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Consultancy to further develop “Policy Options Notes” to inform the Food and Nutrition Security Strategy in Jordan

11:22:00 AM

Background

Jordan is a resource-poor country of 6 million people (80% urban-based), without oil and with limited land and water resources. The major cereals consumed are wheat, maize and barley, the last of these being used as fodder. Jordan is self-sufficient in fruit and vegetables, poultry, and eggs and in about 50% of milk and dairy needs. But it relies heavily on imports of wheat, cereals and fodder and, in the absence of long-term supply contracts; it is a price-taker in international grain markets. The rise in global food prices since 2008, coupled with subsequent price volatility and supply shocks (most notably the 2010 Russian grain export ban), combined to increase Jordan’s vulnerability and threaten its ability to secure sufficient grain imports at affordable prices. The National Strategy for Agricultural Development (NSAD) 2002-2010 acknowledged a number of issues facing the agriculture sector in Jordan, including the need for food security at the national and household level. The main objectives of the strategy are to diversify and improve rural livelihoods by improving access of the rural population to technology and resources. The NSAD also emphasizes the revitalization of the rural economy by improving marketing in order to counter high post-harvest losses, poor quality control and standardization.

To date, the Government of Jordan has approached food security mainly through 3 sectoral entry points:
  • Social protection, including distribution of food, cash and vitamin supplements to the vulnerable;
  • Short-term responses, including removal of taxes and tariffs on essential commodities, removal of interest from agricultural loans, and subsidizing some food items; and
  • Policy support and project-based actions aimed at increasing agricultural production and rural incomes, and improving rural skill sets.
Proposals should be submitted no later than 11th of September 2012 @ 15:00 PM.
Any request for clarification must be sent in writing, or by standard electronic communication to the e-mail address randa.taweel@undp.org. Ms. Randa Al-Taweel will respond in writing or by standard electronic mail and will send written copies of the response, including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry, to all consultants.

Interested candidates can find detailed information in Procurement Notice and TOR posted at the following link:
http://e-management.undp-jordan.org/vms/jobs.cfm

*The definition of food security is that adopted at the World Food Summit in 1996: ‘Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life’

Duties and Responsibilities

Objectives and Scope of Work:

A Joint UN Programme (Food and Nutrition Security in Jordan towards poverty alleviation) is providing assistance to the Jordanian Government in the area of food security. The planned outcomes are that: (a) national food security response is enhanced and coordinated; (b) small-holder farmer sustainable food production is increased; (c) nutrition interventions and safety nets are strengthened and made more accessible; and (d) sustainable livelihoods and food security of the poor are enhanced/improved. A planned output 1 under the first outcome is the development of a 5-year National Food Security Strategy. The formulation of the strategy formulation is being supported by the UNDP and the implementing partner is the Ministry of Agriculture.

In agreement with participating ministries and other organizations, the strategy will be prepared after review of policy in all areas embraced by food security considerations. In Jordan’s case, this includes agricultural and rural development, procurement and storage arrangements for grain imports, and social safety nets. The process of policy review has been initiated through policy notes which, in conjunction with subsequent consultative discussions, have the aim of identifying policy options and any further analysis needed before policy decisions can be made.

To date, 7 such brief policy notes identifying principal policy options and possible areas for policy analysis have been prepared and have subsequently been the subject of stakeholder consultations leading to recommendations for policy analysis. The Policy Options Notes that need to be further developed are:
  1. Food security through food self-sufficiency or agricultural trade
  2. Small-scale farming and agricultural structure
  3. Rural development policies
  4. Agro-processing
  5. Extension services
  6. Cooperatives
  7. Subsidies
(PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ABOVE MENTIONED POLICY NOTES AND PROPOSED AREAS FOR FURTHER ANALYSIS WILL BE PROVIDED TO THE SUCCESSFUL CONSULTANT UPON HIS/HER APPOINTMENT).

In addition to the above policy notes two further areas of policy analysis need to be analyzed as cross cutting issues in each paper during this assignment, due to their impact on food and nutrition security in Jordan: Limited water resources and cost of energy and their impact on food security.

Assignment objective:

The overall objective of this assignment is to further develop and build on the current Policy Notes, through undertaking further technical analysis for the identified policy options and consequently, the consultant will be required to conduct a comprehensive strategic analysis that will ultimately lead for the development of national Food and Nutrition Security strategy. The assignment shall be comprehensive and consultative. The consultation shall involve both internal staff of FSU, external supported staff at MoA, and PMA-UNDP. The assignment shall look at all critical areas and policies related to Food Security Strategy.

Tasks:
  • The consultant(s) needs to review all Project Documents, policy notes, and literatures related to the Food and nutrition security toward poverty alleviation project, and any other relevant documents, in order to build up proper linkages related to this assignment.
  • The consultant(s) needs to review the MDGs Acceleration Framework document.
  • Accordingly, the consultant(s) is required to carry out a robust analysis for identified principal policy options and possible areas for policy analysis that are believed to be as priority for food and nutrition security in Jordan. In case policy options in any of the policy options notes are not listed or not clear, the consultant will ensure that policy options are stated clearly based on sound analysis. The policy options proposed should be based on up-to-date data, information, reports and studies.
  • Based on the above technical analysis the consultant(s) is required to carry out a strategic analysis as step moving forward towards the development of National Food and Nutrition Security Strategy. This strategic analysis should be benchmarked against international best practices.
  • The consultant(s) is also required to carry out further technical analysis related to water and energy scarcity and identify their impact on food and nutrition security, in relation to the policy option note he/she is tackling. It should be noted that the consultant will need to gather information, reports and analysis that were developed in relation to his/her policy option note from the concerned departments such as Ministry of Water and Irrigation and Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, and review them in order to facilitate analysis.
  • The consultant is requested, based on data, information and in depth analysis to recommend a list of policy options, and to arrive to his/her own conclusion regarding the best policy option (one option).
Deliverables and Timeline:
  • An inception report detailing work breakdown structure (work-plan), literature reviewed list of information required, list of stakeholders to be met, showing how the consultant intends to carry out the assignment within a 3 days of signing the contract.
  • Comprehensive strategic analysis report on a “Policy Options Note”, listed under “scope of work section” from the list and benchmarking analysis .
  • Weekly progress report should be provided to PMA and Food Security Unit as well as to UNDP office in Amman.
  • Power Point presentation as deemed necessary.
  • All the above documents should be provided as hard and soft copies.
  • Submission of all documents, reports, analysis gathered for the purpose of this assignment.
* A consultant can apply up to two POLICY OPTIONS NOTES.

Management Arrangements:
  • UNDP will be responsible for the recruitment of the consultant and management of the assignment.
  • Once these Terms of Reference are signed, they are considering binding and will be annexed to the Individual Contract signed by the consultant. UNDP and the consultant may agree to amend the Terms of Reference, in which case the amended version will be signed accordingly.
  • The Duration of assignment shall take no longer than 15 Working days over a period of 30 days, for each “Policy Options Note”.
  • The consultant will be reporting on daily and weekly basis to the PMA, FSU at MoA and UNDP for Service Delivery. Progress reports shall be provided as deemed necessary. Final report is to be presented in two weeks, following the end of the assignment.
  • Reporting language should be both in English and Arabic Languages.
Evaluation:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodologies:
Cumulative analysis. When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:
a) responsive/compliant/acceptable, and
b) Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.
* Technical Criteria weight; [70%]
* Financial Criteria weight; [30%]
Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 50 points out of the 70 points of the technical evaluation would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:
  • 2-3 page proposal explaining why they are the most suitable for the work and providing a brief methodology on how they will approach and conduct the work (if applicable).
  • Financial proposal (which includes a breakdown of consultancy fees).
  • Personal CV including past experience in similar projects and at least 3 references. Noting that, only applications which include the above, will be considered.

Competencies

  • Excellent analytical skills.
  • Displays ability to synthesize research and reach empirically based conclusions on related subject.
  • Strong writing skills.
  • Proven capacity to produce reports.
  • Displays capacity to provide experienced advice on best practices.
  • Good communication, coordination and facilitation skills.
  • Consistently ensures timeliness and quality of work.
  • Treats all people fairly without favouritism.
  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.
  • Demonstrates integrity by modeling ethical standards.

Required Skills and Experience

The Consultant(s) should possess knowledge and competence in technical and strategic analysis related to food security sector. Availability of both technical and strategic experience is required.

Education:
  • Academic degree in agricultural economics and Business Management or any other related field.
Experience:
  • At least 5 years senior and executive consulting experience in food security sector, working at international level and with international organizations.
  • Professional and previous consulting experience in conducting similar or related assignment. At least 2 showcases should be presented.
  • Competent in Technical Writing and reporting skills.
Language Requirements:
  • Fluent in both English and Arabic languages.

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