Provision of Consultancy Services for Cameroon E-Commerce Market Access Support

Job Description

The Commonwealth Secretariat has supported the Government of Cameron to facilitate the development of an e-commerce strategy. A key deliverable of this project was to conduct capacity-building programs for enhancing women and SME cross-border e-commerce knowledge.

This is more so as findings during the course of the development of the project under our gender mainstreaming activities revealed that women entrepreneurs were found to be at a disadvantage in terms of access to digital infrastructure and participation in e-commerce platforms.

The goal of the program is mainly to build capacity of women-owned MSMEs in the areas of digital trade and E-commerce/online sales and facilitate their entry into regional and international digital marketplace. This consultancy will be required to deliver the second phase of the digital boot camp support to selected MSMEs who have completed the first phase of the training by providing additional support to design and deploy website or digital marketing initiatives to access major B2C online retail market portals.

Specific objectives include:

1. Identify possible interventions for addressing their trade capacity challenges, infrastructural deficiencies and development needs.
2. Develop and implement business-specific support activities for the phase 2 entrepreneurs, including market access support on 3 key online platforms.

Tasks to be undertaken

The Consultant will carry out the following specific activities:

1. Select the most digital-ready companies from the bootcamp trained firms that are able to benefit from the market access support.
2. Develop a proposal and deploy key strategies that may include digital marketing, website enhancement, or any other actions that will help the MSMEs to access major B2C / B2B online retail market portals and provide one on one support to selected firms.

1. Selection of the most digital-ready companies

The consultant, in partnership with ITFC, Comsec and the Cameroonian authorities will set up an assessment system which will allow for the selection of the most digital-ready companies. The use of this assessment system will allow for fairness and objectivity in the choice of beneficiaries as it standardizes the process by which companies are chosen.

2. Proposal, development, and execution of key digital strategies

Market access support will focus on identifying, developing, and implementing key strategies that will allow digital-ready SMEs to increase their businesses through digital tools. These strategies can include:

• extensive application of successfully proven digital marketing strategies in the Cameroonian context,
• use of websites or social medial platforms to increase revenues or expand customer base or interest in one’s products, both locally and internationally
• use of digital platforms to access foreign markets

The provisional timeline may be amended by agreement between the consultant and the TONR.

Education and experience

• Academic Qualifications and certifications in Computer Science and or IT Specialization International Trade, Economics, MBA,
• At least 8 years’ international experience in training and development for private sector organisations
• Proven experience in digital market access for MSMEs in Africa
• Substantive knowledge and working experience on E-commerce initiatives and ongoing multilateral and regional deliberations on digital trade.
• A working knowledge of English and French is required.
• Ability to work with a broad range of stakeholders.

Evaluation criteria

The Technical Questionnaire Quotes will be assessed based on the evaluation criteria set forth in this document (see skills and experience required and the weightings apportioned to quality/price above in this Terms of reference/RFQ).

Please apply for this contract by submitting a Proposal to tcs@commonwealth.int by 27 July 2023.

Commonwealth and International Islamic Trade Finance Cooperation (ITFC) countries are invited to submit bids.

About the Organization

The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 54 countries that support each other and work together towards shared goals in democracy and development. The world’s largest and smallest, richest and poorest countries make up the Commonwealth and are home to two billion citizens of all faiths and ethnicities – over half of whom are 25 or under. Member countries span six continents and oceans from Africa (19) to Asia (8), the Americas (2), the Caribbean (12), Europe (3) and the South Pacific (10). The Commonwealth, with roots as far back as the 1870s, believes that the best democracies are achieved through partnerships – of governments, business, and civil society. This unique association was reconstituted in 1949 when Commonwealth Prime Ministers met and adopted what has become known as the ‘London Declaration’ where it was agreed all member countries would be “freely and equally associated.” Since then membership has continued to grow. The most recent members are Rwanda - which was admitted at the 2009 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, Cameroon and Mozambique, which was the first country to join with no historical or administrative association with another Commonwealth country. Beyond the ties of history, language and institutions, it is the association’s values which unite its members: democracy, freedom, peace, the rule of law and opportunity for all. These values were agreed and set down by all Commonwealth Heads of Government at two of their biennial meetings (known as CHOGMs) in Singapore in 1971 and reaffirmed twenty years later in Harare. At government level, the values are protected by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG), a rotating group of nine Foreign Ministers, which assesses the nature of any infringement and recommends measures for collective action from member countries. It has the authority to suspend or even recommend to Heads of Government that a member country be expelled. When member countries have been suspended the Commonwealth continues to do everything possible to bring them back into the fold. While CMAG represents one aspect of the Commonwealth’s commitment to democratic principles, many more discreet interventions are made through ‘good offices’ work, where specially appointed representatives conduct quiet diplomacy as part of efforts to prevent or resolve conflicts and build dialogue and democratic structures. As well as Heads of Government, ministers responsible for education, environment, civil society, finance, foreign affairs, gender affairs, health law, tourism and youth also meet regularly. This ensures that Commonwealth policies and programmes represent views of the members and gives governments a better understanding of each other’s goals in an increasingly globalised world. There are three intergovernmental organisations in the association: the Commonwealth Secretariat (which executes plans agreed by Commonwealth Heads of Government through technical assistance, advice and policy development); the Commonwealth Foundation (which helps civil society organisations promote democracy, development and cultural understanding) and the Commonwealth of Learning (which encourages the development and sharing of open learning and distance education). Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is Head of the Commonwealth and Kamalesh Sharma, current Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, is the principal global advocate for the Commonwealth and Chief Executive of the Secretariat. Citizen-to-citizen links are as important to the Commonwealth as the contacts between member governments. The Commonwealth’s worldwide network of around 90 professional and advocacy organisations, most of which bear its name, continues to grow with a third of these based outside the UK. They work at local, national, regional or international levels and play crucial roles in policy, political or social aspects of Commonwealth life. One such organisation is the Commonwealth Games Federation, which manages the four-yearly multi-sport event. Commonwealth countries work together in a spirit of co-operation, partnership and understanding. This openness and flexibility are integral to the Commonwealth's effectiveness. Emphasis on equality has helped it play leading roles in decolonisation, combating racism and advancing sustainable development in poor countries. This support network of countries and organisations is involved in a diverse range of work, from helping trade negotiations, building the small business sector and encouraging women entrepreneurs to supporting the quality and quantity of teachers, and increasing understanding of HIV/AIDS. As well as working with each other, member countries and organisations have also built alliances outside the Commonwealth. Commonwealth ideas have been taken up by the World Bank on Small States, by the World Health Organization on the migration of doctors and nurses, by the International Labour Organization on the migration of teachers. Its support and expertise have been enlisted by the European Union (EU) and the African Union on building governance in Africa, and by the EU and the Pacific Islands Forum on building governance in the Pacific. The Commonwealth is part of the world that it serves, sharing the same interests as those of its citizens: democratic freedom and economic and social development.