TERMS OF REFERENCE Expression of Interest for identification of product clusters in the operational areas of OTELP and providing technical support to the CBOs promoted under OTELP for processing and marketing of identified NTFP and surplus agriculture produces. 1. Background: Orissa Tribal Empowerment & Livelihoods Programme (OTELP) focuses on empowering the Tribals and enabling them to enhance their food security, increase their incomes and improve their overall quality of life through more efficient natural resource management based on the principles of improved watershed management backed by more productive environmentally sound agricultural practices and through offfarm/non-farm enterprise development. The purpose of the Programme is to ensure that the livelihoods and food security of poor tribal households are sustainably improved through promoting a more efficient, equitable, self-managed and sustainable exploitation of the natural resources at their disposal and through off-farm/non-farm enterprise development. The Programme covers 30 most backward blocks with tribal concentrations in seven districts, namely Gajapati, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Koraput, Malkangiri, Nawarangpur, and Rayagada in South-West Odisha. Programme has started its Phase I operation in 10 blocks of Koraput, Kalahandi, Kandhamal & Gajapati districts since 2004-05. The Phase II operation started from 2007-08 in additional 09 blocks of the above districts and 11 blocks of Malkanagiri, Nawrangpur & Rayagada from 2008-09. The development actions to be supported through the Programme are being identified by the communities through a participatory planning exercise. The Programme adopts a 'watershed plus' approach using the watershed as the basic vehicle, for natural resource management but with the scope to address broader issues of sustainable livelihoods including savings and credit, access to common property resources, off-farm/non-farm activities, issues related to non-timber forest products,,and community Infrastructure. WFP food assistance would enhance the capacity of food insecure households to participate in developmental interventions which will strengthen their long-term food security and improve their overall well-being. 2. Rationale The livelihoods enhancement component under the programme envisages focused attention for land and water management with objective of making the land more fertile and productive. This will facilitate profitable agriculture and horticulture practices through adoption of environment friendly scientific practices. 1
Production system enhancement as part of the livelihoods promotion under the programme thrusts upon development of agriculture and allied activities. This has been realized through the programme by critical interventions like introduction of improved varieties of seeds, diversification of crops vegetables, sunflower, horticulture, promotion of system of rice intensification, distribution of implements and training of farmers on integrated crop management practices including IPM. INM and post harvest technology etc have been made as a result of which production and productivity of many crops has increased. Introduction of new crops and technologies for increased production and productivity of the agriculture crops bridged the gap between the food need for the family for the year as a primary achievement of the programme. This increase of crop yield has supported the food requirement of the tribal families for the year. Further, huge investment in the development of natural resources particularly development of land and water resources development has increased the irrigation potential in the region and also increased in the programme areas resulting increase of cropping intensity. Under irrigated eco-system, double cropping and triple cropping patterns systems have been followed and higher productivity of crops achieved. Farmers used these additional areas along with their previous area to grow various new crops, crops with improved varieties and practices resulting high yield of crops like vegetable, niger, maize, ground nut, minor millets, tuber crops, etc. Now many tribal households have also surplus agriculture produces which they sell in nearby market or to the middleman. Similarly, forest is an integral part of the tribal livelihood. Food, fodder and fuel wood are key products tribal collect to meet their household food security and other domestic needs. Collection and selling of Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFPs) and other products have been one of their livelihoods support system for long time. The major NTFPs are mahua, char seeds, siali leaf, honey, broom, myrobalans, sal seed, tamarind, mango, cashew etc. collected by the tribal people and sold in nearby market or to the local village trader in a very low price in comparison to the actual terminal price of these raw produces or with value addition. During initial years of the programme interventions, collective Marketing as an effort were adopted to establish a cadre based marketing system in Phase I areas. Marketing linkages to major agriculture, horticulture and forest produces have been given for getting higher profit. This has resulted in a change in practice by tribal families to sell their collected/ produced products from forest (NTFP) and Agriculture/ Horticulture by consolidating their produces and selling in volume. This has helped in eliminating intermediate traders. Traders from terminal market coming to villages for procurement as they get a volume at one place. Increase of price at village level along with cleaning, grading and packaging as a practice has adopted by the tribal as an impact of the effort. The visible impact of collective marketing are price confirmation before sale, accessing 2
market information, enhanced negotiation skill, increased aggregation, simple value addition, proper weighing and packing. Except few small value addition like drying, cleaning, grading and packaging, almost no value addition (particularly making semi finished or finished) are made by the people. Some value addition tried are cashew processing unit at Gajapati, Tamarind packaging units in Gajapati and Koraput, Mango pulp drying unit at Korpaut, Oil expeller at Koraput and Kalahandi. These are mostly running below their actual potential and at a very low scale. Professional skills like technological knowhow, financial management, marketing etc. for running these types of enterprises lacks with the people. Risk taking capacity by the groups running these enterprises are very low, causing intermediate shutdown of these grass-root enterprises. The programme aims to promote non-farm enterprise as an additional source of income, particularly agriculture and forest based enterprises, where the input (raw material and credit) supply is sustainable with demystified technology easily adopted by the tribal communities in remote locations. 3. Objective: The objective of the assignment is to access and identify clusters, minimum 10 in number, based on NTFP and Surplus Agriculture Produce (SAP) and provide technical support for processing and collective marketing of these products in the operational area of OTELP. 4. Scope of work: The consultancy shall be responsible for the following jobs: a. Identify and access the feasibility status of minimum 10 clusters, based on NTFP and Agriculture products, with adequate volume and scope of value addition at village/ cluster level. b. Promote and organize cluster federations based on the identified products, link SHGs to these federations and ensure timely credit linkage. c. Provide technical support the CBOs (SHG and CIG) involved in production and collection of the identified products for preparation of plan for these micro enterprises, as an income generating activity. d. Help in establishing processing units, value addition and collective marketing of these products. 5. Deliverables: The consultancy shall deliver followings as an output of the assignment. a. A feasibility status report on minimum 10 products based cluster, its potential, and income opportunities. Focus agriculture products should be those farmers are already 3
producing in the areas and incase of NTFPs, villagers are collecting from the near by forests. b. Database of the SHGs and VDCs to be identified and selected to be linked in these clusters and with group wise feasibility of products available, growth potential, credit requirement and income schedule. c. Capacity Building of the federation members and SHG members should be in technical, financial and managerial aspects for ensuring quality and volume of products. d. Organization of these products based clusters federation of the SHGs/ VDCs. Level of clustering and federation should be decided by market and not by geography. Build cluster federation and collective marketing body. e. Facilitate the federations for planning of micro enterprises which shall include the procurement of produces, primary value addition at the producer/ collector level, group level, transportation to cluster point, processing and marketing of the produces. f. Help in establishing processing units. g. Credit linkage through banks to the SHGs and the federation. h. Linkages with extension departments and resource organization. 6. Period: The period of the consultancy will be of two years from the date of signing of the contract renewable in a yearly basis based on the performance. 7. Expected Human Resources: a. Lead Consultant (One): A management expert with more than 15 years of experience in promoting and establishing community level federation for micro enterprise and marketing of NTFP and agriculture produces. Previous experience of working in the state for a minimum of 5 years will be mandatory. b. Field Consultant (One per district): A management expert with 8 years of experience in promoting and establishing community level federation for micro enterprise and marketing of NTFP and agriculture produces. Previous experience of working in the project districts will be mandatory. 8. Methodology: To be proposed by the agency. 9. Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting: The consultant/ consulting agency will report to the Programme Director, OTELP and work closely with PSU, particularly with the Programme Officer (Livelihoods & NRM), Programme Officer (CB) and Programme Officer (PM&E). The consultant will undertake field visits in coordination with the Programme Officer (Livelihoods & NRM), ITDAs and FNGO Representatives at FNGO level. The PSU will undertake monitoring visits to the field for assessment of the achievements made based on the 4
deliverables. PSU will involve the agency to participate in regular review meetings or can organize independent reviews. Evaluation of the assignment will be done by PSU or by an independent agency selected by PSU. Payments will be made based on the delivery of the agreed targets. 10. Documents for review: a. Interim reports on collective marketing promoted under the programme. b. Process Guideline c. MTR/ JRM Reports 11. Who can apply? a. An organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO of state and national repute/ consortium of organizations, with relevant experience can submit their proposal clearly reflecting their plan & strategy, credential and technical capacity to handle the assignment with acceptable standard of quality. b. While applying, organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO will indicate their details of previous experience in similar nature of job in livelihood and empowerment related projects and processing of NTFP and SAP through clusters. The details of experience will cover year wise type of support given including financial involvement to the respective project. c. Experience of a minimum of 5 years of working in Orissa is mandatory. The yearly turnover should be of a minimum of Rs.1.00 crores during each of the last 3 years for the organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO/ Consortium to apply. 12. How to Apply? The organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO/ a consortium of resource organizations with relevant experience has to submit their technical and financial proposal separately under sealed covers to the Programme Director, OTELP, 2 nd Floor, TDCC Building, Bhoi Nagar, Bhubaneswar so as to reach the above office by 5.00 pm of 10.01.2011 through registered post/ courier. Only short listed organization/ consultancy firm/ FNGO will be selected for presentation and final selection by the committee constituted by the competent authority. 13. Information and Instructions for Submitting Proposal Format of Proposal The organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO/ a consortium of organizations with relevant experience expected to examine all instructions, forms, proforma, terms, technical specifications, schedule of requirements, etc. in this document. Failure to furnish all necessary information as required by this document or submission of a bid not 5
substantially responsive to all the aspects of this document shall be at the own risk of the organization and may be liable for rejection. The proposal should be submitted in English and be set out in two main parts Part A Technical Proposal Part B Financial Proposal Part A and B must be bound separately to enable technical and financial proposal to be evaluated independently. It is suggested not to include any price information in Part A. No publicity material is also required to be submitted. Pro-forma for various sections of Part A and Part B are provided below: Part A Technical Proposal Part A should be structured as per the format at Annexure A. Part B Financial Proposal All prices should be for the duration of the contract. The financial proposal shall be submitted indicating the final bid price in Indian Rupees. The final price should include taxes and duties. No change will be allowed in bid price after submission of bids. The financial bid should be structured as per the format at Annexure B. 14. Nominated Personnel The organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO must: - confirm that all personnel will be available to provide the required services for the duration of the contract - give the name of their employer or state if self-employed if any or the personnel is not a member of the organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO staff 15. Alterations to Proposal Any manuscript or other alteration to the proposal must be countersigned and dated by the person submitting the proposal. 16. Letters and Declaration to Accompany Proposals The proposal must be accompanied by a letter on the organization s/ consulting farm s/ NGO s letter head showing the full registered and trading name(s), trading and registered office address of the organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO. It should be signed by a person of suitable authority to commit the organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO with relevant experience to a binding contract. The organization must quote the Contract Title and include the following declarations: - We have examined the information provided in your terms of reference and offer to undertake the work described in accordance with requirements as set out in the TOR. 6
This proposal is valid for acceptance for 6 months and we confirm that this proposal will remain binding upon us and may be accepted by you at any time before this expiry date. - The proposal (Technical & Financial) has been arrived at independently and without consultation, communication, agreement or understanding (for the purpose of restricting competition) with any other organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO invited to submit proposal for this contract. - We confirm that the enclosed electronic versions of the technical proposal are true and complete copies of these documents. - We confirm that all personnel named in the proposal will be available to undertake the services. - We confirm that there are no personal, financial and business activities that will, or might, give rise to a conflict of interest, if we were awarded this contract. OTELP reserves the right to reject any Proposal which, in it s opinion, gives rise, or could potentially give rise to, a conflict of interest. - We confirm that the organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO Are not or have not been the subject of any proceedings or other arrangements relating to bankruptcy, insolvency or financial standing. Have not been convicted of any offence concerning professional misconduct. have not been convicted of corruption including the offence of bribery We agree to bear all costs incurred by us in connection with the preparation and submission of this proposal and to bear any further pre-contract costs. I confirm that I have the authority of [name of organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO] to submit proposal and to clarify any details on its behalf. 17. Packaging and Delivery of Proposals Proposals must be delivered in a sealed envelope clearly labeled with the following: Contract Title Proposal Due Date Name of the organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO/ Consortium. The proposal should be addressed to the Programme Director, OTELP, 2 nd Floor, TDCC Building, Bhoi Nagar, Bhubaneswar. This should be submitted on two CD ROMs along with one hard copy one for the technical and another for the financial proposal. These should each contain a single file, in PDF format. Each CD should be included with the respective envelope for Part A and Part B. OTELP accepts no responsibility for the premature opening of any incorrectly marked or unsealed Proposals. Proposals must be received at OTELP at Bhubaneswar by 1700 hours on the due date (see how to apply). Proposal received after the due date and time will not be accepted in any circumstance and will be returned unopened. No special pleadings will be accepted. 7
18. Clarifications Clarification can be sought from the office of OTELP during working hours through email, telephone as mentioned in the TOR (see how to apply). 19. Evaluation The selection procedure and criteria is indicated below: Selection Criteria Indicators Score allotted Agency/ organization s capacity and experience Technical Proposal Local Presence Annual financial turnover more than Rs.01.00 crores consecutively for previous three years. Relevant experience in promotion of micro enterprise, value addition and processing of NTFP and SAP. Capacity to organize community institutions in sourcing, procuring and ensuring processing of NTFP and SAP. Understanding of the work, basic approach and methodology. Work plan and schedule of completion with date line. Presence/ experience in working in Orissa. The appraisal committee will rank the offers and make suggestions to the project based on the evaluation of technical proposal. The project will invite the first rank proposal for further discussion for firming up the ToR, deliverables, and financial outlay. 20. Competent Authority Programme Director, OTELP will be the competent authority for this contract. The rights of the Competent Authority will be as under: - Amend bid documents during the proposal evaluation process. Any amendments will be conveyed to the short-listed organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO - Modify scope of work at the time of the award of the contract. Such modifications will be discussed and agreed with the preferred organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO. - At discretion during evaluation of bids, request a organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO for clarification on its proposal. This request will be in writing and the organization/ consultancy firm/ NGO should respond in writing. No change in price or substance of the bid shall be sought, offered or permitted at this stage. 10 30 10 15 15 20 8
The Programme Director, OTELP exercises the right to accept or reject any bid without assigning any reason there to. 9
Format for Technical Proposal 1 Name of the Organization 2 Address of Correspondence 3 Phone, Fax, E-mail 4 Branches with addresses in Orissa (if any) 5 Registration Details 6 Financial Strength and turnover (last 3 years) Financial Year Total Turnover (in Rs. Lakhs) FY 2007-08 FY 2008-09 FY 2009-10 7 Experience in similar nature of job (Last Five Years) Title of the Assignment Name of the Client/ Donor/ Funding Agency Specific Objectives & Deliverables Total Value of the Assignment (in Rs. Lakhs) Duration of the Assignment Annexure A Location of the Assignement 8 Micro Enterprise/ Processing Units/ Product Clusters/ Marketing Federations promoted (Last Five Years) Micro Name of the Total Total Enterprise/ Processing Client/ Donor/ Annual Turnover members associated Units/ Funding (in Rs. Product Clusters/ Marketing Federations promoted Agency Lakhs) for 9 Core Team to be associated and their experience Name of the Person Basic Qualification & Specialization 10 Description of Methodology a Understanding of the work (500 words) Experience in the area of the assignment Designation in the assignment and commitment for involvement 10
b Proposed basic approach and detailed methodology (1000 words) c Work Plan (300 words) d Proposed composition of the team and estimate of the total staff person days to carry out the work (500 words) [NOTE: NO FINANCIAL/ COST DETAILS TO BE PROVIDED IN TECHNICAL PROPOSAL] 11 Enclosures a. CV s, recently signed by the proposed experts to be assigned to this assignment. b. Profile of the organization/ agency/ NGO/ consortium c. Copies of last three years audited statement d. Copies of relevant registration certificates 11
Date: Place: Name of the Signatory Designation 12
Annexure B Financial Proposal (This format must be kept in a separate sealed envelope clearly marked as Financial Proposal ) Name of the Organization: A. Remuneration Position Quantity Unit Unit Price Total Person days Person days Person days Person days Person days Total B. Allowance, Transport Cost & Other Incidentals Position Quantity Unit Unit Price Total days days days days days Total C. Other Direct Cost Position Quantity Unit Unit Price Total Total Sub Total A + B + C Service Tax Grand Total 13