Consultancy Opportunity

Title	Aquaculture Technical Capacity Building Expert – Nkhotakota Steadfast Cooperations for Youth (NS4Y)
Locations	Nkhotakota, Salima
Expected Period	July 2024 to September 2024

 

1. CASA PROGRAMME OVERVIEW

CASA is an FCDO-International Climate Finance (ICF) funded programme driving global investment for inclusive climate-resilient agri-food systems that increase smallholder incomes. CASA makes the case to impact and return-oriented investors for increased investment in agribusinesses that work with smallholder supply chains. The programme achieves this goal by:

• Demonstrating the commercial viability and investment-readiness of small and medium-sized (SME) agribusinesses with significant smallholder supply chains
• Helping investors to increase the impact of their investments through the provision of inclusive technical assistance
• Strengthening the socio-legal empowerment of smallholders within value chains
• Tackling the information and evidence gaps holding back investment

For demonstrating the commercial and development potential of smallholder sourcing models, CASA focuses on catalytic interventions in the agriculture sectors of Ethiopia, Malawi, Nepal, and Rwanda that support agri-SMEs prepare for and secure investment while connecting smallholders to commercial markets.

CASA’s work on research and communications is structured around identifying constraints, opportunities and addressing evidence gaps through research; shaping the debate on smallholder agriculture to influence actions of investors, governments, and donors; and creating networking opportunities through events and stakeholder engagement.

2. ASSIGNMENT BACKGROUND

CASA has partnered with Nkhotakota Steadfast Cooperations for Youth (NS4Y) to implement a project titled ‘Commercialising Aquaculture for Better Market Access by Smallholder Farmers’. The partnership aims to leverage NS4Y’s existing fish processing capacity and market for fish products by ensuring a reliable and volume supply of fish produced by smallholder farmers through the expansion of their fish purchase scheme to include contract farming and input credit financing for smallholder farmers. At the same time, the partnership aims to empower smallholder farmers to increase their production and income by linking them to NS4Y’s purchase scheme, which will facilitate smallholder farmers’ access to technical aquaculture production expertise, quality inputs, input credit financing and more profitable and reliable markets for their production.

Through the project, CASA will provide technical assistance to NS4Y to expand the procurement and marketing of tilapia and catfish to supply the targeted urban market in Lilongwe City and the towns of Nkhotakota and Salima. Through the establishment of a contract farming model, NS4Y will source fresh table size tilapia and catfish from smallholder farmers organised into Commercial Producer Groups (CPGs) of 25 farmers each. To successfully support the partner in this regard, CASA Malawi is now seeking the services of a Short-Term Technical Assistant (STTA) as a Farmer Mobilisation Expert to assist NS4Y in identifying, assessing, mobilising and organising smallholder fish farmers.

About Nkhotakota Steadfast Cooperations for Youth

Nkhotakota Steadfast Cooperations for Youth is a local agricultural enterprise based in Nkhotakota district in the Central region of Malawi. The company was established in 2019 but was formally registered as an unlimited liability partnership on 29 May 2021. NS4Y is owned by four partners, namely James Chimbiya, Edith Mpoto, Thokozani Fickson and Naomie Phiri.

NS4Y’s main activities revolve around the processing of various agricultural products sourced from smallholder farmers in Nkhotakota and surrounding districts. Their product range, which is distributed in Lilongwe city, Nkhotakota and Salima towns, includes milled and packaged rice, smoked fish, dried fish, and fresh packaged fish.

3. ASSIGNMENT OBJECTIVES

Under Activity 4.2.2 (iii) (and budget line 6) in the project business plan, the primary objective of this assignment is to provide technical support in various areas of catfish and tilapia polyculture production and post-harvest management to NS4Y and the smallholder fish farmers they are working with. To ensure sustainability of the support, the STTA will work hand-in-hand with NS4Y personnel to build the technical production and post-harvest handling proficiency amongst contracted out-growers. The planned technical support will also build the capacity of contracted farmer groups and their membership to identify and manage fish diseases such as the Epizootic Ulcerative Syndrome (EUS), and their ability to employ climate smart and environmentally friendly fish production techniques.

The STTA will be required to employ practical and participatory approaches towards delivery of the technical capacity building envisaged under this assignment. The STTA is expected to explore the possibility of setting up demonstration sites and use them to intensively upskill group leaders with requisite technical production skills and competencies. These demo sites will be set up on ponds belonging to either a group leader or just a group member willing to use their production facilities for this purpose. It will be the duty of the STTA to assess opportunities for and to broker such collaborative arrangements with some of the contracted producers.

4. SCOPE OF ASSIGNMENT

Under the overall management of the NS4Y management team and oversight from the CASA Market Manager foraquaculture, the Aquaculture Expert will support NS4Y and the smallholder farmers in their supply chain to provide training and technical capacity building in fish production and harvest handling.

The specific duties of the Aquaculture Expert will include the following:

• Conduct a rapid technical capacity needs assessment, including evaluating the capacity needs towardsidentification and management of diseases as well as capacity of contracted producers to employ environmentally friendly and climate smart fish production technologies;
• Review existing training materials, aligning them with the identified capacity needs for NS4Y’s contracted farmers which must culminate into the production of comprehensive training materials for the training sessions;
• Train NS4Y personnel in catfish and tilapia polyculture and fish processing;
• Provide mentorship and coaching to NS4Y staff while they deliver the training to smallholder fish farmers; and
• Provide periodic progress reports for the assignment.

5. DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Under the overall management of the CASA Market Manager for aquaculture, the Farmer Organisation Capacity Building Expert will support NS4Y by providing capacity development to the smallholder farmers.

The specific duties of the Expert will include the preparation of the following:

1. Inception Report within two days of inception meeting for the assignment outlining the assignment deliverymethodology and approach, and detailing the delivery schedule for all tasks planned under the assignment;
2. Capacity Needs Assessment Report, clearly highlighting identified capacity needs including on ability of NS4Y personnel and the smallholder farmers they will in turn train to identify and manage diseases, and to employ climate smart and environmentally friendly production techniques after five days after submission of the inception report;
3. Training Materials adapted to address the training needs identified in the TNA report. At the minimum, the training materials are expected to cover fish production and post-harvest handling;
4. Training Delivery to NS4Y staff in catfish and tilapia polyculture which will cover pond construction, hatchery, grow out, harvest, and post-harvest management including processing.
5. Coaching and supervision of NS4Y staff in delivering the training to smallholder farmers to be outlined in a technical backstopping plan; and
6. Training of Report, including list of the smallholder farmers trained and recommendations for further capacity development.

 Deliverable Timelines

#	Deliverable	Work-Days
1	Inception Report	0.5
2	Capacity Needs Assessment Report	2
3	Training Materials Adaptation	2
4	Training Delivery for NS4Y Staff	10
5	Coaching and supervision of NS4Y Staff	5
6	Assignment Completion Report	0.5

 

6. ASSIGNMENT MANAGEMENT and DURATION

a. Duration

Expected Start Date: July 2024

Expected End Date: September 2024

 b. Assignment Days

Up to 20 Workdays.

c. Reporting Lines

The consultant will primarily report to the NS4Y’s management team, with oversight from CASA Malawi’s Aquaculture Market Manager.

7.  REQUIREMENTS and EXPERTISE

Key qualification and field of expertise for the ideal expert are:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Aquaculture or in other closely relevant fields. Those with a Master’s Degree will have an added advantage;
• Demonstrated track-record in catfish and tilapia polyculture production and providing training and capacity building in the same to smallholder fish farmers;
• Practical knowledge and ability to innovate and adapt production systems to be environmentally friendly and incorporate climate smart production technologies; Excellent organizational and time management skills;
• Practical application of integrating crosscutting themes: gender equality and social inclusion; climate change and environment; and food and nutrition security
• Excellent written and oral communication, listening and interpersonal skills with the ability to deal tactfully and diplomatically with a wide range of people combined with an appreciation of the importance of confidentiality;
• Willingness to take on new assignments at short notice and travel frequently to remote places;
• Ability to make decisions regarding own work, often in ambiguous situations and suggest recommendations regarding own function/discipline;
• Ability to function with minimum guidance and under pre-set procedures with attention to detail; and

• Able to exercise independent judgment within defined policies and practices.

8. MODE OF APPLICATION

Interested candidates should send an Expression of Interest no more than 8 pages long (in one document) broken down as follows;

1. A maximum of 2 pages EOI submission letter providing an overview of the candidate’s suitability for the role and their preferred daily rate expressed in GBP
2. A maximum of 3 pages outlining a proposed methodology according to their understanding of the assignment and its requirements.
3. A maximum of 3 pages Curriculum Vitae/Resume outlining only the relevant qualifications, experience and attributes for the role. Emphasis should be placed on similar consultancy assignments carried out by the candidate in the past 7 years.

Applications to be sent to rhch@niras.com with title of the position being applied for in the subject line by 5^thJuly 2024. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and will accept the first suitable applications received even before the deadline.