5-Year Strategy Review and Development Palestinian Agricultu...

Terms of Reference – Consultancy Service

Terms of Reference for a:

5Year Strategy Review and Development

Palestinian Agricultural Disaster Risk Reduction and Insurance Fund (PADRRIF)

Ref: 23/041/OPTI/JRM

About PADRRIF

Palestinian Agricultural Disaster Risk Reduction and Insurance Fund (PADRRIF) is a semi-governmental non-profit organization founded pursuant to decree law No. (12) of 2013, established to play a significant role in the Palestinian agricultural sector toward enhancing food security and contributing to sustainable development. PADRRIF’s vision statement focuses on sustainable investment, promoting an agri-business environment, and enhancing a leading institution in the field of agricultural risk management.

PADRRIF specializes in providing certain services to Palestinian farmers with a range of rare and complex conditions. These services include agricultural insurance, which is considered a core function of PADRRIF as one of the most important tools in the field of agricultural risk mitigation. Agri-insurance aims to increase the resilience of Palestinian farmers and producers against shocks resulting from production risks including climate change and infrastructural risks, with the specific objective of putting in place an operational and sustainable agricultural insurance system and services.

In addition, PADRRIF provides agricultural compensation to the farmers, within its widespread scope of agricultural risk management. This process begins with the documentation of agricultural damages as a result of any natural and/or political risks that the agriculture sector may be exposed to in the Palestinian territories. The second step is to estimate losses in order to compensate the afflicted farmers according to risk size.

The key functions of PADRRIF:

To set up specific mechanisms to compensate farmers for natural disasters and assess their size.

Investment in technology and modern tools, which enhance risk assessment and establishing precautionary measures to mitigate these risks and their impact.

Compensation for farmers.

Compensation for the insured.

Investing PADRRIF money.

Brief context analysis of the Palestinian Agricultural Sector

A variety of climatic and geographical variations enable Palestine to produce a wide variety of agricultural products and allow for potential technological advancements in agriculture. As a result of the Israeli occupation, there are multiple drivers and vulnerabilities for the Palestinian agricultural sector, including land confiscation, fragmentation of Palestinian territory, control over water and resources, limited access to international and national markets, and military and settler violence. Agriculture remains an important source of food security, livelihoods, and export revenues despite numerous Israeli restrictions on Palestinian access to resources, movement, and trade. Which have led to an overall decline in the sector. The agriculture sector was also negatively impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic.

The agricultural sector has played a crucial role in providing employment opportunities, especially in times of crisis. According to 2021 forecasts, agricultural activity in Palestine contributed 7.6% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Moreover, in the occupied Palestinian territories, where farming is largely dependent on family labour, the agriculture sector provided jobs for 6.2% of the employed and a secondary source of income for many more households. Although women play an important role in agricultural activities, they are often considered invisible work. They provide 87% of the labour input for livestock production and 54% for rain-fed crop production.  (Food and Agriculture Organization, 2020).

While agriculture plays an important role in the economy, its value is not limited to the sector alone, as it is linked to many sectors, including industry, retail and wholesale trade, transport, tourism, and hospitality services, which depend on it either as a source of inputs or as a market for their outputs.

In addition to its economic role, agriculture is an integral part of the Palestinian cultural and social fabric, with a prominent place in literature, songs, and other forms of expression. It has come to symbolize Palestinian resilience and perseverance in the face of ongoing land loss due to prolonged occupation and the expansion of Israeli settlements.

Within the context of political volatility, one of the world’s fastest growing populations, and increased climatic variability exacerbated by environmental degradation, the risks faced by farmers and producers and other agricultural value chain actors are expected to increase, unless effective measures are taken to better protect the agriculture sector.

As described by climate change experts, climatic risks will potentially increase with future climate scenarios for Palestine projecting a rise in temperature, a decrease in average annual rainfall, translating into an increase in the risk of drought, and an increased risk of flood with the wettest days becoming more frequent. While currently, farmers and producers who have incurred such risks are partially supported through direct loss compensation, a more optimal system of professional risk transfer – insurance – is necessary especially with increased vulnerability of farmers and producers to risks.

Project Background

The ‘Building the Palestinian Agricultural Insurance Systems and Services’ project is a 36-month action lead by Oxfam together with the Economic and Social Development Centre of Palestine (ESDC), and funded by the EU. The action aims to increase the resilience of Palestinian farmers and producers against shocks resulting from production risks including climate change and infrastructural risks with the specific objective of putting in place an operational and sustainable agricultural insurance system and services through the Palestinian Agricultural Disaster Risk Reduction and Insurance Fund (PADRRIF), with the participation of the private sector.

The project is based on the prominence of the agricultural sector in the Palestinian national context and intends to minimise the ongoing risks that farmers and producers face, and thus ultimately enhance the state of Palestinian agriculture in terms of its role, importance, strengths, and contribution to the overall economy.

The project is built on a previous EU-funded technical assistance project Developing the Agricultural Insurance System in Palestine: Pre-Development Phase, through which a group of experts were recruited to assess the current environment in oPt and prepare a ‘Roadmap on Agricultural Insurance Development’. The roadmap, issued in March 2018, describes technical, policy, legal, financial, market, and organisational requirements for establishing agricultural insurance in Palestine, and was developed with the full participation of PADRRIF and key stakeholders. It also builds on and scales up the ‘Developing the Agricultural Insurance System in Palestine’ pilot project funded by the Government of Sweden and led by Oxfam in partnership with PADRRIF, ending in 2019.

Assignment Objectives and Expected Results

Assignment background

PADRRIF has made steady progress since it adopted the 2017-2022 strategy. To name part of which, PADRRIF has developed (i) an initial pilot set of agricultural insurance products, (ii) an agricultural insurance database of potential clients, (iii)  greenhouse technical standards and demonstration, (iv)  fast and accurate databases of agricultural damages and losses, (v) master plan for developing early warning system, (vi) regulation of agricultural compensations, and so far (vii) PADRRIF and MoA have concluded phase one of the Assistance to Agriculture Programme. In addition to these achievements, PADRRIF is currently implementing / co-implementing three technical advisory projects in agricultural insurance and agricultural risk management.

Further and continuous building of PADRRIF’s institutional capacity, strategic directions, and  roles, which are all keyfor the operationalisation of any agricultural insurance system in the near future, and its connections to the other functions of PADRRIF. During this journey, PADRRIF is facing old and emerging challenges on various levels, some of which are those related to the definition of its roles and responsibilities among the roles of other public and private sector institutions in the Palestinian emerging insurance system.

PADRRIF is witnessing changes in its audience, changes within the political context with higher risks, and lower public sector financial abilities; which are vital to capitalise for PADRRIF’s compensation and insurance programmes, and in its overall partnership environment. These changes have impacted PADRRIF in many ways and require strategic agility, including programmatic focuses and strategic positions as a semi-governmental body, all coinciding with a new phase of design, planning, and implementation of the emerging agricultural insurance system.

Under the ‘Building the Palestinian Agricultural Insurance Systems and Services’ project, and with Oxfam’s support, PADRRIF is engaged in a process of strategic review for its 2017-2022 strategy and in drafting a new strategy for 2024-2029, and implementation plan.

Expected results

The assignment is expected to develop a 5-year strategy for PADRRIF considering the agricultural and national strategic plans of the State of Palestine, the general and specific mandates of PADRRIF, and the recent political, social, and security changes, as well as the effects Palestine is facing as a result of environmental and climatic changes and possible climatic changes risks. General strategies, specific objectives and functional implementation plans are expected to follow the general strategic planning.

The strategic plan and its functional/implementation plan should:

Help PADRRIF in reaching the overall objective of building a vital and operational agricultural insurance system.

Help institutionalise PADRRIF’s capacities and functions towards a private-public partnership model for the emerging insurance system.

Develop the ways of working to achieve best practices in the realization of organization and project goals.

Identify initiatives to be undertaken for improving organizational systems, structures and policy measures that can cope with changes in its roles and responsibilities, as well as requested functions.

Develop a functional/implementation plan for the execution of the strategic plan, including building capacity of PADRRIF’s teams within its departments in areas of agricultural risk management, and agricultural sector development. The functional/implementation plan will help PADRRIF in setting its strategic performance indicators, against which the management team can monitor and assess the actual implementation and reaching of strategic objectives.

Assignment Scope of Work

Oxfam is seeking to contract a consulting company/consultant to conduct the strategic planning assignment. Among others, the consulting company/consultant is expected to complete the following tasks:

Review of the previous strategy with a critical and learning lens (where is PADRRIF particularly effective and successful, what has been achieved, what are reasons for success vice-a-versa, what aspects can be built on of the previous strategy, what needs to be changed … etc.) all based on updated contextual analysis, including anticipated trends and adaptation measures that PADRRIF should take to position itself in such challenging and emerging environment/s.

Review of all related national plans for the agricultural sector, PADRRIF’s current functional plans, policies, regulations, and functional roles and operations.

Chart a compelling vision that is informed by consultation of PADRRIFs stakeholders, target groups, and governance bodies and outlines PADRRIF’s unique values.

Articulate clear strategic objectives and intervention logic, approach, and capacities that PADRRIF should deploy to achieve its objectives.

Map the implication of the new strategic direction on the PADRRIF’s internal structure and chart a clear operational/executional/functional plan to make sure that internal changes are suitable for the implementation of the new strategy.

In doing so, the consulting company/consultant is expected to develop the strategic framework including introductory strategic planning session aiming at equipping the participants on the strategic planning concepts and methodologies. The consulting company/consultant is expected to follow that with a working strategic planning session/retreat, assessing potential scenarios’ effect on the future of the organisation’s mandate, functions, and possible institutional capacity changes.

For the functional/implementation plan, the consultant is expected to utilise a results-based planning method, which will lead to 5-year implementation plan with integrated strategies/main strategic objectives, people/departments, resources, and indicative measurements of progress/improvements. Formulating and planning meetings, interviews and workshops are expected to complete and validate the functional/implementation planning.

Generally; the assignment should:

Ensure that the final strategic framework and functional plan clearly identify PADRRIF’s impact, and ambitions and provide a stronger basis (key impact ambitions and key performance indicators) for stronger monitoring and communication of results.

Consider PADRRIF feedback in finalising the draft strategy and plans; and ensuring that PADRRIF’s M&E team has enough indicators to identify and assess strategic and functional performance.

Keep the door open for and consider structural changes among PADRRIF, that helps the integration of new emerging roles and responsibilities, especially of the agricultural insurance function.

Consultant Responsibilities & Deliverables:

The consultant is expected to manage the full administration and implementation of the requested service to include, preparations, logistics, direct and indirect related expenses (Consultancy fees, consultant’s team transportation, facilitation, and moderation services, drafting and finalising of final deliverables).

Hall rentals and its related hospitalities are the responsibility of Oxfam as the contracting party and its Partner PADRRIF.

Deliverables are expected to cover [all deliverables will be in Arabic]:

Final 5-years PADRRIF strategic plan, including strategic framework (vision, mission, strategic objectives. And the how to reach such objectives).

Final 5-years functional/operational plan, including integrated strategies/main strategic objectives, programmes, outputs, projects, people/departments, resources, and indicative measurements of progress/improvements (KPIs).

Strategic planning introductory and strategic thinking sessions (one full-day strategic thinking session is envisioned).

Functional planning meetings, interviews and workshops (1-2 other planning and session/s is/are envisioned).

Photos and assignment report documenting the planning assignments and their sessions.

Any awareness/educational tools/documents used during the sessions and for the sake of this assignment completion.

timeframe

This assignment is expected to require approximately 18-20 consultancy days and is anticipated to be carried out over a period of 2-3 months, starting in April 2023.  The consulting company/consultant will work closely with the OXFAM and PADRRIF staff, which will supervise the consultant’s work, progress, and deliverables. The progress will be assessed on a regular basis so that any required adaptation can be agreed upon in a timely manner.

Confidentiality  and Copyrights

Oxfam and PADRRIF retain copyright of all data, information and content created. The consultant team is obliged to sign a copyright and non-disclosure statement, confidentiality agreement, and a code of conduct. Oxfam and PADRRIF retain the full right to use the content created for example; in local and international media, PADRRIF websites and social media pages; as well for building-on for future further studies and programmes.

Desired Qualifications, Specialised Knowledge, and Expertise

The consultant to be selected for the proposed assignment should have:

Demonstrated track record of successfully facilitating participatory strategy review and development.

Demonstrated experience with the development of functional/operational plans, including monitoring and evaluation. 

Knowledge and experience of using participatory and innovative facilitation and moderation techniques.

Desired experience with agricultural sector and working with companies, NGOs, and organisations working within the agricultural and financial sectors.

Proven management ability and interpersonal skills.

Acknowledged similar consultancies with recognised organisations.

The consultant must have an effective report-writing and strong oral and written communication skills both in Arabic and English, and a good analytical and conceptual skills, strong planning, organisation, and administrative skills.

Technical Proposal: The consultant/advisor is requested to submit:

A complete [English Language] proposal describing / articulating general approach and detailed methodology that will be used to tackle the consultancy engagement. The detailed methodology must include (among others) clear approaches toward the preparation of the facilitation/moderation of the meetings, workshops, and planning sessions.

Note: Copying the assignment scope of work that is detailed above and pasting it will not be accepted as a detailed methodology and will be evaluated low. Consultants are advised to elaborate on the why and how each step will be conducted and the expected deliverables from each step.

A list of relevant experiences of the same field, and for relevant institutions/organisations.

CVs and copies of IDs of the team lead and other consultant/s.

Work divisions and responsibilities between the team lead and other consultants must be clarified.

Note: The technical offer may not include any financial information. Any technical offer containing material financial information is considered to be in violation of the terms and shall be excluded.

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