Consultancy; ToT on Permagardening and Climate Smart Agriculture

Job Description

Position: Consultancy; ToT on Permagardening and Climate Smart Agriculture

Location: Maban – South Sudan

Duration: 1 Month

Reports to: Livelihoods Country Program Manager

About RI:

Relief International is a leading nonprofit organization working in 20 countries to relieve poverty, ensure well-being and advance dignity. We specialize in fragile settings, responding to natural disasters, humanitarian crises and chronic poverty.

Relief International combines humanitarian and development approaches to provide immediate services while laying the groundwork for long-term impact. Our signature approach — which we call the RI Way—emphasizes local participation, an integration of services, strategic partnerships, and a focus on civic skills. In this way, we empower communities to find, design and implement the solutions that work best for them.

Purpose/Project Description:

Expanding access to cultivable land for refugees and improving use of small household plots including kitchen gardens continues to be a major focus of Relief International agriculture/food security programming in 2018. Towards this end, Relief International through its UNHCR’s funded Livelihoods, Environment, and Agriculture for Peace (LEAP II) project will seek to enable Agricultural production through support farmer producer groups farming families. In addition, home gardening will be promoted through 200 women including mother and care givers of children under 5; female headed households, child headed households, sexual gender based violence survivors and the elderly. Coupled with support to producer farmer groups and home gardening groups; Relief International will undertake targeted crop and vegetable kit distribution to approximately 7000 households.

Project implementing staff under agriculture and food security pillar are expected to undertake participatory capacity building providing ongoing technical support to farmers on basic agronomic practices, bio intensive gardening, integrated pest management and composting.

The Agricultural livelihood activities and objectives pursued by RI is aligned with UNHCR South Sudan National Livelihoods strategy (2016-2018), UNHCR’s global strategy for livelihoods (2014-2018) as well as core strategic direction seeking to promote inclusion and self-reliance as stipulated in the UNHCR Strategic direction 2017 -2021. As such, the Trainer of Trainers training should be tailored to goals and objectives of the relevant strategic documents highlighted.

Description of the Work: A Consulting Institution/ consultants are sought who will be responsible for building the capacity of 20 project implementing staff and 30 lead farmers through a trainer of trainers training over a 24 day period to enable staff to adequately provide capacity building support to persons of concern and vulnerable host community groups engaged in home gardening/kitchen gardening and perma gardening activities. It is expected that a follow up will be provided after the training post activity implementation. However the follow-up capacity building will be discussed after the trainer of trainers training and will not be included as part of scope for work for this assignment.

Expected Deliverables:

• Develop a contextualized manual for home/ perma gardening
• Provide Trainer of trainers training to 20 Staff on bio intensive / perma gardening techniques focusing on field crops such as Sorghum and Maize.
• Support the establishment of 20 model perma gardens as part of practical learning exercise during training (Specific sites to be decided together with consultants upon arrival)
• Develop Trainer of Trainers manual tailored to Maban context and consistent with training imparted in Maban. Resource materials provided following training should be tailored to the realities of agricultural production for refugees with space/land constraints.
• Based on literature reviewed and interaction with Food Security/Livelihood staff as well as persons of concern; document lessons learned from implementing kitchen gardening activities in 2017.
• Produce a comprehensive end of training report within two weeks following training, detailing gaps and concrete recommendations following a general assessment of Maban context during training conducted as well as literature review based on agricultural activities undertaken in Maban.
• Provide certification to staff taking part in the Trainer of Trainers training on perma culture design for bio intensive gardening.

Location of Work:

The trainer of trainers training will be conducted in Maban County of Upper Nile State South Sudan. Practical exercises involving the training will be undertaken in any of the 4 refugee camps in Maban – Doro, Yusuf Batil, Gendrassa and Kaya camps.

Time Frame:

The consultancy duration is 24 days inclusive of travel days and weekends [Home location – Juba, Juba –Maban, Maban-Juba, Juba – Home location]. The consultant will be expected to carry out an initial training for staff; follow up capacity building with the trainer of trainers will take place post activity implementation if agreed between the consultant, Relief International and UNHCR.

Qualifications and Requirements:

• Rural Development/ Agricultural Extension /Permaculture and related academic qualification
• At least 3-5 years’ experience working with small holder farmers on climate resilient farming and perma culture design
• Vast experience planning, designing and establishing perma / home gardens in rural settings as well as refugee/displacement settings with space/land constraints
• Expertise in designing small scale home based agricultural production systems as well as perma gardens
• Experience undertaking trainer of trainers training for agriculture/ food security implementing staff in topics related to climate smart agriculture, sustainable agriculture and home based agricultural production
• Well versed in topics on climate smart agriculture; evidenced by previous work experience or consultancy experience in the topic (2 Samples of written work on similar assignment is expected)
• Experience with water harvesting systems for micro-gardens is advantageous
• Capacity to provide credible certification to staff involved in the trainer of trainers course is a must

Documents to be reviewed:

• UNHCR South Sudan National Livelihood Strategy
• UNHCR Global Strategy for Livelihoods (2014 -2018)
• RI’s Project Proposal Documents – 2018
• Livelihood Programming in UNHCR ; Operational Guidelines

Confidentiality Statement:

• All data and information received from agencies and any other stakeholder for the purpose of this assignment is to be treated with utmost confidentiality and should only be used in the execution of the Terms of Reference
• Contents of written materials obtained and used in this assignment may not be disclosed to any 3^rd parties without advance written authorization of Relief International and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR)

Submission of Quotes:

Interested consultants/ consulting institutions should submit their application and quotes for this consultancy to Relief International not later than March 2 0 ^th 2018. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Quotes submitted for the consultancy should include:

• Name, address, phone and contact person

Technical Proposal:

• Coaching/Training approach proposed;
• Proposed work plan for the training of trainers course including number of trainings to be undertaken with the team, number of days required, number of follow up sessions (Optional to be agreed upon with the agency)
• Deliverables: provide a table with approximate dates of completion of each of the above mentioned deliverables [detailing specific topics to be covered]
• Provide a list of the consultants who will be involved in the project and a brief bio-data for each of them
• Financial proposal, including daily rates, currency (In USD) and number of days proposed for each activity, and total costs. Period of validity of the quotation should also be indicated
• Date and signature
• Three professional references from Organizations where a similar assignment has been conducted.

Relief International’s Values:

We uphold the Humanitarian Principles: humanity, neutrality, impartiality and operational independence. We affirmatively engage the most vulnerable communities.

We value:

Inclusiveness

Transparency and accountability

Agility and innovation

Collaboration

Sustainability

About the Organization

About RI: Relief International is a leading nonprofit organization working in 20 countries to relieve poverty, ensure well-being and advance dignity. We specialize in fragile settings, responding to natural disasters, humanitarian crises and chronic poverty.

Relief International combines humanitarian and development approaches to provide immediate services while laying the groundwork for long-term impact.