Consultancy Service to Assist the Department of Trade and Industry on the Implementation... Tender

Procurement Summary

Country : Ethiopia

Summary : Consultancy Service to Assist the Department of Trade and Industry on the Implementation of the SMEs Strategy

Deadline : 05 Oct 2018

Other Information

Notice Type : Tender

TOT Ref.No.: 26995360

Document Ref. No. : AUC/DTI/C/127

Competition : ICB

Financier : Self Financed

Purchaser Ownership : -

Tender Value : Refer Document

Purchaser's Detail

Purchaser : AFRICAN UNION COMMISSION (AUC)
Attn: Carine Toure Yemitia (Mrs.) Head of Procurement Travel and Store Division Building C, Room 327 P.O.Box 3243, Roosevelt Street Addis Ababa Tel: +251 (0) 11 551 7700 – Ext 4305 Fax: +251 (0) 11 551 0442; +251 11-551-0430
Ethiopia
Email :tender@africa-union.org

Tender Details

Tenders are invited for Consultancy Service to Assist the Department of Trade and Industry on the Implementation of the SMEs Strategy.

Closing Date: Friday, October 5, 2018 - 15:00

Sector: Financial Services

Description: Consultancy Service to Assist the Department of Trade and Industry on the Implementation of the SMEs Strategy

Tender number: AUC/DTI/C/127

Closing date and time: October 05, 2018 at 15:00

INTRODUCTION
The African Union, established as a unique Pan African continental body, is charged with spearheading Africa’s rapid integration and sustainable development by promoting unity, solidarity, cohesion and cooperation among the peoples of Africa and African States as well as developing a new partnership worldwide. Its Headquarters is located in Addis Ababa, capital city of Ethiopia.

At its 30th Assembly in January 2018, the African Union adopted a decision to ensure gender parity is achieved by 2025 within the institutions and organs of the Union. This decision builds on previous efforts to achieve gender parity and will ensure a more systematic, inclusive, and evolving and accelerated approach to gender parity within the organization.

In seeking to achieve this objective, the African Union intends to strengthen its capacity to deliver by, among others, filling its regular vacant, fixed and short-term posts. The Commission of the African Union invites applicants who are citizens of Member States for the fixed-term post of SMEs Expert in the Division of Industry, Trade and Industry Department of the African Union Commission.

BACKGROUND
The first extraordinary session of the Conference of African Ministers of Industry (CAMI), which was held in Midrand South Africa in September 2007, deliberated on the continent’s industrialization endeavours, and prepared inputs for the Heads of States and Governments summit. An important outcome of the Midrand CAMI was the Action Plan for Accelerated Industrial Development of Africa (AIDA), which was developed and endorsed by the Ministers. In May 2008, AUC, in consultation with other stakeholders developed the “Strategy for implementation of the action plan for AIDA”. The Africa Steering Committee for the implementation of the plan of action for AIDA (ASC-AIDA) was successfully launched in March 2012 in Algiers, Algeria.

Recognizing the importance of private sector-led growth in contributing to Africa’s economic development, the 20th Ordinary Session of the African Union (AU) Conference of African Ministers of Industry (CAMI 20) on the theme: Accelerating Industrialization for Africa within the Post-2015 Development Agenda, identified industrialization as the basis for development, with the private sector playing a critical role in supporting sustainable industrialization. In order to harness the potential for industrialization to contribute to Africa’s economic development, CAMI directed Member States to:
Create an enabling environment for the creation and operation of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) and Small and Medium-Sized Industries (SMIs);
Place SMEs and SMIs at the centre of private sector-led development;
Develop policy instruments and measures to facilitate the registration and operation of SMEs and SMIs and their access to finance and export readiness;
Scale up interventions aimed at the development of value chains and production clusters on the continent;
Explore measures to assist SMEs and SMIs in the informal and formal sectors;
Develop policies aimed at empowering women and youth to effectively participate in industrialization, and
Promote clusters and consortia for exports to facilitate the integration of SMEs and SMIs.

As part of the efforts to inspire economic growth and transformation on the continent, the AU has developed the SME Strategy for Africa. The vision of the AU SME Strategy is to “develop competitive, diversified and sustainable economies underpinned by dynamic, entrepreneurial and industrial sectors that generate employment, reduce poverty and foster social inclusion”.

Taking into account the AU’s comparative advantage in engaging RECs and Member States and recognizing that Africa’s private sector has not been an important source of competitive, diversified and sustainable job growth, the Strategy identifies how the AU can leverage its convening power to engage RECs as well as Member States in reexamining how to strengthen and reinvigorate the private sector engagement in SMEs in order to achieve the set goal.

For the purpose of making significant stride towards the realization of AU vision, the Strategy hinges on seven Pillars that are presented below.
Create an enabling business environment and ensure energy access and infrastructure
Facilitate innovation and technology and promote startups, knowledge-based sectors and growth enterprises
Promote access to innovative financing
Ensure access to markets, export competitiveness and regional integration
Promote business development services and institutional capacity building
Promote learning practices and knowledge management
Promote inclusive entrepreneurship (youth, women) and livelihood development

The AU as the continental body that embraces the Member States and RECs under a common umbrella will have a leading role in encouraging and promoting the application of the SME strategy. To facilitate its implementation, the Strategy is accompanied with various frameworks, which include results framework, monitoring and evaluation, reporting, partnership building, resource mobilization and communications and outreach.

OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNEMENT
The main objective of the assignment is to operationalize the SME strategy. The expert shall, therefore, provide technical and administrative support/counselling to the AUC and thereby contribute towards the management of the implementation of the SME strategy, by coordinating the various activities related to the undertaking.

SCOPE OF ASSIGNMENT
Thus, the incumbent shall, under the overall policy the AUC be responsible for the following:
Finalization of preparations of the implementation of the SME strategy. In this connection, the expert shall co-ordinate the final activities of the preparations, and ensures effective of the implementation of the strategy. The implementation programme shall exploit the synergies of the partners/stakeholders, and ascertain a coordinated and harmonized approach and process.
Develop a resource mobilization Strategy. The expert shall develop a comprehensive financing strategy to facilitate implementation of the SME strategy. The strategy must explore how to leverage strategic partner resources (e.g. donors), innovative financing instruments, equity as well as how other sources that include but are not limited to institutional investors (pension funds), Diaspora, capital markets among others could be strategic and sustainable sources of financing for SMEs.
Counseling / advisory services. In this regard, the expert provide counselling/advisory services, reports and issue papers to the AUC and its relevant organs, on diverse technical and practical matters pertinent to a smooth and successful implementation of the strategy.
Establishment of information and data base. In this case, the expert shall give counsel to the AUC on the creation of a data and information base needed to support the implementation of the strategy (e.g., detailed data and information prospective sources of financial resources and none financial resource that can be mobilized and leveraged to foster Africa’s industrial development efforts, etc.).
Capacity building. In this connection, the expert shall facilitate the capacity building of AUC staff together with RECs to ensure an effective and sustainable management of the implementation of the strategy.
M & E and reporting. The expert shall co-ordinate under the supervision of the department the setting-up of a viable system for the monitoring and evaluation (M & E) of all aspects and stages of implementation of the strategy.

DELIVERABLES
The following are the expected outputs of the expert:
Program for the implementation of the SME strategy is in place;
key actors for the implementation of the SME strategy is organized inducted;
Recommendations are translated into policy guides with a focus on policy and regulatory measures;
Benchmarks for financial and none financial requirements for the implementation of the SME strategy is in place.
Bankable project proposals are prepared and ready for use to solicit for financial and none financial inputs;
Needed project reports are prepared;
Catalogue of prospective sources of resources and their profiles prepared, and contacts / relationships to them are established;
Resource mobilization calendar / work plan is prepared, and guides the activities of the steering committee of the strategy for the implementation of the SME strategy;
Proper resource mobilization records maintained;
Meetings with resource providers (donors, creditors, etc.) are organized;

QUALIFICATION AND EXPERIENCE
Education:
Advanced University degree in a relevant science or social science discipline; with specialization in any of the following areas: economics, business administration, policy implementation and management, or related relevant field.
An MBA in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise development.

Experience:
The position requires at least 10 years of experience in SME development in Africa.
Three of those should be at Management level.

Additional skills include:
In-depth knowledge of the AU industrial development agenda,
In-depth familiarity with the strategy for the implementation of the plan of action for AIDA and strategies for SME/I development in Africa.
In-depth conceptual and practical knowledge of key issues in the mobilization of financial and none financial for development, including traditional and nontraditional modalities.
Good knowledge of Africa’s financial and none financial requirements for industrial development, and diverse prospective providers of necessary resources.
Strong abilities to develop strategies, derive plans from them, and calmly work towards their realization, under demanding performance schedules.
Solid analytical, writing skills, and communication skills (including developing advocacy messages)
Experience working with high level policy makers
Ability to process large amounts of data, prepare synthetic and on-demand analytical reports and formulate evidence-base recommendations to stakeholders;
Experience working in multi-cultural environments

REPORTING
The Expert will report to the Director of Industry in the Department of Trade and Industry.

LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT:
Proficiency in one of the African Union working languages, proficiency of two or more in other of one or several other working language(s) would be an added value. The ability to communicate in both English and French (oral and written) will be an asset.

DURATION OF THE ASSIGNMENT AND DAILY FEE
The duration of the assignment is 88 days starting from the date of contract signing. The Africa Union will pay to the Consultant a daily professional fee of US$300, and other costs e.g. Air ticket and Daily Subsistence Allowance will be covered by the African Union Commission on actual bases.

EVALUATION CRITERIA
The African Union Commission now invites eligible Individual Consultants to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested candidate must provide information demonstrating that he/she has the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services. Consulting firms may propose individual consultant/s, but only the experience and qualifications of individual/s shall be used in the selection process, and that his or her corporate experience shall not be taken into account, and the contract would be signed with the proposed individual.

For evaluation of the expressions of interest the following criteria will be applied:
a) General Education Qualification and Relevant Training (20 points);
b) Experience Related to the Assignment (30 points);
c) Technical approach and methodology (40 points)
d) Work plan (10 points)

Interested candidates are requested to submit the following documents for AUC’s consideration as an attachment to the CVs:
a) Technical Proposal on:
understanding and interpretation of the TOR
methodology to be used in undertaking the assignment
time and activity schedule

Further information can be obtained at the address below during office hours 8:00-13:00hrs and 14:00-17:00 hours Local Time.

Proposal must be delivered in a written form to the address below not later than 15:00 hours local time, October 05, 2018.

African Union Commission,
Attn: Carine Toure Yemitia (Mrs.)
Head of Procurement Travel and Store Division
Building C, Room 327
P.O.Box 3243, Roosevelt Street
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Tel: +251 (0) 11 551 7700 – Ext 4305
Fax: +251 (0) 11 551 0442; +251 11-551-0430
E-mail: tender@africa-union.org

see: https://www.sa-tenders.co.za/sites/default/files/REoI%20-%20Consultancy%...

Attachments:

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