Andandorr Export Advancement programme
SHETRADES IN THE GAMBIA & The Youth Empowerment Project
terms of Reference
SECTOR EXPERT (FASHION & APPAREL)
Background
The International Trade Centre (ITC) is a joint agency of the United Nations and the World Trade Organization, focusing in particular on developing the export capabilities of small and medium-sized businesses in developing and transition economies. ITC is 100% "Aid for Trade", supporting trade that delivers inclusive and sustainable development results. ITC’s mandate covers all developing countries and transition economies with special emphasis on the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), Small Island Developing States (SIDs) Fragile States and Sub-Saharan Africa. ITC Headquarters is located in Geneva, Switzerland. ITC projects and programmes contribute to the global efforts to achieve UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development and the Aid for Trade agenda. ITC works at three levels:
Strengthening the integration of the business sector in developing countries and economies in transition into the global economy,
Improving the performance of trade and investment support institutions for the benefit of small and medium size enterprises (SMEs), and enhancing the abilities of trade support institutions to better support them,
Improving the international competitiveness of SMEs.
In close collaboration with the Government of the Republic of The Gambia, ITC is implementing a number of private sector development initiatives in The Gambia including the Youth Empowerment Project (YEP), SheTrades Gambia, initiatives under the UN Peacebuilding Fund aimed at economic development and social cohesion, and the Jobs Skills and Finance (JSF) Project implemented in collaboration with the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF).
SheTrades in The Gambia
The SheTrades in The Gambia project is a three-year initiative which aims to enable Gambian women to benefit from economic participation, particularly in the agricultural and textiles and clothing value chains. The project supports advocacy and policy design, strengthening of business support organizations, enhancing the productive capacities of women-owned businesses in the horticulture and textile and apparel sectors, and connecting these businesses to market. The SheTrades Gambia Chapter is hosted at the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment (MOTIE). The project is implemented by International Trade Centre under the leadership of the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Regional Integration & Employment and funded by ITC, the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) and the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID).
The Youth Empowerment Project (YEP)
YEP is a flagship initiative implemented under the leadership of MOTIE and the Ministry of Youth and Sports (MOYS) and funded by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa. YEP takes a market-driven approach and enhances employability and self-employment opportunities for youth, with a focus on vocational training and the creation of micro and small-sized enterprises. Simultaneously, the project creates and improves employment opportunities in selected sectors through value addition and market linkages. YEP focuses on a number of traditional sectors such as agriculture and tourism. The project also helps diversify the Gambian economy by supporting ‘new’ sectors, including the creative and digital services industries. The project is expected to contribute to the long-term economic competitiveness and human development in The Gambia.
The “Andandorr Programme“
The Andandorr Programme is a pilot entrepreneurship programme jointly implemented by key entrepreneurship stakeholders in The Gambia. The objective of Andandorr is to strengthen the ecosystem through enhanced collaboration and synergies/complementarity between the different institutions and training services providers. The programme follows a maturity-model for bespoke service provision for local entrepreneurs operating in five sectors; ICT, Agribusiness, Poultry, Fashion, and Creative Industries in various business development stages.
The programme aims to provide effective and tailored support for a small number of highly promising young entrepreneurs, while simultaneously strengthening the Gambian entrepreneurship ecosystem. The programme also seeks to support government efforts in creating sustainable enterprises to spur employment and wealth creation as enshrined in the National Development Plan.
The Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA)
GIEPA is The Gambia’s national agency responsible for the promotion and facilitation of private sector investments into the country. In broad terms, GIEPA aims to promote a conducive business environment, attract investments, develop exports, and support businesses with the overriding objective of contributing towards employment creation and wealth generation. Key functions of the organization include export promotion, investment promotion, the development of export and enterprise development strategies, and the promotion of private-sector led growth.
GIEPA currently offers an Export Advancement Programme to companies across sectors, which consists of the following stages:
Export Readiness Assessment;
- Development of support programme depending on needs of individual companies from the assessment;
- 4-day generic training on export advancement of selected topics in International trade;
- Follow-up Business Development Services Advisory for 6 months and periodic reporting by the best rated Empretec BDS advisors and other development services providers;
- Monitoring & Evaluation
- Final Reporting
The training component under the programme focuses on export-related topics, such as Developing an Export Plan, Identifying and Entering a Target Market, Identifying Export Financing Requirements; Delivering of Goods, Understanding the Legal Side of International Trade and e-Commerce for Exporters and Market Requirements (standards & technical regulation regimes). To date, 25 companies have graduated from the generic (cross-sector) training programme.
Since 2019, ITC and GIEPA have been collaborating to develop a sector-specific export advancement programme in the information and communication technology sector, which is now to be expanded to other sectors.
The Role of the Sector Expert
The International Consultant will work under the direct supervision of the ITC SheTrades in The Gambia Project Manager and the overall guidance of the YEP Project Coordinator. (S)he will undertake the following activities:
- Analyze the current and potential market for Gambian fashion & apparel products (incl. accessories), in particular the European, United States, West African, and African Diaspora markets.
- Provide inputs to company assessment. Advise GIEPA in the assessment of approx. 20 companies to understand their export readiness and training needs.
- Develop sector-specific training materials for export advancement for Gambian companies in the fashion & apparel sector aiming to enter the priority markets mentioned above; and design a coaching programme to reinforce learnings from the export advancement training materials, addressing export opportunities and company needs.
- Take on a lead role in the delivery of the training under the Export Advancement Programme.
- Support and build capacity of GIEPA Lead Advisors in the course of delivering of the export advancement training and the initial 3 months coaching programme.
Specific Activities
Assessment of Market Opportunities
Assess export potential for Gambian fashion and apparel SMEs and compile practical market entry information for their products in the identified priority markets, as well as identify export bottlenecks and market obstacles to be addressed. The analysis should cover at the least the following:
- Assess demand for fashion and apparel products (incl. accessories) in each of the identified markets.
- Identify market requirements of the identified markets (export license requirements, certificates, technical regulation, voluntary standards, demand-side policies, quality requirements, consumer trends, and export logistics).
- Identify potential buyers and export promotion channels (i.e. trade fairs, e-commerce, B2B linkages) in each of the priority markets. Recommend ‘quick wins’ and long-term opportunities and provide relevant contact details.
Company Assessment
Provide advice to GIEPA for their one-on-one assessment/needs analysis of the targeted companies to determine current supply capacity, product quality, maturity level and detail out, weaknesses and areas that need to be addressed.
Develop sector-specific export training materials and coaching programme
In collaboration with a lead export advisor from GIEPA, develop tailored high-quality sector-specific training and advisory materials for a 9-month export advancement programme (training + coaching) to complement existing materials at GIEPA. The materials will be developed taking into account findings from the market entry and company analysis. Materials should focus, in particular on the target markets, i.e. EU, USA, West African, and African diaspora markets. Key topics should include market requirements, including quality requirements and voluntary standards, production volumes, prices, competition, market channels, customer databases etc. The programme should consist of regular group training workshops (e.g. monthly) and individual advisory sessions (e.g. monthly). The purpose of the individual sessions will be to reinforce the learnings from the group workshops and to help companies make at least some sales by March 2021.
Support GIEPA in delivering the programme
Make all developed training materials available to GIEPA, train GIEPA lead advisors to be able to deliver the new sector-specific training and coaching programme, and co-deliver parts of the programme with GIEPA lead advisors (i.e. for the first 3 months of the programme) to ensure excellent delivery of the programme to participating companies and on-the-job learning of GIEPA advisors. The majority of the programme is foreseen to take place remotely. GIEPA and ITC will take care of relevant training logistics.
Deliverables
- Assessment report of market opportunities;
- Company assessment guidelines;
- Training and coaching materials for tailored export advancement programme;
- Training to GIEPA lead export advisors on the new materials;
- Co-delivery of training programme for approx. 20 companies (min. 3 sessions);
- Continuous advice to GIEPA lead export advisors (approx. 6 months);
Copyright
The Consultant/service provider has to ensure that s/he has obtained the necessary permissions with regard to intellectual property rights required to perform his/her services under this consultancy contract and for the subsequent dissemination by ITC in any form. Documentary proof is to be submitted to ITC. (S/he shall further ensure the necessary accreditation is obtained to the event(s), as required. Should any license fee be due for the use of copyrighted materials of third parties, the Consultant shall request the prior written permission from ITC.
Travel
Possible travel to The Gambia.
Skills
- Expertise in the fashion and apparel industry, including for export to relevant markets, i.e. West Africa, the European Union, and/or African diaspora communities;
- Excellent understanding of export requirements in the fashion and apparel industry;
- Experience developing and/or delivering training programmes for companies;
- Politically sensitive, culturally aware and diplomatically savvy;
- Ability to keep tight deadlines;
- Excellent oral and written communication skills, with report writing experience;
- Computer literate in MS office applications (PowerPoint, Excel and Word).
Education
A postgraduate Degree in a relevant field.
An undergraduate Degree (BA/BSc or other) in a relevant field with an additional 2 years of experience will also be considered.
Experience
At least 8 years of professional work experience in the sector, including working with and/or advising exporting companies; Excellent networks within the sector.
Experience developing export advancement programmes or other relevant initiatives with business support organizations is desirable.
Language
The consultant is required to have excellent communication skills in English.
Submission of proposals
All interested candidates should submit the following documents by email to shetradesgambia@intracen.org by 20 September 2020:
- Technical proposal including tentative work plan/schedule
- Up-to-date CV(s) of the sector expert(s)
- Evidence of previous similar work including at least 2 references
- Budget proposal including expected daily rate