Assessment of past and present experiences (success/ challenges) on the resettlement programme in Tigray Region.

Terms of reference for consultancy to carry out assessment of past and present experiences (success/ challenges) on the resettlement programme in Tigray Region
1. Back Ground

Millions of households in the rural Ethiopia suffer form chronic food insecurity and receive food aid on annual basis. In order to find long term solution to the problem, the government of Ethiopia, with active collaboration of a range of donors, has designed a food security and recovery program with in the frame work of Ethiopians poverty reduction strategy. The program combines a variety of intervention that as a whole, should lead to the graduation from food insecurity to food security for a substantial number of households. 

Tigray is located in the northern part of Ethiopia covering an area of 53,000 Sq Km and has a total population of approximately 4.5 Million with almost 1:1 male to female ratio, 85% of which live in rural area. Including the region capital there are 7 administration Zones: Western, North western, Central, Eastern, South Eastern and South Eastern and Southern Zones comprising total of 34 woredas (districts) and 665 tabias (kebeles). It has diverse Agro ecology and the climatic conditions are characterized by high temperature and erratic rainfall. Some times falls as Low as 0.6oC for each of 100 m altitude. The overall temperature ranges from 5 oC to 40 oC. With some exceptions the fain fall the region varies from 400mm to 800 mm which makes the region usually moisture deficit resulting in recurrent droughts.

Currently about 1.4 million people in 31 woredas are vulnerable to chronic food insecurity due to natural and social-economic factors in Tigray. The food security and disaster prevention and preparedness sector is coordinating a broad range of activities designed to improve the food security and recovery status of the rural population of the region.

Major food security and recovery intervention coordinated by the sector are-

§        Productive safety-net program/PSNP/ 31 woredas/

§        Voluntary resettlement program/2 woredas/

§        Other food security programs

-       Government financed household based agricultureal and income enhancement package/ HHP/ (34 woredas)

-       Donor financed food security & Recovery projects

§        World bank Food security project (20 woredas), REST (12 Woredas), World vision Ethiopia (6 woredas), CRS (6 woredas) food security projects and EOS recovery project.

§        Early warning programs (34 woreda)

§        Orosj AID, Action AID (1 woreda)

Among rural development strategies, voluntary re-settlements program is one of the strategies developed to eradicate poverty and hunger, The main objective of the resettlement program is to enable chronically food insecure households attain food security through improved access to land /voluntary resettlement. The program is not intended as a temporary measure to address the immediate food crisis. Instead, it is intended as a long-term program to remedy the most costly consequences of limited mobility of land & labor in rural areas of the region.

According to Tigray region, re-settlement was started in 1995 E.C in an attempt to solve the deep rooted food insecurity problem, more than 32,000 Households (HHS) have been resettled in 2 resettlement Woredas (Kafta Humera and Tsegede) and about 80% of these Household’s livelihoods are assumed to be improved.

In view of assessing key achievements, encountered challenges and lessons learnt from the past resettlement programmes and document lessons to inform the region for improved future resettlement planning commissioning consultancy to coduct the said assessment is required. Thus TFSCO is intending to carry out assessment of selected resettlement areas to document past experiences (successes and/or challenges) of the regional resettlement scheme to draw lesson and address the challenges to help improve future resettlement programmes and replicate best practices.

2.     Purpose of this consultancy

The purpose of this consultancy is

§        To carry out assessment of past experiences(successes and/or challenges of the regional resettlement program in 7 sample resettlement areas (Scheme in order to draw lessons and address the challenges to help improve future resettlement programmes and replicate best practices

§        To provide the outcome of the study to Tigray food security coordination office, disaster prevention & preparedness division, Tigray bureau of Agriculture & Rural development, UNDP & other relevant partners and present the findings, lessons and recommendations in the national/regional workshops.

3.     Major task of the consultancy

The specific activities to be undertaken by the consultant during the mission among others include:-

1.     Carry out review of available document pertaining to resettlement at national, Regional ,Zonal & woreda levels

2.     Meet with pertinent stakeholders and partners and discuss their perspectives pertaining to the resettlement programme

3.     Identify policy issues regarding resettlement areas (PASDEP), federal and regional resettlement manual, safety net, social mobilization etc.

4.     Conduct field visit to both resettlement woredas (Kafta Humera and Tsegede), hold focus group discussion with community groups(men, women, elderly, youth) key informants and assess available social infrastructures, crop and livestock production and natural resource management system representing different agro ecology, success stories 6 very successful, medium, unsuccessful) and key challenges.

4.1      Assess the plan & achievements of the resettlement area( i.e plan vis-a’vis accomplishment) interims of

·        Crop and livestock production

·        Supply of inputs

·        Availability of social infrastructure (Water supply, health and education services, veterinary services to their livestock)

·        Adequacy of extension services and farmers’ training centers in the vicinity

·        Market infrastructures

4.2    Assess the natural resource management of the resettlement area

·        Cause of deforestation and wild life population declaiming

·        The  management practice and wild life population declining

·        The management practice of the settlers and its impact on the sustainability of the natural resource(Forest, wild life, water ect)

·        The vegetation cover change due to or after the settlement

·        The land use change due to resettlement

·        Wild life hunting tradition and current practice of the surrounding people

4.3    Assess & analyze the impact of the achievements

·        Improving the living standard of the/settlers community

·        Conforming with the government anticipated objectives

·        Social impact of the scheme

4.4    Assess the financial management & utilization of the woredas

4.5    Identify strength & constraints of the resettlement area managerial approaches with corresponding reasons

4.6    Identify numbers of resettlers returned back to their original habitation (If any) and reasons for return

4.7    Assess number of households with out family members( those who did not bring their family to the resettlement site) and reasons for not brining their families

4.8    Identify the extent of support from the non state actors (NGOs, CBOs, CSOs, the private sector etc) to the resettled community and their areas of interventions and availability of other funding sources other than government and UNDP (e.g bilateral, multilateral, safety net etc...)

4.9    Assess how cross cutting issues such as HIV/AIDs, gender, population and environmental issues conflict prevention etc are being addressed.

4.10   Conduct debriefing on the findings and recommendations to the immediate partners and incorporate comments to finalize the draft report and present the final document in the planned national /regional workshop.

5.     Methodology

During the study, the consultant can employ multiple methods that he/she thinks appropriate. However Tigray FSCO suggests the following

·        Discussion with all relevant government bureaus (Federal, Regional, Zonal, Woredas and Kebele)

·        Consultation with UNDP

·        NFOs operating in the zone, woredas & peasant association( PAS)

·        Focus group discussion (elders, women group, youth, Neighboring communities in the host areas, & NGO projects participants)

·        Document review

·        Interview randomly selected individuals of the resettlement area (host community and resettles)

·        Visit/observe the resettlement area to collect the necessary data and information

·        Assess the quality of different structures and their post construction management and cost recovery mechanisms to sustain their service.

·        Satellite image interpretation and ground verification

Required Qualification and experience

It is planned to hire two consultants with

·        Agricultural economics, Anthropology/sociology and Forester qualification at masters degree level in order to capture the economic and social impacts respectively

·        The two consultants are expected to have at least 7 years experience particularly in areas of rural development

·        A very good understanding of resettlement programme and their challenges would be an asset

·        Proven track record in carrying out complex surveys

·        Proficiency in English language

·        Excellent presentation and communication skills

Tigray Food security coordination office support to the consultant

To help achieve the objective of the consultant TFSCO Shall facilitate the smooth functioning of the consultancy at regional, zonal and community levels by fixing appointments, facilitating the discussions etc.

Expected output of the consultancy

·        Comprehensive report of the findings and recommendation of the assessment

·        Regional workshop organized and lessons shared to inform future resettlement schemes

·        Proceeding if the workshop prepared

·        Best practices that are worth relicating identified

Duration and time frame of the consultancy

The total consultancy periods include the debriefing and presentation in the nation /regional workshop will be days where bulk of the time will be spent in the field. Up on selection of the consultant, detail work plan with specified time frame shall be developed linked with expected output.

Proposals should consist of:-

·        Cover letter addressing the requirement stated

·        Detailed CVs of experts

·        Description of methodology to clearly address the content of these terms of reference

·        Other supportive material such as samples of previous work

·        Reference/contract (pls. provide at least 3 organizations that employed your similar type of services.

Information on resettlement area

 
Evaluation Criteria 

Technical proposals will be rated as per the following matrix. A firm will have to score a minimum of 70% to be considered for the next step. Financial evaluation will be conducted for the qualified and responsive technical proposals (i.e 70% and above). The responsive and qualified firm with the lowest financial proposal will be issued a contract.

Submission of Technical & Financial proposals 

Qualified and interested Firms should submit their Technical and Financial proposals in separate sealed Envelopes to the following address no later than 30 November 2009:

                                                                             UNDP Ethiopia

Procurement Specialist
ECA Compound Old Buld.
Vacancy No: RFP/044/2009
Fax: 251 11 5514599 / 5515147
P. O. Box 5580, Addis Ababa
Ethiopia