3587094 I WVL I Call for Tender – Biodiversity and impacts of climate change Assessment in Akkar

3587094

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Assessment of Biodiversity and impacts of climate change on women, girls, people with disability and other marginalized groups in Akkar, Lebanon

Assignment Locations:

This consultancy will be conducted in Akkar focusing on Qobayat and Dreib El Chemali.

About World Vision:

World Vision International is a Christian, community-based and child-focused organization working in 100 countries around the world, serving and partnering with all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, capacity, background or gender.

Project Overview:

The “Gender and Disability Inclusive Regreening (GDIR)” project in Akkar, aims to restore and protect natural landscapes while enhancing community resilience to climate and related shocks. Over its lifespan, the project will employ a gender and disability inclusive comprehensive approach, addressing multiple dimensions of environmental conservation, community engagement, and economic empowerment. Through partnerships with local organizations, the project will conduct capacity assessments and contextual analyses to inform tailored capacity-building plans and community interventions. Community-based environmental restoration committees will be established and supported to engage local community members, including refugees and those with disabilities, in regreening activities. Children and youth will also be involved through dedicated committees, fostering their active participation in regreening efforts. Stakeholders’ capacities will be strengthened through sensitization sessions and training programs, empowering them to advocate for gender-sensitive environmental restoration. Sustainable income-generating practices will be promoted among male and female caregivers, aligning with regreening efforts to ensure economic viability and environmental responsibility. By addressing root causes of deforestation and promoting social stability, the project seeks to create a conducive environment for long-term environmental restoration and community well-being. Through its multifaceted design, the project aims to achieve lasting impacts on natural landscapes, community resilience, and governance systems in Akkar, Lebanon.

Mission objectives:

World Vision Lebanon is seeking a consultant, or a consultancy firm, to conduct a biodiversity assessment an in-depth assessment of the impacts of climate change on vulnerable populations in Akkar, with a specific focus on women, girls, people with disabilities, and refugees. The main objective of this consultancy is to provide a comprehensive analysis that will deepen our understanding of how climate change disproportionately affects these groups and identify practical opportunities for inclusive adaptation strategies that promote long-term resilience and environmental sustainability, ensuring that marginalized communities are empowered to cope with and adapt to the challenges of a changing climate.

Specific objectives include:

• Assessing the current and future climate vulnerabilities of the target populations, focusing on how changes in weather patterns, resource availability, and disaster risks affect their livelihoods, health, and access to essential services.
• Assessing the current status of the environment where the project will take place, including water, soil, vegetation, and biodiversity. This will include key drivers of degradation and opportunities for restoration.
• Conducting a focused assessment of the climate vulnerabilities of natural and physical assets that communities have access to, evaluating their current status and potential for improvement.
• Identifying the key barriers and challenges related to climate adaptation, particularly for women, people with disabilities, and refugees, considering gender inequality, accessibility issues, and socio-economic factors.
• Evaluating opportunities for strengthening climate resilience through inclusive adaptation strategies, community-based initiatives, and capacity-building efforts tailored to marginalized groups.
• Providing GEDSI sensitive actionable recommendations for integrating climate change adaptation, with a focus on sustainability, inclusion, and long-term resilience.

Scope of Work

The Biodiversity and Climate Change Assessment consultant / consultancy firm is expected to:

• Conduct a comprehensive secondary data review on the current impacts of climate change in the target areas, focusing on vulnerable groups, including women, girls, people with disabilities, and refugees. The review should address key questions related to climate vulnerabilities, adaptation challenges, and existing response mechanisms.
• Review existing climate change impacts in Akkar focusing on how they intersect with natural resource vulnerabilities. Include topography, land use, land cover, and vegetation characteristics in the review to understand the physical landscape and resource distribution.
• Conduct primary data collection with stakeholders including community members, local authorities, and organizations, to assess the specific challenges faced by vulnerable groups in adapting to climate change. This should include their access to resources, health services, and livelihood opportunities.
• Assess land use areas for agricultural, conservation, and communal purposes, and evaluate infrastructure access (e.g., roads and essential services), with a particular focus on marginalized groups.
• Evaluate the current state of soil and water resources (quality, availability, and risks) that affect agricultural livelihoods and food security.
• Assess the impact of external factors (e.g., climate change, environmental degradation) on the ability of vulnerable populations to cope with and recover from climate-related shocks, with attention to gender and disability-specific barriers.
• Investigate ecosystem and species diversity as potential indicators of ecosystem health, which directly support community food sources and natural resources.
• Map and analyze existing interventions and programs related to climate change adaptation in the region, assessing their effectiveness in addressing the needs of marginalized groups and promoting inclusive, community-based resilience strategies.
• Coordinate findings with other GDIR project consultants (more specifically the Livelihood Consultant) for integrated analysis, and validate assessment findings with the community and local partners.
• Analyze and interpret data to provide actionable recommendations for improving climate adaptation strategies, addressing critical areas such as land cover conservation, soil fertility management, water resource protection, and biodiversity, ensuring they are inclusive, gender-sensitive, and responsive to the specific needs of marginalized populations.
• Suggest low-cost interventions for sustainable land management and ecosystem restoration, based on community needs and existing environmental resources.

Ethical Considerations:

The consultant / consultancy firm is expected to adhere to the following ethical principles throughout the assessment process:

Voluntary participation, Confidentiality, and Anonymity:

Participation in interviews and surveys must be entirely voluntary and won’t impact in any way any services received by WVL. Informants will be fully informed about the purpose of the assessment, and their right to decline to answer any question or end the interview at any time without consequence. Confidentiality and anonymity of participants must be strictly maintained and data security measures should be taken to protect personal information. Personal identities of participants will not be linked to their responses.

Do No Harm:

All assessment stools will be contextualized and carefully designed to be culturally sensitive and to minimize any potential harm or discomfort. Mitigation strategies and referral mechanisms must be developed for vulnerable participants or when tackling sensitive topics such as gender-based violence (GBV) or child protection.

Integrity:

The collection, management and reporting of data must be conducted in a transparent and ethical manner without manipulation, bias, falsification and misrepresentation of results. All methods used should be appropriate and scientifically sound. Unexpected or potentially contentious findings must be triangulated with other sources to verify their credibility and relevance.

Stakeholder Perspectives:

Whenever possible, preliminary findings should be shared with key project stakeholders to invite feedback and ensure that interpretations align with local contexts and community realities.

Protection Safeguards:

Children assent and their caregivers’ consent must be taken prior to initiating data collection. Children will not be asked personal or distressing questions. Child protection and beneficiary reporting protocols must be established, and all staff must be trained on when and how to report any concerns. All data collection staff are required to sign and adhere to World Vision’s child protection code of conduct.

Deliverables:

• Inception report: Provide a detailed plan outlining the methodology, timeline, data sources, tools to be used, and analysis plan.
• Draft Biodiversity and Climate Change Impact Assessment Report: Present a draft report that includes the analysis of climate vulnerabilities, key challenges, and opportunities, and an assessment of how external factors (e.g., climate change, environmental risks) impact the ability of vulnerable groups to adapt. The draft should also include preliminary recommendations for inclusive adaptation strategies.
• Final Biodiversity and Climate Change Impact Assessment Report: Submit a finalized report that incorporates feedback from stakeholders, includes actionable recommendations, and outlines a roadmap for improving climate adaptation strategies with a focus on sustainability, inclusion, and long-term resilience for marginalized populations.

All collected data is legally owned by WVL and the consultant is expected to hand over all data sets and notes of the interviews and surveys to WVL MEAL focal person.

Timeline:

The consultant is expected to finalize the assessment of biodiversity and climate change impact within a stipulated timeframe of 25 days, commencing from the start date of this mission and is required to ensure the prompt submission of each deliverable.

• Reporting: The consultant / consultancy firm will draft a report & Summary fact sheet of the main findings to be reviewed by World Vision project team.
• All GDIR project consultants will work collaboratively throughout the assessment process, under the supervision of the World Vision project team, to ensure a comprehensive and integrated analysis. Regular coordination meetings will be held to ensure the findings of each consultant feed into a unified contextual analysis, with strong GEDSI considerations.
• The results of all assessments will be validated with the community and partners to ensure accuracy and inclusivity. These assessments will collectively inform the design of an inclusive environmental restoration and regreening project.

Logistical considerations:

The recruited consultant/consultancy firm will be in charge of finalizing logistical issues related to:

 Transportation to the different areas where data collection will be conducted

 Obtaining security approvals for data collection at field level

 Securing appointments/ meetings with participants and stakeholders

 Ensuring the availability of data entry logistics (e.g. papers, tablets, phones, etc.)

Qualifications:

• Significant technical knowledge and expertise in livelihoods, biodiversity and development projects, particularly in rural and marginalized communities.
• Experience in biodiversity and ecosystem assessments, with the ability to analyze species diversity, habitat quality, and ecosystem resilience to inform climate adaptation strategies.
• Proficiency in conducting biophysical and environmental resource mapping, including topographical, soil, vegetation, and water resource analysis to support community-based environmental decision-making.
• Proficiency in remote sensing and data tracking tools like Google Earth for assessing environmental changes.
• Strong understanding of environmental regreening techniques and the link between climate resilience, livelihoods, and food security.
• Previous experience working with international humanitarian and/or development agencies.
• Proven Experience conducting livelihoods assessments, particularly in rural, vulnerable, or marginalized communities, including expertise in gender and disability inclusion.
• Knowledge of the humanitarian and development landscape in Akkar and North Lebanon.
• Recognized degree in social science, environmental studies, gender studies, livelihoods, sustainable development, disability inclusion, or related fields.
• Excellent analytical and report writing skills.
• Ability to facilitate inclusive workshops and engage diverse stakeholders, including vulnerable groups such as women and people with disabilities.
• Proven experience working with vulnerable groups, particularly women and people with disabilities, in livelihood and environmental projects.
• Skills to train data collectors on research methods and qualitative and quantitative data collection approaches.
• Fluency in English and Arabic.

Facilities to be provided by the Contracting Authority and/or other parties

Under this scope of work, the supplier will be responsible of the transportation means required in accomplishing the tasks. World Vision is not responsible to pay any fees outside to the scope of the work, not included in the bid. Moreover, the supplier will be responsible to pay any fees for logistics for their staff and any insurance required for their personnel, contractors and vehicles.

REQUIRED DOCUMENT FOR BID

Potential second party must submit the following documents to be considered for the project:

1. Content of Technical packet

No financial information should be included in the Technical Offer. Failure to comply may risk disqualification.

• A technical proposal on how will they implement this assignment with the timeframe.
• Detailed CV indicating the relevant education and experience
• Cover letter describing their capacities, availability and motivation
• Any other information considered relevant
• Reference of similar projects
• Previous experience with international nonprofit organizations if available. The consultant should submit with his application a contact person in each organization for a reference check.

1. Content of Administrative Packet

• A certified copy of a certificate of business registration, certificate of incorporation, business license or similar document (Commercial circular & Commercial Register) شهادة_تسجيل_شركة + اذاعة_تجارية
• Letter from the Bank with Bank details
• ID of authorized Signatory مفوض بالتوقيع
• Information on ownership structure (Name of directors of the company / Owner) (Organization chart)
• Provide references from previous customers
• Signed Supplier Code of Conduct and WV’s Safeguarding document (attached)
• Signed SRF (attached)

1. Content of Financial Packet

• Proposed fees – Filled RFQ
• A financial packet including the bid be for the works specified in this ToR broken down in detail.
• The fees should be all-inclusive for the above requirements.
• The Currency on the BID should be in US dollars (Fresh dollars )

Technical and Financial Bids should be in English via online System – no hard copies are accepted.

N.B: Selected consultant will be provided with all additional documents required to carry out the work.

The evaluation of the technical bids, submitted by consultants/consultancy firms, would be conducted according to the following criteria:

The Evaluation Criteria for consultant selection will be as follows:

Category

Maximum Score

Proposed Methodology

Comprehensive Approach to Data Collection

10 points: Strong and thorough methodology.

5 points: Moderate methodology with some gaps.

0 points: Weak or unclear methodology.

Identification of Climate Vulnerabilities & Adaptation Opportunities

10 points: Comprehensive and actionable strategies.

5 points: Partial description with limited detail.

0 points: No clarity or actionable strategies.

Assessment of Natural Resources and Biodiversity

10 points: Detailed and comprehensive analysis.

5 points: General overview with limited specifics.

0 points: No specific analysis provided.

30%

Detailed Work Plan, Including Delivery Date of Each Deliverable

5 points: Comprehensive and realistic plan.

2.5 points: Partial or vague plan.

0 points: No clear plan provided.

5%

Qualification and CV of Proposed Personnel

Key Staff Availability and Expertise

Significant technical knowledge and expertise in livelihoods, biodiversity and development projects, particularly in rural and marginalized communities.

5 points: Extensive expertise with strong, relevant experience.

2.5 points: Relevant but not fully specialized experience.

0 points: No relevant expertise.

Proficiency in conducting biophysical and environmental resource mapping, including topographical, soil, vegetation, and water resource analysis to support community-based environmental decision-making

5 points: Highly skilled in mapping with practical examples.

2.5 points: Basic proficiency or partial experience in mapping.

0 points: No expertise in mapping.

Stakeholder and Community Engagement Experience

Knowledge of the humanitarian and development landscape in Akkar and North Lebanon.

5 points: Strong knowledge with specific examples of experience.

2.5 points: Partial knowledge with limited examples.

0 points: No clear knowledge or examples.

Proven experience working with vulnerable groups, particularly women and people with disabilities, in livelihood and environmental projects.

5 points: Clear evidence of impactful engagement with examples.

2.5 points: Limited engagement or indirect involvement.

0 points: No evidence of engagement.

20%

Similar Projects

Previous experience working with international humanitarian and/or development agencies.

2.5 points: 3 or more similar projects.

1 point: 2-3 similar projects.

0 points: Less than 2 similar projects.

Proven Experience conducting livelihoods assessments, particularly in rural, vulnerable, or marginalized communities, including expertise in gender and disability inclusion.

2.5 points: 3 or more assessments, including gender and disability inclusion.

1 point: 2-3 assessments with partial inclusion

0 points: Less than 2 assessments or no inclusion.

5%

Total Technical Score

60%

1. Financial Proposal

40 marks are allocated to the proposal with the lowest proposal, the financial score of other proposals are calculated in a comparison approach with lowest proposal using the below formula:

Sf = 100 x Fm/ F, in which “Sf” is the financial score, “Fm” is the lowest price, and “F” the price of the proposal under consideration.

Proposals are ranked according to their combined technical (St) and financial (Sf) scores using the weights (T = the weight given to the Technical Proposal; P = the weight given to the Financial Proposal; T + P = 1) as following: S = St x T% + Sf x P%.

40%

Total Score

100%

Deadline for the submission of Letter of Interest is January 13, 2025 12:00 PM Lebanon Time since the deadline of Submission offers is January 20, 2025.

Questions need to be sent to [email protected], by the latest Wednesday 15 January 12:00 PM Lebanon Time.

Answers will be shared with all interested bidders by the latest 16 January 2025.

Deadline of offers submission via online system is January 20, 2025 8:00pm

Payment to the supplier will be made in USD via Fresh money bank transfer upon completion of the tasks and submission of the invoice.

The Supplier needs to bear the cross-border transfer charges for an approximate amount of $45 for any sum below $10,000 and $95 for any sum above $10,000 which will be deducted directly from each transfer.

The Cross-border fees may vary depending on the Bank policies and restrictions.

In case the Consultant is not registered with Ministry of Finance, a deduction of 8.5 % should always be considered.

How to apply

Deadline for the submission of Letter of Interest is January 13, 2025 12:00 PM Lebanon Time since the deadline of Submission offers is January 20, 2025.

• Deadline for the submission of Letter of Interest is January 13, 2025 12:00 PM Lebanon Time since the deadline of Submission offers is January 20, 2025.
• Questions need to be sent to [email protected] by the latest Wednesday 15 January 12:00 PM Lebanon Time.
• Answers will be shared with all interested bidders by the latest 16 January 2025.
• Deadline of offers submission via online system is January 20, 2025 8:00pm