Terms of reference for rolling out the methodological framework on measuring decentralization quality and progress in the agricultural sector in Rwanda

PROJECT title: INDI NTAMBWE MU KWIYUBAKIRA IGIHUGU-INKI Project.

Consultancy Title: Rolling out the assessment framework to measure quality and progress of Sectoral Decentralization within the Agriculture sector in Rwanda.

Client Organizations:

TUBIBE AMAHORO organization (TA)

Consultancy start date: February 4^th, 2025

Consultancy End date: March 4^th, 2025

Background to TUBIBE AMAHORO (TA)

Tubibe Amahoro Association (TA) is a community-based, a human rights promoter and community development led organization founded in 1995 right after the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda by some of the survivors and human rights defenders. TA was granted the legal status through the Ministerial Order n^o 41/08.11 of 31/03/2011 found in official gazette (OG) n^o 33 of 15/08/2011. TA dreams to achieve a society of equity in which laws and human rights are respected by everyone”. Its mission is to promote respect for human rights and integral socioeconomic progress of Rwandan population by emphasizing civic participation, access to justice, sustainable community livelihood and gender promotion Based on the above strategic orientation, TA basically strives for the fulfilment of the citizens’ rights in its all aspects mainly human dignity, civil rights, economic rights, justice, equality, positive peace and unity among Rwandans.

Context and Background

TA along with other partners, implements a project named “INKI”: Indi Ntambwe mu Kwiyubakira Igihugu – literally translating as ‘’An Extra Mile in State Building’’’. Placed under the overall coordination of Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), INKI is a collaborative civil society project which is funded by the Foreign Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) in order to, among others, strengthen CSOs’ capacity to better engage with decentralization process reforms in Rwanda. More precisely, INKI seeks to build the capacity of CSOs to expertly monitor and independently report on the progress on the national decentralization agenda including the actual state of institutional compliance with the national decentralization principles across a range of functional sectors, among which agriculture.

As indicated by the Prime Minister’s order on Sectoral Decentralization in Rwanda, the first of its kind in the country’s governance history, agriculture has been prioritized by the Government of Rwanda as one of the four sectors which are prime candidates for sectoral decentralization. It remains unclear though where and how far the sector at hand stands now vis-à-vis its desired decentralization features mainly deco centration, delegation and devolution. TA envisages to meaningfully engage with the Government and hence inform future planning of decentralization reforms and implementation in the agriculture sector. The CSO-led methodological framework on measuring quality and progress on decentralization implementation which was developed in the implementation framework of the INKI project offers, hopefully, a good basis for generating credible, reliable and robust evidence on this matter.

It is against this specific background that TA is seeking the services of a seasoned consultancy firm to help assess the decentralization quality and progress in the agriculture sector using the assessment framework that was developed under the INKI project.

Purpose and scope of the assignment

The main purpose of this assignment is to apply the CSO-led methodological framework on measuring the current decentralization quality and implementation progress in the agricultural sector in Rwanda.

Specifically, this assignment seeks to:

• Review existing legal texts, policies, frameworks, and institutional arrangements supporting decentralization in the agriculture sector and establish whether at all and how they unambiguously define what functions are to be devolved, deconcentrated and/ or delegated;
• Take stock of the status of devolved, deconcentrated and delegated functions in the agriculture sector to identify possible overlaps in functional responsibility assignments between Central Government and Local Government institutions, and determine the degree of the sector’s alignment with relevant national decentralization principles;
• To establish whether and how financial resources and other capacity resources follow(ed) decentralized functions in the agriculture sector;
• Identify gains in the sector decentralization worth sustaining with a focus on but not limited-service delivery outcomes (access and equity, etc.) at the local level;
• Explore opportunities worth leveraging on as well as the major challenges in the implementation process and accordingly formulate actionable recommendations for improving agricultural sector decentralization process and quality to enhance the desired outcomes in the future.

Methodology

Overall, the selected consultant shall draw mainly from the roll out protocol developed by INKI project. The protocol highlights key decentralization dimensions, variables, indicators, scales of measure and source to information to guide the data collection activity. However, a systematic, consultative and analytical delivery approach will be equally needed. This will include key stakeholder consultations in the form of key individual interviews where necessary, stand-alone surveys, and review of the relevant literature. that includes the following documents; Decentralization Policy of 2021, Report on intergovernmental relations, CSO capacity assessment and CSWO feedback questionnaire, Sectoral decentralization plan and cost analysis, Citizen participation and feedback data and tailor-made decentralization questionnaires, Fiscal and Financial Decentralization Policy, Prime Minister’s Order on Sectoral Decentralization, JADF report, Capacity building and training data, Sector Ministries ‘reports on decentralization, Latest strategic plans for the following sectors, Governance and Decentralization Sector agriculture Sector, Organic law on functioning of public institutions.

• The consultant will take into consideration of the protocol developed by the INKI project for the roll out of the assessment.
• Other relevant documents.
• Conduct interviews with key stakeholders, including central and local government, development partners, and civil society organizations officials.

Scope of Work

The core element for this assignment is to technically support the roll out of the CSO-led methodological framework for assessing the quality and implementation progress of decentralization in Rwanda within the agriculture sector across five districts of Karongi, Musanze, Gisagara, Rutsiro and Ngororero whereby INKI project operates. The process will involve adapting and customizing the decentralization assessment framework to the agriculture sector, training data collectors, conducting data collection across Karongi, Musanze, Gisagara, Rutsiro and Ngororero districts, conducting data analysis, and producing a final report with key findings. The selected consultant will be directly recruited and hence responsible to TA. The incumbent will work collaboratively to produce findings report on the status of agriculture sector decentralization under the overall coordination of NPA and IRDP. Also, the selected firm will present the findings and recommendations in the validation workshop of key stakeholders.

Deliverables

In the execution of this assignment, the selected consultant will produce the following deliverables:

• Inception Report: highlighting the consultant’s understanding of the assignment, and proposed methodology for delivering on the tasks and timelines. A detailed work plan outlining the approach, methodology, and timeline for the assessment, along with an outline of key data sources and stakeholders to be engaged.
• Draft Report: A comprehensive draft report outlining the findings of the roll out of the assessment framework in the agriculture sector. This will also be informed by key stakeholder consultations and literature review.

Final Report that integrates key stakeholder comments/inputs including from the validation meeting. The final report should incorporate feedback from stakeholders, with clear, actionable recommendations for improving decentralization in the agriculture sector. The final report should include:

• An executive summary providing a succinct overview of the assessment's key findings and recommendations.
• Detailed analysis of the findings.
• Practical and detailed actionable recommendations for policy and operational improvements.
• Suggested next steps for implementing recommendations.

Presentation: A presentation to key stakeholders, including the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources, development partners, and local government representatives and other key actors, summarizing the key findings and recommendations.

Qualifications and Competencies of the Consultants

The selected consultancy firm must meet the following requirements;

Academic qualifications and competencies

• The lead consultant of the selected firm should have a Master’s degree in Agriculture, Agribusiness, Economics, Business Administration, Development Studies or any other related field.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in policy analysis, decentralization, public sector management, or CSO engagement in governance
• Practical experience working with or collaborating with key institutions in Rwanda on decentralization matters, including the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources, RAB, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, the Ministry of Local Government, sector ministries, and local districts, among others.
• Good analytical, communications and presentation skills.
• Strong report-writing, data analysis, and presentation skills
• Demonstrated expertise in sector decentralization, and its implementation framework in Rwanda including knowledge of agriculture decentralized functions and resource allocations and/or citizen engagement in policy processes.
• Familiarity with Rwanda's decentralization policy, government structures, and civic space challenges.
• Should be fluent in English and Kinyarwanda.

Reporting and Supervision

Consultants will report directly to the project coordination teams at TA, who will oversee and provide guidance throughout the study. Regular progress updates will be required, and the final deliverables will be subject to review and approval by the respective organizations.

Duration of the Consultancy

The assessment will be conducted over a period of 1 month and is expected to start February 4^th ,2025 and be concluded by the March 4^th,2025.

Technical and financial proposals

Detailed TECHNICAL and FINANCIAL proposals must be submitted in English in a PDF document.

The Technical Proposal with clear identificationshould demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the tasks set forth and the candidate’s capacity to perform the assignment. The following information should be provided in the technical proposal:

• In-depth description outlining the consultant's understanding of the assignment, suggested methodology to reach deliverables, and detailed timeline for its execution.
• Resumes of the research team
• Official registration certificate with RDB.
• RSSB and RRA clearance certificates.

The following information shall be disclosed as part of the technical proposal:

• Statement to certify that all the information provided in the candidate’s bid is, to the best of its knowledge, accurate and complete. Any misleading or false information may result in disqualification of the candidate at the sole discretion of TUBIBE AMAHORO.
• References

Administrative documents:

• TIN/VAT certificate;
• Company registration certificate;
• Proof of EBM invoice.

N.B: Withholding tax of 15% will be considered if the company is not registered with RRA.

The financial proposal should be submitted in Rwandan Francs (Rwf) currency with sufficient detailing fee structure to facilitate cost analysis.

The financial proposal of the selected candidate will be reviewed during contract negotiations to determine the final contract price.

How to apply

Application letters with both financial and technical proposals addressed to the Executive Secretary of TUBIBE AMAHORO organization must be submitted not later than Saturday, February 2^nd , 2025 at 5:00Pm; you should mention “Application to the consultancy of Rolling out the assessment framework to measure quality and progress of Sectoral Decentralization within the Agriculture sector in Rwanda underINKI project” on the following email:sowpeace@gmail.com .

In case of enquiries, please don’t hesitate to contact us via email: sowpeace@gmail.com or a direct call to TA Program Manager: 0785830876.

You are requested to adhere to the deadline, proposals submitted after the deadline will be automatically rejected and returned unopened to the bidder.The successful candidate will be communicated as soon as possible.

Pierre Célestin KABANO

Executive Secretary of TUBIBE AMAHOROa