ANNEX 3. TERMS OF REFERENCE

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1 ANNEX 3. TERMS OF REFERENCE TENDER FOR A SERVICE CONTRACT: PROVISION OF ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT TO BENEFICIARIES OF THE PROJECT: TRANSFORMING AFRICAN AGRICULTURE: EYES IN THE SKY, SMART TECHS ON THE GROUND 1 ABOUT CTA The Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) is a joint international institution of the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States and the European Union (EU). Its mission is to advance food and nutritional security, increase prosperity and encourage sound natural resource management in ACP countries. It provides access to information and knowledge, facilitates policy dialogue and strengthens the capacity of agricultural and rural development institutions and communities. CTA operates under the framework of the Cotonou Agreement and is funded by the EU. 2 BACKGROUND OF THE ASSIGNMENT There is a general consensus that smallholder farming needs to become more productive, more sustainable and more profitable. Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) or drone-based systems services can contribute towards these goals by bringing some of the tools of precision agriculture to producers, which include large and medium-scale holdings and associations of small-scale farmers growing the same crop in contiguous areas. Typically, UAS services are provided by entrepreneurs who invest in the equipment, learn the skills to use it, conduct or sub-contract data analysis, interpret the findings and advise their customers. UAS can inform a range of services, including: a) mapping and surveying (e.g. farm boundary delineations, crop area calculations, elaboration of digital elevation models); b) crop inventory (e.g. count of tree crops, yield estimations); c) crop scouting (e.g. identification of location-specific crop stress, assessment of biomass development); d) crop damage assessment (e.g. for insurance purposes); e) crop management advice (e.g. nitrogen application on selected crops); f) infrastructure inspection (e.g. irrigation systems, farm to market roads, etc.); and g) increasing farmers credit-worthiness via the integration of farmer profiles with high resolution images, crop diagnostics, and accurate and up-to-date georeferenced data sets. UAS can thus help increase returns to farmers and create new knowledge-intensive employment opportunities in rural areas, offering educated rural youth an alternative to migration. Recognising the opportunities provided by UAS, in 2017 CTA partnered with leading private sector operators, and assisted African ICT start-ups in in acquiring the capacity to deliver UAS services. In the framework of two projects known as 2017 Cost-sharing initiative for the setup of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) services for agriculture in ACP countries - Capacity building and financial support, CTA organised a series of activities including training on the operation of drones and mounted multispectral sensors, understanding of safety and privacy principles and regulations, management and processing of remote sensed data, development Page 1 of 8

2 of business plans and networking opportunities. In addition, CTA provided some financial support for the acquisition of necessary equipment. Starting in 2016, CTA played also an active role in trying to raise awareness on the potentials of UAS in the domain of development and humanitarian assistance, especially among the national and international bodies which define the rules and regulations under which unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be operated within the national airspace. These include the national civil aviation authorities and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), all having limited understanding of development cooperation contexts. At present, only 26% of African nations have an official UAV governance in place. UAV governance may be very restrictive and limit or discourage the deployment of the technology. This situation changed. In fact on 26 January 2018, by issuing Decision EX.CL/Dec (XXXII), the Executive Council of the African Union (AU), requested the AU and Member States to harness drones for agriculture as a selected emerging technology of relevance for the development of the African continent. The full report Drones on the Horizon: Transforming Africa's Agriculture ( Des Drones à l Horizon - Transformer L Agriculture En Afrique ) has been launched by the African Union (AU) High Level Panel on Emerging Technologies (APET) at the Africa Innovation Summit 2018 on June 8, 2018 in Kigali, Rwanda. In line with this continent-wide policy recommendation, CTA decided to support an increase in the number of UAS operators and countries covered across Africa. In this context, CTA has launched a project focusing on Sub-Saharan Africa, known as Transforming African agriculture: Eyes in the Sky, Smart Techs on the Ground ( ). Sixteen (16) companies have been selected and offered co-funding for acquiring equipment and analytical software, training, coaching, capacity building in terms of enterprise management and business development. CTA will also put UAS operators in touch with potential clients like agribusinesses and farmers organisations possibly growing the same crop in contiguous areas or engaged in crop intensification. UAS operators (10) benefitting from CTA support obtained in previous phases, are going to be involved in this project as well. 3 BENEFICIARIES, THEIR LOCATION AND PREFERRED LANGUAGE Out of the 14 companies, which benefitted from CTA support in 2017 a total of 10 will benefit from extended support in the framework of this project. Sixteen (16) enterprises were selected in March 2018 and completed all steps, related to becoming eligible for CTA support. Hence, the beneficiaries of the project are 26 companies located in 14 countries. Nine of the beneficiaries are French speaking and the balance is English speaking. Table 1 Location of beneficiaries, their language preference year of enrolment Country Preferred language Year of enrolment Total number of enterprises Angola English Benin French Burkina Faso French Cameroon French Democratic Republic of Congo French Ghana English Kenya English Malawi English Page 2 of 8

3 Country Preferred language Year of enrolment Total number of enterprises Nigeria English Ruanda English Senegal French Tanzania English Uganda English Zambia English Total Table 2 Name of beneficiaries, their location and type of support Company / organisation Country City Local Remote support support 1. Alfa Sementeira Produção e Comercialização de Sementes Ltd. Angola Luanda 2. Global Partners Sarl. Benin Porto Novo 3. ATLAS-GIS Sarl. Benin Cotonou 4. Cargitech Sarl. Burkina Faso Ouagadougou 5. Espace Géomatique Sarl. Burkina Faso Ouagadougou 6. Institut Agricole d'obala (IAO) Cameroon Obala 7. AgriBizz Sarl. Cameroon Douala 8. IRDAC Sarl. DRC Kinshasa 9. DAEE-UCC Ghana Cape Coast 10. Ziongate Geospatial & Research Services Ltd. Ghana Cape Coast 11. GEM Industrial Solutions Ltd. Ghana Accra 12. Maptech Consultants Ltd. Kenya Nairobi 13. Upande Ltd. Kenya Nairobi 14. LEAD SEA Malawi Lilongwe 15. ATMANCorp Nigeria Ltd. Nigeria Ibadan 16. Orbital Solutions Global Services Ltd. Nigeria Lagos 17. Geospatial Research Ltd. Nigeria Lagos 18. Charis Unmanned Aerial Solutions Ltd. Rwanda Kigali 19. GeoRisk Afric Sarl. Senegal Dakar 20. PROCASUR West Africa Senegal Dakar 21. Agrinfo Company Ltd. Tanzania Dar es Salaam 22. Uhurulabs Ltd. Tanzania Dar es Salaam 23. ESIPPS International Ltd. Uganda Kampala 24. Igara Growers Tea Factory Ltd. Uganda Bushenyi 25. Geo-Information Communication Ltd. Uganda Kampala 26. idrone Services Ltd. Zambia Lusaka Page 3 of 8

4 Based on the experience CTA gained in 2017, UAS entrepreneurs are facing the challenge of selling their services to cooperatives and agribusinesses. The market of surveying proved to be readily accessible. The market on crop advisory services appears to be more challenging, due to limited evidence of returns to investment of the advice in African conditions and the complexity of the systems needed to produce such advice. It also appears evident, that UAS operators would also benefit from improving the structure and management of their enterprises and from planning of short to medium term actions aimed at improving their efficiency. To this effect, within the framework of the project, CTA will deploy in parallel to this assignment - an UAS expert, who will visit all enterprises, assess their technical capacities, and assist them in marketing their services. Through the assignment subject of this tender, CTA would like to assist the same companies in making their enterprises more effective. Over a two-year time span, the Eyes in the Sky Project is meant to result in an estimated 26 established business-oriented and sustainable African UAS service providers. The enterprises will offer a range of UAS-based services including real-time advice to farmers. Should a company not respond to the Contractor s offer of services, CTA should be immediately informed. Cases where the Contractor will not be in the position to visit the selected company due to causes out of the Contractor control, CTA should be immediately informed. Should the latter constraint lead to less than 26 enterprise improvement plans be developed, each case of failure should be duly documented. 4 OBJECTIVES, SCOPE AND ACTIVITIES OF THIS SERVICE CONTRACT The purpose of this assignment consists in assisting the 26 UAS operators, which are part of CTA s UAS network in optimizing their internal operations. This should lead to more efficient, operationally effective and growing enterprise. In coordination with and according to priorities set by the Officer in Charge (OiC) of the Project, the Contractor will be responsible for the implementation of the following tasks: Prior to any field mission, review the results of the preliminary enterprise analyses done for the individual companies; Coordinate with the second party who is contributing to UAS business development from both technical and marketing perspectives; Conduct an estimated 8-10 missions covering 14 African countries and visit a maximum of 26 UAS operators. This is based on the assumption that more than one country can be visited in the course of one mission (e.g. Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda; or Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, or Benin and Burkina Faso, etc.); When visiting the individual companies: Validate results of their preliminary enterprise analysis (documents will be made available to the Contractor); Conduct a holistic analysis of the enterprise, analysing internal procedures, operations, sourcing, finance, distribution, human resources, customer database, IT and analytics; In consultation with the management of the company, develop an enterprise development / improvement plan to be executed within 6 and 9 months; Remotely monitor the implementation of the plan and provide feedback and - if needed - assistance remotely at 3, 6, and 9 months; Page 4 of 8

5 Remotely assist selected representatives of the beneficiary companies, in establishing a Pan-African consortium of companies, which would be in the position to offer digital products and services across the continent. The establishment of the consortium will require an initial work that will help set up the its foundation. This will include the following: (a) the definition of its legal status and structure, (b) the management of memberships, (d) the responsibilities of its members, and finally (e) the development of a strategic plan. 5 DELIVERABLES A total of 26 enterprise improvement plans 1 with 3, 6 and 9 months targets. Each plan will have to be agreed upon with the individual company. Mission reports as per CTA template (see Appendix 2). Report on the support provided for the establishment of the consortium and copy of the consortium strategic plan. Quantified metrics needed to assess improvements of effectiveness, efficiency and profitability of business. 6 IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE AND BUDGET The assignment is planned approximately over a fourteen months (November 2018 January 2020). The Contractor will ensure that all field visits are completed within the 1 st quarter of 2019, to ensure that enterprise improvement plans can be enacted and their implementation monitored. CTA has allocated 190 working days (excluding international travel) for this assignment. The Contractor is expected to spend approximately 65% of the time, working on the field via punctual missions to the countries where the beneficiary companies are located and visit more than one company during each mission. N.B. International travel arrangements shall be made by the Contractor in consultation with CTA and the beneficiary companies. International travel, in-country accommodation and travel shall be organised and paid for by the Contractor and claimed back at the end of each mission via a Travel Expense Claim. Spending limits on international travel, hotel accommodation and local travel are found in Appendix 1. 7 COORDINATION OF CONSULTANCY The overall co-ordination of this consultancy (OiC) will be carried out by Mr Giacomo Rambaldi (rambaldi@cta.int), Senior Programme Coordinator, ICTs. 1 Should a company not respond to the Contractor s offer of services, CTA should be immediately informed. Cases where the Contractor will not be in the position to visit the selected company due to causes out of the Contractor control, CTA should be immediately informed. Should the latter constraint lead to less than 26 enterprise improvement plans being developed, each case of failure should be duly documented. Page 5 of 8

6 Note: CTA may use a negotiated procedure to extend services already underway, if CTA considers it necessary. There are two scenarios: Complementary services not included in the main contract but which, due to unforeseen circumstances, have become necessary to perform the contract, provided that the aggregate amount of additional services does not exceed 50% of the value of the principal contract; Additional services consisting of the repetition of similar services entrusted to the contractor, providing these services (i) are justified by special circumstances, and (ii) do not exceed the value and duration of the initial contract. Page 6 of 8

7 Appendix 1 CTA Rules and Regulations - Missions 1. Air Ticket All air travels shall be in Economy Class for the best available travel itinerary from the passenger s country of origin (closest airport) to the event destination and return, and at optimal costs. To limit the risk of the Contractor in case of last minute cancellation of the agreed field activities by the beneficiary organisation, the Contractor is allowed to consider the purchase of flexible tickets allowing for reimbursement in case of cancellation of travel. Travel costs are only reimbursed on presentation of an original invoice of the travel agency (or the original counterfoils of travel tickets), proof of payment and incoming and return boarding passes. 2. Accommodation Hotel costs include accommodation and breakfast only. All other hotel or catering expenses are considered personal expenses. An amount of maximum Euro 90,- per night for room, including breakfast, is considered as being acceptable for missions to the African continent. Accommodation costs will be reimbursed upon submission of hotel receipts / invoices issued in the name of the Contractor, including date of arrival & departure. 3. Local Transport In Country Travel The assignment includes visits to partner organisations and field visits that require in country travel. A lump sum of Euro 150,- per visited partner organisation can be claimed, justified by submission of mission reports including the name of the partner organisation(s) visited. Page 7 of 8

8 Appendix 2 Mission Report Template Contract Ref : /2018-xxx/GRA/mbv Project framework Focus of the service contract : Transforming African Agriculture: Eyes in the Sky, Smart Techs on the Ground Provision of Enterprise Development Support to Beneficiaries of the Project: Transforming African Agriculture: Eyes in the Sky, Smart Techs on the Ground To : [insert name], Officer in Charge From : [insert name], Signature c.c. : Date : [insert date] Subject : Mission to [country/ies] for the Provision of Enterprise Development Support to [name of enterprise(s)] 1 THE MISSION The Mission 2 visited <name of partner organizations> <country/countries visited and specific venue(s) > < include dates and duration> 1.1 Objective of mission 2 SUMMARY OF ACTIVITIES <Summary of activities carried out and how they were carried out, i.e., brief description of methodology/process> 3 RESULTS 3.1 Heading Heading 2 4 MAIN OBSERVATIONS. 5 RECOMMENDED FOLLOW-UP ACTIONS <Specify who would be responsible for the implementation of the action. In the case the local enterprise is responsible for the action, please clarify if the CEO undertook to implement it and by what date> 5.1 Heading Heading ANNEXES 2 The Mission consisted of <insert name>, <insert title> Page 8 of 8