Call for EOI: Assessments of socio-economic/livelihoods, environmental and social safeguards and Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) in Northwest and Central Highlands of Vietnam

CALL FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST (EOI):

ASSESSMENTS OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC/LIVELIHOODS, ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL SAFEGUARDS AND GENDER EQUALITY AND SOCIAL INCLUSION (GESI) IN NORTHWEST AND CENTRAL HIGHLANDS OF VIETNAM

RESTORING LAND AND LIVELIHOODS IN SON LA AND LAM DONG PROVINCE, VIETNAM (RESTORE) PROJECT

BACKGROUND

About SNV

SNV is a not-for-profit international development organisation driven by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Founded in the Netherlands in 1965, we have built a long-term country presence in over 20 countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Our global team of local and international advisors works with local partners to equip communities, businesses, and organizations with the tools, knowledge, and connections they need to increase their incomes and gain access to markets and basic services - empowering them to break the cycle of poverty and guide their own development. Our work focuses on three sectors - Agrifood, Energy, and Water.

SNV has been working in Viet Nam since 1995, and currently has over 40 national and international staff. SNV Viet Nam’s team works hand-in-hand with communities, government agencies, and businesses in about 40 provinces, including the most remote and poorest areas of the country. We operate from a country head office in Hanoi and regional offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Lat.

SNV Viet Nam’s Agrifood programme today is strongly focused around promoting socially inclusive climate resilient agriculture. In recent years, SNV Viet Nam has implemented a wide range of projects promoting climate smart approaches and inclusive value-chain development throughout the country in numerous sub-sectors, including rice, shrimp, non-timber forest products (NTFPs), medicinal plants/herbs, coffee, fruits, vegetables, and spices. Many of our interventions support vulnerable groups such as ethnic minorities in rural uplands access markets and opportunities and women’s economic empowerment (WEE) in agricultural value chains.

For more information on SNV, please refer to our website: www.snv.org [1]

About the RESTORE project

“Restoring Land and Livelihoods in Vietnam” (RESTORE) is a 5-year programme to be implemented from 2024 to 2029. SNV Viet Nam is the prime recipient of the funding and leads the preparation and implementation of the programme in consortium with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF).

The project aims to deliver sustainable and resilient livelihoods for local communities, improved biodiversity conservation, and restored ecosystem health in the target landscapes. It will do this by the promotion of agroforestry, forest products and fruit tree value chains. By planting over 16 million trees, the project aims to restore over 25,000 hectares of agricultural and forest land and bring livelihoods benefits to over 20,000 farming households. RESTORE focusses on two key climate-vulnerable landscapes in Viet Nam – the Central Highlands and Northwestern Region.

Our key goal is: Sustainable and resilient livelihoods for local communities through restored ecosystem health in the target landscapes. This will be achieved by:

1. Restoring degraded forests and nature conservation areas and restoring degraded agricultural lands to improve habitat connectivity and quality for biodiversity conservation to enhance agricultural productivity.
2. Establishing inclusive value chains anchored to sustainable land management practices such as agroforestry and supported by additional revenue streams from carbon payments.
3. Sequestering carbon and strengthening other ecosystem services that enhance watershed quality.
4. Building the capacity of local institutions, communities, enterprises and public agencies in sustainable land and natural ecosystems management and governance.

About the inception phase

The Project is currently undertaking an Inception Phase in order to assess feasibility and produce a detailed design for the project. The Inception Phase, starting in June 2024, aims to (1) Establish the project management structure including (approved) coordination mechanisms with the different national provincial government, public agencies and partners; (2) Precise identification of, and agreement with local government on, the target locations and communities of the project’s activities; (3) Develop full technical and financial sections of the project implementation document; and (4) Submit the official Vietnamese version ‘pro-doc’ as per Decree 80 for provincial approvals.

The assessments of socio-economic/livelihoods, environmental and social (E&S) safeguards and Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI)are key deliverables under this inception phase and will inform the design and delivery of the project interventions outlined above. SNV seeks a qualified, experienced, and multi-disciplinary short-term firm, institute, or team of consultants group to undertake the assessments.

The overall objective of this analysis is to inform the final design of project activities and provide evidence-based information for programme intervention development and assurances that this design is contributing to the aims of the project.

1. Conduct a preliminary screening of likely/tentative project work packages and activities against the program safeguards policies and standards (aligned to IFC Performance Standards) and identify relevant environmental and social issues of concern, including risks.
2. Present relevant environmental and social profiles and early-stage screening/scoping of environmental and social risks (IFC Performance Standards/safeguards triggered) for comments and feedback.
3. Develop a methodology and survey work plan (including field survey featuring interviews with key stakeholders and participatory consultations with representatives of groups of intended beneficiaries or impacted by the project, especially local communities, smallholders, ethnic minorities, and other vulnerable groups).
4. Conduct field visits, surveys and consultations in the Central Highlands and NW region to better understand local contexts and perceptions and assess potential environmental and social co-benefits and risks associated with the project’s proposed activities.
5. Based on the field surveys and consultations and working with technical team members prepare an environmental and social assessment report detailing potential impacts identified as well as project strategies and measures to maximise environmental and social co-benefits and key environmental/social risks to be avoided, managed, and mitigated.
6. Based on the co-benefit enhancement and risk mitigation strategies and measures identified (see (vi) above), draft an Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) for the project (including safeguards M&E indicators, methods, capacity building needs and budget).

The assignment will be conducted in tandem with other assessments and analyses e.g. concerning landscape analysis and agronomic suitability and a biodiversity assessment. SNV will coordinate these assessments and ensure complementary information gathering and analytical efforts. 

The consultants/consultancy group will be expected to use various methods in carrying out this assignment. The successful consultants will be expected to propose an appropriate methodology and an analytical framework. SNV and the consultants will agree on final methodology and structure of the report during the inception phase.

These methods would, however, be expected to include some or all the following:

• Desk review of the project and requirements, background information and related reports (existing relevant reports, provincial/district government reports and statistics, etc.) on agriculture, agroforestry, and forestry models in the project sites in Northwest region and Central Highlands. The desk-review will help enable the formulation of ideas and questions for further discussion with local authorities, communities, and other stakeholders during the inception visit.
• Conduct a socio-economic assessment, including the information on local communities e.g. poverty rates, landless, ethnic minority populations, typical livelihoods, climate situation and adaptation/vulnerability.
• As a contribution to the RESTORE project preparation phase background assessments, prepare environmental and social profiles of the project’s two target landscapes: the Central Highlands and Northwest environmental and social profiles.
• Conduct an environmental and social safeguard assessment (ESA) in line with the government’s regulations and requirements.
• Conduct Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) assessment.
• Develop GESI Action Plan
• Prepare a guidance document on how Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) principles will be used when onboarding farmers to the project.
• Refine and confirm the Theory of Change, project logical framework, budget, and workplan.
• Conduct additional local consultations as required to inform design.
• Develop beneficiary/stakeholder selection criteria.
• Draft project governance structures and coordination mechanisms.
• Consult with communities and local/central governments on the FPIC process, Project Governance Framework, beneficiary/stakeholder selection criteria, a multi-stakeholder partnership (MSP), a grievance handling mechanism (GHM), project design and other project documents.
• Prepare materials for presentation of and consultation on environmental and social co-benefits, risks and the draft ESMF, at a national consultation workshop.
• Finalise the ESMF based on comments and feedback from the national consultation workshop.
• Contribute to the preparation of the project proposal document’s relevant sections on environmental and social safeguards sections, as required.
• Draft socio-economic baseline assessment and report.
• Conduct stakeholder mapping and consultation plan.
• Prepare socio-economic baseline report.
• Draft Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) report and Action Plan
• Carry out Environmental and Social Safeguard Assessment and report.
• Develop Project Governance Framework.
• Prepare FPIC guidance document.
• Develop beneficiary/stakeholder selection criteria.
• Propose a multi-stakeholder partnership (MSP) for the project.
• Develop a grievance handling mechanism (GHM) for the project.

The work specified above is expected to be completed within 6 months, commencing June 2024 and completed by December 2024.

The precise timeframe for the deliverables will be discussed based on a submitted workplan with the successful bidder. The expected deliverables are:

1. Detailed and phased workplan, theoretical framework and methodology no later than a week after signing the contract.
2. Participate in kick off workshop with SNV, consortium partners, and other consultant teams supporting this inception phase (early June, exact date TBC).
3. Desk-based reports based on existing data and literature on socio-economic/livelihoods, environmental and social (E&S) safeguards and Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI), 6 weeks after signing.
4. Field visits to both project sites for local consultations and surveys.
5. Other consultations in Hanoi, online, etc., as needed.
6. Draft following reports:
1. Socio-economic baseline assessment
2. Description of drivers of deforestation and forest degradation
3. Environmental and social safeguard assessment (ESA)
4. Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) report and Action Plan
5. FPIC guidance
6. Project governance framework
7. Grievance handling mechanism procedures
8. Multi-stakeholder partnership
9. Stakeholder mapping and consultation plan
10. Beneficiary/stakeholder selection criteria
7. Participate in and present at, in close cooperation with SNV and consortia partners, a validation workshop with stakeholders to validate the findings of the studies.
8. Final report with incorporated comments from ICRAF, IUCN and key stakeholders from the validation workshop.
9. Prepare and deliver a PowerPoint Presentation of the report to the consortium partners.

For more details on the Expression of Interest process, submission requirements, and evaluation details, please see corresponding sections below:

Selection Process

SNV will review all Expressions of Interest received in accordance with the guidelines and criteria in this solicitation. SNV reserves the right to exclude any EOIs that do not meet the guidelines. Please note that SNV is unable to provide detailed feedback to those EOIs that are not selected.

Step 1: SNV will shortlist selected EOIs, and unsuccessful respondents will be notified. Successful applicants will be contacted by SNV.

Step 2: SNV will release Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for the specific activities and contract with the selected organizations/ consultants.

Protection of Information

We request that Expressions of Interest responses be free of any intellectual property that the applicant wishes to protect. Should offerors wish to include proprietary intellectual property that they believe would be helpful for SNV, please note the proprietary nature of such information. Costing information will be kept confidential and will not be shared beyond SNV.

Issuance of this EOI does not constitute a commitment, award, or engagement on the part of SNV nor does it commit SNV to any future commitment or engagement.

Note: SNV reserves the right to change or cancel this requirement in the EOI/or solicitation process at any time.