TERMS OF REFERENCE: Development of Business Plan
Job Summary
This assignment will build on the business case development process
previously done through a business model canvas (BMC) workshop completed
by the CRAFT team. SMEs or cooperatives have been identified by the
CRAFT team and are willing to improve their sourcing and processing
models.
- Minimum Qualification: Unspecified
- Experience Level: Senior level
- Experience Length: 10 years
Job Description
Name of assignment: Development of Business Plan
Project: Climate Resilient Agribusiness for Tomorrow (CRAFT)
Geographical focus:
Southern Highland-Mbeya, Katavi and Ruvuma, Central zoneDodoma and
Singida, Lake zone-Kagera region and Northern zoneArusha, Manyara and
Kilimanjaro regions
Proposed start date: 9
th September 2019
Proposed end date: 30th June 2020
Deadline for application: 30th August 2019
Open call to: Eligible consultancy firms duly registered in Tanzania. Up to two
INDEPENDENT firms may be contracted.
1. Background
The Climate Resilient Agribusiness for Tomorrow (CRAFT)
Project is a 5-year, project being implemented
in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, with the project management unit in
Uganda. The project is implemented by a consortium consisting of SNV
(lead partner), Wageningen University & Environmental Research (WUR
& WEnR), the CGIAR research programme on Climate Change,
Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), Agriterra and Rabo Partnerships,
and is financed by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs (DGIS).
The project uses an Inclusive Business Development approach to support the international and national efforts on climate change and sustainable production in arable crop value chains. The project works with and through the private sector and supports public sector partners in creating an institutional environment for large-scale adoption of climate smart practices and technologies. Alignment of efforts and interests of private sector partners (business cases) such as guaranteed off-take of food crops and economic incentives will form the basis for large-scale adoption of climate smart agricultural (CSA) practices and technologies in combination with de-risking production.
The programme is driven by three main pillars;
- Adoption of CSA practices & technologies in arable crop production farming systems
- Acceleration of investments and business growth in selected value chains
- Improved enabling environment for scaling out of CSA.
CRAFT project interventions are centred on business
cases which are derived from a thorough climate
risk assessment and financial analysis of value chains in pulses,
potatoes, oilseeds and grains. Therefore, CRAFT aims to improve food
security by working towards climate resilient farming systems,
which increase productivity under changing climatic circumstances, while
reducing food waste and losses throughout the supply chain. At the same
time, agriculture has a clear effect on climate change itself
due to the greenhouse gases (GHGs) it emits. Therefore, CRAFT employs
strategies to proactively reduce
such emissions. The three key pillars of CSA are thus productivity,
adaptation and mitigation. Together,
these pillars contribute to food security and development goals. The
CRAFT partnerships under sunflower and common beans value chains involve
using an inclusive business approach to drive investments in climate
smart practices and technologies. Climate change has resulted in very
poor yields and low return to farmers, and other actors (e.g. buyers,
processors)
in the value chain are also negatively affected yet both sesame and
soybean have a high market
potential both locally and internationally. The business cases under
each value chain seeks to among others, increase crop productivity
within the target value chains, improve market access for
smallholder farmers, and enhance quality of produce marketed.
The
business cases are expected to benefit
smallholder farmer, women and youth who are directly involved in the
production and marketing of the crops resulting in increased incomes and
improved food security. Some of the interventions in the
business cases include provision of quality inputs (improved seed,
fertilizer), providing climate smart
extension services, promote post-harvest handling practices for quality
enhancement, linkage with
financial institutions to access credit, promotion of labor saving
technologies, aggregation of produce,
provision of weather information & index based insurance services,
etc. CRAFT business case development follows a four stepwise
approach/logic, which includes; scoping,
screening & selection, planning & design, and implementation
& monitoring. Some CRAFT business cases are currently in the
planning and design stage-involving co-creation to develop business
models,
describe the business cases and develop the business plans. Therefore,
CRAFT seeks to hire (a)
consultant (s) to support in the development of business plans for,
initially, four (4) SME’s that are in
partnership with the CRAFT project. While initially four (4) Business
plans/cases will be developed, it is
likely that, over the next 12 months, there will be a further
requirement for consultancy support for
business case development and consultants selected in this call may be
requested to assist with these.
6. Support to be provided by CRAFT
13. Proposals for the Assignment
For consultants interested to bid for the assignment, they are required to submit two proposals as follows:
A. Technical Proposal: Interested organizations or firms are requested to submit:
Understanding of the assignment and its tasks
Methodology and approach to be used
Operational plan with clear timeline and indication of number of days allocated to each team member for each business plan developed.
Outline of the team that will implement the work, with CVs for key personnel and clearly specified roles for each team member.
Note: Technical Proposals should not exceed a maximum of 10 pages (excluding annexes).
Lengthier proposals will be disqualified.
It should also be indicated in the proposal if a component of the assignment will be sub-contracted.
B. Financial Proposal:
This should outline the total cost of the assignment, as well as the breakdown of the cost, including any costs of sub-contracting components of the assignment. This includes the following details:
A daily rate for consultancy fees submitted which must be inclusive of all taxes - VAT inclusive (please note that under Tanzanian law, a Withholding Tax (WHT) of 5% for national and 15% international is deducted at source and paid directly to TRA).
As reimbursable expenses (travel costs etc.) will differ according to the requirements of each business case these should not be included. These will be included in the contact calculated at standard SNV rates and contingent of the requirements of the work to be done.
C. Mandatory requirement – Copies of Tax Registration certificate, Recent Tax Clearance, Business License, Company registration. Failure to provide any of the documents above will result into disqualification of the application
Please submit your response by email to Tanzaniaprocurement@snv.org by 30 Aug 2019 before 5 pm EAT with the title “Business Plan Development”; SNV will communicate to the only shortlisted and successful firm
2. Description of Assignment
This assignment will build on the business case development
process previously done through a business
model canvas (BMC) workshop completed by the CRAFT team. SMEs or
cooperatives have been identified by the CRAFT team and are willing to
improve their sourcing and processing models.
SME’s or
cooperatives under the sunflower or common beans value chains face
climate risks related to
low volumes of less quality grains which cannot meet market
requirements, farmers or agents may default on repaying loans received
for pre-financing their activities, and due to bad roads, the SME’s face
high transaction costs in assembling surpluses from scattered farmers.
Other challenges include poor relations with farmers, lack of adequate
cash flow to run their businesses, stiff competition in the
market among others. The BMC was designed to strengthen the partners to
sustainably integrate
smallholder farmers (including women & youth) in the value chains,
climate smarten their business ideas
and to support their capacity to link to markets in general. This was
done by realigning or developing
new business models for the SME’s. CRAFT therefore seeks to support
SME’s or cooperatives under the sunflower and common beans value
chains interested in co-investing (e.g., seed multiplication,
aggregation and local distribution of agroinputs, collective marketing,
post-harvest handling, processing etc.) to assess their organizations
and develop climate sensitive (climate risk factored in) business
plans.
3. Objectives of the Assignment
The general objective of this assignment is to support the
development of between two (2) and
four (4)climate resilient business plans for SME’s or cooperatives in
the sunflower or common beans value chains through a joint effort with
the company, the CRAFT project and financial
institutions.
The specific objectives of the assignment are:
- Develop detailed bankable business plans with a sound financial foundation and prepare selected SMEs or cooperatives to attract financing from financial institutions;
- Define the organizational management structure and skill sets available or required to meet the requirements of the business plan;
- Project realistic income and costings from marketing the products/services over a given period but not exceeding three years.
4. Scope of Work
Based on the objectives, the consultant (s) will be required
to co-create with the selected SME’s an
analysis of the present scenario and develop a detailed business,
financial and marketing plan that is expected to provide overall
direction to the SME’s operations making it sustainable, efficient and
growth oriented and climate smart in the long run. The business plan is
not only meant for the SME but should also indicate how farmers and
other actors in the value chain will benefit from the business model.
The
plan should be time bound and show clear achievable targets within
defined timelines. The Business Plan is to have the following sections
at the minimum:
- Executive summary
- Analysis of the organizational status, skill sets, and new skills set required
- Business Model and description of operation/s with clear links to other chain actors and how they will benefit
- Analysis of the products/services offered to up and down stream actors
- Analysis of the market and potential customers
- Marketing strategy
- SWOT analysis
- Risk analysis and mitigation measures
- Business case description with a financing strategy
N.B: The financing strategy should include funding requirements, financial assumptions and 2 year historical as well as 3 year projections of the following statements:
- Projected income statement
- Projected cash flow statement
- Projected balance sheet.
A risk assessment,
financial ratios and key performance indicators such as break-even,
turn-around time, profitability ratios, payback period, rate of return
on investment, liquidity ratios and stock turnover in order to have a
better understanding of the financial and operational performance. A
realistic sale
forecast including prices, sale volume, timing, etc.
5. Deliverables/specific outputs
The expected outputs of this assignment will be a complete Business Plan/s including
- A narrative of the business model of four (4) business cases
- A financial description of the four (4) business cases
6. Support to be provided by CRAFT
- Provide all information and documents relating to the assignment
- Timely nomination and presence of SME staff to support the field work.
- Linkages or introduction to financial institutions
- Provide guidance on the approach to take, and templates to use
- Coordinate and supervise the entire assignment
- Approval and payment for consultancy services provided based on performance
- Organize and invite stakeholders to a validation workshop
7. Location and Duration of Assignment
The assignment will require some travel to the various
project sites (Southern highland-Mbeya, Katavi
and Ruvuma, Central zone-Dodoma and Singida, Lake zone-Kagera region
and Northern zone-Arusha, Manyara and Kilimanjaro regions) to interact
with project stakeholders. Consultations will be connected with SME
representatives, farmer organizations linked to SME’s, financial
institutions that SME’s are banking with, agro-input dealers etc. It is
anticipated that the development of each complete business
case will take 10 effective working days (excluding travel days) and the
assignment should be completed
by the end of October 2019 at the latest.
8. Country of Assignment: Tanzania
9. Reporting Requirements and Documentation
The consultant shall submit the finalized business plans on a
rolling basis after which they are assessed
by the CRAFT team and feedback will be provided within 3 days of
submission. The consultant shall submit a detailed work plan along with
detailed calendar of SME’s and stakeholders to visit.
10. Review and Monitoring of Work
The Senior Agribusiness Expert or his designate will be
responsible for the review and monitoring of the
progress of the assignment. He will monitor the progress and interact
with the consultant and may also seek comments and inputs on the
consultant’s work as found appropriate. Any reports/ process documents
produced as a part of this assignment shall be deemed to be the property
of CRAFT and the consultant will not have any claims and will not use
or reproduce the contents of the above documents
without the permission of CRAFT.
11. Skills and Experience
CRAFT would like to procure services of a consultancy firm consultant (s) (based in Tanzania) with the
following skill set and experience:
- At least 10 years’ experience in business development of SME’s or cooperatives using an inclusive business approach
- Proven experience in climate smart agriculture and financial analysis of climate smart technologies
- Evidence of developing business plans that have attracted financing from financial institutions
- Experience in developing marketing strategy preferably for agricultural products/ services
- Analytical skill sets required of different functionalities in an agribusiness set-up
- Experience working with diverse cultural and skills background
- Ability to follow strict time frame
- Good working experience in Tanzania’s agricultural sector
12. Evaluation Criteria
I. Criteria - Maximum score
1
Past Performance – Quality and relevance of previous work conducted by
the firm/Organization. Based on references provided by the contracting
companies, and a sample of a piece of comparable, previous work
completed by the firm within the last 12 months. Max Score = 20
2
Technical Proposal – demonstrating 1) a clear understanding of the
assignment 2) a viable and appropriate methodology, and 3) a realistic
operational plan (including with proposed timeline) Max Score = 40
3
Team Composition and structure – Relevance of the proposed team
structure to the methodology and the task assigned; Qualifications and
relevant experience of the key personnel (CVs) Max Score = 25
4
Financial Proposal – A realistic breakdown of costs required to deliver
the assignment that demonstrates value for money (including clear
units/unit costs, separating professional fees, per diems and other
reimbursable costs). The budget should be detailed enough to show number
of days, involved professional, breakdown of office and field days,
transport costs, workshop costs, etc. Max Score = 15
TOTAL 100
How to Apply?
Please manually apply for this job using the details below:13. Proposals for the Assignment
For consultants interested to bid for the assignment, they are required to submit two proposals as follows:
A. Technical Proposal: Interested organizations or firms are requested to submit:
Understanding of the assignment and its tasks
Methodology and approach to be used
Operational plan with clear timeline and indication of number of days allocated to each team member for each business plan developed.
Outline of the team that will implement the work, with CVs for key personnel and clearly specified roles for each team member.
Note: Technical Proposals should not exceed a maximum of 10 pages (excluding annexes).
Lengthier proposals will be disqualified.
It should also be indicated in the proposal if a component of the assignment will be sub-contracted.
B. Financial Proposal:
This should outline the total cost of the assignment, as well as the breakdown of the cost, including any costs of sub-contracting components of the assignment. This includes the following details:
A daily rate for consultancy fees submitted which must be inclusive of all taxes - VAT inclusive (please note that under Tanzanian law, a Withholding Tax (WHT) of 5% for national and 15% international is deducted at source and paid directly to TRA).
As reimbursable expenses (travel costs etc.) will differ according to the requirements of each business case these should not be included. These will be included in the contact calculated at standard SNV rates and contingent of the requirements of the work to be done.
C. Mandatory requirement – Copies of Tax Registration certificate, Recent Tax Clearance, Business License, Company registration. Failure to provide any of the documents above will result into disqualification of the application
Please submit your response by email to Tanzaniaprocurement@snv.org by 30 Aug 2019 before 5 pm EAT with the title “Business Plan Development”; SNV will communicate to the only shortlisted and successful firm
