I.                    INTRODUCTION

The Rainforest Alliance (RA) is creating a more sustainable world by using social and market forces to protect nature and improve the lives of farmers and forest communities. To achieve our mission, we partner with diverse allies around the world to drive positive change across global supply chains and in many of our most critically important natural landscapes.

Our alliance spans 70 countries and includes farmers and forest communities, companies, governments, civil society, and millions of individuals. Together we work to protect forests and biodiversity, take action on climate, and promote the rights and improve the livelihoods of rural people.

As an international nonprofit organization with more than 30 years of experience in sustainability transformation, we understand that the social and economic well-being of rural communities is tightly connected to ecosystem health. This knowledge has shaped our rigorous programs to advance sustainable land-use and commodity production.

II.                  BACKGROUND TO THE ASSIGNMENT

In 2021, Rainforest Alliance has officially opened its office in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The office has had a successful start-up phase with innovative and impactful projects and significant stakeholder engagement, including with donors. Our current activities in the country include community forestry projects in Salonga National Park, which - with its 36,000 square kilometers - is the largest protected area of dense forest on the African continent. To support DRC’s Community Forestry Strategy, we are working with the government and other partners to test different approaches to community forestry.

Donors have shown strong interest in RA’s work in the DRC and have recognized the importance of addressing deforestation and improving livelihoods in the country. To tap that potential, the project-development consultant will work in close cooperation with RA’s country-team to set the basis for future projects to be implemented in the country. The documents developed in this consultancy will also serve as a basis for future donor proposals.

III.          OBJECTIVES

The consultant will work in close cooperation with the country-director to set the basis for a strategy of intervention of the DRC country-office. The consultant will start with a thorough Situation Analysis in a limited number of pre-selected relevant landscapes within the country, in which RA has the capacity to contribute to relevant social, economic and environmental impacts. Based on the situation analysis, the consultant will design a Theory of Change (ToC) diagram and narrative that defines the contextual (impact level) and behavioral (outcome level) changes that RA´s DRC program could work towards, defining also specific products (output level) from well-defined key thematic areas of intervention. Based on that Theory of Change, the consultant will design a Logframe specifying intended impacts, outcomes, and outputs and the corresponding SMART indicators. The consultant will also define a Generic Workplan, listing only key activities required to achieve each logframe output.  

IV.               SUBSTANTIVE ACTIVITIES

Key activities that the consultant is expected to carry out in close cooperation with the RA DRC Country Director and team:

1.      Presentation of proposed methodology and work program

2.      Document revision and analysis

3.      Meetings with key actors (no field visits to Congo Basin are planned at this stage)

4.      Development and Delivery of Situation Analysis, Theory of Change, Logframe and Generic Workplan

5.      Results presentation and analysis.

V.                    DELIVERABLES

VI.                    PEER REVIEW PROCESS AND COORDINATION

Rainforest Alliance’s DRC country director will be RA’s Representative for this consultancy.

The consultant shall submit deliverables for review according to the above timeline. After review by the Rainforest Alliance, all documents shall be finalized by the consultant and are due 49 calendar days after the start of the contract.

Rainforest Alliance will support the consultant by providing contacts for meetings, area-specific documentation as well as templates. Rainforest Alliance will not provide travel arrangements, accommodation or any other kind of in-kind support.

VII.                  PLACE, LEVEL OF EFFORT AND DURATION

• Geographic scope: The consultancy will take place in the Democratic Republic of Congo (partly remote is possible)

• Level of effort: 35 working days

• This consultancy will cover the period from November 6 to December 24, 2023

VIII.                    GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

Proposals and/or additional information received after the submission time and date are subject to rejection by the Rainforest Alliance (RA). Incomplete proposals may be rejected by RA at its discretion.

The Rainforest Alliance reserves the right to request additional information at any time during the procurement process.

Rainforest Alliance is free to make multiple selections or no selections at all in the proposal process. RA also reserves the right to cancel the procurement.

All proposal costs are the responsibility of the applicant and will not be reimbursed by the Rainforest Alliance.

IX.                  SELECTION CRITERIA

The Consultant or Consultant Firm should have the following qualifications and credentials:

• At least a master’s degree in a relevant discipline

• At least 5 years’ experience in program design, ideally within an international development setting

• Knowledge and previous experience in DRC and the Congo Basin

• Knowledge of the work of the Rainforest Alliance (conservation; community development; forestry; agriculture; livelihoods)

• Excellent communication skills (both written and verbal) with fluency in English. Fluency in French strongly preferred.

• High degree of organizational skill, including the ability to manage multiple priorities and work under tight deadlines

• Experience preparing donor-funded projects and answering calls for proposals

• Experience with delivering high-quality products respecting budgets and deadlines.

Grading Criteria:

X.                    SUBMISSION PROCEDURE AND FORMAT

Interested candidates are requested to submit their application to hward@ra.org by November 05th, 2023 at 5:00 pm UK time.

• A letter of interest summarizing the reason why you should be selected for this consultancy.

• A Technical proposal not more than 10 pages detailing the consultant(s) understanding and interpretation of the ToR, expertise and record of accomplishment, proposed methodology/ approach to carry out this assignment, implementation plan, abridged CVs of proposed personnel you intend to use for this assessment.

• A Financial proposal. Detailed budget that indicates the professional fees and any other related costs to be incurred by the consultant(s) while conducting this assignment. Please note that the contract price will be fixed regardless of changes in the cost components. The proposed budget should detail all relevant costs, such as transportation, professional fees, accommodation, stationery etc. An additional column could be added to the budget to help the evaluation team understand what each item will be used for.

  The financial proposal should be calculated in US dollars ($), including all taxes and duties.

• Contact details of recent references (at least 2), include email, contact person’s name and phone number.