Consultant for Strengthening Innovation and Entrepreneurship Ecosystem in Jordan (SI & EE)

Background:

Plan Denmark and Plan International Jordan have been contracted by the Novo Nordisk Foundation to implement a five-year program (2022-2026) called “Najahna” focused on youth economic empowerment in Jordan. The action will aim to complement JRP’s top priority, which is to strengthen systems to protect the dignity and welfare of Syrian refugees and vulnerable Jordanians impacted by the Syrian crisis. By doing this, the project will support Jordan’s enduring commitment to continuing to build an integrated multi-year framework to respond to the Syrian crisis in a transparent, collaborative, and sustainable manner in line with the Global Compact on Refugees framework.

The Najahna program aims to empower 48,000 young Jordanian and Syrian refugees and other conflict-affected youth in Jordan, especially adolescent girls, and young women, to become economic, socially viable actors in an inclusive, healthy protective, and gender-responsive environment.

The program focuses on three objectives working Education, Economic Empowerment, and an Enabling Environment. one of three strategic objectives that will contribute to achieving the overall objective is Young Jordanian and Syrian refugees and other conflict-affected youth, especially young women, are economically empowered, by enhanced and equal access to decent employment/self-employment, allowing them to actively engage in the Jordanian economy and labor market.

The Consortium: “Najahna” program is funded by Novo Nordisk Foundation and will be led by PlanBørnefonden (PB) and Plan International Jordan (PIJO). The consortium consists of partners beyond PlanBørnefonden and PIJO, Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), Royal Health Awareness Society (RHAS), and Confederation of Danish Industries (DI) in collaboration with the Jordan Chamber of Commerce, and ODI in collaboration with the King Hussein Foundation.

The purpose of the study:

The purpose of the study is to strengthen the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem in Jordan as well as the needs of youth-driven start-ups at each stage of development.

Objectives of the Study:

The innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem in Jordan seek to achieve the following specific and interrelated objectives:

1. Entrepreneurship support organizations and early-stage ventures with a focus on the following:

• Is there a unified ecosystem that supports the field of entrepreneurship in the absolute?
• There are many things and requirements that must be given great attention to move forward in the realization of the project, please specify them.
• Some possible solutions to help meet these challenges?
• Have the public and private sectors managed to attract the attention of local and regional investors in order to enhance the ecosystem that supports entrepreneurship?
• What is the nature of the pilot projects that are directed towards sustainable and integrated local development in the targeted governorates and Jordan in general?
• Was the result of the technological revolution and digitalization having technological development and digitalization formed a new form in the entrepreneurship ecosystem and created suitable opportunities for entrepreneurship.
• Has the government established policies to advance the reality of Jordanian entrepreneurship in order to raise the level of societal awareness of the importance of supporting entrepreneurship by members of society and creating a sense of responsibility toward pioneering projects?

2. Identifying practical solutions to address infrastructure and enabling conditions of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship ecosystem in Jordan. Focusing on the following:

• What is the ideal form of an entrepreneurial ecosystem that contributes to designing practical solutions that have a positive impact on negative impacts or works to address the infrastructure and enabling conditions to ensure that potential entrepreneurs, especially young people, are able to turn ideas into actual businesses?
• Determining solutions for each targeted governorate separately and for Jordan in general?
• What is the role of the government sector and the private sector in finding effective solutions to address the infrastructure and enabling conditions of the ecosystem for entrepreneurship?
• What are the proposed solutions for developing the startup ecosystem and the appropriate solutions to protect startups from failure in Jordan?
• What are the solutions related to stakeholders in entrepreneurship, including government, universities, the private sector, investors, leaders, research centers, companies, and private institutions, as well as international donor organizations or institutions?
• What are the social and economic solutions that mainly affect the field of entrepreneurship?
• What are the solutions that are related to the main elements of the system that include individuals, organizations, or institutions, that support entrepreneurs and support their prospects for success before and after launching the project in finding solutions?
• What are the solutions that guarantee continuity for companies to access financing and achieve growth?
• What are the solutions related to enhancing integration between the various sources and mechanisms of financing, to provide support to all pioneering projects in all stages of their work?
• What are the solutions related to the existence of various financing packages besides the traditional tools that are relied upon to support entrepreneurs?
• What are the solutions that have to do with educating people, learning, and sharing their knowledge and experiences with others, if we want to create a healthy ecosystem for entrepreneurship in Jordan?
• What are the solutions that have to do with the best-targeted governorates for start-ups to operate in light of developing a thriving environment and an attractive market for entrepreneurial expansions, based on examples of success stories of international companies?

3. Identifying the right strategic partners in the targeted governorates and/or sectors at the early stages of the project. Focusing on the following:

• Determine each of the governmental partners, independent institutions, universities, colleges, educational institutes, municipalities, partners from the private sector, partners from local community organizations or international organizations, and if it is possible to determine the legal structure of them (registered or not)?
• Determining all types of beneficiaries (and the age stages of the beneficiaries) and the sectors in which strategic partners are interested or focused (industry of all kinds, agriculture, education, technology, trade, health, tourism … etc.)?
• Are there support programs that focus on meeting the needs of women and youth provided by donors in the targeted governorates, and what is the number or percentage of each?
• What is the nature of the support provided by the strategic partners (financial, technical, or in another field that I mention)?

Scope of Work:

The study will cover the Jordan area (North, Center, and South).

The key activities are the following:

• Desk review for available resources and literature project proposal and existing study made (Social Enterprise Baseline Study, prepared for Plan International Jordan by CONSULT US, 2019).
• Collect qualitative and quantitative data from local, regional, and national sources and facilitate meetings/interviews with the community and other stakeholders.
• Data processing, analysis, and preparation of the draft report.
• present the draft findings of the review to the project team and/or other stakeholders and gather feedback needed to finalize the report.
• Submit a revised report to the project team for final feedback by the project team.
• Finalize the study report following the comments received.
• Provide recommendations on the design of an entrepreneurial support organizations (ESOs), performance-based grant program leveraging the assessment of the ecosystem and proposed areas of intervention, including weighing options where available and applicable: The recommendations will need to take into account; a) the local context, market size, country ambitions and gaps identified in the assessment; b) current-state of ESOs and potential programs, including support for ESOs’ transition from the current state to their desired state; c) sustainability of the program beyond the funding of the project; d) potential synergies for the grant program with other existing support for ESOs; e) opportunities for shared infrastructure across ESOs to enhance service quality and operations ○ Recommendations should also focus on key design parameters of the grant program – including mandate, grant sizes, focus areas of support, the structure of support, roles and responsibilities, and M&E framework.
• Developing key inputs to assist Plan International in developing a comprehensive intervention in innovation and entrepreneurship.
• List and identify accelerator programs in Jordan; the final report should include lists of references for accelerator programs.

Methodology:

The baseline study will employ a mix of both qualitative and quantitative approaches. It will also identify and develop an appropriate design for the study capable of addressing the objectives of the study appropriately. The inception report will include the use of methods that are sensitive to the inclusion of all target vulnerable groups, capable of generating disaggregated data, and are gender sensitive. Overall, the methodology section should cover details of study design and approaches, sampling, sample size determination, data collection methods/instruments, data analysis techniques, plan for dissemination of study findings, and aspects of quality assurance/ethical considerations (CPP, informed consent processes, etc.) during the study.

The respondents should involve a broad spectrum of key informants and stakeholders, stakeholders in entrepreneurship, including government, universities, the private sector, investors, leaders, research centers, companies, and private institutions, as well as international donor organizations or institutions

including existing SMEs/SEs/SEIs, prioritizing women- and youth-led SEs/SEIs, service providers, knowledge institutions, ministries of industry and trade, social affairs and labor, chamber of industry and commerce, trade and labor unions, governorates and sample of final beneficiaries being disadvantaged youth (aged 18-25), women working in the informal economy and other marginalized groups from the poorest communities in the targeting area (North, Center, and South) of Jordan.

Expected Deliverables with Timeframe and Payment:

The total amount of the contract shell makes into three payments according to the submission of the deliverables. The proposed budget should include all eligible costs, including VAT, required to undertake the assignment with the following schedule of payments:

Deliverables

• Presentation of the work plan, methodologies, and tools.

**Dates (Tentative):**20th January 2023

Payment: 25 % of the total amount of the contract after the signed contract

• Submission of Draft Report

**Dates (Tentative):**20th February 2023

**Payment:**25 % of the total amount of the contract after submitting the draft report

• Revision for feedback and comments.
• Presentation of results, analysis and recommendations
• Submission of Final Report

**Dates (Tentative):**05th of March 2023

**Payment:**50% of the total amount of the contract after review and approval of the final report to be submitted in narrative form both in hard and soft copy

Duration of Contract (Task);

The contract is expected to start in January 2023 and end on March 2023.

Payment Schedule:

• Payments will be transferred upon approval of the submitted and completed outputs and submission of all manuals of agreed quality as per the contract to be signed by both parties and after Plan International (Najahona Program) agrees to the outputs and deliverables.
• When requesting a financial payment, supporting financial evidence such as an invoice or financial claim must be submitted in addition to a copy of the relevant achievements and deliverables required for each financial payment according to the contract that will be signed between the two parties.
• No payment shall be made except as agreed upon in the contract to be concluded between the two parties.
• Any payment that needs 10 working days to be processed.

Expected outputs:

The consultant is expected to deliver the following outputs:

• Presentation of results, analysis, and recommendations
• A final report incorporating feedback from all spheres, in English, and preferably Arabic, of no more than 50 pages (excluding references and annexes) utilizing the format below:

1. Title Page.
2. Contents page.
3. List of acronyms used.
4. Executive summary – maximum 3 pages, in English and Arabic.
5. Introduction and background.
6. Methodology and Sampling.
7. Findings, analysis, and conclusions.
8. Recommendations.
9. References.
10. Annexes:
    1. 1. All data collection tools (full versions to be attached).
       2. List of persons/CBOs/partners/organizations interviewed.
       3. These terms of reference.
       4. Consent form(s).
       5. Evaluation work plan schedule.
       6. List of key documents reviewed.

Qualification and Experience:

The consultant is expected to have:

• A post-graduate or equivalent qualification degree in Development Study, economics, project management, and business, business administration, public administration, international relations, Humanities, or a related field. A Master’s degree is preferred.
• At least 8-10 years of professional experience related to knowledge management, project management, and business administration with work experience.
• Excellent computer literacy skills and a strong inclination to use technology to collaborate in a community, collect feedback, analyse data, and automate data management steps. The user of tools to manage metrics, reports, research, and business analytics.
• Expertise in public policy on entrepreneurship and youth empowerment economics.
• Expertise in partnership management within the context of improving livelihoods for residents and refugees.
• Familiarity with a working environment that encompasses a wide range of organizations and stakeholders.
• Team player and team builder with the ability to problem-solve, show initiative, and influence others.
• Excellent written and communications skills, and strong negotiation skills are a must.
• Flexibility and a positive, ‘can-do’ approach.
• Excellent command of English.

Ownership:

• All documents, project designs, drawings, technical data, and other information produced by the consultant(s) shall remain the property of Plan International Jordan and shall be treated as confidential by the consultant(s) at all times, not be made available to any third party whatsoever, in any form, without the prior written approval of an authorized employee of Plan International Jordan.
• The utilization of all proposals, plans, reports, and other information provided by Plan International Jordan to the consultant(s) remains the property of Plan International Jordan and the use thereof is solely at the discretion of Plan International Jordan. All documents and other papers, whether in soft or hard copy and whether containing data or other information, provided by Plan International Jordan shall be returned to Plan International Jordan upon completion of the assignment.

Ethical and child protection considerations:

• The assignment will require the consultant to interface with children and therefore the consultant is required to provide a statement on the respect and protection of child rights, human rights and dignity of participants compliant with Plan’s Child Protection Policy.
• The consultant shall read and sign Plan’s child protection policy (CPP) as fully understood and in contract in all respects and shall follow this in all and every respect during the term of the consultancy.
• The consultant must follow Ethical Principles in research and obtain written/verbal consent from the subjects. Permission from elders should be sought if children under 18 years are involved as subjects. Signed informed consent of each child and his/her parents need to be taken after explaining the purpose of the study.

Proposal Requirements:

The consultant will submit both a technical and a financial proposal (of not more than 10 pages) that include the following:

Technical:

1. Demonstration of the consultants’ understanding of the terms of reference. This will be included as an interpretation of the consultant’s understanding of the requirements of this assignment rather than a summary or re-statement of the Terms of Reference;
2. A detailed methodology on how the assessment will be conducted, including a valid sampling method(s) for data collection, possible respondents and linking these with the tools to be administered to each respondent or category of respondents;
3. Include and elaborate on the tools to be used. Clearly show which respondents or category of respondents will be interviewed and/or which information will be collected using the tool;
4. A clear and detailed work plan (Gantt chart and/or other relevant illustration) with dates and geographical areas specified.

Financial:

1. An itemized and detailed budget, indicating the unit costs for consultancy fees as well as, separately, administrative and support costs such as travel, accommodation, and office support such as stationery. Please note that Plan will not provide transport, meals, and accommodation to the consultant or research assistants during the study. These costs will be met on a reimbursement basis and the consultant is expected to indicate the associated costs in the financial proposal.
2. All costs must be expressed in JOD.
3. Proposed terms and schedule of payment: Plan will make payments as follows;

• Start-up and Planning: 25%
• Acceptable Draft: 25%
• Accepted completion of the assignment: 50%

References and contact information:

1. Names, addresses, and telephone numbers of representatives of two organizations that will act as professional referees; these must be persons of managerial responsibility at the level where such reviews as these can be authorized.
2. Full names, post office box, telephone numbers, e-mail address, physical address and contact person of the consultancy.
3. Copy of registration or another certificate, VAT, and PIN.