MEDA (Mennonite Economic Development Associates) is an organization dedicated to creating business solutions to poverty. MEDA’s EMERTA project (Ethiopians Motivating Enterprises to Rise in Trade and Agri-business), which is funded by Global Affairs Canada, is committed to increasing the income and employment opportunities for entrepreneurs and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) focusing on three value chains: rice, vegetables and gemstones with gender equality and environment sustainability as cross-cutting themes.
There is huge untapped potential in the agricultural sector in Ethiopia, where smallholder farmers production is typically characterised by low yields, variable quality, and poor market linkages. Efficient market system plays an important role in the economic development as it stimulates production, avoids unnecessary fluctuation in output and prices and reduces costs of production and unfair share of consumer’s price. The experience of many countries suggests that in the absence of an efficient market system, agricultural development cannot go very far to stimulate production and contribute to price stability.
One of the EMERTA project strategies in creating market linkage to producers and MSME is through delivery of market information in partnership with the Farm Radio International (FRI), facilitation of forward and backward market linkages to improve the quality and market performance, and formation of rice processors association and development of common brand, and support to businesses participation in trade fare and similar events. Currently, MEDA is in the way to support irrigation cooperatives in partnership with the regional Cooperative Agency in the vegetable sector to strengthen market linkage between vegetable producers and buyers.
In addition, the project has a gender equality strategy that focuses on mainstreaming gender into EMERTA activities and intervention to ensure that both men and women benefit from development outcomes. The project focuses on increasing women’s participation in economic opportunities and decision-making process in the household and community through providing various awareness raising events and training including gender and household financial management training for women and men clients in the agriculture sector. Entrepreneurship, financial and record keeping, and life skill training are also provided for MSMEs of the three sectors.
One of the goals of the EMERTA project, in regarding to implementing market system development is to ensure the legal market system governance and fair profit margin for all the value chain actors in the rice and vegetable sector is met. Particularly, the marketing of vegetable is complex especially owning to its perishability, seasonality and bulkiness nature at a time. This is also leading to high and fluctuating consumer prices and unfair share of the retailer’s price. Hence, it is relevant to conduct a study on rice and vegetable sector marketing system using a holistic approach (employing combinations of different approaches of studying marketing system and incorporating both supply and demand aspects of the market system.)
The Geographical Scope
The geographical scope of the assignment covers MEDA intervention areas of South Gondar Zone namely Dera, Fogera and Libokemkem woreda, Bahir Dar, and Addis Ababa. The agricultural marketing assignment will go beyond the production area to promote market access for smallholder farmers, processors, retailers, and wholesalers.
Task Description
MEDA aims to establish and promote a profitable market linkage platform in the value chains of rice and vegetable sectors that potentially provide increased business incomes at farmers and enterprise level and create more employment opportunities. MEDA also would like to remove barriers to market access like brokers and business monopolization for rice and vegetable products by enhancing their competitiveness and creating multiplier effects throughout the value chain through ensuring the quality of products. The market system value chain analysis report revealed a number of inefficiencies along the value chains that hinder optimization of income and profit by the value chain players.
In rice sector, the key identified marketing gars are:
In Vegetable sector, the key marketing challenges identified are:
Interventions include increasing efficiency of markets by reducing the influence of brokers in the value chains through linking farmers directly to processors and retailers, wholesalers, and processors and retailers to wholesalers and other key potential buyers. This consultancy therefore seeks to facilitate the linking of farmers and processors to markets for specific products mentioned above through evaluation of current farmers and enterprises (processors, retailers, wholesalers) marketing practices and identification of ways to improve marketing methods and business linkages for farmers and enterprises to become more competitive in the market place and increase their incomes.
Scope of work
The selected firm/consultant shall work closely with MEDA staffs and project partners to carry out the following:
Process & Deliverables
Phase 1: Plan of Action
Based on this TOR the consultant will draw up a Plan of Action (3-5 pages). The Plan of Action will include the proposed approach of the candidate, methodology, a broad time frame and budget. It will also explain how the involvement of MEDA experts and stakeholders will be ensured. The Plan of Action will include a clear description of the different producers and enterprise groups to be analysed.
Phase 2: Desk Review
Based on the desk review a revised Plan of Action will be presented. This plan of action includes an inception report presenting the initial results, information gaps and the proposed approach to fill these information gaps.
Phase 3: Fieldwork and Draft report
The consultant will deliver and present the draft report covering the key findings and results to MEDA staff, and other relevant stakeholders. Feedback on the draft report will be incorporated into a final version of the report.
Phase 4: Dissemination of final report
The final market analysis report will be circulated to key stakeholders as identified by MEDA and Presenting the finding to concerned stakeholder workshop arranged by MEDA.
Reporting
The final report though incorporating MEDA’s feedback which will be submitted to MEDA shall include, separate recommendations and an implementation plan, which outlines where MEDA can contribute based on the project activities to alleviate the bottlenecks identified in rice and vegetable marketing system. The report is expected to be submitted within a month and half after signing the contractual agreement.
The consultant will work closely and in coordination with EMERTA’s Rice and Vegetable sector team, specifically with the Senior research and KM Specialist, Senior Marketing Specialist, as well as the Value chain senior specialists (Rice and Vegetable).
Required Qualifications and Experiences:
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