Strengthening Exports of Fruits and Vegetables from Lebanon to European and Regional Markets
TERMS of REFERENCE (TOR) No. 1
“3.5 Establish Ministry of Economy and Trade (MOET) online platform supporting export of produce- Activity 3.5.2 Experts to assess the platform needs”
| MISSION | 3.5.2.2.1 – IT EXPERT to develop the action plan for the platform and will work with the coordinator to gather information to populate the new system. | |
| 1. BACKGROUND | ||
| BENEFICIARY | Ministry of Economy and Trade (MOET) / Strengthening Exports of Fruits and Vegetables from Lebanon to European and Regional Markets Project | |
| PROJECT
BACKGROUND |
Based on the 2018 CBI report along with previous studies and projects indicating both opportunities and challenges for the export and impact of the development of the 4 crops as well as RMF’s longstanding experience in the field, RMF aims through this project that will extend for 4 years is to strengthen specific value chains (Grapes, potatoes, cherries and avocados) by supporting major actors across the value chain including farmers, service providers, aggregators , exporters, public and private institutions and academia in improving their capacities and providing them with best practices, new technologies , tools and equipment to enhance the value chain to meet export requirements and enabling environment and ultimately enhancing economic advancement. Special focus will be made on affected and vulnerable areas including Kaa, Bekaa, Akkar etc. This will be conducted by addressing several obstacles outlined in the CBI value chain analysis presentation mainly in enhancing pre and post – harvest handling, access to markets, and CSR performance.
The project also supports enhancing job creation and poverty reduction for rural hosting and refugee communities including Syrian refugees as well as strengthening social stability where competition for resources and employment has caused tensions in the past. Historically, Lebanese farmers have frequently relied on Syrian refugees to assist with agricultural work and care for farms. This has made the Syrian involvement in the agricultural sector commonly accepted. Not to mention that agriculture is one of the few sectors in which Syrian refugees are legally allowed to work. By creating more job opportunities and reducing poverty amongst the strained hosting Lebanese communities and the Syrian refugees, this project will also be directly contributing to social stability and a peaceful coexistence between the host and refugee communities. : Enhanced economic advancement in Lebanon through the strengthening of 4 specific value chains (grapes, potatoes, cherries and avocados) towards improved exports by supporting the export enabling environment among concerned stakeholders and chain actors including farmers, SME’s, exporters, government bodies and private sector mainly in affected remote areas : EO1: Capacities of targeted farmers within 4 value chains enhanced to produce improved and competitive agricultural products that comply with buyer requirements through capacity building, provision of tools and equipment and usage of new technologies. EO2: Capacities of exporters and post-harvest handling facilities enhanced through trainings, linkages to EU, GCC and window markets, assessment of facilities leading to increased export of targeted value chain products. EO3: Governmental bodies working across the 4 targeted value chains have enhanced facilities, best practices, linkages and networks supporting the facilitation of export process and upgrading the value chains. EO4: Improved support for children and youth in the 4 targeted value chains. |
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| 2. DESCRIPTION OF THE ASSIGNMENT | ||
| Framework | General
Component 3.5 –Platform
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| OBJECTIVES | To Assess the platform needs and develop The action plan will be developed in the first visit on the basis of the gap analysis and will include:
– description of the types and sources of information that will be delivered by the platform in the first phase of its upgraded operation; – the creation of a priority list of information to be further developed, and – description of the delivery mechanism (website). |
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| Main Tasks | The IT and Trade expert will jointly prepare and elaborate the platform and they are to :
· complete the gap analysis · complete the platform action plan consisting the following components: o Description of the types and sources of information that will be delivered by the platform in the first phase of its upgraded operation; o Creation of a priority list of information to be further developed, and description of the delivery mechanism (website). – To post the summary of the trade agreements on the platform in a friendly user manner Friendly user pointing out the main points and benefits of the agreement regarding trade – Search engine – Q&A – To start up with the value chain products and post their requirements and standards if exported to – EU Markets (EU Trade Help Desk) – MENA Markets – Trade Statistics formula – Software to be used to analyze trade indicators: – Trade Balance – Graph – Top 10 imports and exports – Yearly Comparison – Monthly sections and chapters HSC – To extract data in table format starting 2000 till present – To have the requested tables directly on Excel ready-for mat, without the need of rearrangement of columns and format. – Tariff quotas – Option of obtaining the excel sheet requested as pdf file – To have the product description near each HS code product – insert data from customs and ITC trade map sites – Potential markets – % of export – % market share – Post all supported agricultural and SMEs loans – Analyzing rejections data – Figures and tables – Friendly user – QR Code linking the exhibition audience to the relevant data within the exhibition section on the platform |
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| Outputs | The action plan for the platform development | |
| Expenditure | The I.E. eligible costs related to the activities covered by this TOR will be charged to the Incidental Expenditures (I.E.) budget. | |
| 3. EXPERTISE REQUIRED | ||
| Profile of IT EXPERT | § Minimum of 10 years of professional experience in developing digital platform.
§ Develop and manages architecture design, implementation, and governance. Influence technology decisions covering any areas of responsibility § Knowledge in Core Systems: Full Stack Development Core Technologies § Involved with vendor and product selection to ensure adherence to architecture standards. Assist with selection of hardware, software, systems, techniques or methodologies. This is to include active participation in RFP processes, technology assessments and/or pilot implementations § Contributed software engineering expertise in the development of products through the software lifecycle, from requirements definition through successful deployment § Designed multiple of software solutions driving continuous improvement to processes, systems, workflow and customer responsiveness. § Mentored development teams in Agile SDLC and RAD best practices. Ensured the release of premium-quality applications that provided intuitive and secure experiences for users. § Delivered new or enhanced developments, Web-based customer applications § software that automated customer loan data collection and processing functions, systems for securely handling electronic funds transfers § browser plug-ins enabling fail-safe recovery of Internet file transfers § Development Tools, Methodologies & Environments: Rapid Application Design (RAD), Object-Oriented Analysis & Design (OOAD), Scrum Methodologies, Prototyping Approach, Continuous Integration Toolset. § Fluency in speaking, reading and writing English and Arabic; § Strong communications skills and ability to communicate with people at all levels, verbally and in writing § Fluency in speaking, reading and writing English; § Knowledge of Arabic would be an advantage but is not essential. § Strong communications skills and ability to communicate with people at all levels, verbally and in writing. |
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| 4. LOCATION AND DURATION | ||
| TIME SCHEDULE | 13 January 2020 – 29 February 2020 | |
| Location | The consultancy and reporting activities will take place in Beirut, at the Ministry of Economy and Trade, or at any other place to be agreed upon (on a consecutive day basis and within normal working hours from 08:30h to 17:30h). | |
| Contact | The Expert will work with the support of the coordinator | |
| 5. REPORTING | ||
| Format & Content |
The Expert shall submit a formal report at the end of the assignment, covering the objectives and expected results, activities undertaken, results achieved, evaluation of the training and attendees, problems encountered, and recommendations for follow up.
The report shall be delivered in one printed copy and as an electronic file and shall be in the format approved by the Quality Programme (to be provided at the beginning of the assignment). The report shall be sent to the coordinator for review and comments before submitting it to the Project manager for approval. Soft copies of all reports, annexes, data collection etc., must be supplied. All information must be directly traceable to these ToRs through the sub-project number. |
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| Language | The project working language is English (to be used in all reports and communications between the consultant and the Quality Programme). | |
| 6. OTHER CONDITIONS | ||
| Ownership | All activity outputs, including research data, reports, presentations and support documentation, will remain the property of the Quality Programme.
All materials prepared for the implementation of the assignment should be presented using RMF LOGO only (template available) and no contractor logo should appear on same. |
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| 7. AGREEMENT | ||
| Date & Signature | I, undersigned, agree with the present Terms of Reference.
Beirut, 2019
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To apply kindly send your CV and proposal to: [email protected] and cc: [email protected]
Submission Deadline: 10/1/2020
