DEADLINE: 1ST NOVEMBER, 2021
AFRICAN UNION
REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST [FIRMS] FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A STRATEGIC PLAN FOR THE AFRICAN CONTINENTAL FREE TRADE AREA (AFCFTA) SECRETARIAT
“Development of a Strategic Plan for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat”
Title of the Assignment: Development of a Strategic Plan for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat
Description: Consultancy to support the development of a 10-year Strategic Plan of the AfCFTA Secretariat under the African Development Bank (AfDB) Institutional Support Project to the African Union on the Implementation of the AfCFTA Place of Assignment: Flexible, but based on consultations with the AfCFTA Secretariat
Duration: Six (6) months
Deadline for Applications: 5:00pm GMT on November 1, 2021
Applications and Enquiries The Project CoordinatorShould be Addressed to: ISP for AfCFTA Implementation AfCFTA Secretariat Africa Trade House Ambassadorial Enclave Liberia Road, Accra Ghana
Email: afdbisp@au-afcfta.org
(1.0) INTRODUCTION
(1.1) Reference is made to the General Procurement Notice (AfDB-P494928-02/20 of February 26, 2020) published by both the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) and the African Union (AU) regarding a Grant received by the African Union Commission (AUC) from the African Development Fund (ADF) to finance the Institutional Support Project for the African Union: African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Implementation.
(1.2) The AfCFTA Secretariat, in collaboration with the AfDB, now invites interested Consultancy firms to express their interest in the following assignment – Consultancy Services for the “Development of a Strategic Plan for the AfCFTA Secretariat”.
(2) Background and Rationale
(2.1) The AfCFTA Secretariat is the AU organ that is legally established and mandated to handle the rules of trade between African countries in the context of the Agreement Establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area, which was signed at an Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of the AU in Kigali, Rwanda in March 2018. The overall objective of the AfCFTA is to create a single continental market for goods and services, with free movement of business persons and investments, paving the way for accelerating the establishment of the continent’s first ever customs union. With 55 countries, the AfCFTA will be the largest Free Trade Area (FTA) in the world in terms of membership, covering a market of 1.3 billion people with a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of US$3.4 trillion (2020).
(2.2) The AfCFTA Agreement is a framework agreement, with comprehensive coverage of Trade in Goods, Trade in Services, Investment, Competition Policy, Intellectual Property Rights, Women and Youth in Trade, and Digital Trade as well as Rules and Procedures for the Settlement of Disputes.
(2.3) The AfCFTA Secretariat, established as a unique Pan-African institution, has operational autonomy within the AU System, and is the administrative organ that is coordinating implementation of the AfCFTA Agreement. At the core of the AfCFTA Secretariat’s mandate is implementation of the Agreement Establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area, negotiated, signed and ratified by the State Parties. The goal is to ensure that trade is conducted smoothly, predictably and as freely as possible across the continent. The AfCFTA Secretariat, which is headquartered in Accra, Ghana, at the Africa Trade House, was established in February 2020, following the election of its first Secretary-General. The Secretariat operates a continental system of trade rules, acts as a platform for negotiating trade protocols, facilitates the settlement of disputes between State Parties, and monitors implementation of the AfCFTA Agreement.
(2.4) As a new and yet one of the most important structures of the African Union system, it is essential that all necessary steps are taken to ensure an effective implementation of the Agreement by the Secretariat in order to consolidate the gains made with the Agreement Establishing the AfCFTA.
(2.5) One important step in that direction is development of the AfCFTA Strategic Plan, which will help to streamline and rationalize activities of the Secretariat for accelerating implementation of the AfCFTA Agreement. A key objective in designing the plan is to help strengthen the institutional capacity of the Secretariat by building the systems underlying operations and providing strategic directions for the effectiveness and efficiency of the directorates to deliver on their mandates. The strategic plan will also help to provide directions on negotiations in outstanding areas, and in overcoming any existing or unforeseen challenges that the Secretariat may encounter in supporting Member States of the AU, regional economic communities (RECs) and other entities to realize the goals of the AfCFTA Agreement, in line with the vision and mission of the AU on the intra-continental trade regime. It is envisaged that the plan will help to create a roadmap, direction, guidelines and coordination mechanisms, as well as forging strategic partnerships to establish the AfCFTA Secretariat as a stable and durable institution in pursuit of its mission and achievement of its mandate.
(2.6) Toward these objectives, the AfCFTA Secretariat seeks to engage a well-qualified consulting firm to help prepare the 10-year Strategic Plan (2022-2032).
(2.7) Funding for the assignment has been provided by the AfDB through the Institutional Support Project (ISP) for the African Union on AfCFTA Implementation. The ISP seeks to support establishment of the AfCFTA Secretariat as a solid entity, and rolling out related implementation programs to Member States of the AU.
(3) Scope of the Assignment 3.1. The main tasks of the consultancy, under the guidance and supervision of the Office of the Secretary General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, are:
(a) Dialogue with relevant Secretariat staff to understand the mandates and activities of the directorates; familiarize the staff and directorates with the objectives of the exercise; and facilitate their contributions toward the formulation and implementation of the plan;
(b) Review the vision and mission statements of the Secretariat and assess the potential of existing institutional arrangements for realizing them;
(c) Provide a sound analytical basis for crafting the core values that could be institutionalized at the Secretariat to foster a congenial work environment, recommending a set of core values or guiding principles for management and staff in their routine operations and interactions to help realize the mandate of the Secretariat as well as achievement of the AfCFTA goals, given the multi-national, multi-ethnic and diverse workforce, the range of economic and other variables that characterize the AfCFTA State Parties and other stakeholders, and building on the existing values and organizational culture of some of the AU institutions and the key partners (e.g., RECs);
(d) Analyze the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) of the Secretariat’s current arrangements to deduce possible avenues for achieving its mandate, indicating the immediate and potential challenges;
(e) Identify the assets, resources and innovative approaches for building the Secretariat as a solid entity in pursuit of the AfCFTA’s vision and generally in building the “Africa We Want”;
(f) Work with the various directorates and divisions of the Secretariat to collate their objectives, strategies and operational frameworks toward the vision statement, and help organize the priorities and performance initiatives for the period of the plan, and specifying “who, what, and when” and the resources that could be leveraged to accomplish them, and “how”;
(g) Further prepare a guideline for building durable partnerships between the Secretariat and relevant entities, highlighting the strategic arrangements with core AU institutions and other external partners;
(h) Develop guidelines for periodic coordination meetings between the Secretariat and the main RECs on issues of REC implementation of the AfCFTA;
(i) Organize a review of administrative and operational manuals to bring them into conformity with international standards;
(j) Review and update the framework for performance monitoring and evaluation of staff, units and directorates against scheduled targets (annually or semi-annually) and also against resource inputs, and recommend ways to enhance productivity, including through incentives and sanctions regimes;
(k) Analyze the financial resource implications of the draft strategy and recommend approaches for efficiency in resource management – resource mobilization, use, accountability and reporting;
(l) Develop approaches for creating synergy and coherence among the various directorates and specialized units to help put in place mechanisms for tracking outcomes;
(m) Organize and report on review meetings concerning the main outputs of the Consultancy; and
(n) Perform such other tasks assigned by the Office of the Secretary-General as may become necessary.
(4) Application 4.1. The AfCFTA Secretariat now invites eligible consulting firms to indicate their interest in providing the services described in this request for expression of interest. Interested firms should provide information indicating that they are qualified to perform the services (brochures, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, availability of appropriate skills among staff, etc.).
(4.2) The eligibility criteria, establishment of a short list and the selection procedure shall be in conformity with the African Development Bank’s Procurement Policy Framework (October 2015) for implementation of the subject Project, which is available on the Bank Website (<http://www.afdb.org>).
(4.3) Please note that the interest expressed by a firm does not imply an obligation on the part of the AfCFTA Secretariat to include it in the shortlist for further assessments. Note also that applicants are expected to have registered as consultants of the AfDB in the “DACON Register”. The register can be accessed on the DACON window of the AfDB Website.
(4.4) Interested firms should submit their expression of interest of not more than 20 pages in standard formatting (e.g., ‘Times New Roman’, a minimum of 12-point, and 1.15 to 1.5 line spacing) via electronic means (email only) by the due date, mentioning the title of the Consultancy, to:
The Project Coordinator
ISP for AfCFTA Implementation AfCFTA Secretariat Africa Trade House Ambassadorial Enclave Liberia Road, Accra Ghana
Email: afdbisp@au-afcfta.org
