Job Description

BDS Consultant Job, Current Agricultural Jobs In Kenya,

1.0 Background 

1.1 About Farm Africa 

Farm Africa is an innovative charity that reduces poverty in rural eastern Africa by helping  farmers grow more, sell more and sell for more: we help farmers to not only boost yields, but  also gain access to markets, and add value to their produce. We place a high priority on  environmental sustainability and develop approaches that help farmers to improve their yields  and incomes without degrading their natural resources. Our programmes vary hugely, ranging  from helping crops farmers to boost harvests, livestock keepers to improve animal health, and  forest coffee growers to reach export markets, but core to all of them is a focus on the financial  sustainability of the farmers’ businesses and environmental sustainability.  

1.2 About the Project 

Farm Africa is implementing a project in the coastal region that is geared at strengthening  inclusive and sustainable blue economy value chains through skills development and value  chain development. The implementation of this project is geared towards the implementation  of activities that will create jobs, and developing a business environment that provides the  capacity to establish entrepreneurship within the prioritized value chains in the blue economy.  The emphasis of the project is to promote employment, raise incomes and improve working  conditions through cooperation with business and public sector partners in the coastal region. 

2.0 Purpose and scope of the assignment 

Farm Africa is seeking an experienced Business development services (BDS) professional who is based in the coastal region preferably in Taita Taveta, Mombasa, Kilifi or Tana River counties who will deliver training, coaching and mentorship to 12 mid-scale enterprises on key  areas of their need and train 3 AA’s (Aquaculture Agents) on business development for a  period of 3 months. The Consultant will use the results of the enterprise capacity assessments  done on each of the businesses to formulate a capacity-building plan and business case  development. 

For the support of the 12 Mid-scale enterprises, the consultant will employ a blend of training,  coaching and mentoring model. Coaching and mentorship have proven to be a very effective  methodology in providing technical BDS to enterprises. It provides an opportunity to  contextualize the BDS services within specific businesses and foster close adoption of key  practices by mentees.  

In the provision of BDS to the identified mid-scale aquaculture enterprises, the consultant will  use the GROW model that is briefly highlighted here: 

∙ Goal Setting and SMART coaching goals will be set up between the Consultant and  the enterprises in order to give direction and purpose to the coaching sessions 

∙ Reality Checking: The Consultant with the enterprises will openly review the current  state or level of performance or any issues that are causing breakdowns. It will also  involve analysing available solutions within the business. 

∙ Options/ Alternatives: The Consultant and enterprises will explore actions or steps that  will help them improve their performance.  

∙ What is to be done/where/when/How: The Consultant and participants will nail down  an option or two, then develop an action plan. 

The Consultant will be guided by the Farm Africa’s comprehensive BDS curriculum and user  friendly manuals that will be reviewed and customized to address the unique requirements of  the 12 Mid-scale enterprises.

To support the AA’s the BDS consultant will conduct a joint training on business planning,  financial management, sales and marketing, operations and assist them refine their business  plans for their chosen enterprises. The Consultant will also facilitate the coaching of the 3 AA’s  during the one on one business mentorship sessions with the 12 enterprises. 

The assignment will be carried out over a period of 3 months from July to September 2022  and will be implemented in Tana River and Taita Taveta counties. The 12 Mid-scale  enterprises are located in Taita Taveta county (8 Enterprises) and Tana River county (4  enterprises).  

 Deliverables for this assignment

• Provide individualised support face to face and remote support to each enterprise on  the key need areas of the businesses as highlighted by the Enterprises capacity  assessment done on each enterprise. This includes areas on business planning,  financial management, operations and compliance including record keeping, financial  records analysis, sales & marketing and leadership and management. 


• Deliver at least 2 one-on-one business coaching sessions with 12 selected mid-scale  aquaculture enterprises. 


• Support the selected companies with business planning, development of a business  case and an action plan. 


• Deliver joint training to the 3AAs, review their business plans and facilitate their  coaching during the one-on-one sessions with the 12 enterprises. 


• Gather monthly financial metrics data of the businesses/ on revenue, costs, and profits  over the training period, employment, access to formal financial institutions. Data  collection will also include other tools as advised by Farm Africa. 


• Provide monthly reports on the progress of the training to the Cultivate Business  Manager and a final report after the end of the assignment. 

2.1 Structure of the assignment

3.0 Timelines 

4.0 Consultants Qualifications and experience 

Education and Qualifications 

∙ Postgraduate or undergraduate Degree in the relevant field either agriculture,  agriculture economics, financial or business-related field. 

∙ Existing networks with SGBs and key stakeholders in the SGBs/ BDS landscape in  Kenya including the finance sector, incubators, accelerators, donors etc. and well  versed with strategies for network development and expansion. 

Experience 

∙ Minimum of 10 years’ experience in working with businesses in agricultural value  chains in Kenya preferably with private sector experience in the coastal region. 

∙ Demonstrated experience and success in incubating and developing commercially  focused early and growth stage agribusinesses in the country. 

∙ Extensive experience in the delivery of Business Development Services (BDS) to small  and growing agribusinesses in Kenya. Preferably experience providing BDS in the  coastal region. . 

∙ In-depth Knowledge and understanding of the agribusiness sector in Kenya.

∙ Good analytical and presentation skills. Proficient use of Microsoft Word, Excel,  PowerPoint, data analysis software and the internet is an added advantage. 

∙ Proficiency to communicate (reading and writing) in English and Swahili.  

Consultant selection criteria 

∙ In-depth technical & practical understanding of the agricultural BDS and SGB (Small  and growing agribusinesses) landscape in Kenya with a particular focus on provision  of BDS to rural based agri-SGBs. 

∙ Demonstrable experience in enterprise capacity assessments of businesses in Kenya. ∙ Evident experience in the delivery of Business Development Services to small and  growing agribusinesses in Kenya including companies,  

∙ Good experience with online/ remote BDS support and delivery of training to  businesses.  

∙ Existing network of BDS providers, SGBs, accelerators, incubators, NGOs,  associations and other relevant stakeholders  

∙ The consultant can be a firm or an individual.  

5.0 Costs of the Consultancy 

∙ The Consultant should include the consultancy fees and logistic costs  (Accommodation and travel) to the Enterprises. 

∙ The conference costs for the joint training costs for the Aquaculture Agents will be  catered for by Farm Africa. 

How to Apply

Qualified consultants will be required to submit their Expression of Interest which should  include the following; 

1. Detailed proposal of how the consultant will carry out the training. 


2. The consultants resume with qualification and experience conducting similar  assignments. 


3. iii. Previous work references; contact details (email addresses) of referees (firms for whom  you have performed similar assignments). 


4. Detailed financial proposal with details indicated in section 5.0. 

All documents must be submitted by email to our ‘sealed’ email address  procurementkenya@farmafrica.org before or by 30th June 2022.

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