plot 4701

  Station Exit Road

  Private Bag 00357

  Gaborone, Botswana

 E-mail: procurement@ccardesa.org ,Tel: 00267 391 4991/7

CONSULTING SERVICES – INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT SELECTION

Reference No. (as per Procurement Plan): BW-CCARDESA-2023115-CS-INDV

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) has received financing from the World Bank toward cost of the facilitation of the implementation of the Food Systems Resilience Project (FSRP) and intends to apply part of the proceeds to engage an individual consultant to provide Capacity building for CCARDESA Secretariat on Sexual Exploitation & Abuse, and Sexual Harassment under Food System Resilience Programme for Eastern and Southern Africa.

The overall objective of this consultancy is to strengthen the capacities of the CCARDESA Secretariat on how to prevent, mitigate, and respond to incidents of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, and Sexual Harassment (SEA/SH) as a form of Gender Based Violence (GBV).

The following are the specific objectives:

i. To create awareness on the position of Multilateral Development Banks/Partners in addressing SEA/SH;

ii. To sensitize staff on the importance of preventing SEA/SH risks and their obligations in preventing SEA/SH during implementation of development projects;

iii. To strengthen capacity for CCARDESA staff on how to integrate SEA/SH in work contracts;

iv. To learn how to develop a SEA/SH Prevention and Response Action Plan and report incidents of SEA/SH;

v. To capacitate staff on how to manage SEA/SH risks (prevent, mitigate, respond/report) during project implementation.

The consultant will be expected to, among others, cover the following tasks:

i. Develop training materials relevant to the assignment in accordance with the Bank’s Multilateral and Development Partners policies, legal frameworks, and international agreements;

ii. Submit the training materials for review prior to the training session;

iii. Conduct a one (1) day virtual training for CCARDESA staff on SEA/SH using developed training materials;

iv. Compile and submit a detailed training report.

The shortlisting criteria are:

i. At least a Master’s degree in Social Sciences, Sociology, Psychology or related discipline;

ii. At least 10 years post qualification experience in working with Multilateral Development Banks/Agencies in social development work;

iii. Understanding of the World Bank Good Practice Note on Addressing SEA/SH in Human Development Operations, and the World Bank Group Action Plan for Preventing and Addressing Sexual Harassment and/or other Multilateral Development Banks Environmental and Social Framework;

iv. Excellent understanding of the World Bank Environmental and Social Standards (ESS1, ESS2, ESS4, ESS10);

v. Fluent in English;

vi. Proven knowledge of a subject matter;

vii. Ability to execute virtual training session and engage audience during the training session;

viii. Ability to write concise technical papers, adapting the content to the knowledge level and cultural context of the target audience.

The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to paragraph 1.9 of the World Bank’s Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits & Grants by World Bank Borrowers (“Consultant Guidelines”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

Further information (terms of reference) can be obtained at the address below during office hours 0900 to 1630 hours.

Interested Individual Consultants should submit their expressions of interest, detailed curriculum vitae and a brief technical proposal to the address below (in person, or by mail, or by e-mail) not later than 01st February 2024. Applications should bear the name of the assignment in the subject field.

The Procurement Officer

Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research in Southern Africa (CCARDESA)

Ground Floor, Red Brick Building

Plot 4701 Mmaraka Road

Private Bag 00357

Gaborone, Botswana

E-mail: procurement@ccardesa.org

Kindly click here to download detailed TORs for this assignment

CONSULTING SERVICES – INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT SELECTION

Reference No. (as per Procurement Plan): BW-CCARDESA-2023113-CS-INDV

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) has received financing from the World Bank toward cost of the facilitation of the implementation of the Food Systems Resilience Project (FSRP) and intends to apply part of the proceeds to engage an individual consultant to lead the needs assessment consultancy for the establishment of new and strengthening of current regional centers of leadership under Food System Resilience Programme for Eastern and Southern Africa.

The overall objective of this assignment is to assess the needs of the National Agriculture Research and Extension Systems (NARES) for them to be able to conduct agricultural research and extension services for use in supporting the establishment of new Regional Centers of Leadership (RCoLs) and strengthening the existing RCoLs.

The scope of methods should be selected to fit the purposes and context of the needs assessment and able to set priorities and criteria for solutions to be used by CCARDESA and partners for sound decision-making to improve the capacity of human, physical, and financial resources with the aim of improving the delivery of programs, services, organizational structure and operations, or a combination of these elements. The consultant will be expected to synthesise data and draft the assessment report and present the findings of the assessment during validation meetings and update the report based on comments received.

The consultant will be expected to, among others, undertake the following tasks:

Under needs identification, the consultant is expected to categorize the countries into two thus:

a) Identification of the capacity gaps for the RCoLs and NARES

Group 1: The countries with already established RCoLs. These countries were capacitated through CCARDESA to establish Regional Centers of Leadership based on their priority commodities. Malawi was capacitated to be the Centre of Leadership in maize-based farming systems, and Mozambique became a leader in rice-based farming systems. At the same time, Zambia was supported to become a leader in Legume based farming systems. The countries were supported in improving infrastructure and human capacity through long- and short-term trainings. The consultant is expected to analyze how the RCoLs utilize the facilities and identify the emerging challenges that will require further support to operationalize and sustain the RCoLs fully. In addition, the consultant is expected to generate lessons for use in supporting the establishment of the new RCoLs.

Group 2: The second category comprises the countries that have not established RCoLs in the priority value chains. This will target 13 SADC Countries, excluding the three Countries with already established RCoLs (Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia) and the Countries currently being supported to establish the RCoL (Angola and Lesotho). The consultant will be expected to establish the priority commodities and determine the capacity needs of these countries to establish a Center of Leadership in the specific commodities.

The consultant is also expected to analyze the agricultural/farming technologies and services to identify gaps for supporting the upgrading of existing national centers through institutional linkages with regional and international networks and academic and research institutions; for coordinating specific knowledge and expert exchange programs working with national and regional centers.

b) Assessment of high-level policies, initiatives, institutional arrangements, and even budgeting decisions that have cross-cutting relevance to food systems resilience.

The consultant will review policies, assess entry points for building a resilience-focus into national planning mechanisms and policies, and develop a new-generation framework for carrying out agricultural public expenditure reviews (PERs) that offer insight into opportunities to better align public resources with resilience-informed policy priorities. The consultant will carry out policy and value chain analyses, needs assessments, and other analytical work, notably focusing on seed production and regulatory systems, intellectual property rights, and biosafety regulations to activities on regional policy dialogue.

c) Identify the actions and resources required for CCARDESA to strengthening the research system’s response to the challenges of climate change.

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa now invites eligible individual consultants to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested consultants should provide information (Comprehensive CVs that show description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions) demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services.

The shortlisting criteria are:

The consultant shall be well qualified and experienced as required and appropriate for execution of the assignment. The consultant should possess necessary technical capacity and resources to perform the assignment of such nature including relevant equipment and software. The Consultant shall have the following minimum qualifications and experience:

• Education: At least a Masters degree in Agriculture, Social Sciences, development studies, Strategic Management, or equivalent.

• Experience: At least fifteen (15) years of professional experience in conducting capacity gap assessment studies with emphasis in human, infrastructure, financial, and institutional policies.

• Experience: Minimum of ten (10) years experience in leading assessment of policies at national and regional levels preferably in Agriculture.

• Language Requirements: English will be the working language. Knowledge of French and Portuguese will be an added advantage.

• Demonstrable ability to write concise technical papers and synthesis reports on subjects related to the assignment; and

• Experience in policy analysis will be an added advantage

The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to paragraph 1.9 of the World Bank’s Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits & Grants by World Bank Borrowers (“Consultant Guidelines”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

Further information (terms of reference) can be obtained at the address below during office hours 0900 to 1630 hours.

Interested Individual Consultants should submit their expressions of interest, detailed curriculum vitae and a brief technical proposal to the address below (in person, or by mail, or by e-mail) not later than 01st February 2024. Applications should bear the name of the assignment in the subject field.

The Procurement Officer

Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research in Southern Africa (CCARDESA)

Ground Floor, Red Brick Building

Plot 4701 Mmaraka Road

Private Bag 00357

Gaborone, Botswana

E-mail: procurement@ccardesa.org

Tel: +267 3914997

Kidly click here to download detailed TORs for this assignement

INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT SELECTION

Reference No. (as per Procurement Plan): BW-CCARDESA-2023114-CS-INDV

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) has received financing from the World Bank toward cost of the facilitation of the implementation of the Food Systems Resilience Project (FSRP) and intends to apply part of the proceeds to engage an individual consultant to Develop Regional Communication Strategy and Action Plan for Food System Resilience Programme for Eastern and Southern Africa.

The objectives of the consultancy involve to:

• Develop the regional FSRP communications strategy aimed at strengthening project visibility, gathering and sharing of evidence and lessons that will faciliate the delivery of the resilience agenda at national, regional, and continental levels.

• Develop a costed Action Plan for the Communications Strategy.

• Design standard publication layouts for FSRP communications materials targeting different audiences as identified in the strategy.

The consultant will be expected to, among others, to undertake the following tasks:

1. Conduct a baseline assessment to inform development of the communication strategy this will include a review of documents FSRP has developed since its inception to ensure there is no duplication of materials being produced.

2. Develop a communications strategy for FSRP to enhance the awareness, understanding, and knowledge of the general public, of key stakeholders in the government, private sector, civil society, etc. at the national and local levels.

3. Specify appropriate communication channels, dissemination methods and media such as video, print, web/online media, traditional media, and social media, among others, to effectively communicate key messages to specific stakeholders.

4. Design a standard publication layout for FSRP for use in future publications.

5. Develop guide for all communications on food systems resilience issues to ensure consistent formats for publications and communication products.

6. Conceptualize, design and develop Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials on food systems and resilience with appropriate and relevant messages tailored for key stakeholders using various formats as appropriate such as text, graphics, imageries, infographics, video, printed materials, etc.

7. Develop a costed implementation plan for the communication strategy including the annual activities and budget.

8. Review and update the FSRP webpage under the CCARDESA website to ensure it has some agreed IEC materials uploaded and visible.

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa now invites eligible individual consultants to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested consultants should provide information (Comprehensive CVs that show description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions) demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services.

The shortlisting criteria are:

The Consultant shall be required to have the following qualifications and experience:

• At least a Masters degree in one or more of the following disciplines: Mass Communications; Development Communication; Organisational Communications, Journalism, or other relevant fields;

• Demonstrate prior experience in developing a communication strategy, ideally in the development context.

• Have a good understanding of food systems and resilience issues in the SADC region.

• Have at least ten (10) years of progressively advanced experience in strategic communications, public advocacy, which must include developing communications and advocacy strategies at the global, regional or national level.

• Have relevant experience in working with government, regional and/or international organizations on consultancy assignments, especially in strategic communications planning.

• Have experience in producing good communication materials for use by clients.

• Have excellent proven written and spoken English and strong oral and written communication skills. Some knowledge of French is going to be an advantage.

The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to paragraph 1.9 of the World Bank’s Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits & Grants by World Bank Borrowers (“Consultant Guidelines”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

Further information (terms of reference) can be obtained at the address below during office hours 0900 to 1630 hours.

Interested Individual Consultants should submit their expressions of interest, detailed curriculum vitae and a brief technical proposal to the address below (in person, or by mail, or by e-mail) not later than 01st February 2024. Applications should bear the name of the assignment in the subject field.

The Procurement Officer

Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research in Southern Africa (CCARDESA)

Ground Floor, Red Brick Building Plot 4701

Mmaraka Road

Private Bag 00357

Gaborone, Botswana

E-mail: procurement@ccardesa.org

Tel: +267 3914997

Kindly click here to download detailed Terms of Reference for this assigment.