National Consulting Firm for the Development of Sustainability Plans

The Objectives of the assignment will be as follows:

UNDP BIOFIN, in partnership with the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) through the DoT, is seeking to recruit a national firm to develop practical, implementable and context-specific Sustainability Plans for three ecotourism events. The events will be prioritized in consultation with the Innovation and Strategy Division, Department of Tourism during the onboarding of the firm.

The plans shall integrate environmental, social, cultural and economic sustainability, with a strong emphasis on ploughback of event revenues into conservation purposes through a sustainability fund model to maintain the biodiversity on which the events depend. The assignment also includes a strengthened Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) framework with baselines, community-validated targets and an annual reporting template.

Specific objectives

The firm shall:

1. Assess the current planning, governance, financing, and management practices of each event as well as biodiversity resources and visitor numbers and profiles (domestic and international).
2. Identify key financial and environment sustainability challenges, opportunities and risks, including dependence on public funding and options for its phased reduction.
3. Develop sustainability strategies and action plans tailored to each event, integrating social and gender inclusion, and biodiversity conservation and nature-positive tourism practices, businesses, and products.
4. Design a sustainability fund model and by-law for each event, aligned with BIOFIN result areas, and build the consultation, advocacy and validation process needed to put it into effect, including private sector participation and engagement.
5. Refine the M&E matrix and strengthen knowledge management: improve indicators, determine baselines, set targets with communities and stakeholders, define means of verification, and identify responsible reporting focal/institutions, and develop an annual reporting template.

3.    Scope of work

Under the overall direction of the UNDP CO (BIOFIN) and the DoT, the firm will develop the Sustainability Plans including the sustainability fund model and by-laws for the three prioritized ecotourism events, and the M&E framework. The firm will reference the 13^th Five-Year Plan 2024-2029, Bhutan’s 21st Century Economic Roadmap, Bhutan Integrated Tourism Master Plan 2025-2034, BIOFIN 2024 workbook, the 5th NBSAP and the KMGBF, relevant forest, nature conservation, environment and local government regulations, public financial management rules, and other relevant sectoral frameworks and strategies. The work should be supported by data collected by the firm as part of this assignment.

4.    Key Tasks:

The firm shall produce:

(i)                  three event-specific Sustainability Plans including a sustainability fund model and by-laws, supported by advocacy and validation process; and

(ii)                a refined M&E matrix with baselines, targets, means of verification, annual reporting template, and identified reporting focals.