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Entrepreneurship Policy and Implementation Strategy for Botswana

1:24:00 PM

Reference: PX/BOT/028
Location: Botswana
Duration: To be implemented over a 10-month period commencing December 2011/January 2012
Closing Date: 21 Nov 2011

Background

The Ministry of Trade and Industry, Government of Botswana, has reaffirmed the importance of a National Entrepreneurship Policy and Strategy and has sought technical assistance from the Commonwealth Secretariat in its development. The selected consultant(s) will work closely with the Local Enterprise Authority (LEA), a statutory agency, created by the Small Business Act of 2004, which is mandated to promote entrepreneurship and small, micro and medium enterprise (SMME) development in Botswana. LEA, which has 13 offices across the country, also runs a five-day Entrepreneurship Development course.

The impetus for a National Entrepreneurship Policy and Strategy is based on the premise that the Government of Botswana’s (GoB) declared objective of promoting private sector and MSME development, as a key strategy for sustained growth and economic diversification, can only be achieved through the formulation and implementation of a holistic entrepreneurship policy. Although Botswana has a national MSME policy, developed in 1998, it is a widely held view in-country that the MSME policy is outdated and is not comprehensive enough to promote entrepreneurship and orderly growth of MSMEs.

Objective

The purpose of the project is to promote entrepreneurship and small business development in Botswana. This will be achieved by supporting the development of an Entrepreneurship Policy and Implementation Strategy for the Government of Botswana

Outputs

The main output of the project will be an Entrepreneurship Policy and Implementation Strategy (EPS).

The Entrepreneurship Policy will specify the approaches and measures needed to:

  • Promote an entrepreneurial climate and culture;
  • Encourage entrepreneurship in all age group
  • Integrate and embed entrepreneurship education at all levels of the education system;
  • Increase the number of new entrepreneurs and business start-up rate;
  • Improve start-up business development services
  • Facilitate the emergence of a supportive administrative, economic and regulatory environment for MSME development.

The Implementation Strategy will:

  • Lay out a framework and steps for translating the Entrepreneurship Policy into tangible initiatives and interventions;
  • Specify distinct phases in the implementation of the Entrepreneurship Policy;
  • Provide a basis for ensuring that the implementation of the Entrepreneurship Policy is coordinated and coherent by identifying and defining:

    • the functional roles of key institutions and stakeholders and areas of collaboration.
    • clear coordination mechanism to ensure predictable and manageable institutional relations in implementing the Entrepreneurship Policy.
    • expected inputs and outputs of each institution involved in the implementation of the Entrepreneurship Policy.
  • Specify clear results, outcomes and milestones by which success can be measured through a performance monitoring and evaluation system.

The final draft EPS will be presented in a final Project Report which also sets out the findings of the main consultations undertaken, the critical success factors identified as well as the leading recommendations.

Approach and Methodology

Whilst the project will be informed by experiences from elsewhere, including within Africa, the emphasis will be on inputs derived largely from within Botswana. The Entrepreneurship Policy will thus emerge from a participatory process of consultation and engagement with relevant stakeholders. Details of the approach to be adopted and final work-plan, including the consultation process to be pursued, will be presented to the Technical Working Group during the Inception Mission and will also clearly set out in the Inception Report. The consultation process will be robust both in terms of stakeholders consulted and geographic coverage. The private sector, academia as well as relevant government ministries and institutions, and civil society will be consulted, including through individual meetings where appropriate. In the case of government institutions in particular, their roles in promoting entrepreneurship and implementation of the entrepreneurship strategy will be clearly articulated. The consultant will undertake consultations in at least four districts including the North East, Central and Southern districts. The consultant will work closely with the appointed LEA co-ordinator who will provide guidance, amongst other things, on the style and format employed by Government of Botswana in drafting of policies.

The Consultant will also clearly articulate how the Entrepreneurship Policy is to be implemented based on discussions and agreements reached between LEA with other relevant government institutions during the course of the project. These activities will be clearly reflected in the Implementation Strategy. Where new legislation is likely to be required to support the implementation of the EP, the Consultant will give some indication of the likely time scale for their development.

Project delivery in country will be assessed at two levels:

  • A Technical Working Group (TWG) including representation from the Commonwealth Secretariat and LEA. At least two presentations to the Technical Working Group are envisaged.
  • A Reference Group (RG), led by the Ministry of Trade and Industry. At least two presentations to the Reference Group are envisaged during the course of the project.

The Inception phase of the project will include an Inception Mission to Botswana and is expected to last between 3 to 4 weeks. Agreement on the composition of the Reference Group will be reached with LEA during this phase. A presentation to the TWG on the findings of the Inception Mission will also be made.

The emphasis at all times will be on developing an Entrepreneurship Policy and Implementation Strategy that is not only current but is also pragmatic in terms of what national institutions, including LEA, can deliver based on an assessment of their capabilities and any other resource constraints, including financial resources.

Inputs

The project will be implemented over a ten-month period, commencing December 2011/January 2012.

Activities

In developing the Entrepreneurship Policy and Implementation Strategy, the consultant will be expected to:

  • Document key lessons to emerge from the most effective approaches to entrepreneurship that have been pursed elsewhere, particularly in developing countries.
  • Identification of key players involved in promoting and assisting entrepreneurship and small business development in Botswana, including an assessment of their relative strengths and weaknesses.
  • Assist in articulating a definition of Entrepreneurship that has broad understanding and acceptance across Botswana.
  • Identify the main constraints to entrepreneurship and small business development in Botswana with a view to distilling the most critical success factors.
  • Review the continuing relevance of the SMME Policy (1998), including existing definition and categorisation of MSMEs contained in the Policy, in the light of the Entrepreneurship Policy to be developed. The potential for incorporating operators in the informal sector into any new definitions proposed by the project will also be undertaken based on feedback from consultations as well as best practice.
  • Organize consultations with relevant stakeholders, including feedback sessions, including but not limited to the Reference Group.
  • Liaise with relevant local bodies, including with the Local Enterprise Authority, with a view to reaching agreement on the most appropriate institutional arrangement for monitoring implementation of the Entrepreneurship Policy
  • Produce a succinct power point presentation of draft Entrepreneurship Policy in the event of a National Conference on Entrepreneurship (to be organised by LEA).

Reporting

A number of reports will be produced:

Inception Report
The Inception Report will be submitted within two weeks of the Inception mission and will require formal endorsement by both LEA and the Commonwealth Secretariat. The Inception Report (in Word format), should be succinct and incorporate annexes where appropriate.

Progress Reports
Two progress reports will be produced for the Commonwealth Secretariat. The first progress report will be produced four months after project inception. The second progress report will follow four months thereafter.

Final Report
A draft Final report will be submitted no later than one month before project completion. The Final Report (in Word format), shall be well-structured and succinct employing annexes where appropriate.

Qualifications

The Consultant will be an individual, firm or other legally established entity registered in a Commonwealth country and will have significant professional experience (at least 10 years) of designing and implementing international development projects relevant to entrepreneurship and enterprise development. The Lead Consultant is expected to have first hand working experience gained in Southern Africa. Fluency in relevant local language(s) will also be an advantage.

The Consultant is also expected to have access to good local backstopping and other administrative support capabilities.

Budget

The indicative budget for the level of effort envisaged under this project is £80,000 to £90,000, payable on an all-inclusive basis. This will cover all professional fees (international and local), air travel, per diem as well as all local costs to be incurred during project implementation including, but not limited to, the organisation of all workshops and all other consultations with relevant stakeholders such as the Reference Group.

Download the Terms of Reference

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