ATLA Consultant

RFP n#: 2021-01-PAK-ATLA

Location: Lahore Home/office

Start date: ASAP not later than 15 July 2021.

End date: July 15, 2022

BCI key contact: Shafiq Ahmad

Pakistan Regional Director 

 All applications must be sent by email, to BCI’s key contact, with the subject header:

 “Application RFP ATLA– RFP n# 2021-01-PAK-ATLA”.

Questions, requests and applications sent after the deadline (23 May 2021) will not be considered.

Description

The Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) is a multi-stakeholder initiative and the largest cotton sustainability programme in the world. BCI and its Partners currently support over 2.3 million farmers in 23 countries in adopting more sustainable agricultural practices. Thanks to these efforts, Better Cotton accounts for around 22% of global cotton production. BCI works closely with stakeholders all the way from farms to fashion brands and civil society organisations, driving the cotton sector toward sustainability.

The Better Cotton Standard System (BCSS) is at the heart of BCI’s approach and includes six main components: the Better Cotton Principles & Criteria, assurance programme, capacity building, chain of custody, monitoring and evaluation, and the Claims Framework.

The Better Cotton Principles and Criteria lay out the global definition of Better Cotton, across seven principles. They ensure that Better Cotton meets clearly defined requirements for pesticide use, water management, biodiversity, soil health, fibre quality, decent work, and management systems.

The Better Cotton programme is delivered through a network of more than 70 ‘Implementing Partners’, often local NGOs or cotton supply chain partners who recruit and train field staff and organise and work with farmers on the ground. Once farmers have demonstrated compliance with the Better Cotton Principles & Criteria, licenses to sell Better Cotton are granted at the ‘Producer Unit’ level for Smallholder and Medium Farms and for each Large Farm individually.

Looking ahead, BCI is exploring how a landscape or jurisdictional approach – managing resources at a larger scale that extends ‘beyond the farm gate’ – can help us achieve better results and system efficiencies. As part of this work, we have been awarded a multi-year grant from the ISEAL Alliance for the Adaptation to Landscape Approach (ATLA) project. This initiative will explore how BCI’s current systems and standards could be adapted to a landscape or jurisdictional approach.

BCI is seeking proposals from skilled individuals or organisations interested in supporting BCI in this exciting project and helping to shape the adaptation of the Better Cotton Standard System to landscape approach.

About the ATLA project

The Global Canopy Programme defines a landscape approach as follows:

‘A landscape approach aims to ensure the realisation of local level needs and action (i.e. the interests of different stakeholders within the landscape), while also considering goals and outcomes important to stakeholders outside the landscape, such as national governments or the international community. A landscape approach may be undertaken by one or more stakeholders who engage in actions independently, or by multiple actors as part of a collaborative, multi-stakeholder process. This multi-stakeholder process is referred to as integrated landscape management.’1

A jurisdictional approach is a specific variation on this concept, which: ‘uses government administrative boundaries, primarily subnational, to define the scope of action and involvement of stakeholders rather than social (e.g. indigenous community) or environmental (e.g. ecosystems, watershed) boundaries.’2

Although some elements of the BCI system are already aligned with a landscape approach, there is a need for a comprehensive review to understand how the system, or relevant parts of the system could be further adapted to take a landscape/jurisdictional approach – and what this would mean for BCI and our stakeholders in terms of opportunities, investment, and benefits.

The ATLA (Adaptation to Landscape Approach) is a two-year project that seeks to explore this adaptation process through the development of a strategic roadmap and set of recommendations. This project will notably be supported by two pilot projects, one of which will be in Pakistan.

In Pakistan, the focus is on assessing the extent to which the BCSS can become embedded within the Pakistan State System, engaging with relevant stakeholders through a jurisdictional approach. This mission is an initial step for a medium-long term process.

The final strategy and recommendations developed through ATLA will help BCI identify opportunities to evolve its approach and management systems to better support a landscape or jurisdictional approach in key areas where this approach can deliver the most value.

The full brief of the ATLA project can be found in Annex 1.

Role of the Consultant:

The Consultant will play a critical role in successful delivery of the ATLA pilot project in Pakistan. 

With support of the BCI Country Director and the Pakistan Implementation Team, the Consultant will undertake the development of a strategic framework for stakeholder engagement to enable a jurisdictional approach to implementation of the BCSS.

The Consultant will develop an initial strategy, roadmap and set of recommendations based on desktop research and interviews with selected stakeholders. The following elements should be addressed:

A. Research, Review and Analysis:

• Carry out desktop research to analyse of regional context around cotton sustainability in Punjab state 
• Conduct interviews with relevant stakeholders, including internal BCI teams such as Programme, Implementation teams (country level), BCI’s Country Director, Field Team of WWF-Pakistan, Field Team of Agric. Extension Dept. (AED), Director/ HQ/DG AED etc.
• Undertake an in-depth review of the existing BCSS implementation model in Pakistan, including the approach to national embedding and develop initial ideas and recommendations on how to enhance and scale this approach as a regional jurisdictional model.
• Assess and recommend key thematic areas, amongst the BCI principles on which a jurisdictional approach should/Can be focused.
• Test functionality of proposed tools and approaches for strategic planning at landscape level . 

B. Develop recommendations on a regional jurisdictional approach:

• Building on findings from the research phase, Develop a strategic document for implementation of Better Cotton Standard System (BCSS) towards a landscape approach in the coming years
• Utilising proposed/drafted key matrix tools, to provide guidance on:
• Desired outcomes at landscape level to be integrated into BCSS, including the aspect of assurance and licensing.
• Phases/steps of continuous improvement
• Key actors involved & their roles in outcome delivery.
• Develop and implement a regional stakeholder engagement process for Punjab that includes a stakeholder mapping with a short/medium/long-term engagement roadmap
• Develop the TOR of a National Stakeholder Committee (NSC) or equivalent that will act as a governance body and steering committee for adaptation of the BCSS at jurisdictional level. Facilitate in setting up NSC and convening of the first/ one meeting over the duration of the project Based on consultation, assess opportunity and capacity of the Agriculture Extension Department (AED) as BCI Implementing Partner, in acting as a jurisdictional entity in Punjab. Summarize benefits and limitation of involving AED as core Implementing/strategic partner.
• Support AED in planning a jurisdictional level engagement with local government and relevant stakeholders. 
• Assess alignment between BCI national embedding approach and a jurisdictional approach. Develop recommendations on how both approaches can support each other and formulate suggestions to optimize their progress in Punjab and Pakistan. 
• Propose an action plan for BCI’s communication on developing a jurisdictional approach and increasing its visibility in Punjab cotton sector specifically and Pakistan 
• Component Estimated timeline Estimated work days
• Conduct research and analysis on national and regional sustainability priorities, review existing BCSS implementation model in Pakistan, Jun-Sept. 15 days
• Develop a stakeholder engagement strategy and process  Jun-Sept. 2021 30 days
• Develop TOR for National Stakeholder Council (NSC) - or equivalent. Oct-Dec 2021 30 days
• Develop a strategic document for implementation of BCSS towards a landscape approach in the coming years.
• Jan-Mar 202230 days
• Develop a communication action plan to increase visibility of BCI strategy in the Pakistan and Punjab cotton sector Apr-Jun 2022 10 days

Deliverables

1. A comprehensive stakeholder mapping report, List of key stakeholders, TORs for NSC along with the Stakeholder engagement strategy.

2. An intermediary report providing initial lessons learnt and recommendation on next steps with appropriate correction on stakeholder engagement and alignment with national embedding objectives.

3. strategic document for implementation of BCSS towards a landscape approach is developed.

4. Final strategic report, Communication Strategy, recommendations, and roadmap on a BCI regional jurisdictional approach in Punjab integrating lessons learnt from the pilot project.

High-level Timeline

23 May 2021 Applications deadline

23 May – 15 June.  2021 Applications review & shortlisting / Interviews

20 June 2021 The successful applicant will be notified

Not later than 15 Jul 2021 Expected start of the consultancy

31 December. 2021 Deliverable I

31 December 2021 Deliverable II

31 Mar 2022 Deliverable III

30 June 2022 Deliverable IV

Consultant Qualifications

The Consultant should have strong familiarity with standard or certification systems (especially in agriculture) and good knowledge of stakeholders’ engagement, concrete landscape or jurisdictional approaches, appropriate analytical and writing skills, and a demonstrated ability to deliver projects on time and within budget.

Provided it is safe and permitted to travel, the Consultant may carry out one site visit to field area to conduct surveys, interviews of the project team. BCI will reimburse the Consultant for all pre- approved travel expenses reasonably incurred in connection with the performance of duties.

We thank all applicants for their interest; however only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.

BCI is committed to good practice and transparency in the management of natural, human and financial resources. All applications will be reviewed under the principles and subject to BCI’s policies on equal opportunity, non-discrimination, anti-bribery & corruption and conflict of interest.

Proposals

To apply, please submit to ********* by 23 May 2021:

• Cover letter, highlighting relevant experience.

• A formal project proposal describing how you will approach this project.

• CVs of the Consultant and/or any additional team members proposed.