Fresh and Processed Food Rapid Sector Assessment

Kigali, Rwanda

Posted: 21-Nov-2023

Ref#: 1764 

The purpose of this solicitation is to seek expert consultants interested and experienced in providing services stated below under a fixed price, milestone-based consultancy. 

Period of Performance and location.  [December 11, 2023, to January 11, 2024 in Kigali, Rwanda] 

Background and approach.  In October 2023, Venture37 was awarded a new round of the USAID Farmer-to-Farmer program focused on Inclusive Food Systems (IFS) to strengthen food systems in Egypt, Lebanon, and Rwanda. Our approach will be to work in priority value chains within food systems in each country by taking a staged approach to partnerships.  The project seeks to target and partner with an initial group of “Tier 1” agribusiness hosts as key entry points into high impact value chains. 

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Objective of this Assessment. This assessment is to evaluate the agri-food sectors in Rwanda with the aim of identifying the most promising opportunities for development and growth. There are two inter-related objectives of this assessment.

• Analyze the agri-food sectors and identify entry points for support.

1. Identify Priority Sectors backed with data that showcase growth potential.
2. Analyze Market Dynamics to understand the challenges and opportunities they present.
3. Identify the main challenges and opportunities for fresh and processed foods SMEs at their facilities in addition to understanding the challenges they face within their own food system (input suppliers, farmers, marketing, packhouses etc.) that can improve their productivity.
4. Evaluate main value chains from production to distribution and consumption to identify key bottlenecks and areas where interventions can have the most significant impact.

• Prioritize Inclusive Development: which sector allows more reach to women and promote sustainable and equitable growth. Identify the most promising and impactful Tier 1 fresh and processed foods SMEs for the project initial point of intervention and their respective value chains based upon their ability to:

1. Demonstrate sustainable growth, resulting in greater demand for raw materials that help to generate increased revenues and jobs within the host partners food system.
2. Access new markets or strengthen market position.
3. Enhance and develop new products.
4. Improve product quality and safety.
5. Their desirability or motivation to strengthen gender inclusivity.
6. Their desirability and/or progress on addressing climate change within their business. 

Furthermore, this assessment will highlight the opportunities and constraints Tier 1 hosts face related to their Tier 2 food supply partners working in distribution, aggregation, primary production, input supply, as well as who these partners are so we can determine whether they would make good Tier 2 hosts.    

Scope of Work. 

• Desk Research: Conduct a quick desk review to identify promising sectors.
• Stakeholder interviews: Conduct key informant interviews to get their unique perspective on the agricultural sector at the production and processing levels. The interviews ought to provide valuable insights on:

1. The most promising sectors for impact
2. Production challenges (pre- and post-harvest)
3. Obstacles in market access
4. Most promising opportunities for impact and growth
5. Agribusinesses that ensure gender inclusion and climate change mitigation

• Identification of priority sectors for intervention: Informed by the literature review and Key informant interviews (KII), the consultant is expected to recommend priority sectors for F2F IFS intervention. Furthermore, this study will identify a list of agribusinesses (Tier 1) working in the identified sectors to be assessed for support. To streamline this effort, we provide an assessment framework for potential Tier 1 hosts that should be utilized for all agribusinesses and consolidated together into one final report including:

1. Name and Location
2. Size of SME (Annual gross sales, number of staff)
3. Types of products
4. Estimated number of farmers supplying raw materials
5. List of Tier 2 connected businesses Ex: cold Storage, post-harvest unit, transportation
6. Growth potential & capability (new products, new markets, and analysis on domestic and international market saturation) 
7. Extent of their proactive inclusion efforts to incorporate women into their business of supply chain.
8. Interest to undertake climate smart business practices within their business and their value chains.
9. Greatest Opportunities to expand market access, increase revenues, jobs.
10. List main challenges for growth both within their business (Tier 1) and throughout their supply chain (Tier 2). 

• Stakeholder Workshop: Lead a stakeholder workshop to present the findings and validate the recommendations of the sector assessment. 

Bidder Evaluation Criteria

• Previous experience in value chain studies for major international donors in the agriculture sector
• Value for money
• Ability to complete work within stated timeline
• Previous experience in Rwanda and the region
• Previous experience identifying opportunities for gender integration and environmental conservation in value chains

Proposal submission requirements.  Interested parties are required to submit the following documentation:

• Resume and summary of qualifications of the key consultant
• Profile and project references (including previous work samples)
• Budget quotation (in USD) to carry out the above study within the scope of work, with a breakdown of cost categories and short description of each budget line
• Structured work plan of activities
• Assignment timeline that includes a start date and estimated completion date of first draft and final draft 

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. No phone calls will be accepted.

Land O'Lakes Venture37 will never ask you for personable identifiable information, and we will never request money or payment during the recruitment or employment process. Please submit any questions or concerns to: Venture37generalinquiries@landolakesventure37.org not later than Dec 4^th, 2023.

Land O’Lakes Venture37 is an equal opportunity employer and an organization striving to help global communities thrive through agriculture.