BACKGROUND

The Institute for Culture and Ecology (ICE) is a national indigenous Non-governmental Organization (NGO) that was started in 2006 and is registered in Kenya under the NGO Coordination Act. ICE was founded out of a visible need to promote the inherent and natural role of culture in environmental and resource management in Kenya. ICE vision is that of empowered communities harnessing indigenous knowledge for healthy people and ecosystems. Its mission is to promote indigenous knowledge for environmental conservation and to enhance the livelihoods of local communities.

ICE received funding to implement a project titled, “Enhancing climate change resilience of communities living adjacent to water catchments and sacred forest ecosystems in Eastern Kenya” which will be undertaken in Ntugi sacred hill (Tharaka Nithi County) and Upper and Lower Imenti forest (Meru County). The project aims at enhancing climate change resilience of communities adjacent to water catchments and sacred forest ecosystems for livelihood improvement and ecosystem vitality. This will be guided by three main objectives namely:

1. To build the capacity of 600 community members living adjacent Ntugi Sacred Hill and Upper and Lower Imenti forest to adapt to changing climatic conditions by July 2025
2. To restore ecological integrity of the three critical ecosystems (sacred ecosystems and water catchments) by July 2025
3. To reduce human-elephant conflicts for enhanced biodiversity protection by July 2025

DESCRIPTION OF THE ASSIGNMENT

To provide an independent survey of the target community livelihood options; degradation level of target ecosystems; and biodiversity status in Imenti forest. The survey will also involve analyzing the proposed activities to determine their effectiveness against the set goal. This will help review and refocus the proposed activities in order to meet the goal of the project.

SCOPE OF WORK

In particular, the survey should consider the following:

1. Community livelihood
2. What are the main livelihood options for communities living adjacent to target ecosystems?
3. What is their level of vulnerability to climate change?
4. Significance of natural resources to communities
5. Tree cover
6. What is the hectarage of degraded area in Imenti forest?
7. What is the hectarage of degraded area in Ntugi sacred hill?
8. Biodiversity in Imenti forest Ecosystem
9. What is the elephant population in the ecosystem?
10. Which are the major elephant movement corridors within the ecosystem?
11. What are the major elephant attractions within Imenti forest ecosystem?
12. What are the major threats facing elephants in the ecosystem?
13. Stakeholders
14. Who are the key stakeholders in the target ecosystems?
15. What are the roles of the different stakeholders in management and conservation of the target ecosystems?
16. CFA
17. Train Imenti Forest (MEFECAP) CFA on development of their constitution and by-laws which will be essential in governing and running the CFA activities.

METHODOLOGY

The consultant will: –

• Review project proposal
• Interview ICE project team

The consultant will display in the technical proposal how he/she will conduct the survey, data collection and present the findings. The consultant will also submit financial proposal alongside the expression of interest. Both the technical and financial proposals will be reviewed and approved by ICE Management before commencement of the work. The consultant will conduct the survey independent of the implementing organisation’s interference.

ASSIGNMENT DURATION

The consultancy should be completed in 9 working days as indicated below

Activity	Number of days
A briefing meeting of consultant with ICE Management to discuss the technical and financial proposals, sign contract and collect project documents for review	1
Consultant planning and preparation: Review project documents and develop data collection tools and share them with ICE for comments.	1
Field work for survey and data collection	3
Training of Meru Forest Environmental Conservation and Protection (MEFECAP) Association	1
Developing and submission of the draft report to ICE	2
Incorporating comments and submitting/presenting the final Project Report to ICE	1
Total Days	9

DOCUMENTS TO BE PROVIDED BY THE CONSULTANT

• Project proposal and budget

DELIVERABLES

The following outputs are expected from the consultant:

• Inception report of less than 5 pages, including expression of interest, technical and financial proposals
• A draft report detailing the methodology, findings, and recommendations. This report will be shared with ICE for comments/input.
• An electronic report, including all the raw data and photos taken in the field
• 3 hard copies of the final report having incorporated inputs/comments made by ICE

REPORT CONTENT

1. The report will include an executive summary that highlights key findings and the recommendations.
2. The report will include current status of project beneficiaries and status of ecosystems before project interventions.

The report will be written in jargon-free accessible English and will not exceed 15 pages (including the summary and appendices). 

Proposed Report format:

1. Executive summary
2. Findings (including photos)
3. Conclusions and recommendations on specific actions to move forward.
4. Annexes

OBLIGATIONS OF ICE AS THE CONTRACTING AUTHORITY

The contracting authority shall be obliged to;

• Provide all project documents necessary for the review
• Provide means of transport during the field visit
• Provide accommodation and meals during the field visit
• Pay the agreed charges – 50% at commencement and clear the remaining 50% balance after submission of final report

MEDICAL AND PERSONAL ACCIDENT COVER

The consultant is expected to have their own medical and personal accident covers since ICE is not under any obligation to provide these under this contract.

STATUTORY DEDUCTIONS

ICE will deduct withholding tax from consultancy fee paid in accordance with its statutory obligations as provided in the Kenyan law.

QUALIFICATIONS AND SUBMISSION OF BIDS

Consultants Profile, Qualifications, and skills

• University degree in Natural Resource Management or other relevant disciplines such as, Forestry, Wildlife Management, Project Management, Community Development, Agribusiness, and Agricultural Economics
• Should have at least 5 years of professional experience in relevant fields, with experience in conducting project baseline surveys, evaluation or related consultancies
• Should demonstrate understanding of Participatory Forest Management Plans and its implementation.
• Should demonstrate understanding of Community Forest Association (CFA) mandate and structure as per the Forest Act.
• Should have experience on participatory consultation and facilitation approaches especially in engagement of CFAs through their various user groups.
• Proficiency in English with excellent report writing and communication skills
• Computer skills and proficiency in MS Office (MS Word and Excel)
• Familiarity with relevant developments in the region and understanding of non-timber livelihoods
• Some understanding of the local dialects spoken in Mount Kenya region will be an added advantage

HOW TO APPLY

Qualified and interested consultants are invited to submit their expression of interest to undertake the above defined work. A technical and financial proposal to undertake the consultancy should be attached and both the EoI and the proposals should be submitted electronically through procure@icekenya.org and cc. martin@icekenya.org not later than 5^th September 2022 5pm. Please attach your CV and testimonials to your EoI.