Consultancy Service for Garment Industry Overview Research

Terms of Reference

1. Background

Better Work is an innovative partnership program between the International Labour Organizations and the International Finance Corporation. It aims to improve labour standards and competitiveness in global supply chains. Better Work involves the development of both global tools and country level programs. The focus is in on scalable and sustainable solutions which build cooperation between government, employers and workers’ organizations, and international brands.

In Vietnam, Better Work covers the garment and footwear industries. The programme follows an integrated approach which includes assessment, advisory, and training services at factory level, with industry seminars to promote cross-industry sharing and learning culture. We work with different stakeholders such as MOLISA, VGCL, VCCI, international and local brands, vendors, factories and trade associations, and other relevant organizations that work with the apparel and footwear sectors.

In addition, one key component of the programme is gender. The BWV gender strategy seeks to empower women through decent work, close the gender pay gap, reduce gender-based discrimination at the workplace.

To improve core services delivery, Better Work Vietnam need to collect the latest statistics, disaggregated by sex, about enterprises and workers in the garment and footwear industry in Vietnam. Currently, no such report is available. In addition, the data on enterprises and employees in the garment and footwear industry in Vietnam are also inconsistent.

Therefore, Better Work Vietnam is seeking a consultant/ consultation firm to develop an overview report on enterprises and employees in the textile, footwear, and leather industries in Vietnam up to date.

2. Objectives of the assignment:

The objectives of the overview report are to:

• Provide necessary data for Better Work Vietnam's other thematic reports and publications on the garment and footwear industry in Vietnam, and provide inputs for information exchange with partners, and influencing agenda.
• Provide an up-to-date overview on enterprises and employees, disaggregated by sex, in the garment and footwear industry in Vietnam for Better Work’s enterprise advisors and their service delivery

3. Expected deliverables:

Expected deliverables for this assignment are as follows:

• Raw data: database, qualitative and quantitative transcripts, code book/data sets including detailed analytical data tables.
• A draft overview report for Better Work Vietnam to review and provide feedback
• A presentation on key preliminary findings: the consultant(s) will present the key findings to Better Work Vietnam, followed by a Q&A session
• A final report: having been improved from the draft report, the final report will contain responses to the Overall Objective and Key Study Questions, including:
  
  • The overview of enterprises in the textile, footwear industries (eg. where are they located, how many employees are used, how are their production and business situations), and
  • The overview of the workforce in the textile, footwear industries, disaggregated by sex (age, gender, family status, wages, working hours, insurance coverage, etc.).
• A summary report: a shortened summary of the overview report, encapsulating the overview key findings

More details will be discussed at the contract agreement.

Additional terms:

• Protect the Better Work materials as intellectual property and do not transfer the materials in any form (hard copy and soft copy) to any third party.
• Respect and follow Better Work communication guidelines, especially using consistent image of Better Work, precisely using Better Work brand name, logos, promotional materials, and introduction information.

4. Scope of work:

The consultant(s) will report to Better Work Vietnam, and will be expected to carry out the following work:

• Attend an orientation briefing with Better Work Vietnam
• Conduct a desk review of existing and relevant data, including but not limited to available research studies, Labour Force Survey, Establishment survey done by the GSO.
• Design a report outline and agree with Better Work Vietnam.
• Perform data analysis
• Draft the overview analysis report
• Present the preliminary findings to Better Work Vietnam
• Improve the report based on the feedback from Better Work Vietnam
• Draft the final report and the summary report for Better Work Vietnam

5. Methodology

The consultant(s) may propose a combination of methods to fulfil the assessment’s objectives in the technical proposal. The consultant(s) will work with Better Work Vietnam to finalise the methodology to be used, based on data source produced by the General Statistic Office, including the labour force surveys, establishment surveys

Data analysis: The consultant may choose to employ descriptive and/or inferential analysis for quantitative data. For qualitative data, methods such as content analysis, narrative analysis and discourse analysis can be utilised as appropriate.

6. Timeline:

This assignment will be started and completed and delivered in June 2022. The consultants will be expected to provide a detailed assignment schedule against the listed deliverables.

7. Required expertise of consultant(s)

Selected consultant(s) are required to have the following qualifications:

• The consultants/ consultation firm must have proven experience in conducting overview report for development projects, preferably including textile and garment industry.
• Academic qualifications (Master’s Degree minimum) in one of the following disciplines: social sciences, economics, development – 10+ years in a relevant field
• In-depth knowledge and professional experience in country-level assessment on textile and garment industry.
• Strong skill set in both quantitative and qualitative participatory methods.
• Be committed to and able to meet deadlines
• Strong analytical skills
• Excellent English and Vietnamese writing skills.
• Good narrative reporting and presentation skills

8. Application

The application package must include:

• The consultants/company’s profile/CVs and related track record
• 01 technical proposal, detailing how the consultants plan to achieve the overall objectives within the listed timeframe, including survey methodology, data collection tools, sample size, tentative work plan, team structure & role division
• 01 financial proposal that specifies the number of working days required with consultancy rate and proposed budget for logistics
• 01 sample summary report of an overview report performed by the consultant(s)
• 03 contacts for reference. A reference check on the successful applicant will be conducted for safeguarding purposes, to ensure the successful applicant does not have a history of exploitation and abuse in working with vulnerable groups. Better Work Vietnam reserves the right to withdraw from signing the consultancy contract with the applicant if the reference check yields concerning results.

How to Apply: Proposals should be submitted in English by email with the subject mentioning “Consultant to conduct garment overview report” to Ms. Nguyen Thu Thuy at [email protected]. The closing date for applications is 13:00 26 May 2022. We regret that only short-listed applicants will be contacted.