Project: Public-Social-Private Partnerships for Ecologically-Sound Agriculture and Resilient Livelihood in Northern Tonle Sap Basin (PEARL)
Duty Station: Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), General Directorate of Agriculture (GDA), Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Section/Unit: MAFF Component
Contract/Level: National Consultant for the Development of Risk Financing Parameter
Supervisor: Project Manager and Project Director of PEARL
Mode of Contract: One-year contract with 70 working days.
1. Background
The Northern Tonle Sap Basin is one of Cambodia's most important agricultural regions, providing a fifth of the country's cereal and grain production, including 20 percent of the national aromatic rice production. At the same time, there are growing market opportunities for high-value and niche value chain products such as mango, cashew, organic rice, and leafy vegetables. Home to approximately 20 percent of the population, the Northern Tonle Sap Basin is one of the regions that are most vulnerable to floods and droughts due to climate change, which are affecting local livelihoods significantly. Most smallholder farmers and other value chain actors remain marginalized and vulnerable to climate change impacts. This is due to a combination of financial, technological, regulatory, market, and knowledge capacity barriers associated with environmental degradation and loss of natural resources in the targeted landscapes which expose rural communities to food and water insecurity and unsustainable livelihoods.
PEARL aims to enhance the resilience of smallholder farmers, especially women's groups, and local communities to climate change. The specific objective is to promote access to market opportunities and instruments that will reduce smallholders' vulnerability to the impacts of climate change while. improving agricultural production and rural livelihoods. PEARL will improve access to growing premium markets focusing on commodities rice, cashews, mangoes and vegetables, and scale up the uptake of climate-resilient practices and technologies. The project offers a holistic, three-fold response to enhance adaptation and reduce climate-related risks, with investments aimed at:
- Enhancing smallholder farmer capacities to manage climate change impacts and related risks.
- Increasing market incentives and access to technologies that promote climate-resilient, higher-value, diversified, and sustainable production and processing.
- Strengthening regulatory and institutional frameworks and capacities for climate-resilient agricultural certification, increased public-social-private partnerships, and climate-informed investment support.
Under the second response (component), the team of Two National Experts will lead the development of risk financing parameters for cashew, mango, and vegetable production.
2. Reporting lines
The team of Two National Experts will report directly to the project coordinator, who will serve as the project liaison with stakeholders throughout the assignment. The team will also closely collaborate with the Project Management Unit (PMU) in the FAO Representation.
3. Project Management
The project steering committee, co-chaired by MAFF and FAO, is responsible for strategic guidance for the project. The project director is responsible for overall direction and guidance and operational leadership for all activities. The project coordinator manages day-to-day project operations and coordination with all stakeholders involved in the project implementation, oversees all planning activities, and ensures timely mobilization of all necessary resources.
MAFF is responsible for the implementation of relevant parts of the project as defined in the results matrix, work plan, and budget in Annex 3 of the operation partner agreement dated 28th December 2023.
4. Objective of the Assignment
As part of the second project output (component), the objective of this assignment is to develop risk financing parameters for cashew, mango, and vegetable production and design three prototype insurance products in partnership with a private insurer.
5. Scope of Work
- Review existing literature, policies, and practices related to agricultural insurance, focusing on cashew, mango, and vegetable production.
- Collaborate with the established expert working group, including members from relevant public institutions, agronomic research organizations, and private insurers, to identify index- based risk financing parameters linked to agrometeorological information.
- Assess gaps and needs for parametric insurance for the target crops based on the literature review and consultations.
- Analyze baseline data and risk profiles of cashew, mango, and vegetable producers, considering historical production trends, climatic conditions, market dynamics, and socio- economic factors.
- Develop risk financing parameters tailored to the specific needs and characteristics of cashew, mango, and vegetable production systems in Cambodia.
- Design three prototype insurance products in partnership with a private insurer(s) under the National Crop Insurance Program, targeting individual farmers and their representative bodies, i.e., Agricultural Cooperatives (ACs), Farmers' Associations (FAs), Producer Groups (PGs), and agricultural unions.
- Propose three insurance products that can be considered by the Project for further implementation.
- Prepare progress reports at regular intervals and a final comprehensive report at the end of the assignment, outlining the findings, recommendations, and proposed risk financing parameters.
- A report detailing the identified gaps based on the literature and consultations.
- Risk financing parameters for cashew, mango, and vegetable producers.
- Feasibility assessment reports for three prototype insurance products targeting individual farmers and their representative bodies, including agricultural unions.
- Progress reports at the end of each year summarizing activities undertaken and outcomes achieved.
- Final comprehensive report detailing the findings, recommendations, and proposed risk financing parameters.
- Advanced degree in Agriculture, Agribusiness, Environmental Science, or a related field.
- Proven experience in agricultural economics, risk management, insurance, and crop production systems.
- Previous experience in conducting Risk Financing Parameters for agriculture production.
- Previous experience in conducting feasibility studies
The consultant will be selected by the Individual Consultant Selection (ICS) method set out in the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC)’s Updated Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) Procurement Manual externally financed project/programs (PM), promulgated through Sub-decree 181, dated December 2019.
In submitting expressions of interest/application, interested applicants are kindly requested to provide updated curriculum vitae, indicating personal technical skills, academic qualifications, and experience similar to the assignments, along with the details of at least three referees contact information (name of referee, email address, telephone).
Expression of Interest/application must be delivered in written form via moeurn789.gda@gmail.com Submission of the hard copy must be delivered no later than the closing date.
Only short-listed candidates will be notified for interviews. Incomplete applications will not be considered, and applications received after the closing date will not be accepted.
There is no fee charged at any stage of the recruitment process.
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