Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)- Request For Proposal For Consultancy To Develop A Strategy For Young Entrepreneurship, Employment, And Empowerment In Agriculture

DEADLINE: 4TH AUGUST, 2021
ALLIANCE FOR A GREEN REVOLUTION IN AFRICA (AGRA)
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR CONSULTANCY TO DEVELOP A STRATEGY FOR YOUNG ENTREPRENEURSHIP, EMPLOYMENT, AND EMPOWERMENT IN AGRICULTURE

SYNOPSIS OF THE REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (CONSULTING FIRM)

Terms of Reference (ToR)
Consultancy to develop a Strategy for Young Entrepreneurship, Employment, and Empowerment in Agriculture

INTRODUCTION
The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) is a dynamic, African-led partnership working across the African continent to help millions of smallholder farmers out of poverty. AGRA’s Vision for 2030 is to catalyse inclusive agricultural transformation that results in poverty reduction, hunger reduction, and improved nutrition

Africa is the world’s youngest continent with 60% of its population aged below 25 years. Seventy two percent (72%) of youth in Africa are either unemployed, underemployed, or vulnerably employed. An estimated 12 million young people in Africa join the labor market each year but only 25% get wage employment. AGRA believes agriculture is part of the solution in addressing this youth unemployment challenge based on the following:

• The agriculture sector continues to be the largest employment sector in sub-Saharan Africa.
• The agriculture sector has been determined to have the highest potential to contribute to inclusive economic development and poverty reduction.
• 2050 population projections show that more than half of youth in Africa will continue to live in rural areas.
• At the same time, sustainable food and nutrition security is increasingly an issue with 200 million under-nourished on the continent
• Food systems globally and in Africa are primed for disruption and the moment to engage is now! We need to an Enabling youth employment ecosystem in agriculture

Youth include males and females between the ages 18-35 years and include both rural and urban youth.

BACKGROUND OF ASSIGNMENT
AGRA’s approach to youth is anchored on its inclusive agriculture transformation goal, driving broad-based agricultural transformation that will make agriculture productive and profitable thereby creating opportunities, firstly on-farm and ultimately off-farm. AGRA takes a food systems approach in identifying opportunities for youth employment in Agriculture. The approach incorporates all elements of the agriculture system; production, aggregation, processing, distribution, and consumption

AGRA’s seeks to increase youth employment, entrepreneurship and empowerment in Agriculture through a suite of mutually reinforcing strategies involving integration in value chains and business opportunities in inputs (seed, fertilizers, and agrochemicals); mechanization (planting and harvesting); and outputs (aggregation, value addition, marketing), bolster access to productive resources such as land, capital, business development services, building market relevant skills and capabilities, nurturing innovation and  use of ICT. AGRA seeks to support governments to develop policies and strategies that foster youth employment and strengthen the involvement of youth in production, processing, and last-mile delivery of agriculture services (extension, input distribution, mechanization, produce aggregation, and other service provisions)

It is against this background that AGRA is seeking a consultant to support the development of a Strategy for promoting youth entrepreneurship, employment, and empowerment in Agriculture. Through this strategy, AGRA will sharpen focus on youth engagement in agriculture and guide the achievement of AGRA’s ambitious goal to empower 10 million young people to secure work opportunities in agriculture by 2030.

SCOPE OF WORK
The main objective of this assignment is to develop a strategy. As background work, the Consultancy firm will conduct contextual analysis of youth-in-agriculture, assessing challenges and highlighting areas of opportunities, defining value-adding strategic options, highlighting best practices, gaps, and curating learnings. The findings and recommendations from this contextual analysis will inform the development of the Strategy for Empowering Young People in Agriculture and Agribusiness. The strategy will be aligned to AGRA’s 2030 Strategic Framework that emphasizes empowerment as well as influencing change for young people through partners. Throughout the assignment, the Consultant will be constantly engaging with and consulting the Gender and Inclusiveness Team at AGRA. The assignment will also include consultations with other stakeholders including AGRA staff, grantees, government departments, and development partners.

The consultancy tasks and expected outputs are listed below:

(A) Development of AGRAs Youth employment in Agriculture strategy to detail amongst others

(1) A deeper analysis of the issues, challenges and opportunities relating to youth employment and profitable participation in agriculture, characterizing both demand and supply-side constraints across Africa; highlighting key constraints

(2) Evaluate existing government policies, strategies, and initiatives on youth empowerment – determining the extent of implementation, effectiveness, and gaps.

(3) Using selected country insights, analyse the youth employment and entrepreneurship ecosystem in agriculture, detailing institutional arrangements, enabling policy, the service provision, skills development, and access to various productive resources

(4) Segment youth based on various socio-economic, regional and gender circumstances and identify needs and appropriate engagement strategies for each cluster

(5) Analyse major continental and/or selected country initiatives to benchmark approaches, methodologies, lessons, and insights useful in evolving AGRA’s youth in agriculture strategy, including continental levers to drive youth engagement and employment in Agriculture

(6) Based on AGRAs strengths, core competencies and continental leadership role, develop a strategy that:

• Identifies high impact, catalytic triggers of agriculture sector growth for employment opportunities
• Defines job creation interventions and pathways that are attractive to young people, including females and those in disadvantaged areas, that generate liveable income, that meets the descent job work standards, including illustrative interventions.
• Outlines how to expand entrepreneurial opportunities for youth in agriculture, detailing what is required to catalyse youth entrepreneurship capabilities, and the necessary pre-conditions, to attract and keep young people engaged, including illustrative interventions.
• Enhances youth voices and equitable participation, creating structures for engagement at macro, meso and micro level, including illustrative examples
• Recommends the right level of entry and intervention areas to optimize impact based on AGRA institutional assessment.
• Maps key partnerships required in implementing the strategy supporting youth in agriculture as well as facilitating resource mobilization.
• Recommends youth engagement methodologies and activities that AGRA and its partners can conduct and scale-out to achieve its objectives of increased productivity and access to markets, recommend the right level of entry and intervention areas to optimize impact based on AGRA institutional assessment.
• Develop a generic results framework alongside a Theory of Change and intervention pathways
• Develop a 20-page draft strategy, including a 2-page summary, and a detailed PPT capturing the entire strategy main document.

(B) Guide technical teams on the application of the youth in agriculture strategy

(C) Periodic presentations to AGRA internal teams and selected stakeholders for validation and buy in

Expected Deliverables
Output 1: A 10-page inception report, detailing among others an understanding of the TOR, the methodology proposed, and an outline for the strategy document

Output 2: Draft contextual analysis report with deep-dive analysis on selected country definitions and contextual categorization of youth,  youth in agriculture interventions and employment models by state and non-state actors, identify continental levers and constraints, including gender related,  to participation in agriculture, aspirations, opportunity structures/spaces, characterise the existing ecosystems for youth and government policies, mapping of key partnerships, recommend engagement methodologies that can be scaled-out.

Output 3: Periodic check in with AGRA team to get comments, develop final contextual analysis report, with integratedcomments and insights.

Output 4: Draft report on youth employment in Agriculture pathways, this includes youth inclusion and engagement plans, tools and methodologies, the monitoring and evaluation plan, and indicators

Output 5: Periodic check in AGRA team to firm up strategic propositions and job creation pathways

Output 6: Draft overall strategy (40 page) for Empowering Young People in Agriculture and Agribusiness: Contextual analysis and AGRA’s youth employment, entrepreneurship and empowerment in agriculture strategic offering. among others the strategy should detail to support and connect young people to opportunities in agriculture including,  detailing the best principles, approaches, and methodologies of engaging youth, including female and those in disadvantaged areas, a theory of change, priority intervention areas, define pathways for youth employment and entrepreneurship, develop monitoring learning and evaluation framework, and identify potential partnerships and synergies that facilitate resource mobilization and implementation of interventions, and recommend the right level of entry and intervention areas to optimize impact based on AGRA institutional assessment.

Output 6: Final Strategy for Empowering Young People in Agriculture and Agribusiness. Complete report with integrated comments andinsights, and a final power point presentation.

OUTPUT 7: Providing advisory and technical support to 7 country teams for interpretation of strategy as per work plan

MANAGEMENT OF ASSIGNMENT
The Consultancy firm will work directly with the Head of Gender and Inclusiveness for oversight and guidance. The firm will also engage with the AGRA Strategy team and other staff as needed in the delivery of the assignment.

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE
It is estimated that the assignment will take 3 Calendar Months

QUALIFICATIONS OF THE CONSULTANCY FIRM

• A highly qualified consultancy firm with consultants possessing an advanced degree in Labour market economics, Development economics, Agricultural economics, International Development, Gender Economics and related disciplines.
• Extensive experience (at least 10 years) in youth employment, entrepreneurship, and economic opportunities particularly in the agriculture sector.
• Proven experience in the use of qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection and analyses
• Experience in developing strategies and leading strategy formulation.
• Proven experience in developing youth engagement and business models.
• An understanding of the current youth economic empowerment interventions by state and non-state actors, best practices, and learnings.
• Experience in partnerships and collaborations, with a bias to youth in agriculture.
• Understanding of global, regional, and national policy environment around youth engagement in agriculture.
• Understanding of policy, legislative, advocacy, and influencing initiatives with the youth.

EVALUATION CRITERIA
(1) Company profile and Organizational capacity – 10%

(2) Technical Approach/Methodology-Brief description of the understanding of the assignment – 20%

– Detailed proposal of your understanding of the ToR and the scope of the work, outlining the approach and plan to accomplish the assignment.

(3) Workplan – 10%

– A proposed max 3months timeline indicating activities/sub-activities to be undertaken and the corresponding outputs

(4) Experience in carrying out similar assignments – 30%

(5) Detailed reference list indicating the scope and magnitude of similar assignments in the last 3 to 5 years.

(6) Any direct or relevant experience of undertaking similar initiatives.

(7) Key personnel – 30%

– Names and CVs of the professionals who will be the lead and associated with the assignment and how the study will be managed

PAYMENT SCHEDULE
Proposed Payment Plan is deliverable based.

(1) A detailed inception reports-20%

(2) A Strategy draft Report-40%

(3) Final Strategy Report-40%

SUBMISSION
(1) Technical Proposal, Detailed CV, Cover Letter and Financial Proposals must be submitted separately to procurement@agra.org by the deadline indicated in the synopsis

(2) Technical and Financial proposals will need to be submitted as separate documents.

(3) Only the financial proposal of the best candidate will be opened and negotiated.

(4) Neither technical nor financial proposals should exceed 10MB.

(5) The financial proposal MUST be password protected

(6) The Financial proposals shall include all applicable withholding taxes. If taxes are not mentioned in the financial proposal, AGRA shall consider them as included in the prices provided.

DISCLAIMER
AGRA reserves the right to determine the structure of the process, number of short-listed candidates and the right to withdraw from this process at any time without prior notice and without liability to compensate and/or reimburse any party.

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