Terms of Reference Biodiversity Finance Initiative (BIOFIN) A literature review and feasibility study on the development of a market-based certification scheme in the wildlife sector of South Africa Location: Home-based with meetings in Cape Town & Pretoria Application Deadline: 23 May 2018 Category: Energy and Environment Type of Contract: Individual Contract Language Required: English, fluency in Afrikaans and other local languages would be advantageous Starting Date: 4 June 2018 Duration of Assignment: 55 working days 1. Background Summary The Global Biodiversity Finance Initiative (BIOFIN) is managed by UNDP, in partnership with the European Commission and the Governments of Germany, Switzerland, Norway and Flanders. The BIOFIN project is envisioned to transform the way in which biodiversity finance is mobilized allowing for greater resources to be enacted as required within the Aichi Targets defined in the CBD s Strategic Plan (2011 2020). Over the past two years, the UNDP Global BIOFIN team together with 30 countries have been involved in developing and piloting the new BIOFIN methodology which will be refined through regional and global learning. South Africa initiated its BIOFIN project in 2015 and has met several envisioned goals including the undertaking of a: Policy and Institutional Review (PIR), Financial Needs Assessment, Biodiversity Expenditure Review and a Biodiversity Financial Plan. Within the Biodiversity Finance Plan, 16 financial solutions were identified as being instruments that could be developed or refined to increase financial flows earmarked for biodiversity protection. One of the financial solutions of interest was the implementation of South Africa s bio-economy strategy within which wildlife ranching certification was of special interest. The area of land under private wildlife ranches in South Africa is currently at least 17 million hectares, representing a minimum of 14% of the total land area of the country. The private wildlife sector is a complex and multi-faceted commercial sector that includes a combination of agriculture, ecotourism and conservation activities. It is a vibrant industry, creating jobs and contributing to the economy. Individual ranchers operate along a continuum from intensive to extensive management practices. At one end, extensive game ranches are managed to a great extent as protected areas, including ensuring appropriate species population densities, supporting well-balanced community structures (including the predator-prey balance) and maintaining ecosystem functioning. At the other end of the spectrum, intensive game ranches confine specimens of wild species to small- or medium-sized enclosures, control natural predators, and provide food, water and veterinary support to animals. Breeding is sometimes manipulated to select animals with desirable traits for hunting (e.g. long horns and coat colour). Page 1 of 6
Although it is assumed that the sector makes a positive contribution to improved management of biodiversity in the country, there is no mechanism in place to accurately quantify and evaluate this contribution. The sector consists of four pillars, namely animal husbandry (breeding and live sales), hunting, game products and ecotourism. These are not always distinct and separate activities: they overlap and are often inter-related. The Wildlife sector has been growing consistently faster than the general economy, contributing an estimated R 3 billion to GDP in 2014, and has also shown a stable growth in job creation. As part of developing a national strategy to grow the Biodiversity Economy in South Africa, the Department of Environmental Affairs hosted a Biodiversity Economy Lab in May 2016 to engage the wildlife sector in identifying the challenges and opportunities for sustainably growing the biodiversity economy of the country. This process has assisted in creating dialogue between a wide range of stakeholders in the sector, and the process is being utilised to drive new developments. One of the key challenges identified during the Lab was reputational risks associated with unsustainable practices of operators in the wildlife sector. The hunting and game breeding sectors were identified as areas of particular concern where mechanisms were needed to promote sustainable growth and address reputational risk of the sector. Wildlife ranchers generally have different primary objectives compared to conservation managers in formally protected areas, with economics being the main driver within the private sector. To encourage the private sector to make a greater contribution to conservation, a mutually beneficial partnership that brings them financial incentives needs to be developed. At present, few financial incentives exist for the private wildlife sector. As a result, a priority intervention identified to mitigate these risks was the development of a sector specific voluntary market-based certification scheme. The intention of such a scheme would be to enable local and international markets to identify players in the private wildlife sector who manage their businesses in an environmentally and socially sustainable manner, thus leading to market responses that benefit those members who manage their land responsibly. Such a scheme would theoretically lead to more sustainable management practices that better support biodiversity conservation and complement the formal protected area network, such as through the creation of corridors and buffers. The potential outcomes of this scheme would be: To ensure sustainability of the resource base and, therefore, the sustainability of the wildlife economy To reduce negative impacts on ecosystems services To reduce the administrative burden for the landowner and/or land user To maintain and enhance the value of the wildlife economy by giving product assurance to consumers To incentivize good practice and reward these through economic gain To help improve reputation (both domestically and internationally) and reduce revenue loss as a result of reputational damages To enhance the social co-benefits such as job creation One of the key benefits of voluntary compliance with the standards of a certification scheme for the wildlife sector could be a reduced permitting regime. The feasibility of this would need to be considered in this assignment. On 27 November 2017 a stakeholder workshop was held with the following objectives: i. to provide the workshop participants with information on current and relevant certification schemes through a number of presentations and Page 2 of 6
ii. to establish a working group that will be responsible for driving the development of the certification scheme. The following vision/goal for the certification scheme was proposed by the workshop participants: To promote and demonstrate voluntary stakeholder contributions to the biodiversity economy through responsible and sustainable natural resource management for the benefit of the people of South Africa and the environment The above vision/goal aligns well with the overall vision developed for the Biodiversity Economy Strategy which reads The Vision of the Biodiversity Economy is to optimise the total economic benefits of the wildlife and bio-prospecting industries through its sustainable use, in line with the Vision of the Department of Environmental Affairs. 2. Objectives of the work The objective is to develop a sector-wide voluntary market-based certification scheme that is supported by key industry/sector stakeholders and that incentivises environmentally and socially sustainable practices and contributes to biodiversity conservation. A key factor to take into account is that such a certification scheme should also provide a best-practice business guideline to support the entrance of emerging wildlife ranchers in the sector. The intention is for this system to be cost effective while maintaining a high standard, rewarding exemplary practices. It should be recognised by national and international markets, and ideally will be seen as an international benchmark for the sector. The aim of the activity-specific (technical) standards is to ensure conformity of landowners with responsible management practices through industry enforcement. The aim of the certification scheme is to identify those private properties that can and would like to contribute to biodiversity conservation and to create mechanisms to incentivise good biodiversity management practices within the wildlife industry, while allowing and promoting economic benefit. The certification scheme will need to be based on the aims and principles of biodiversity conservation. The certification system, while targeted at land-based practices, should have ramifications throughout the broader wildlife sector. By being accepted and promoted throughout the wildlife sector, this process should be supported by chain of custody rules associated with the certification process. The certification system should be an enabler and not a barrier to stakeholders, especially emerging farmers. 3. Methodology and Approach The scope of work of the Service Provider will be as follows: 3.1. Scoping report of existing certification schemes Undertake a review of existing relevant certification schemes across various sectors and how they can be adapted for the wildlife sector in South Africa. This should include information such as the costs and benefits of each scheme, positive and negative outcomes of each scheme, and suitability of each scheme in the context of work being done in the Biodiversity Economy of South Africa. Page 3 of 6
3.2 Feasibility of the certification scheme in South Africa s wildlife sector Based on the outcomes of the scoping report of 3.1., assess the feasibility of one or more certification schemes through sector engagement. The Service Provider will need to work closely with the Project Steering Committee and its established working groups. Interviews with key stakeholders, such as industry bodies, will be required. Some workshops might be required, however there is not a large budget for travel or workshops and the Service Provider should therefore minimise such recommendations. The Service Provider will be expected to liaise with various stakeholders in the wildlife sector via telephone and email, and undertake a desktop study. The feasibility study should include a survey that ascertains the probability for the maximum buy-in to a suitable certification scheme by all stakeholders. 3.3 Based on the outcomes of the feasibility study, recommend a certification scheme for the South African wildlife sector considering, amongst others, the following factors: a. The principles underpinning the scheme; b. The scope of the certification scheme; c. Best practices in implementing the scheme; d. The cost to implement the scheme and the cost structure/business model; e. The impact and benefits of the certification scheme to stakeholders in the wildlife ranching sector; f. How the scheme can be linked with the other national and international certification schemes g. The strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the recommended scheme 4. Deliverables The total duration of the review will be approximately (55 working days) starting from the date of contracting. The tentative timeframe is as follows: Deliverables Days Completion Payment Introductory Meeting and Inception Report 5 Mid-June 2018 10% Scoping report of existing certification schemes, their benefits and how they can be applied in the South African wildlife sector Feasibility report of a certification scheme in South Africa s wildlife ranching sector 10 End of June 2018 10% 35 Mid-August 2018 50% Detailed recommendations of a certification scheme for the South African wildlife sector 5 Mid-September 2018 30% Page 4 of 6
5. Required Skills and Experience: In order to fulfil this role, the Service Provider requires the following skills and competencies. The response to the Terms of Reference should indicate the extent to which the Service Provider fulfils these requirements. The selection of an expert will be aimed at maximizing the overall qualities in the following areas [weighting applied to each quality is shown in brackets, summing to [100]: Education: An advanced degree in environmental economics, environment/natural resource management, biodiversity studies, economics/finance or a closely related field, or another field combined with relevant work experience. [20] Knowledge, experience and skills are required in: 8 years experience in certification processes, schemes and operations [20] Experience in the private wildlife sector its stakeholders and composition (game farming and game ranching from extensive to intensive) [20] Sector-related economic research expertise [5] Desktop research and report writing experience [5] Working independently and delivering efficiently on high quality and accurate deliverables within tight agreed timeframes [5] Knowledge of incentive schemes and how they operate, particularly in the biodiversity conservation field [20] Knowledge and understanding of the following will be an advantage [5]: The biodiversity sector in South Africa, including pressures on biodiversity The biodiversity economy of South Africa, and specifically the wildlife ranching sector in South Africa The regulatory framework in the wildlife sector The socio-economic situation in South Africa, and be familiar with initiatives underway to grow and transform the industry Drivers of profitability and sustainability in the biodiversity economy 6. Evaluation Criteria The evaluation of proposals will be conducted according to UNDP procurement rules. A two-stage procedure is utilised in evaluating the proposals, with evaluation of the technical proposal being completed prior to any price proposal being opened and compared. The price proposal of the Proposals will be opened only for submissions that passed the minimum technical score of 70% of the obtainable score of 100 points in the evaluation of the technical proposals. The technical proposal is evaluated on the basis of its responsiveness to the Term of Reference (TOR). In the second stage, the price proposal of all contractors, who have attained minimum 70% score in the technical evaluation will be compared. The contract will be awarded to the lowest priced technically qualified proposal. Page 5 of 6
7. Response Format To facilitate the analysis of responses, all interested parties are required to prepare their response in accordance with the instructions outlined in this section. All proposals should be electronically generated. Applicants are required to submit the following: Description of how the Service Provider is qualified and able to meet the requirements of the project detailed above, including a brief section on methods applied and lessons learnt in similar processes. A proposed workplan for the Service Provider to accomplish the deliverables mentioned above in the timeframe stipulated in the budget section. A detailed total budget broken down by deliverable. Details of the Service Provider (individual or team), including relevant skills, experience and track record short CV(s) must be included. Contact details of at least three current or recent clients, preferably in related work. Examples of relevant recent research and writing that the consultant was personally responsible for conceptualising, researching, analysing and writing. Applicants are required to submit the following documents to procurement.za@undp.org on or before the 23 May 2018 with the subject line: Job Code Title and Reference Number. Page 6 of 6