REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST - Consultancy Services

INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TROPICAL AGRICULTURE (IITA)

TECHNOLOGIES FOR AFRICAN AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION (TAAT) PHASE II/ ADDENDUM GERMANY FUND

TAAT PROGRAM MANAGEMENT UNIT (PMU)

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

CONSULTANCY SERVICES

SECTOR: Agriculture

CONSULTANCY SERVICES: DEVELOPMENT OF DIGITAL AGRICULTURE

TAAT II:

Financing Agreement reference: 5900155019276

Project ID. P-Z1-AA0-139

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This request for expression of interest (REOI) follows the General Procurement Notice for this Project that appeared on the African Development Bank Group’s Internet Website(www.afdb.org) 12th August 2022.

International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is implementing the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) Program phase II, financed through a grant from the African Development Bank as administrators of funds under the Transition Support Facility. IITA intends to apply part of the proceeds of the grant to facilitate payment for Development of Digital Agriculture Consultancy Services.

The consulting firm is expected to carry out the assignment in accordance with the Terms of Reference specified in Appendix 1 below. Among others, the consultant is expected to: conduct literature reviews and country digital readiness assessments, prepare profiles that include recommendations for countries for digital extension and advisory services and the appropriate investment in digital agriculture; conduct landscaping of success national Digital Agricultural Technology solutions that are relevant in the African context; Provide technical support to national governments in conducting surveys on priority digital needs and barriers.

Appendix 1: Terms of Reference (TOR)

TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR DEVELOPMENT OF DIGITAL AGRICULTURE

TAAT II:

Project Code: P-Z1-AA0-139

Instrument number (s): 5900155019276

Sector: Agriculture

• Background

The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is a not-for-profit institution that generates agricultural innovations to meet Africa’s most pressing challenges of hunger, malnutrition, poverty, and natural resource degradation. Working with various partners across sub-Saharan Africa, the institute works to improve livelihoods, enhance food and nutrition security, increase employment, and preserve natural resource integrity. IITA is a member of CGIAR, a global agriculture research partnership for a food-secure future. Please visit https://www.iita.org for more information about IITA.

Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) is a flagship program of the Feed Africa Strategy, which aims to put proven agricultural technologies in the hands of millions of farmers. TAAT targets 11 agricultural value chains (maize, wheat, rice, sorghum and millet, beans, soybean, vegetables, cassava, orange sweet potatoes, livestock and aquaculture) and 6 enablers (capacity building and technology outreach, soil fertility, water management, enable youth, fall armyworm and policy). TAAT is executed by IITA and implemented in partnership with other centres of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and Advanced Agricultural Research Institutes of specialization. Each of the value chains and enablers networking with National Agricultural Research and Extension Systems (NARES), Ministries of Agriculture, the private sector and farmer organizations, constitutes a “Compact”. The African Development Bank (AfDB) and development partners such as the Gates Foundation (BMGF) provide support to TAAT. Within the TAAT ecosystem, the Clearinghouse (CH) facilitates the inclusion of TAAT technologies in country agricultural development projects and provides technical assistance to these projects.

• Scope of the Service Provider

The CH plans to provide technical assistance to African Governments that are prioritizing investments in the development of Digital Agricultural Extension and advisory services through a consulting firm The technical assistance will include helping Ministries of Agriculture to conduct digital readiness assessments and develop national roadmaps for the digitalization of the agricultural sector especially in the area in digital extension, holding dialogue with decision-makers focusing on governments' role in coordinating investments in digital agriculture data infrastructure and creating an enabling environment for private service providers and investors to participate in digital extension and digital agriculture. CH intends to support governments in leveraging digitalization to strengthen extension and advisory service provision.

The TAAT Clearinghouse wishes to contract a consulting firm who will reinforce CH’s technical assistance to countries in the design and implementation of digital extension and advisory solutions.

The consulting firm musthave experience with Digital Agriculture Technology solutions that are emerging on the African continent such as:

● Digital Agricultural Extension Services that provide smallholder farmers with advisory messages across crop, livestock, and fisheries value chains, including information on recommended agricultural practices, input use (including type, quantity, and timing), innovative climate-smart technologies, pest and disease outbreaks as well as market and price information and other useful information drawing on innovative agricultural research from CGIAR and other research institutes, with the goal of improving farmers’ agricultural production, profits, and climate resilience.

● Weather and Climate Advisory Services that enable farmers to receive digital messages containing real-time information on weather realization, weather and climate forecasts across short, medium, and long-range time scales, and advice on how to adapt farming practices based on this dynamic weather information, aimed at improving farmers’ decision-making across a wide range of farming practices that are affected by the weather, improving farmers’ agricultural production, profits, and climate resilience, and helping farmers reduce catastrophic crop loss associated with weather shocks such as flood, drought, and extreme temperatures, particularly heat..

● e-Registries include national registries for farmers, input dealers, service providers (e.g. veterinary services, artificial insemination, mechanization, etc.), cooperatives, off-takers and other agricultural stakeholders across a wide range of crops, livestock and fishery value chains.

● e-Platforms that facilitate the distribution of agricultural inputs from different suppliers to agro-dealers and farmers, including government-subsidized agricultural inputs and facilitate traceability of sources and quality of these agro-inputs. The latter should include the private sector participating in a market environment. Such platforms may integrate mobile money or e-wallet features, market access, market information and mechanization services. The e-platforms should be accessible and interactive with service providers via mobile applications, the web, and simple mobile channels such as voice, SMS, and USSD for feature phones to reach farmers that do not have access to the internet.

● Digital Financial Services include platforms that support accessing and payments for agro-inputs using e-wallets or mobile money, as well as other financial services such as loans for agricultural inputs and insurance to protect farmers against loss associated with weather and climate shocks or other risks. This should be integrated into the e-platform and enable farmers to redeem inputs at any registered agro-dealer. Financial institutions should be able to offer credit and other services to farmers through this platform.

• Objectives of the Consultancy

The consulting firm will provide digital advisory services to the CH, TAAT Compacts and AfDB teams, as well as regional and national governments in topics related to Digital Agriculture.

The consulting firm is expected to:

i. Conduct a literature review of digital agricultural extension and advisory services and develop a standardized digital readiness assessment framework. Apply the framework to produce digital readiness profiles for priority countries, including recommendations on investments in digital extension and advisory services.

ii. Conduct a desk-based landscaping of successful national Digital Agricultural Technology solutions that are relevant in the African context, with a focus on digital extension, e-farmer registries, and ICT-based input delivery platforms

iii. Provide technical support to national governments in conducting surveys on priority digital needs and barriers, including the development of a standardized survey methodology and tools.

iv. Lead CH engagement with national governments and AfDB teams and integrate successful Digital Agricultural Technology solutions in the design of large-scale agricultural investment projects funded by AfDB and other International Financial institutions (IFIs).

v. Offer technical guidance to governments (including States) to develop Digital Agriculture Roadmaps for the digitalization of the agricultural sector, especially focusing on digital agricultural extension and advisory services and agri-input distribution.

vi. Provide technical inputs to recommendations on policy actions to foster an enabling environment for Digital Agriculture, through a cross-cutting policy guidance note and context-specific inputs for up to 2 countries where CH is actively engaged, with a specific focus on digital agricultural extension and advisory services

vii. Develop a digital extension application toolkit for CH country engagement.

viii. Work closely with CH resource mobilization team to raise funds for the

ix. Perform any other related assignments as required by the Head of the Clearinghouse, within the scope of the approved workplan

4. Duration of the Contract and Deliverables

The consulting firm