Expert in export development through e-commerce

Job Description

KEY INFORMATION
Job Title: Expert in export development through e-commerce
Sector: Trade and development
Position Type (full/part time): Part-time
Duration/Level of Effort (long/short term): Short-term
Position Location (e.g. city, country, remote): Remote and in-person


BAKCGROUND
Funded by Global Affairs Canada, the Expert Deployment Mechanism for Trade and Development (EDM) provides technical assistance to Official Development Assistance (ODA)-eligible countries to maximize the development impacts of trade and investment. Over seven years (2018-2025), EDM will invest CAD 16.5 million to support Canada’s developing country trading partners to negotiate, implement, benefit from, and adapt to trade and investment agreements with Canada.

EDM is a demand-driven project that will benefit potential partners – including governments, local private sector groups and local civil society organizations – through capacity building and technical advisory support on policy reform issues that have a high potential to reduce poverty and gender inequalities and support progress in trade and investment agreement negotiations.

The focus of EDM technical assistance to Colombia has been to increase the utilization of the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (CCoFTA).  This technical assistance is aligned with Colombia’s National Development Plan 2022-2026 (NDP), which focuses on increasing SMEs export performance and helping them take advantage of existing opportunities in international markets.  Recent EDM technical assistance has been provided to strengthen national and regional trade support organizations through the development of training on agricultural export development and specialized tourism promotion.

MSMEs, which represent more than 98% of Colombian companies, face significant challenges in accessing export markets, principally due to their limited financial and human resources, as well as their small production volumes.  Electronic commerce offers opportunities for small producers to reach global markets, but few Colombian businesses have the knowledge necessary to take advantage of digital trade.  To help raise awareness and understanding of exporting through e-commerce, EDM supported the development of a business guide and related training course to be used by ProColombia, the trade, tourism and investment promotion agency of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism of Colombia.  The guide and course included a detailed description of the Canadian e-commerce market, including the relevant laws, regulations, policies and procedures governing market access.  

The Colombian Chamber of Electronic Commerce (CCEC) has requested follow-on assistance to support their efforts to promote e-commerce by MSMEs.  More specifically, the CCEC has requested EDM technical assistance to develop additional training tools, adapted to MSMEs and for both virtual and in-person delivery.  This assistance would include coaching for CCEC staff to prepare them to use the training tools. 


LINKAGE TO EDM PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT FRAMEWORK
This assistance is consistent with the EDM Performance Management Framework, Immediate Outcome 1310: Increased abilities among targeted private sector organizations to adapt to and benefit from trade and investment agreements with Canada.


DESCRIPTION OF TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE REQUEST/KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Building on the business guide to e-commerce in Canada developed under the EDM for ProColombia the technical experts will:

design and produce a training module on the Canadian e-commerce market to be included in their existing online training platform, https://exporta.online/;

• adapt the training for both webinar and in-person workshop delivery by CCEC staff;
• design and deliver a gender-sensitive “train-the-trainer” (ToT) workshop to prepare CCEC officials to deliver the training to MSMEs;
• deliver the webinar(s) and in-person workshop to MSMEs, including those led by women and other underrepresented groups such as Indigenous Peoples and Afro-Colombians, as a pilot to gauge the effectiveness of the training and as part of the ToT component of the assistance.
  

Consistent with Canada’s inclusive trade approach, the EDM promotes gender equality and social inclusion as cross-cutting objectives of all technical assistance.  Proposals should explain how these objectives will be integrated into the assistance activity, both in its conduct and its content.

Similarly, bidders should consider how the promotion of environmental sustainability can be addressed in the assistance activity.

All activities and deliverables are to be delivered in Spanish.  The cost of translation and simultaneous interpretation will be borne by the EDM in addition to all direct costs (expert travel and accommodation, meeting facilities, etc.).  The in-person workshop will be delivered in Bogota, Colombia.

The immediate beneficiaries of the assistance will be CCEC staff and MSMEs participating in the pilot training activities.  In is expected that they will increase their awareness and understanding of e-commerce and their capacity to conduct digital export marketing.  In the medium and longer term, the beneficiaries will be all MSME members of the CCEC, who are expected to increase their exports through e-commerce, increase their revenues, create new employment and reduce poverty.


TECHNICAL EXPERT PROFILE/EXPERTISE REQUIRED
Bidders for this technical assistance activity must demonstrate expert knowledge and extensive experience in the following:

• export development through e-commerce;
• the design and delivery of training courses for adult learners including online training courses and related teaching materials;
• the design and delivery of train-the-trainer programs and teaching tools (manuals, lesson plans, etc.);
• the integration of gender equality and social inclusion considerations in the design and delivery of trade technical assistance;
• the integration of environmental sustainability trends in trade policy and negotiations into trade technical assistance: and
• the design and delivery of trade technical assistance to developing countries.
  

The EDM includes a core focus on gender and social inclusion as well as on environmental issues associated with trade activities. Successful applicants must research and integrate specific good and emerging practices in this area, partnering with other expert consultants if necessary. Any prior experience providing TA on gender equality, social inclusion, and the environment will be considered a strong asset.   Before starting activities, the successful consultant(s) will be required to complete the Government of Canada’s online Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) training (approximately 2 hours).


TIMELINES
The recruitment of experts is expected to be completed by February 14, 2025. The technical assistance activity is expected to be completed by August 31, 2025.


DELIVERABLES

• A detailed work plan, work schedule and budget for the delivery of activities.
• Draft and final training courses in self-directed learning online, webinar and in-person workshop formats, including all related training tools (presentations, manuals, lesson plans, etc.)
• Draft and final agenda and presentation materials for the training workshops, including the train-the-trainer component.
• Completed EDM Performance Measurement Framework template for the TA, including baseline data and targets against EDM indicators.
• Final Narrative Report on Mandate: Due within 30 calendar days of completing all TA activities. The report shall describe activities delivered, results achieved (versus initial expected results and baseline), lessons learned relevant to future EDM activities, and expenses incurred by the Consultant in carrying out this mandate. This report will be reviewed and approved by EDM before being shared with Global Affairs Canada.
  

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION PROCESS
For your proposal to be considered, please name your document in the following format:
4.11 Consultant Last Name, First Name (or Organisation’s name)
(Proposals can be submitted by a single consultant or a consortium of consultants).

Your proposal should be in English and contain the following sections:

• Cover letter
• Proposal that includes the following:
• Your approach to implementing this TA (up to 10 pages maximum);
• Describe your approach to ensure that gender equality and social inclusion are considered in all aspects of the TA, including approach, content, and delivery (up to 2 pages maximum);
• Describe your approach to ensure that environmental impacts are considered in all aspects of the TA, including approach, content, and delivery (up to 1 page maximum);
• Outline your project management and monitoring strategy for the implementation of the activities (up to 2 pages maximum).
• Indicate all proposed personnel to implement this project and their roles and responsibilities. Include all CVs of proposed personnel/experts (up to 20 pages maximum).
• Estimated level of effort (in days) and provide consulting rates (in CAD) for each proposed personnel and/or expert implementing the project.Please submit your proposal as one PDF document through the Cowater Career Page. Emailed proposals will not be accepted. If you have any questions, please email info@edm-mde.ca.
  

About the Organization

ABOUT US

Founded in 1985, Cowater International is a leading global development consulting company. Headquartered in Ottawa and with corporate hubs in Auckland, Berlin, Brussels, Helsinki, London, Madrid, Manila, Nairobi, Singapore and Stockholm, Cowater International has successfully delivered a portfolio of over 2500 projects and assignments in more than 95 countries. We work with governments, private sector actors and communities implementing projects that support socio-economic development, institutional strengthening, environmental improvements and advance equal opportunities for all. We are a diverse and experienced team committed to building a better tomorrow for the people we serve. Our adaptive approach to management has led to our yearly award-winning work and recognition as one of Canada’s Best Managed Companies since 2017.

We thank you for your interest in building a better tomorrow.