Deutschland - Unternehmens- und Managementberatung - 81323050-Transforming agribusinesses to improve the employment situation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Despite Iraq's macroeconomic position as an upper-middle-income country, the economic situation in Iraq is tense and employment opportunities are scarce. IDPs, refugees from neighbouring countries, as well as host communities of displaced persons in Iraq face a high level or high risk of poverty stemming from the lack of prospects for income-generating employment. These groups often have insufficient qualifications for existing jobs or the qualifications are not recognised. Lack of access to finance for entrepreneurial activities and to employment-related networks further hampers employment growth. Structural business development support for start-ups and scale-ups is rare. Existential constraints often push vulnerable labour market participants into short-term, informal jobs with no prospects for long-term decent employment. Many IDP returnee and refugee families as well as vulnerable households in general rely on small-scale farming and livestock. Most of these enterprises are small, informal, and low in productivity due to limited access to finance and structured support as well as limited equipment and water access, weak business and marketing capacity and poor market linkages. Environmental pressures reduce agricultural productivity further and make climate-smart practices and improved resource management critical. Women and people with disabilities are severely disadvantaged. Despite very low participation in the labour market, 30% of women of working age are unemployed (compared with 13% of men) and there are far fewer female than male entrepreneurs. Women account for just 11% of the working population and have less access to land and other assets as well as financial services. People with disabilities are confronted with major barriers when trying to enter the labour market, hence, many are unemployed. Women with disabilities face an almost complete exclusion from the labour market, resulting from a combination of social stigma, physically inaccessible environments, prejudice from employers, the absence of tailored trainings, a lack of understanding by government officials and further. Against this backdrop, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) commissioned the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH to implement the project "Employment Prospects for Socioeconomic Integration of Refugees, IDPs and Host Communities in Iraq" (EPSI). In collaboration with the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (MoLSA) in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) the project aims to promote inclusive employment and entrepreneurship opportunities in the country (including Federal Iraq). Its overall objective reads as follows: "The employment situation of refugees, IDPs and people from host communities has improved." The project focusses on four outputs: 1) Policy Advocacy: Raising awareness among state actors through evidence-based findings to improve the integration of refugees, IDPs and marginalised groups in host communities into labour market policy. 2) Skills for Employment: Developing market-relevant skills to enhance the employability of the target groups through vocational training and career development centres by upgrading or developing curricula and upskilling teachers. 3) Fit for Business: Building and developing entrepreneurial and business skills as well as providing financial support to Micro, Small, and MSMEs. 4) Short-term Employment Opportunities: Providing temporary employment opportunities, such as Cash for Work, for quick income generation to address the immediate financial needs of the target groups. GIZ intends to contract a service provider to contribute to fulfil output 3 in KRI. The objective of output 3 is to enhance technical and financial capacities of refugees, IDPs and vulnerable people in host communities to set up, expand or reactivate MSMEs by i.a. cooperating with local Business Development Service providers. EPSI seeks to commission external technical expertise to contribute to Output 3 ("Fit for Business") of the project: "The technical and financial capacities of refugees, IDPs and people from the host communities to set up, expand or reactivate MSMEs have been enhanced." Output 3 focuses on strengthening the technical, managerial, and financial capacities of MSMEs through structured training, coaching and mentoring, access to financial support, and market linkages. Entrepreneurs are supported to establish or expand their businesses, improve productivity and incomes, and create employment opportunities. In parallel, local Business Development Service (BDS) providers are capacitated to sustainably deliver high-quality services to MSMEs. In all measures under Output 3, the different realities of IDPs, refugees and returnees-particularly women and persons with disabilities-are taken into account. In addition, the acquisition of professional skills relevant to environmental protection, climate action and climate-smart agriculture is prioritised in the output. Objective and Scope of the Assignment The objective of this assignment is to build the capacity of 70 existing agribusiness SMEs to expand their operations, improve working conditions and incomes, and contribute to employment creation in underserved areas of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI). The contractor shall plan and implement one full SME Loop cycle (GIZ methodology) for 70 agribusiness SMEs, in close cooperation with one competitively selected local BDS provider, which will be capacitated to independently deliver training and coaching services. The assignment will be implemented in Soran Administration (Erbil Governorate) and Garmyan Independent Administration (Sulaimaniyah Governorate). Scope of Services and Work Packages The assignment consists of four interlinked Work Packages (WP1-WP4), all under the responsibility of the contractor and contributing to the achievement of EPSI"s Output 3. WP1: Selection and Capacity Building of Local BDS Provider The contractor shall competitively select and capacitate one local BDS provider to deliver the SME Loop methodology. This includes the development of a transparent selection process, support to establish an implementation team, and delivery of Training of Trainers and Training of Coaches, ensuring readiness to implement WP2 and WP3. WP2: Training and Coaching of Agribusiness SMEs The contractor shall support the BDS provider to deliver SME Loop classroom trainings and structured coaching to 70 selected agribusiness SMEs. This includes adaptation of training modules to the agribusiness and climate-smart context, inclusive SME selection, delivery of trainings and coaching cycles, and systematic monitoring of SME progress and performance. WP3: Financial Support to Agribusiness SMEs The contractor shall provide technical support for the provision of financial support to 34 high-performing agribusiness SMEs that successfully complete WP2 and demonstrate competitive, market-relevant business models. This includes technical support during the grant application and selection process, as well as monitoring of grant utilisation and business investment outcomes in line with project requirements. WP4: Peer Learning, Youth Linkages and Market Networking The contractor shall facilitate peer learning, employment linkages, and market access to translate capacity development and financial support into sustainable outcomes. This includes cross-governorate peer learning among agribusiness SMEs, linking youth (students and graduates of agriculture-related disciplines) to SMEs for internships and employment, strengthening private-sector and market linkages, and documenting lessons learned and good practices. For the implementation fo these work packages, fo these work packages, the tenderer shall provide: - Two key experts responsible for overall technical leadership, coordination, and quality assurance; - One expert pool with international expertise providing specialised technical expertise; and - One expert pool with national expertise providing coaching and field-level support. Travel to and within KRI will be required for the implementation of the assignment by the key experts as well as the expert pool members.