Kenya: Consultancy - Value Chain study of vegetable products in Garissa County

ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND

Adeso is an expanding and vibrant African-based international development and humanitarian organization. We assist communities to help them realize their full potential, working alongside them to create facilitative environments in which they can thrive. Our belief that economic, social and environmental security is the bedrock of a healthy community drives the nature and intent of our programming. We work to prevent and overcome situations that adversely affect community well-being by reinvigorating the economy, developing skills for life and work, providing developmental assistance, and influencing policy.

For the past 20 years we have strengthened rural livelihoods through environmental awareness, training, technology transfer and innovative humanitarian projects in pursuit of a peaceful, self-reliant, and greener future. Currently, Adeso implements programs in Somalia, Kenya and South Sudan. Adeso is an exciting and dynamic organization experiencing managed rapid growth. It offers sound employment conditions with opportunities for personal growth and development.

PROJECT SUMMARY

Resilience and Economic Growth in Arid Lands-Improving Resilience (REGAL-IR) is a 5-year project sponsored by USAID/Kenya and Feed the Future (FTF) to reduce hunger and poverty, increase social stability and build strong foundations for economic growth amongst pastoralists and transitioning pastoralists in Kenya’s arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs). The program is designed to empower communities to take charge of their development and to strengthen their capacity to select, design, implement and monitor activities toward increasing their social, economic, and environmental resilience to natural and human-induced shocks.

REGAL-IR is led by Adeso and is implemented by a consortium of partners. The project focuses on engaging communities and strengthening local institutions to improve their social, economic, and environmental resilience. It has six thematic areas:

· Strengthening and diversifying livelihood opportunities

· Advancing value chain inclusiveness

· Improving management and productivity of natural resources

· Improving conflict management

· Improving drought management

· Improving consumption of nutritious foods

An intensive community engagement process - Participatory Learning, Planning and Action (PLPA) - guides program implementation in the six thematic areas above and in 5 counties: Isiolo, Garissa, Wajir, Marsabit, and Turkana. REGAL-IR situates its efforts within those of a larger family of resilience actors including REGAL-AG, the Millennium Water Alliance and the World Food Program.

CONSULTANCY DESCRIPTION:

REGAL-IR intends to develop and promote profitable non-livestock based business enterprises to provide increased incomes at household level, create more employment opportunities, and have important spin-off effects on the local economy. Investment and growth of locally based non-livestock enterprises offer feasible livelihood diversification opportunities for pastoral households whose traditional livelihoods have been vulnerable to the vagaries of weather. Despite existing internal and external production and market potential for non-livestock products in Kenyan ASALs, investment by pastoralists into non-livestock based enterprises has not been forthcoming. This has been due to both external factors such as market failure, challenging climate conditions and governance, and internal factors including illiteracy, lack of capacity and low entrepreneurship acumen among pastoralists. REGAL-IR is banking on improving the resilience of pastoralists and ex-pastoralists through supporting investment in non-livestock based enterprises. The project has adopted a Self Help Group (SHG) approach through which individuals and groups have been mentored to identify profitable non-livestock enterprises which offer promising growth opportunities and suit their skills, knowledge and abilities. Upon self-identification of enterprises by SHGs, REGAL-IR provides niche trainings, mentorship sessions, linkage to service providers and financial institutions and small grants (matching funds) to spur the growth of their enterprises.

A value chain study on vegetable products in Garissa County is being sought so that appropriate linkages to markets, service providers and financial services can be modelled during the project implementation. In addition to the vegetable products value chain, the consultant is also required to conduct a desk review of two (2) other non-livestock based value chains relevant to the County; the consultant(s) are required to propose these two (2) value chains during the tender submission stage and are encouraged to use the recent county ASDSP studies, KAPP reports and other relevant studies as the basis for this proposal.

For both the primary study and the desk studies, the consultant(s) will map the value chains to identify weaknesses and opportunities for support at product, process, technological, institutional and market levels. The consultant(s) will recommend specific interventions that producers and actors within the value chain will implement to improve marketability and profitability.

The consultant(s) are required to identify with the help of REGAL-IR field staff at least one SHG that is currently undertaking vegetable production and develop a business model that the group can use for to develop production, technology transfer, market linkages and financial support for the vegetable value chain.

The key audience for the study is the local communities of the project area, priority value chain actors and potential investors in value chains, since the study will help them to understand the local market dynamics. Additionally, the study findings will be of significant value to multiple stakeholders including decision makers, public policy makers and NGOs.

OBJECTIVES OF THE VALUE CHAIN STUDY

The overall objective is to undertake a value chain study of vegetable products in Garissa County and a desk study of two other viable non-livestock value chains.

The specific objectivesare:

· To collect relevant data on the vegetable products value chain, including volumes/quantities, prices, actors involved (including women/youth).

· To identify the key constraints that need to be addressed to turn the vegetable and other proposed value chains into robust market oriented value chains.

· To make recommendations on how the proposed value chains should be supported to become become more robust.

· To map out the supply chain within the value chains in Garissa County.

These objectives will be achieved by:

a) Reviewing value chain studies carried out by other actors which include, ASDSP, KAPP, NDMA etc.

b) Primary data collection on the vegetable products value chain in the field.

I. Products.

The consultant(s) will characterize trade of products within the priority value chains by identifying:

a. Supply chain of vegetable products

b. Volumes of product availed in the market

c. Value addition, packaging and pricing along the supply chain

d. Consumer perceptions

e. Market potential and actors at the end market

f. Characteristics of supply chain actors

g. Relationship among supply chain actors

h. Linkage between producers, traders and processors

II. Market Potential:

a. Establish market size (local and external) and extent of market penetration by local producers.

b. Conduct a value chain analysis to identify the different actors in the chain, systemic constraints, and value shares accrued a t different stages on the chain.

c. Identify constraints that limit market growth.

d. Missing or inadequate inter sectoral or crosscutting markets.

e. Estimate market potential of the prioritized products within the value chains.

f. Identify the end markets locally/externally for the identified products.

III.Collective Marketing and chain efficiency

a. Assess the utility and potential for improving market efficiency through collectivemarketing, propose ways of achieving this and minimum quality standards required.

b. Determine the level of market orientation and market integration by producers.

c. Recommend process for institutional formation to facilitate collective marketing perspective for the products prioritized.

d. Suggest improvements in the value chain system to ensure direct linkages of the producers with the major markets and increased incomes from their products.

KEY DELIVERABLES

In-depth analysis of the vegetable value chain, including proposed program designs for engagement, report to include:

a. Supply chain map, identifying the market actors, establishing value shares at each stage in the supply chain.

b. Market size and level of market penetration by producers.

c. Recommendations on sustainability of the market for selected products and requirements for producers to sustain production in the medium to long term.

d. A business model for at least one SHG to engage in market-oriented vegetable production.

Desk review of two other viable value chains for communities/producers in Garissa County.

QUALIFICATION PROFILE

The ideal consultant(s) for this assignment should have the competencies and experiences as indicated below;

· A minimum of masters in Agricultural sciences/Agricultural economics/Agribusiness

· Proven track record in value chain development, market systems development and business development services (BDS).

· Demonstrable ability to work and link with the private sector and relevant government departments.

· Proven experience in undertaking value chain assessments.

· Experience working in the ASALs.

· A trainee/trainer of the regional value chain and market capacity development program is an added advantage

CONSULTANCY PROPOSAL

The proposal, to be submitted in English, shall include:

A)A technical proposal incorporating;

i.A short description of deliverables, clear work plan (dates and activities) with a proposed methodology and which shall include full justification for procedures to be adopted;

ii.CVs/Profile of the firm or individuals to be engaged including experience relevant to this assignment;

iii.At least three referees for similar or related work completed.

B)A financial proposal indicating fees for the consultancy, including all costs to conduct this assignment (this should indicate man-days and fees including VAT, operational costs of collecting data).

C)A sample of a recently written report for a similar assignment.

Applications should be submitted by 26th September 2014. The selection committee will review all applications as they arrive. All applicants must meet the minimum requirements described above; those unable to meet these requirements will not be considered. Adeso is an equal opportunity employer.

Applications not including all of the above information will not be reviewed.

All applications should be sent to Adeso at consultancy@adesoafrica.orgwith the subject line:

Application for Vegetable Products Value Chain Study, REGAL-IR