Emergency agriculture assessment consultant (crops and livestock)

LEGS (the Livestock Emergency Guidelines and Standards) and SEADS (standards for supporting crop-related livelihoods in emergencies) are looking for an emergency agriculture assessment consultant to facilitate development of a joint Assessment Tool, bringing together the assessment guidance in the two handbooks in a user friendly and accessible way, to facilitate effective initial assessment in mixed farming and agro-pastoral communities.

The Tool will draw on the assessment checklists and guidance already available in the LEGS and SEADS Handbooks, therefore only minimal new content is anticipated. This new content would ensure that the Joint Assessment Tool fully covers production and livelihoods synergies between crops and livestock in mixed farming, agro-pastoral and other similar systems.

The format will be accessible and facilitate use of the Tool in the field, hence some selection and editing of the relevant Handbook contents will be required. However, the Tool should include a selection of relevant or combined checklist questions, as well as guidance on preparing for assessment, approach and methodology.

The final draft of the Tool will be professionally edited and designed, then field tested by one of the SEADS Field Teams (location to be determined) through a simulation event designed and attended by the consultant.

Once revised and finalised, the Tool will be prepared for publication as a pdf.

The tasks of the consultant are to:

• Participate in a briefing meeting with LEGS and SEADS representatives to discuss the task and agreed timeline.
• Review the assessment content in the LEGS and SEADS Handbooks, including both the checklists and the guidance on methodology, teams, process etc.
• Prepare a draft outline/contents page of the Tool for submission to LEGS and SEADS, and revise as appropriate based on feedback from LEGS and SEADS
• Prepare a draft of the Tool for submission to LEGS and SEADS for comment.
• Prepare a working version of the Tool based on this feedback, ready for design and field testing.
• Work with the selected SEADS Field Team to design and run an in-country simulation event, and attend the event
• Consider any additional feedback on the draft tool provided by the LEGS and SEADS Coordinators (e.g. comments from LEGS Advisory Group and SEADS Steering Group members)
• Finalise the Tool based on feedback.

Required competencies include: Background and at least 15 years’ experience in either livestock or crop emergency response (preferably both); livelihood assessment field experience; excellent writing skills.

The full TORs are available here: https://www.livestock-emergency.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/LEGS-SEADS-joint-assessment-tool-Consultant-TOR-with-updated-deadline.pdf.