Consultant – Market Systems Assessment Program Design Technical Support Consultant – Burkina Faso & Remote

**Background

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. As part of our activities in Burkina Faso, Mercy Corps will conduct a full in-depth market system analysis to understand the maize sector in Burkina Faso and identify concrete actionable solutions to improve its effectiveness.

Purpose of Consultancy

The consultant will provide technical support to the program design phase of the market systems analysis, helping to develop a program strategy and activities based on the findings from the assessment phase. The assessment itself will follow a market systems development (MSD) approach to understand the maize sector including the relevant core, supporting functions, rules and norms. The assessment will evaluate market system performance, identify constraints and their underlying causes, opportunities, and incentives at all levels and will include a focus on market systems resilience and understanding the relationship between the maize sector and conflict dynamics. The findings from the assessment will then inform the design of interventions and potential partnerships to 1) support smallholder farmer resilience and productivity/growth, as well as 2) sector-wide job creation. Special attention will be given to understanding the constraints and their underlying causes as well as the feasibility of proposed solutions and new business models. The consultant will provide technical input to the development of a program design based on the market assessment and feasibility/business models analysis, including a detailed program strategy, workplan, and results chains. As part of the market assessment, the consultant will also support efforts to build the MSD assessment capacity for the Mercy Corps Burkina Faso team to support the study implementation.

Objectives, activities, and deliverables:

Objective 1: Provide technical support to the design process for program interventions, including activities/partnerships

The consultant will work closely with the project team to provide technical input and review during the development of project interventions, activities and potential partnerships based on the information gathered during the market assessment. It is expected that design activities will commence while the market assessment is still taking place. The MSA report will include both the market assessment and intervention design. The outline/template will be shared by the MC project team.

Activities:

Together with the project team:

• Conduct a “who does/who pays” (WDWP matrix) exercise for the prioritized constraints, to develop a vision of the market system future, identifying key systems changes the program could support, and identify potential market actor groups as partners and pursuing sustainability/scalability of interventions
• Identify the potential activities (using the facilitation options list provided by the MC project team) and partnerships (market actor groups or individual market actors) for the priority constraints from the WDWP matrix.
• Conduct a potential partner selection exercise, using the Will/Skill Matrix
• Select priority intervention areas and develop “intervention tables”, detailing for each intervention: the vision, objectives, target group, potential pilot activities, potential partners, AND impact projections
• Conduct data-driven feasibility checks on the identified opportunity, partners, and solution such as new business models (as per Mercy Corps project team guidance)
• Construct sector-level and program-level results chains from the bottom up (i.e. the intervention areas identified as part of the design process).

Deliverables:

1. Support the process of developing WDWP matrix, identifying potential systems changes, and prioritizing interventions and potential partners
2. Help develop impact projections and feasibility checks of the recommended opportunity, partners, and solutions.
3. Contribute to the final MSA report with intervention design and Results Chains
4. Contribute to the final labor market sub-sector report within the main MSA report or separate (feeding into the intervention design and results chains)
5. Provide input on the draft work plan

Objective 2: Build staff capacity in MSD

As part of the process of conducting the market assessment and design work, the consultant will help build the capacity of the Mercy Corps project team in the Market Systems Development (MSD) approach. Most of this capacity building will be done through learning-by-doing with the project team throughout the Program Design process. Training materials can be made available by Mercy Corps and adapted/improved as is needed in consultation with the Mercy Corps team.

Activities:

• Support synthesis, analysis, and design workshops
• Support ongoing on-the-job learning capacity building throughout the entire process with the lead MSA consultant

Deliverables:

1. All relevant training materials and coaching guidance

LOE and Timeline

Below is a list of consultant activities with estimated days of effort and timelines. The exact timeline will be determined between the Mercy Corps team and the consultant at the onset of the consultancy, and due dates will be finalized in the work plan upon approval by Mercy Corps.

The anticipated LOE for this assignment is up to 25 days within a 3.5 month period. Ideal start date is early November 2021. All deliverables must be approved by the Mercy Corps representative to be considered final.

1. Provide technical input to the design of program interventions including activities/partnerships estimated at 20 days November-December 2021, In-country
2. Draft MSA Report with intervention design including labor market sub-sector report
3. Impact projections and feasibility checks of the recommended opportunity, partners, and solutions.
4. Provide final review of MSA & Program Design Report estimated 5 days, January-February 2022, Remote, Deliverables:
5. Contribute to the final MSA report with intervention design and Results Chains
6. Final labor market sub-sector report within the main MSA report (feeding into the intervention design and results chains)
7. Review and input on the draft work plan

Build staff capacity in MSD design. Deliverables – All relevant training materials

Total 25 days, November 2021 to mid-February 2022

Mercy Corps Responsibilities

• Share existing documents or other information (e.g. documentation on Mercy Corps and other donor/agency projects, research reports, meeting debriefs etc.) relevant to completing the assignment
• Assist in refinement of market assessment tools in preparation of the in-depth market assessments. This will be done with input by Mercy Corps’ technical experts to ensure that Mercy Corps’ Market Systems approach is followed
• Organize transportation to/from locality
• Facilitate meetings with key stakeholders from the community, including mapping of stakeholders and liaison for scheduling meetings and any follow-up
• Provide any materials and refreshments for workshops (including printing)
• Review/approve all draft and final deliverables
• Contract and pay any research team to support primary data collection (if necessary)

Assessment Team

• Assessment Lead – Market Assessment Consultant
• Mercy Corps Sahel Regional Advisor
• 4 Burkina Faso staff/consultants
• Project logistical and financial support staff

The Consultant will report to

Mercy Corps Senior Agriculture Advisor, Agriculture Systems

The Consultant will work closely with:

The Burkina Faso team and HQ-based technical advisers in agriculture, market systems and employment

Required Experience and Skills

• BSs in economics, business administration international development, or any research related field, MSc/MBA is preferred
• 5-10 years of progressive experience and proven high level of competence in socio-economic development, economic development-related programs, ideally in in a vulnerable context;
• Demonstrated experience with market systems assessments and designing private sector development activities (required)
• Experience with agricultural markets required and maize (preferred)
• Experience with resilience assessment and design (preferred)
• Experience working in Burkina Faso (preferred)
• Fluency in spoken and written English (required) and French (preferred).
• Ability to work under pressure, independently and with limited supervision
• Demonstrated creative problem-solving skills and excellent time management capacities
• Security, political and cultural awareness
• Highly developed interpersonal communication skills
• Deep commitment to humanitarian principles and values

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our stakeholders and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC’s policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.**