Cookstove Production Specialist, Individual Consultancy, Ruyigi At UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is offering a short-term individual consultancy within UNHCR Burundi in our 4 offices across Burundi (Muyinga, Makamba, Ruyigi and Bujumbura).

The objective of this assignment is to set up four production centres to support production and distribution of Eco-smart Stove dual fuel stoves (EDS) for the returnees and host communities. Each centre is expected to produce 500 stoves per month. The centres will also train the local communities to produce efficient cookstoves of superior and consistent quality and build their capacity to run a manufacturing enterprise.

UNHCR is a global organisation dedicated to saving lives, protecting rights and building a better future for refugees, forcibly displaced communities and stateless people. Every year, millions of men, women and children are forced to flee their homes to escape conflict and persecution. We are in over 125 countries, using our expertise to protect and care for millions.

• Title: Cookstove Production Specialist
• Duty Station: Sub-Office Ruyigi, UNHCR Burundi
• Duration: 21 working days
• Contract Type: Individual Consultancy
• Closing date: 03/10/2021
• Start date: 10/10/2021

Organisational context

There is increased voluntary return of Burundian refugees from various countries currently hosting them. The relative stability that has prevailed and the peaceful political transition has provided an opportunity to install durable solutions for thousands of Burundian refugees returning from exile. Since 2017 123,426 returnees in over 41,000 households have come back most of them from Tanzania and a few from DRC and Kenya. Areas with the highest rates of returnees as of December 2020 included Muyinga (19,060), Ruyigi (26550) and Makamba (24,146). Others include Kirundo (12,602), Cankuzo (11528), and Rutana (10095)[1].

However, the socio-economic and political climate in Burundi negatively impacts the lives of many Burundians. The Human Development Report 2020 ranks Burundi at 185 out of 189 in the Human Development Index (HDI). About 75 percent of the population lives below the poverty threshold[2], and youth unemployment stands at 65 percent[3]. The refugee returnees are among the most vulnerable segments of the population. The areas they are returning to in substantial numbers, such as Makamba, Kirundo and Ruyigi, are among the poorest and chronically food and nutrition insecure provinces of Burundi. These provinces are also affected by the socio-economic impact of COVID19.

Against this backdrop, the socio-economic re-integration of up to 400,000 Burundian refugees expected to return in the near future cannot be sustained without significant development assistance. It is therefore important to support the safe and dignified return of Burundian refugees and to promote resilient and sustainable reintegration. Sustainability of the refugee returns is necessary for national & regional security and to enable progressive development in Burundi and the region.

UNHCR and partners are providing assistance to refugees who have decided to return to Burundi so that they may do so in safety and dignity, as well as to support social cohesion and sustainable return at the community level. One main UNHCR operation areas is the sustainable management of biomass sourced energy in Burundi. The briquettes are a vital part of the sustainable fuel supply mix in Burundi, although it will need to be assessed in terms of viability and environmental impact, an investigation of the other potential fuel sources and the best cooking stoves/efficiency technologies has to be carried out for the implementation in the refugee context of Burundi.

UNHCR will work with an expert to technically examine the available biomass to recommend viable and practical materials and to carefully examine their usability and suitability in terms of cooking and cooking technologies and to evaluate how the potential biomass and the potential materials that can be converted to char-briquettes as a fuel at production level for the targeted communities. Based on these recommendations UNHCR will support the production of Eco-smart stoves dual fuel stoves (EDS).

The position

We are seeking a dynamic and proactive professional who possesses experience in the area of Eco-smart stoves dual fuel stoves (EDS), including new product development and quality management such as standard formulation and enforcement.

The technical expert will act as EDS Consultant expert with hands-on knowledge and skills in clean cooking technologies, appliances, and fuels. However, Improved Cookstoves (ICS) must be his or her expertise. S/he focuses his or her efforts on implementation (getting things done) while applying the approach of advisory service, evidence-based advocacy, and knowledge transfer, among other things

The consultant will work closely with the UNHCR Energy Expert, Senior Program Officer and implementing partners.

Duties and responsibilities

Scope of Work

• Identify locations by geographic regions to setup/improve energy efficient cookstove production centres.
• Document on how to Set up four efficient cookstove production centres with the capacity to produce at least 500 cookstoves per month as per UNHCR guidelines for each geographic location.
• Identify sources of quality clay, or other organic materials and facilitate their collection and storage in 4 designated production centres.
• Ensure each location is equipped with proper tools such as moulds and other needed tools for efficient operation.
• Conduct training session in each location to ensure production centre operators understand the objective of the cookstove production process, management, and benefits.
• The training should include a demonstration on how to test clay and develop optimal mixtures to produce high quality ceramics in order to minimize clay shrinkage and cracks during stove drying and firing.
• Identify and train local refugee and host community members to:
  • Prepare clay mixtures of optimum homogeneity and be able to mould stoves and air dry them correctly using racks.
  • Guide the trainees to repair cracks during air drying and apply final steps to maintain product consistency and quality assurance.
  • Conduct a training to build a woodless kiln using local bricks and rice husks as fuel with flue path on the ground.
  • Train production staff on stove firing schedules.
  • Train communities on proper stove use for both char briquettes and firewood models in coordination with UNHCR and partners.
  • Assist in the identification and selection of an organization that will conduct a study on cooking practices inside the refugee camps in Burundi and then use those results to design or select the most efficient model of improved stove for the refugee population in Burundi.
  • Identify synergy and complementarity with other initiatives/projects developed in area of the project, with agricultural projects capable of producing the required type of biomass.

Deliverables

• An inception report outlining the methodology to be employed by the consultants in undertaking the assignment.
• Report and documentation of the process of setting up the cookstoves production centers, training outcomes of both operators and community (refugee/returnee and host) and raw material collection and storage.
• Organize two workshops/briefings: one with the UNHCR senior management in Bujumbura and one at the field level/with senior field staff.
• Based on the inputs and comments by management and other stakeholders improve/update the report and
• Submit a final report that considers comments received from management and stakeholders proposing concrete recommendations for future interventions.

Essential minimum qualifications and professional experience required

The ideal candidate will have:

• Education/training: Post-graduate (Masters or PHD) qualification or similar in the field of forestry/ agriculture, of sustainable energy, business development or development studies, engineering/ environmental science.
• Language: Good business language skills in English and working knowledge of French.
• General professional experience: 5 years of experience in the Clean Cooking Energy sector, Business Development in refugee settings, and clean cooking technologies.
• Experience in setting up cookstove production centers and ability to transfer knowledge to local stakeholders.
• Experience in identifying and testing suitable raw materials for biomass production and matching these with suitable cookstove design.
• Experience in building appropriate molds or necessary tools for production of biomass stoves.
• Experience in the design iteration process with the targeted communities to ensure skills transfer.
• Specific professional experience: 3 years of hands-on experience in cookstove production and business development.
• Regional experience: Experience as a consultant for UNHCR or other UN agencies in EHAGL region with clean cooking related field work.
• Other: 5 years of experience in the humanitarian field location.

Conditions

• The intended start date may be within 10 calendar days from the date of contract award.
• The Consultant’s tasks will be fulfilled within 21 days following the commencement date and the above-mentioned milestones will be observed.
• On the commencement date, the Consultant is deemed to be fully mobilised.
• The consultant will be based in Sub-office Ruyigi.

[1] UNHCR: Voluntary Repatriation of Burundian Refugees; Update of 31, December 2020.

[2] The World Bank

[3] African Development Bank