1.0 INTRODUCTION

Solidaridad Network is an international solution-oriented civil society organization working through eight regional expertise centres to transform markets to make them more sustainable and inclusive. Our eight regional expertise centres include Asia, Eastern and Central Africa, Europe, Latin America, North America, Southern Africa, South America, West Africa and our global Secretariat in the Netherlands. Solidaridad Eastern and Central Africa, one of the regional centres, headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya with country offices and programmes in Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Uganda. We bring together supply chain players and engage them with innovative solutions to improve production, ensuring the transition to a sustainable and inclusive economy that maximizes the benefit for all. We facilitate strengthening of local capacity in developing countries, support the creation of enabling environments for economies to thrive, and improve market access.

1.1 RECLAIM SUSTAINABILITY! Program.

RECLAIM SUSTAINABILITY! Is a 5-year program (2021-2025) supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of the Netherlands. The program is implemented through a consortium and in brief it tries to invoke the actual meaning of sustainability both in theory and practice in global commodity supply chains.
Sustainability seems to have lost its true meaning. There is no such thing as sustainable products when the people who produce those goods live in poverty, when natural resources are not managed sustainably, and working conditions are poor.
Civic space in supply chains of our target countries remains confined. Space for farmers and workers to improve their position in the chain, to bargain for better prices, or working conditions, or to influence equitable access and use of natural resources, in the countries and sectors of our focus is limited.
Systemic, transformative change is therefore required by reclaiming the essence of sustainability through an enabled civic space that sets the right conditions for this to happen.
Given the above explanation, the strategic objective of the RECLAIM SUSTAINABILITY! Program is to contribute to inclusive sustainable value chains and trade in an innovative way, in which the interests, voices and rights of farmers, workers and citizens (both male and female) are represented and heard in decision making for sustainable use of natural resources, decent work, fair value distribution, and sustainable consumption.

The Program’s theory of change’s premise is that: IF we strengthen civil society; IF we increase and maintain civic space; and IF we apply a gender & social inclusion approach – throughout all our interventions in trade and value chains;- THEN this will influence the public and private sector to adopt and implement sustainability norms that will ultimately alleviate the poverty of farmers and workers.

The RECLAIM SUSTAINABILITY! Program works in 7 supply chains being; Palm Oil, Cocoa, Cotton & Textiles, Gold, Food Products, Coffee and Tea. These commodity supply chains are sub-projects of the entire program. We see a strong relevance of these sectors for the global living income/decent work agenda, and a strong linkage with the local Dutch embassy priorities.

The program seeks to strengthened interaction between:

• A Vibrant and Strong Civil Society that engages and debates with public and private decision makers, monitors implementation and enforcement of policies and mechanisms, holds decision makers accountable, safeguards gender and social inclusion, and demands and consumes sustainable products;


• A Responsible Private Sector implementing comprehensive policies and innovative inclusive business models for truly sustainable sourcing, production, trade and investment;


• A Supportive Public Sector enforcing national, regional and international comprehensive norms and regulatory frameworks that ensure sustainable production, trade and consumption.

1.2 RECLAIM SUSTAINABILITY! Consortium:

This consortium has come together in a broad coalition of local civil society partners under one unified banner in a proposed strategic partnership with the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to embark on an ambitious goal: to RECLAIM SUSTAINABILITY! We do this in service to our local constituencies: farmers, workers and their communities. The RECLAIM SUSTAINABILITY! Consortium (RSC) is deeply rooted in local societies with a local identity, ownership and autonomy, and local staff under local leadership, acting in compliance with local legislation. The consortium comprises of:

• Fundación Solidaridad Latinoamericana, Solidaridad West Africa, Solidaridad Southern Africa, Solidaridad East & Central Africa, Solidaridad Asia, and Solidaridad Europe, are the ‘Solidaridad Network’; organised in a truly bottom-up model. Each organisation is independent and locally embedded without a headquarter performing an oversight role. Each organisation is considered by local communities, as well as public and private sector actors as credible, and reliable.


• FairFood is a mission driven tech CSO, bringing strong knowledge and tools on digitalisation and fairdata, to be able to capitalise on the tremendous opportunity in smart technologies that will give farmers and workers a digital identity and will have the potential to raise income levels and improve working conditions.


• Business Watch Indonesia (BWI) is one of the oldest NGOs in Indonesia and has garnered the reputation as a prominent sustainability NGO. Together with Solidaridad, BWI documented ‘Tea Vision’, aiming for sustainability in the tea sector, and is a Co-founder of the Lestari standard for tea. BWI is the lead CSO for the Solidaridad sustainable landscape management programme at Central Java and has been working with Solidaridad for 13 years.


• TrustAfrica is a locally African registered CSO, operating on a continental scale, and will work together with the three Solidaridad African consortium partners directly to ensure a consolidated continental effort in raising the Voices of African farmers, workers and CSOs. Since 2006 Trust Africa has funded 211 organizations in 30 countries.

2.0 The Tea Project under RECLAIM SUSTAINABILITY! Program

2.1 Background

A number of problems needs to be addressed in the tea value chain. These include resource inefficiency, waste and depletion of natural resources, vulnerable employment, unfair distribution of value in the chain, unequal access to sustainable, healthy and safe food products, voluntary standards which have shown limited results, and confined platforms for growers and workers to bargain for better incomes and working conditions.
The tea project will be implemented in Uganda and Kenya and it aims to transform the global commodity industry through development of business models, improving global trade, increasing consumer demand and improving income to farmers and workers. Project Impact is to promote & support a responsible private sector that implements comprehensive policies and innovative inclusive business models for truly sustainable sourcing, production, trade and investment.

2.2 Tea Project Objectives:

• Establish and strengthen regional MSP dialogues to enable them advocate for issues affecting tea sector (e.g. gender inequality) Support East Africa Tea Trade Association (EATTA) in advocacy and lobbying


• Establish inter regional digital dialogues and share scientific knowledge; involve other stakeholders including tea association, workers’ unions, local NGOs and environmental committees on co-designing


• Develop and implement women inclusion models, gender analysis design, advocacy, MSP dialogues among others


• Co-develop business models that will sustain investments and trade

2.3 Baseline Evaluation Objectives:

The main objective of the baseline survey is to prepare a pre‐programme / baseline information of the target beneficiaries as per the indicators of programme objectives and expected results specified in the programme document and the programme results framework.
The specific objectives of the baseline survey are:

• To collect and analyze verifiable indicator data from the programme results framework


• To collect and analyze data on the current state of the project’s targeted beneficiaries (including but not limited to tea farmers, tea farmer organizations, tea related CSOs and umbrella bodies, tea regulators, service providers and stakeholders.


• To produce information to use as a basis for their overall programme monitoring and evaluation against the set indicators over the course of the programme implementation period.


• To identify key implementation strategies, modalities and input for the programme implementation phase.

2.4 Survey Methodology:

The methodology for this study will include both direct and indirect data collection, analysis and cross-referencing, and formulating recommendations thematically and as area/site-specific. The Consultant will finalize the methodology to undertake this study in line with the scope of the assessment, presented and refined with the management during the inception meeting.
The methodology used during this assessment will overall, include, but not be limited to the following:

• Review existing relevant secondary information and reports related to the East Africa Tea production, processing and marketing.


• Review of previous Solidaridad related Tea programs level documents and reports.


• Discuss with key Solidaridad staff, partners, and key informants at Office and field implementation levels.


• Carry out field visits in the implementation areas for data collection, observations, and triangulation.


• Hold community-level participatory meetings and focused group discussions for data collection and information gathering.


• Carry out a household-level survey for data collection through structured questionnaires.


• Data collection will also entail analysis of climate risks and vulnerability where both secondary data and primary data through qualitative and quantitative methodologies will be done.


• Special emphasis will be put on women spaces, youth engagement, and people with disabilities participation, so as to understand and recommend interventions on issues concerning these interest groups from a gender, youth, and people with disability inclusion’s perspective.


• Use of data from local institutions or organizations.


• Data analysis and verification of analyzed data.**2.5 Scope of Work**

The scope of work depicts the actual situation in the targeted project intervention area through
documenting the existing qualitative and/or quantitative values of project indicators at outcome and impact level that will facilitate programming action as well as the mapping of other similar programs/projects; The consultant will focus on but not limited to the following areas;

2.5.1 Outputs

• Profiled key stakeholders in tea in the selected geographical including networks/associations in the tea sector at country and regional level.


• Establish benchmarks on the socio-economic status, (especially Income and livelihoods) of Tea value chain actors in targeted areas.


• Inform identification of direct beneficiaries and development of project targets relevant services for the tea program.


• Map and profile investment opportunities within the tea sector


• Recommend or suggest approaches and models which could be applied in the implementation of the project.


• Identify possible linkages and synergies with other civil society organizations, national and international similar programs which could be created


• Identify lobby and advocacy implementation strategies and staff capacity enhancement that may add value to the tea program


• Best practices, models or approaches and key lessons from similar tea programs

2.5.2 Geographical area and Stakeholders’ scope

The baseline survey will be carried out in Kenya and Uganda with specific tea growing locations agreed upon during the inception phase. The stakeholders and actors in the tea industry will be the primary target with specifics agreed upon during the inception phase meeting.

2.6 Responsibilities of Consultants/Scope of Work:

The composition of the survey team is left up to the consultant/ organization based on their internal system, ideas, and logic. However, Solidaridad recommends that the team comprise one Team Leader (TL) to coordinate/conduct the overall study and liaise with Solidaridad. To collect information from the field using an adequate number of Field Enumerators (FEs). Supervision of the fieldwork and quality (reliability and validity) of the data/information collected from the field is the primary responsibility of the TL. The TL will work closely with Solidaridad M&E Officers and the programme team. In each step and process, consultation with the Project Manager and the M&E Officer are vital. The survey will be conducted in Kenya and Uganda.
The consultancy/consultant team will be primarily responsible for:

• Development/design baseline survey tools including questionnaires for HH survey and checklist and tools for group interaction including FGD with target beneficiaries at village levels.


• Share the study design including process, methods, and questionnaires/checklist with the programme team, collect feedback and finalize the study design.


• Pre‐test questionnaires and other tools in one of the programme sites.


• Submit an inception report.


• Debrief/discuss with the programme team about effectiveness of questionnaire, checklists, and other tools used in the pre‐test, collect feedback and finalize them.


• Orient, train, and supervise the enumerators.


• Carry out fieldwork together with enumerators.


• Ensure the quality of information collected from fields, cross-check with the validity of information collected and verify/revise where needed.


• Update progress of the study on a weekly basis to the M&E Officer.


• Analyze data and prepare quality reports.


• Give a presentation of the draft report to Solidaridad, and;


• Submit a final report (a compiled version of the report ‐ both hard copy and electronic version in word format) to the project after incorporating the feedback and suggestions from Solidaridad.

2.6 Deliverables:

I. Work plan and expression of interest (EOI) for the baseline survey, outlining;

• A detailed methodology for implementation of the survey, including proposed sample sizes.


• Draft data collection tools (The Consultant shall refine proposed standard indicators in reference to the proposed programme indicators and other guidelines provided by Solidaridad)


• A detailed work plan for the survey

II. Presentation of survey methodology to Solidaridad team in an inception meeting and later incorporate suggestions in the final inception report.
III. A draft report of the study for feedback and comments from Solidaridad and partners involved.
IV. Presentation on the main findings of the study for validation involving project teams, and other stakeholders as agreed with the project team.

2.7 Expert/Consultant’s Profile:

Consultancy firms/companies with verifiable research work in the Tea sector and who fulfil the following requirements are encouraged to express their interests.

• Relevant degree(s) in social sciences, Agriculture or development studies,


• Strong experience with and knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research methods and sampling strategies


• Experience in designing and conducting studies using experimental or quasi-experimental techniques. Experience with longitudinal study designs desired.


• Statistical analysis skills and strong proficiency with data analysis packages.


• Proven experience in conducting baseline study surveys, impact studies and evaluations, preferably on the tea industry in the East and Central Africa region.


• Research experience with Tea farmers is an added advantage


• Excellent communication and written skills in English and Swahili.

2.8 Consultancy Period:

The overall time frame of the survey will be 45 days (including Saturdays and Sundays), which will include inception meetings, finalizing the survey methodology, training of enumerators, data collection, data analysis, report writing, and presenting findings of the survey.

• Interested parties should submit a Technical and Financial proposal. Budget proposals should include logistics costs (transport, communications, meals and accommodation).- 30th April 2021, 5:00pm (EAT)


• Decision of selected consultant – only selected candidates will be contacted – 7th May 2021


• Inception report and meeting (virtual or in-person depending on covid19 situation) – 14th May 2021, 5:00pm (EAT)


• Draft report submitted – 21st June 2021, 5:00pm (EAT)


• Validation meeting and final report (virtual or in-person depending on covid19 situation) – 28th June 2021, 5:00pm (EAT)